Search & reading added more ??? for "mission" setup.

[Happyflyer]

Wanted to "play" with ground station. Read manual, watched videos, and read several posts here. All that did was add more questions or ones that could not be answered. So:
1. Do you have to be at the location where you want to fly to set up your "mission?"
.......If not, then how do you get started when you move the map to the location where you want to fly and there is no small icon of your quad? In other words no home location showing.
2. A poster here stated to someone to set up your flight and save it to favorites. Favorites where?
3. A comment on Simon's YouTube video had a good suggestion on setting first waypoint directly above you to make sure quad does not take off and slowly climb to point 1 and hit a tree in the way. Good comment.
4. Where are maps you download saved to. Done automatically?
5. Is a "mission" stored in the quad? Or must connection to controller be maintained? In other words, don't go too far away.
Thanks

 

[dmagnus]

I'm at work right now, some 50+ miles from home, where I want to do a mission. The iPad comes up with the map centered at my current (work) location and puts up a message telling me it can't find the aircraft - of course, it's at home... I hit "Cancel" and I'm on the map. I switch the map to Hybrid mode because I prefer that.

I hit the ellipsis (...) on the right side of the top menu bar and get a box that has a bunch of icons in it. One of them is a cloud with a star behind it. This is the Favorites. I hit the favorites icon and get a box with two lists, one is single waypoints, the other is multiple waypoints. I only have multiple waypoint missions set up so I hit that icon. Up pops a list of my saved Mission Profiles. I hit one and, lo and behold, I'm near my house on the map with that particular mission displayed. At that point, I hit the single waypoint icon on the top menu and set a waypoint at my actual home location, then save it as a waypoint. From then on, I can just bring up that waypoint wherever I may be at and input a mission to be saved to favorites and used later when I get home. You can also pan the map at any time. Pinch the map with two fingers and it will zoom out so you can pan great distances with each drag. I assume something like this is available on the PC version.
You really have to carefully read the GS manual to figure out what all the icons mean. On the iPad, there is no "hover context tip" to guide you and the icons are definitely NOT very intuitive. I'm sure I'm probably making more work out of this than necessary, but like I said, the icons are not very intuitive and the instructions pretty much suck, as do all of the DJI manuals...

If you don't have a home waypoint or mission stored, you will have to pan the map to where you want to go. Actually, it's not that hard to pan halfway across the country if you use a large enough scale on the map. When you get close to where you want to assign the mission, zoom in close for detail.

 

[Happyflyer]

No iPad, Android tablet here.

 

[OI Photography]

No iPad, Android tablet here.

You'll need an iPad or iPad mini for the full Grounstation...Android tablets will only work with the waypoints app on Vision/Vision+. I prefer Android too but ended up buying a used iPad mini just for GS use.

 

[Happyflyer]

Thanks Ol Photo for the info.

 

[dmagnus]

No iPad, Android tablet here.

Yup, I hate the iPad, but it works for both GS and as a chartplotter on my boat.

 

[OI Photography]

No iPad, Android tablet here.

Yup, I hate the iPad, but it works for both GS and as a chartplotter on my boat.

Great, so now I gotta buy a boat too, to get all of the functionality of my iPad that I bought to get all the functionality of my groundstation?

Ok

 

[Buckaye]

No iPad, Android tablet here.

Yup, I hate the iPad, but it works for both GS and as a chartplotter on my boat.

Great, so now I gotta buy a boat too, to get all of the functionality of my iPad that I bought to get all the functionality of my groundstation?

Ok

Step away from the ledge now... do NOT buy a boat LOL been there done that... talk about a money pit!

 

[Happyflyer]

Step away from the ledge now... do NOT buy a boat LOL been there done that... talk about a money pit!

I know some one that runs a marina and you got that right!

 

[PetePerrim]

I'm at work right now, some 50+ miles from home, where I want to do a mission. The iPad comes up with the map centered at my current (work) location and puts up a message telling me it can't find the aircraft - of course, it's at home... I hit "Cancel" and I'm on the map. I switch the map to Hybrid mode because I prefer that.

I hit the ellipsis (...) on the right side of the top menu bar and get a box that has a bunch of icons in it. One of them is a cloud with a star behind it. This is the Favorites. I hit the favorites icon and get a box with two lists, one is single waypoints, the other is multiple waypoints. I only have multiple waypoint missions set up so I hit that icon. Up pops a list of my saved Mission Profiles. I hit one and, lo and behold, I'm near my house on the map with that particular mission displayed. At that point, I hit the single waypoint icon on the top menu and set a waypoint at my actual home location, then save it as a waypoint. From then on, I can just bring up that waypoint wherever I may be at and input a mission to be saved to favorites and used later when I get home. You can also pan the map at any time. Pinch the map with two fingers and it will zoom out so you can pan great distances with each drag. I assume something like this is available on the PC version.
You really have to carefully read the GS manual to figure out what all the icons mean. On the iPad, there is no "hover context tip" to guide you and the icons are definitely NOT very intuitive. I'm sure I'm probably making more work out of this than necessary, but like I said, the icons are not very intuitive and the instructions pretty much suck, as do all of the DJI manuals...

If you don't have a home waypoint or mission stored, you will have to pan the map to where you want to go. Actually, it's not that hard to pan halfway across the country if you use a large enough scale on the map. When you get close to where you want to assign the mission, zoom in close for detail.

Well written reply. I agree with you that the instructions and icons pretty much blow but once you start getting your head around them then GS for iPad is an excellent system. I went out with a mate last weekend to show him how GS works and we took his V+. I was surprised at how basic GS for V+ is in comparison. Only 3 speed settings, maximum range (un cracked) of 500m etc etc. it's like GS with training wheels! After that I really appreciate my GS with the iPad.

On another note, I detect a level of animosity toward iPad or iOS products in this thread. I use an iPad and iPhone 5 which I really enjoy because they do exactly what they're supposed to EVERY time I use them where as I use two MS laptops for work, one is 3 months old and they're just ****. I've also tried android products like the Samsung Galaxy which was equally unreliable. There seems to be almost no vetting of the apps churned out for Android. You have dozens of hardware manufacturers making ever cheaper phones and tablets loaded with an OS that is supposed to support apps made by anyone. It kind of reminds me of Microsoft Windows and how **** that is nowadays.