Subtle differences in P4

[John Locke]

Touching it you can't really tell if it's plastic or powder-coated aluminum. Might be able to tell removing the camera back & flexing it but I don't really want to take it apart.

I know the camera, gimbal components, & gimbal base plate were all aluminum on the Vision+. V+ gimbal parts usually bent in a crash. I suspect the P3 cameras & gimbal may be plastic...especially the base plate...due to how many I see broken in two.

In #12 of the P4 FAQs in the DJI website they state the camera and gimbal are made of composite material, whatever that means.

"The gimbal and camera system is integrated into the body, bringing it closer to the aircraft’s center of gravity. It is also made of a rigid and strong composite material"

 

[N017RW]

C'mon man... Google...

"A composite material (also called a composition material or shortened to composite) is a material made from two or more constituent materials with significantly different physical or chemical properties that, when combined, produce a material with characteristics different from the individual components."

 

[John Locke]

Touching it you can't really tell if it's plastic or powder-coated aluminum. Might be able to tell removing the camera back & flexing it but I don't really want to take it apart.

Have you removed the lens filter to install an ND filter? If yes, what do the threads look like? Metal or Plastic?

 

[CaptainDrone798]

Touching it you can't really tell if it's plastic or powder-coated aluminum. Might be able to tell removing the camera back & flexing it but I don't really want to take it apart.

I know the camera, gimbal components, & gimbal base plate were all aluminum on the Vision+. V+ gimbal parts usually bent in a crash. I suspect the P3 cameras & gimbal may be plastic...especially the base plate...due to how many I see broken in two.

This works with the P3 so should be the same with the P4... If you touch the camera body and it feels cool at room temp, it's most likely a metal. If it feels the same temp as the Phantom fuselage, then it's most likely a plastic composite.

I'm sure i saw in some review where it is a light metal but easily scratched, so to be careful. Someone will eventually have the answer as P4s are on their way to thousands of happy owners!

 

[Dirty Bird]

Does blue agave & yeast qualify?

C'mon man... Google...

"A composite material (also called a composition material or shortened to composite) is a material made from two or more constituent materials with significantly different physical or chemical properties that, when combined, produce a material with characteristics different from the individual components."

 

[N017RW]

Hell Yea... Mas Tequila!

 

[John Locke]

My P4 arrived this morning, a day early from China. It shipped the 15th, here on the 17th. Fedex is impressive.

I noticed the landing gear footprint is larger on P4, helps to prevent tipping. That's good.

I noticed the battery charging plug is reversible, shades of Apples Lightning connector being reversible. This plug is way easier to plug up to the charger and will be easier for aftermarket vendors to make slick multi-battery chargers.

The SD card does in fact install upside down, as noted by another member. Glad I read that thread, that's a key thing to know to prevent messing up the card slot mechanism, possibly.

 

[BlueSkies]

Very easy to find out. Ask the people who bough it to say what is made of.
I am old school, I like metal for cameras, I don't buy "is better", I know is MUCH better for DJI pockets.
Every time I hear "better and improved" I know I am taken for a ride and somebody else's bank account is getting fatter.

Yes. There's a reason my Canon 5d Mark III has an all metal body. Durability!

My Inspire's X3 is metal.

Bill


Sent from my iPhone using PhantomPilots mobile app

 

[Mark Granger]

It's pretty slick how the main electronics of the P4 are designed around a central core with a magnesium frame.

Just don't throw it in a fire.

 

[John Locke]

Yes. There's a reason my Canon 5d Mark III has an all metal body. Durability!

My Inspire's X3 is metal.

Bill


Sent from my iPhone using PhantomPilots mobile app

There may be a case made for the camera being made from composite materials to allow the Lightbridge antennas to work better, since the camera hangs down near the antenna wires. A metal case might interfere with signals more.

 

[Air Ontario]

Just don't throw it in a fire.

Or try to put it out with water........

 

[Kman]

My P4 arrived this morning, a day early from China. It shipped the 15th, here on the 17th. Fedex is impressive.

I noticed the landing gear footprint is larger on P4, helps to prevent tipping. That's good.

I noticed the battery charging plug is reversible, shades of Apples Lightning connector being reversible. This plug is way easier to plug up to the charger and will be easier for aftermarket vendors to make slick multi-battery chargers.

The SD card does in fact install upside down, as noted by another member. Glad I read that thread, that's a key thing to know to prevent messing up the card slot mechanism, possibly.

I've noticed while the P4 landing gear is bigger when the motors are armed they idle at a higher RPM than my P3 and it's almost tipped over a few times on level ground. I'm sure this will be fixed in a firmware update.

 

[dewster]

The fan is probably to keep the processor cool.


Sent from my iPhone using PhantomPilots mobile app

 

[John Locke]

As reported earlier today, P4 has digital zoom. In 1080 you have a 2X zoom without losing much clarity because it's using the 4K sensor. I tested it today, just pinch the screen to zoom in. It tells you how much you are zoomed in. Nice touch, but I don't think that's in the manual. I'm thinking it's the result of the latest firmware. I was told they've been testing a while, but surprised it was released this quick.

I also noticed that using the PSA switch cannot turn off collision avoidance, as implied in the user manual. You have to go into the app to turn off CA in order to get Sport mode and ATTI to work. I think that's a flaw, I don't like that at all. I hope they change that later to be easier to turn CA on and off. Having to stop and hover the craft while shooting my video, just to go into the app to turn CA on or off is cumbersome and slow. It's messed up.

 

[John Locke]

Flying with CA enabled is like flying my old Yuneec Q500+, BORING! Geeze it's slow, and rarely race around because I try to conserve my battery. But when I'm up close an personal with a statue, lighthouse, building or bridge, CA is going to come in handy. I just wish it was easier to turn on and off.

 

[RedHotPoker]

How wrong was I? I had previously thought CA on/off was going to be a simple flick of the flight mode switch, as well. That does make it much less attractive, indeed. See, I figured you could be zipping along high speed, in Sport mode, and then flick it back to P to acquire CA. For me it's Boo. & I don't mean Casper...

RedHotPoker

 

[John Locke]

Taking a close look at the motor arms you'll notice shell is slightly pointed on the top of the arms in a vertical direction, kinda like a wing. The motor arms are like VTOL wings (exaggeration) ready for takeoff. When you compare to a P3 or P2 you'll realize how restricting the blunt surfaces of the top of the motor arms are for the air from the props to pass downward for thrust. The slim narrow design of the P4 motor arms, along with the slick shiny surface is a definite attempt to increase efficiency for longer flight duration and speed.

I discovered the vents on the bottom of the motor arms are not very durable, almost paper thin screen, and somewhat vulnerable. Beware. With my luck, what happened was I had my props laying in my backpack when putting the craft away. I love the quick detach props! One of the props was pointed up, laying in my backpack. When I went to put the craft in the backpack cubby, one of my props was laying there at the exact angle and attitude to poke one of those vents out, easily detaching the vent screen from the plastic. I didn't even feel or hear it happen when it occurred, it just looked like the prop caught on something. As I lifted the craft back up, I realized the prop had entered deep inside the shell. I couldn't believe it. It was my first outing and it's already got a scar. The stars lined up perfect. That prop just happen to be at the exact angle to poke the screen loose. I'd have to split the body shell to repair it, but that's not happening anytime soon, I hope. The screen is still attached on one side, but there's an open area that's not filtered by the screen. It's only cosmetic because it really doesn't affect the cooling much, air can still pass. It's just disappointing that's it' less than a day old and it's already flawed.

 

[Patrick]

I also noticed that using the PSA switch cannot turn off collision avoidance, as implied in the user manual. You have to go into the app to turn off CA in order to get Sport mode and ATTI to work. I think that's a flaw, I don't like that at all. I hope they change that later to be easier to turn CA on and off. Having to stop and hover the craft while shooting my video, just to go into the app to turn CA on or off is cumbersome and slow. It's messed up.

is this only with the new firmware, when i kicked in sport mode with the "S" swtich it seemed to disable CA?

 

[Patrick]

if i remember right there's a beginner mode that disables sport mode, you have to disable beginner mode first.

 

[Patrick]

How wrong was I? I had previously thought CA on/off was going to be a simple flick of the flight mode switch, as well. That does make it much less attractive, indeed. See, I figured you could be zipping along high speed, in Sport mode, and then flick it back to P to acquire CA. For me it's Boo. & I don't mean Casper...

RedHotPoker

you can!