Best remote control for phantom 2 with zenuse/gopro?

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holoboss

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Hello,
I am practicing my flying for a while now, and I can't say I am in love with the kit remote control which came as the set with phantom 2 and gimbal. I hope to find something which would give a bit more precision to flight, and hopefully would display some extra info ( phantom altitude, remaining main battery, speed, etc.). Something when I fly too far away, I don't see well what is happening and I am afraid of flying too low, etc. Seeing such info could help, I think.

If you can advice on a good remote without breaking a bank, I would appreciate it a lot.
Cheers!
 
We'll to get that info I think a dx18 will give it. But osd via fpv will get you that info. As far as radio, I like my taranis, only $200 and has tons of features.
 
I'm not using the taranis for telemetry yet. I need to get off my butt and order the stuff.

I use ezosd for my osd when I have the camera and stuff on.
 
as for me - I don't have any extra sensors over what is installed in Phantom 2. do I need any extras to see basic operations on remote's display?
Thanks!
 
Yes. No data is built in. You need to buy the sensors seperate and a compatible transmitter.
 
holoboss said:
as for me - I don't have any extra sensors over what is installed in Phantom 2. do I need any extras to see basic operations on remote's display?
Thanks!
Click to expand...

You'll need to add something, there's a number of ways you can do it. If you add an FPV setup (video transmitter and receiver, and an monitor on the ground), then you can easily include DJI's iOSD mini as part of that, which will display the kinds of critical data you want straight from the Phantom and on to your monitor.

If you don't want to go that route, you can get an aftermarket telemetry system and controller, the FrSky Taranis is one of the best controllers for that. But, you'd also have to add various sensors to the Phantom, as it's not possible to feed the Phantom's own data to non-DJI equipment like that.

The other way you could accomplish this is with DJI's Groundstation gear...it'll show flight data on your iPad or PC, as well as let you pre-create flight plans the Phantom can fly without additional input from you.
 
thank you, both of you. for now I used my smartphone to get GoPro live preview, but it only shows the camera view, of course no info from phantom. so, it may be a more pricey than I thought. not sure which way to go, but thanks for all info.

And, if a good, stable, long-range and precise remote control goes - what would it be to easily use with phantom 2?
 
holoboss said:
thank you, both of you. for now I used my smartphone to get GoPro live preview, but it only shows the camera view, of course no info from phantom. so, it may be a more pricey than I thought. not sure which way to go, but thanks for all info.

And, if a good, stable, long-range and precise remote control goes - what would it be to easily use with phantom 2?
Click to expand...

It's not advisable to use the gopro's wifi when flying the Phantom as it can interfere with the 2.4GHz control signal...this is the main reason DJI used a 5.8GHz controller on the Vision (which uses wifi for video transmission).

Just adding an aftermarket controller/receiver to the Phantom is fairly easy, you just have to connect the receiver in the Phantom in place of the stock one (1 to 7 wires, depending on what type you get). However, adding telemetry can get complicated, as you'll have to add sensors too depending on what data you want, and some of them will take some creative wiring/soldering to add to the aircraft.
 
Thanks once again! lots of good info.
 
Yet another question, if I may, please.
I went to dji web site and I see the OSDI (mini or mark II), but all info there is VERY foggy. There is no clear info what actually is needed to make it work. That is always the problem on their site. they tell a bit about each item, but do not offer advice which combinations of items are needed to do what.

so, on top of OSDI (which one, what really is so different about these two) - what would I need? I saw something called Lightbridge, but it is awfully expensive and looks very big, like a router. So I don't think I can pack it inside phantom. and again - I am a bit lost.

Thank you for your patience with me. I am a veteran photographer, but a beginner copter operator :-(
Thanks
Derek
 
The information DJI provides can indeed be a bit foggy for those new to all of this...and that's assuming you can even figure out where DJI's relevant references are found for each.

For a Phantom, the iOSD mini would be the better option between that and the iOSD mkII. The latter presents all the same data on your screen, it just has a built-in PMU (only needed if you're powering a separate dedicated FPV camera in addition to your gopro) and also adds the ability to switch between 2 camera feeds on the fly, pun intended. The mini is smaller and lighter, and works great.

Whenever you can't find the documentation you need on DJI's main website, the DJI wiki is usually another good place to check. Here's the entry on the iOSD mini: http://wiki.dji.com/en/index.php/IOSD_mini_Setup

The connections are simple: it plugs in to any open canbus port (like the one on the leg of your Phantom's landing gear), and then the video feed cable from the Phantom to the video transmitter is wired through the iOSD mini so it can overlay the telemetry data. Which type of video transmitter do you have or are considering? If you have/use an Immersion or Fatshark vTx, then this cable takes care of all of that wiring for you: http://www.firstpersonview.com/cables/p ... ransmitter.

Lightbridge is DJi's brand new $1600 long-range device for HD video broadcast and aircraft control in a unified package. Generally not worth it for the average phantom-sumer photog ;)
 
OI Photography, I owe you a virtual beer! Thanks for your patience and explanations. I doc not have any video link installed. As mentioned - I used GoPro wifi to check for camera view. and I don't have a clue what I should consider/install. This would be just for getting basic flight info and some kind of preview, no HD image transmission needed, so I hope to find a solution which won't cost more than phantom itself. I can have it all showing on my smartphone if there is an app for it.

Another option is to sell this one and try the new vision+ instead... (I am not thrilled with image quality from gopro3+, it is jpg, not raw, and has terrible distortion, chromatic aberration, etc.)

Thanks again!
Derek
artphotographyservices.com
 
holoboss said:
(I am not thrilled with image quality from gopro3+, it is jpg, not raw, and has terrible distortion, chromatic aberration, etc.)

Thanks again!
Derek
artphotographyservices.com
Click to expand...

Yeah, I am not impressed by the still images from the GoPro either.
Thats why I am experimenting with using my Nex-7 on the Phantom.
 
No problem! Next time I have a virtual buzz, I'll credit it to you ;)

While adding an FPV setup isn't necessarily simple, it's probably the simplest way to get visible telemetry data to the ground end. As far as cost, you could get a decent setup for around $300, and it's possible to choose components that don't require any soldering.

Or, if you have an iPad (or don't mind the ugly PC interface), you could get the Groundstation gear (~$200) and just use it for the telemetry data it displays over the data link (on to your iPad's or PC's screen).
 
Thanks again, I will try to digest it all now :)
 
Yeah, I am not impressed by the still images from the GoPro either.
Thats why I am experimenting with using my Nex-7 on the Phantom.[/quote]

wow,
how do you mount it, and how can you control the camera? that sounds interesting. I thought this would be too heavy for phantom...
 
and perhaps a stupid question:
How many channels I need for RC to operate well my phantom 2 with zenmuse?

thank you! :oops:

I ask because I see a low priced 7 channel futaba on ebay, and I heard futaba using FASST can be paired with Phantom 2.
http://www.ebay.com/itm/Brand-New-Futab ... 3f1e6d0267
 

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