Changing from a Vision Camera to a Go Pro

[PhotoFortyTwo]

I managed to crash my unit into a tree the other day. Gimbal busted and Camera gone.
I want to change to a separate Camera a Go Pro Hero 3 a new Gimbal (Advice gratefully received.)
What do I need to get to make this happen?
Will a different Gimbal work with the connectors? I have a 4, 6, 8 pin cables, hanging from the 'copter can I assume the four pin is all I need to power a new Gimbal? The others, should I just tuck away?
I really want to be able to see live what the camera sees. Will a Go Pro Hero 3 WiFi work via the Wi Fi extender on my Tx? And will I be able to view via my phone?
The camera/gimbal unit that comes with the Vision 2 seemed way to delicate for me. Just the tiniest of bumps can trash the gimbal, so if you have a recommendation for a "Robust Gimbal" that would be great.
I have only had the unit for about 6 weeks. So bummed that it is out of service right now. If you can help answer these questions that would be great.

 

[ProfessorStein]

Thing is, it's not that easy. Since the Vision FC200 camera also manages the WiFi for the vx, you'd need a gimbal (or supplementary board/box) to take over those duties (no, the GoPro WiFi won't work in that regard... at all). And, afaik, since the Phantom 2's somewhat inexplicably use control frequencies that are the REVERSE of industry standard (5.8GHz for tx and 2.4GHz for vx) there aren't a whole lot of other options.

You can find other gimbals for the P2V, but most use the FC200 camera to maintain that WiFi binding.

You might have a look at the MotorPixie open source gimbal (3D printed... just do a search in this forum). I believe he now has a GoPro option designed and available. I have no idea how "plug-n-play" it might be for a situation like yours. Maybe he can step in and give more info.

But, regardless, ALL gimbals are inherently "fragile". They are designed to be as light as possible (compromising strength) and are balanced to within an inch of their lives to begin with. You're probably not going to find a gimbal that can survive a decently bad crash (and if you think the P2V gimbal is fragile, just be glad you didn't buy a Vision+ !)

The other thing you might be fighting, though, unfortunately, is your main board. If the camera unplugged while your Phantom was powered up (like it sounds like it did, since it was flying), there's a SLIGHT chance that it may have fried your main board. While usually damage like that occurs more frequently when the camera is plugged IN when the unit is powered up, I've seen it happen when it was UNplugged as well.