DJI Go Disconnects from Controller

RangerOne · Oct 25, 2015

bobmyers said:
When I updated from 1.1.9 to 1.3.2 I had the same issue. The controller would disconnect. Much to my surprise, I did not know that the controller did not update from the app even though I had latest app version installed. That was because I had a 300A controller which has to be updated thru the USB with the bin file.
As soon as I updated the controller, thru the USB, the controller connection no longer disconnected. Hope that helps

Yep, the ability to update via the app was a feature of firmware upgrade 1.3.20. Once you had 1.3.20 installed, you could update even the 300A versions of the controller via the DJI Go app. That's how I upgraded mine, through DJI Go... but the disconnect problem caused it to fail partway through several times. It did finally take, though it didn't help the disconnect issue.

bobmyers · Oct 25, 2015

RangerOne said:
Yep, the ability to update via the app was a feature of firmware upgrade 1.3.20. Once you had 1.3.20 installed, you could update even the 300A versions of the controller via the DJI Go app. That's how I upgraded mine, through DJI Go... but the disconnect problem caused it to fail partway through several times. It did finally take, though it didn't help the disconnect issue.

Mine would not update thru the app, had to do it manually.

McDPointer · Oct 26, 2015

RangerOne said:
PLEASE NOTE: This post is NOT about the red "no signal" aircraft status that some have experienced.

I have many dozens of flights on my Phantom 3 Pro. Until iOS 9.x came out, I never had an instance of my iPhone 6 Plus disconnecting from the controller mid-flight. When this occurs I lose video, telemetry, and all the software-based controls, but the controller is still connected to the aircraft so line-of-sight flight is fine. This can happen seconds after I get everything running, or it can work for several minutes before disconnecting. The only way to resolve the issue is to force-quit DJI Go, turn off the controller (obviously something that should be avoided mid-flight), turn on the controller, and re-launch DJI Go.

There is much confusion on the forums about this phenomenon, so let me be clear: This involves the mobile device disconnecting from the controller. It has absolutely nothing to do with radio interference, not being in airplane mode, or losing contact with the aircraft. This is strictly about the stability of the USB/Lightning link between the controller and the mobile device (specifically, iPhones -- I have no Android devices to test with).

At first I thought this was an iOS 9 upgrade issue, as that came out on September 16th and coincided with my problems. It affected both my iPhone 6 Plus and my new 6s Plus. However, there have been two DJI Go updates and one remote controller firmware update and three iOS updates since then that still haven't fixed it, AND I JUST VERIFIED THAT IT DOES NOT OCCUR ON MY IPAD MINI 2 RUNNING IOS 9.1 (but unfortunately I see in the forums that it has affected other iPad Mini users).

To date, I have verified that:

it is not a cable issue (tried several, all known to be good)

it is not an issue with battery levels on the device or controller

it is not a software install issue (I've uninstalled and reinstalled DJI Go several times)

it happens regardless of the battery in the aircraft

I *think* I saw it happen even when the aircraft was off

re-linking the controller to the aircraft has no effect (this issue doesn't affect the radio link)

it affects at least the iPhone 6 Plus and 6s Plus, but apparently not iPad Mini 2

the only way to correct it is to force-quit the app, then power cycle the controller

I am running:

iOS DJI Go app (v2.4.0)

remote controller firmware (v1.4.30)

aircraft firmware (v1.4.10)

iPhone 6s Plus

Issue noted on both iOS 9.0.2 and 9.1

There are forums all over the net filled with similar comments, and the iOS app reviews are scathing for the same reason. I sure hope DJI corrects this soon. To help them, I'm trying to determine if this affects just specific devices -- such as "phones" versus "tablets" since the codebase is slightly different between the two.

If you have experienced the app disconnecting from the controller (where the aircraft status shows Disconnected (not No Signal), please answer this poll.

I am having the same issues. All was fine with my P3P and Inspire until I updated the Go App to 2.4. After trying to fly, both required the RC to be updated. I had to stop both upgrades after an hour of DDDD. Now the controllers are no longer connected to the aircraft. You said that the fix was a power cycle of the controller. How is that done? Do you mean drain the controller battery to 0 and then recharge? Any help is appreciated. Thanks.

bobmyers · Oct 26, 2015

McDPointer said:
I am having the same issues. All was fine with my P3P and Inspire until I updated the Go App to 2.4. After trying to fly, both required the RC to be updated. I had to stop both upgrades after an hour of DDDD. Now the controllers are no longer connected to the aircraft. You said that the fix was a power cycle of the controller. How is that done? Do you mean drain the controller battery to 0 and then recharge? Any help is appreciated. Thanks.

Power cycle is just that---power off-- power on-- that is basic radio control protocol for rc transmitters. It equates to restarting a computer to flush out the ROM and start clean.

McDPointer · Oct 26, 2015

bobmyers said:
Power cycle is just that---power off-- power on-- that is basic radio control protocol for rc transmitters. It equates to restarting a computer to flush out the ROM and start clean.

I have turned the RC on and off multiple times. I have done the 4 button RC restart. I have loaded, deleted and reloaded the GO App numerous times. DJI tech support tells me that they are aware of problems with the 2.4 download and are working on it. The 2.4 version will NOT update the controller to 1.4.1 to match the drone. I own 2 P3Ps, 1 P3A and 1 Inspire. So far 2.4 has bricked 1 P3P and the Inspire. I was able to partially recover 1 P3P but the RC is still not able to be updated to match the aircraft. DJI needs to fix the GO App.

Ayrtonginster · Oct 27, 2015

I have exactly the same problem mentioned in the o.p. Running iPad mini 2 cellular with all latest dji firmware and iOS operating system. It's stopped me flying as I don't want to rely on return home function. Shocking really. Thinking about selling up if not fixed soon. Just seems like one issue after another right now.....

Poundofnuts · Oct 27, 2015

McDPointer said:
I have turned the RC on and off multiple times. I have done the 4 button RC restart. I have loaded, deleted and reloaded the GO App numerous times. DJI tech support tells me that they are aware of problems with the 2.4 download and are working on it. The 2.4 version will NOT update the controller to 1.4.1 to match the drone. I own 2 P3Ps, 1 P3A and 1 Inspire. So far 2.4 has bricked 1 P3P and the Inspire. I was able to partially recover 1 P3P but the RC is still not able to be updated to match the aircraft. DJI needs to fix the GO App.

2.4 has grounded me as well. What a joke DJI is becoming.....constantly rolling out software updates because each version they release breaks something else. Please be sure to rate the DJI GO app in the App Store. DJI monitors the reviews and it will help speed up a resolution for us.

Poundofnuts · Oct 27, 2015

Ayrtonginster said:
I have exactly the same problem mentioned in the o.p. Running iPad mini 2 cellular with all latest dji firmware and iOS operating system. It's stopped me flying as I don't want to rely on return home function. Shocking really. Thinking about selling up if not fixed soon. Just seems like one issue after another right now.....

Don't feel bad, 2.4 has grounded me as well. I've said it before and I'll say it again, this is a widespread problem. Do us all a favor and rate the DJO go app in the App Store. DJI does monitor the reviews and it will help speed up a resolution for us.

RangerOne · Oct 27, 2015

Ayrtonginster said:
I have exactly the same problem mentioned in the o.p. Running iPad mini 2 cellular with all latest dji firmware and iOS operating system. It's stopped me flying as I don't want to rely on return home function. Shocking really. Thinking about selling up if not fixed soon. Just seems like one issue after another right now.....

Tell me about it. I took my P3P on its first vacation this past weekend. I launched from the top of a mountain and flew out over a valley only to have DJI Go drop the connection to the controller 2m 23s into the flight. This time, frantically power cycling the controller and force-quitting the app (several times) did not help, and I had to entirely rely on return-to-home to bring the bird back. It had flown between us and the sun and we lost track of it... my family was scrambling to find it as I tried getting the app to work. But then it appeared directly above its home point, descending just as designed. Thank goodness for RTH! It did precisely what it is supposed to do (though, like you said, I would never rely on it).

Ayrtonginster · Oct 27, 2015

RangerOne said:
Tell me about it. I took my P3P on its first vacation this past weekend. I launched from the top of a mountain and flew out over a valley only to have DJI Go drop the connection to the controller 2m 23s into the flight. This time, frantically power cycling the controller and force-quitting the app (several times) did not help, and I had to entirely rely on return-to-home to bring the bird back. It had flown between us and the sun and we lost track of it... my family was scrambling to find it as I tried getting the app to work. But then it appeared directly above its home point, descending just as designed. Thank goodness for RTH! It did precisely what it is supposed to do (though, like you said, I would never rely on it).

Yes got to say r.t.h. thankfully runs faultlessly whenever I test. It's just that small chance that if the bird looses gps its bye bye p3.
Got to say that when it works my Phantom brings me a lot of joy, which is why it's so annoying this update is not up to the job. Let's hope it gets sorted soon

RangerOne · Nov 14, 2015

Sadly I have still not found a solution to this problem, but I haven't seen it happen to either my iPad Mini 2 or my wife's iPhone 6. So, tomorrow I'm going to completely wipe and rebuild my iPhone 6s Plus and will test the DJI Go app running on a completely clean, unmodified OS.

This really sucks. I have 110 apps, many of which require login credentials, plus Apple Pay cards and links to my Apple Watch. And health data is lost when you wipe your phone (I'll have to see if I can find a way around that tomorrow).

I did speak to DJI. Even though their support page still doesn't list the 6s models, they said everything should work fine. They didn't have any idea why my app is disconnecting.

I'll report back on my progress.

RangerOne · Nov 14, 2015

After restoring my phone (clean iOS 9.1 install), and installing just the DJI app and not customizing any other system settings, I still experienced the disconnect three times in one hour.

I swapped out the cable again (I had tried 2 cables previously), and now it seems I can't reproduce the disconnect between the app and controller. I had it on for a good 45 minutes, then for an hour and a half all with no disconnects.

So, unlikely as it may sound, it seems as though I may have had two separate Lightning cables that were somehow "bad." They both work for charging, they both work for syncing to iTunes, but maybe when they're in use for a long period of time they fail. I'm pretty sure neither has any conductor breaks internally, as they're both essentially new. What are the chances?

I'll try the drone out tomorrow and see how she flies. I can't believe it might have been the cables all along-- they work for other things, and I've never had a Lightning cable fail. Both were under 2 months old.

This also doesn't explain why I was not able to reproduce the issue with my wife's iPhone 6 or my iPad Mini 2. It makes no sense.

I'll fly tomorrow and will report back my results.

bobmyers · Nov 14, 2015

RangerOne said:
After restoring my phone (clean iOS 9.1 install), and installing just the DJI app and not customizing any other system settings, I still experienced the disconnect three times in one hour.

I swapped out the cable again (I had tried 2 cables previously), and now it seems I can't reproduce the disconnect between the app and controller. I had it on for a good 45 minutes, then for an hour and a half all with no disconnects.

So, unlikely as it may sound, it seems as though I may have had two separate Lightning cables that were somehow "bad." They both work for charging, they both work for syncing to iTunes, but maybe when they're in use for a long period of time they fail. I'm pretty sure neither has any conductor breaks internally, as they're both essentially new. What are the chances?

I'll try the drone out tomorrow and see how she flies. I can't believe it might have been the cables all along-- they work for other things, and I've never had a Lightning cable fail. Both were under 2 months old.

This also doesn't explain why I was not able to reproduce the issue with my wife's iPhone 6 or my iPad Mini 2. It makes no sense.

I'll fly tomorrow and will report back my results.

I have had cable issues with one cable-- they have to be genuine apple to be sure that they work-- can always check continuity with a ohm meter if you suspect the cable.

RangerOne · Nov 14, 2015

Yep, all my cables are genuine Apple. Connectivity seems fine for each outside of DJI Go. The Lightning cables actually have a tiny embedded controller/authenticator chip, and it's this I'm wondering about. I plan on exchanging the newest cable at Apple tomorrow, but for now another 2-year-old Lightning cable seems to be working.

RangerOne · Nov 15, 2015

Results: I was able to fly one full battery before the wind became too strong, and had no disconnects. I'm still skeptical, and will reserve judgement until I get several flights in, but as of right now it's looking like I did indeed have a couple of "bad" cables. This was very difficult to troubleshoot because they seem to work fine for non-DJI tasks like syncing with iTunes and charging, and they seemed to work with DJI Go and other iOS devices, but they would intermittently lose contact when used with the iPhone 6s Plus.

TC Malker · Nov 15, 2015

RangerOne said:
Results: I was able to fly one full battery before the wind became too strong, and had no disconnects. I'm still skeptical, and will reserve judgement until I get several flights in, but as of right now it's looking like I did indeed have a couple of "bad" cables. This was very difficult to troubleshoot because they seem to work fine for non-DJI tasks like syncing with iTunes and charging, and they seemed to work with DJI Go and other iOS devices, but they would intermittently lose contact when used with the iPhone 6s Plus.

So all along it wasn't DJI fault, neither through GO app or firmware. I thought that was the case from the beginning. I have total confidence in DJI. Upgraded latest firmware, zero issues. GO app is phenomenal! Call me a DJI fanboy.

Navin Ganeshan · Nov 16, 2015

I'm skeptical that it's only the cables.
I've the exact same issue described here. And very intermittently. Sometimes works fine at home and then when I get to the location, it doesn't connect. Usually takes a lot of power cycling and praying.
As with you guys, once it actually disconnected in mid-flight and thankfully for RTH came back.
I've tried apple, non-apple and brand new braided $30 cables and it still happens on all of them.
I use an iPhone 6S plus.
It started happening in mid September after the latest spate of upgrades.
It also happened on my nexus 7 tablet at the same time. So Ruling out a cable issue.
I wonder if it's related to temperature. Maybe something in the RC USB port is reacting badly to colder weather????

Navin Ganeshan · Nov 16, 2015

Check out this video and the Long comment stream on it from all the people with the exact same problem. It is not related to firmware, it's not the cable, it's on both android and iOS. Please stop suggesting this.

DJI is replacing the RC for at least one user. Seems like the only tangible lead here.

shockwave199 · Nov 16, 2015

RangerOne said:
Results: I was able to fly one full battery before the wind became too strong, and had no disconnects. I'm still skeptical, and will reserve judgement until I get several flights in, but as of right now it's looking like I did indeed have a couple of "bad" cables. This was very difficult to troubleshoot because they seem to work fine for non-DJI tasks like syncing with iTunes and charging, and they seemed to work with DJI Go and other iOS devices, but they would intermittently lose contact when used with the iPhone 6s Plus.

How has everything been working? I'm getting this now to the point that I don't trust flying it. Certainly not for critical video programs. The app just disconnects and reconnects, sometimes taking a quick 15 seconds, sometimes longer. Once the ipad air 2 actually crashed completely, thankfully while on the ground. I'm really bummed about this. I want this system to work so much but I simply cannot gain trust in it. Hoping like all hell DJI comes up with the solution to ALL the people who are dealing with this.