I'm sorry to say, but,

[Noble 1]

@John Locke @GadgetGuy & @Dirty Bird

Thank you for the data. It's super helpful.

P4 vs P3P
From my own testing I've found my data to be convincing to me that the battery life is better by several minutes in any mode, best with no wind and in P mode obviously.

FIRST OFF
DJI lied about P3P flight time! Shocked? Not really.
I consistently get 13-18 minutes on my P3P depending on aggressiveness and conditions.


Here's my NEW P4 data:

P-mode only: 25 min 25% battery
With CA off and no aggressive flying (full stick in any direction) I got significantly more time in the air at about 25 min 25% battery. I'm sure if I went to 0% I could easily get 28 minutes!

Mixed P and mostly Sport: 20 min 25% battery
I fly mostly aggressive full stick in P mode and sport mode with CA on by default and with windy conditions temp of 50F and total 29,000 ft distance 395 ft altitude with many changes and I got to 20 min and 25% battery and I wasn't even trying to go for time/battery.

ALL SPORT: 16 min 25% battery
Windy conditions, 42 deg F, very aggressive flying 395 ft altitude to ground level several times, and total distance of 27,000 ft.


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[Deputy Dog]

@John Locke @GadgetGuy & @Dirty Bird

Thank you for the data. It's super helpful.

P4 vs P3P
From my own testing I've found my data to be convincing to me that the battery life is better by several minutes in any mode, best with no wind and in P mode obviously.

FIRST OFF
DJI lied about P3P flight time! Shocked? Not really.
I consistently get 13-18 minutes on my P3P depending on aggressiveness and conditions.


Here's my NEW P4 data:

P-mode only: 25 min 25% battery
With CA off and no aggressive flying (full stick in any direction) I got significantly more time in the air at about 25 min 25% battery. I'm sure if I went to 0% I could easily get 28 minutes!

Mixed P and mostly Sport: 20 min 25% battery
I fly mostly aggressive full stick in P mode and sport mode with CA on by default and with windy conditions temp of 50F and total 29,000 ft distance 395 ft altitude with many changes and I got to 20 min and 25% battery and I wasn't even trying to go for time/battery.

ALL SPORT: 16 min 25% battery
Windy conditions, 42 deg F, very aggressive flying 395 ft altitude to ground level several times, and total distance of 27,000 ft.


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Did you do a long flight to see how far it could go and still receive a good signal, and make it home safely? I've flown my P3P for a total distance of just under 60,000' with no wind and landed with 5% battery. In a long distance flight, with no wind, I've gone out over 22,000' and returned safely with 4% battery. I'd really like to know how far out a P4 can go and return safely, without losing signal.

 

[XJoeyX]

So better to buy from apple??

We have a local Apple Store here in San Antonio, so FOR ME, buying direct from DJI saved me $115.42 in sales tax. Hell, that's 2/3 of the way to an additional battery (which, even if it was available at the Apple Store would have cost me an ADDITIONAL $13.95 in sales tax on the battery) so for me it was a no brainer to buy for DJI instead of Apple. So ordering from DJI, I instantly saved $129.37. It might seem trivial, considering I just spent $1568 on a P4 and additional battery, but you gotta save those dollars wherever you can!

~Joey

 

[XJoeyX]

I've used 2 batteries from Apple Store and very happy with their performance so far. Plus they are getting better...

So, you actually got additional batteries from your Apple store? I called my local Apple Store this past week and asked if they carried them, and the associate I spoke with claimed that "NO Apple Store carried the additional batteries." I guess it wouldn't be the first time an organization lied to a consumer...

~Joey

 

[TheLightSpeedz]

They do! Some do! You have to go in though!


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[Noble 1]

Did you do a long flight to see how far it could go and still receive a good signal, and make it home safely? I've flown my P3P for a total distance of just under 60,000' with no wind and landed with 5% battery. In a long distance flight, with no wind, I've gone out over 22,000' and returned safely with 4% battery. I'd really like to know how far out a P4 can go and return safely, without losing signal.

I haven't tested range past 10000.
I am planning to do it soon though. I've had video loss at ranges I thought were unexpected and I'm contemplating a DBS mod. I used on on the P3P and it doubled my range.

I don't usually do distance runs. The thought that the P4 transmitter/birdside only have .35 watts really pisses me off when legally FCC says we can have up to 1 Watt.

I used DBS to hopefully decrease the chances of losing signal when the likely hood is high.


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[MikeK]

[...]

The collision avoidance is just a cool feature if you were actually trying to film something and can't gauge the height of something. Honestly I keep mine in sport mode for the most part!

[...]

I suspect your casual reference to P-4's object avoidance feature occurs because you either live in a place where wide open spaces are common and you have easy access to them. Because if you live in or close to an urban area, where open space is a premium, you would assign much greater value to object avoidance.[/QUOTE]

 

[flycaster]

Range and battery life aren't always the most important things. Do you drive a Prius because it gets the best gas mileage?

why else would you drive a Prius??!

 

[TheLightSpeedz]

I suspect your casual reference to P-4's object avoidance feature occurs because you either live in a place where wide open spaces are common and you have easy access to them. Because if you live in or close to an urban area, where open space is a premium, you would assign much greater value to object avoidance.

[/QUOTE]

I'm finding it to be better and better the more I play with it.


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[Noble 1]

So I did a range test today. P3P vs P4. Stock.

I flew almost 2,000 foot further on same route with P4.

Same route.
P4. Range 8,400
P3P Range 6,500

Totally anecdotal and un-standardized, but it's reassuring to me.

I hope this helps!

P4 wins

P3P

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[Justgregg]

Really....guess I have been miss informed on the LOS rule.

 

[John Locke]

With a P4?

Yes,15000' using a windsurfer installed on the RC antennas flying P4 craft.

 

[Noble 1]

Yes,15000' using a windsurfer installed on the RC antennas flying P4 craft.

It's frustrating that you have to use a windsurfer to get close to the P4's "stock" advertised range which is 16,368 feet (3.1 mi or 5 km).

Have you tried out your DBS mod with the P4?
----------------
Max Transmission Distance FCC Compliant: 3.1 mi ( 5 km );
CE Compliant: 2.2 mi ( 3.5 km )( Unobstructed, free of interference )
Transmitter Power ( EIRP ) FCC: 23 dBm; CE: 17 dBm
----------------

I see light at the end of the tunnel!
There's still hope!

 

[TheLightSpeedz]

It's frustrating yes... But I don't feel like my P3P or P3A flew the advertised range either. I took my P4 out on a short test flight... I only went out a few thousand feet but it feels so stable, fast and consistent. My P3P was inconsistent as to what could be done and what could not be done. IMO



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[HVDV]

My impression is that the P4 can fly much faster in which case the range and flight time are reduced significantly, but if you fly the P4 at lower speeds then both the range and the flight times increase above those of the P3P flown at the same speed

 

[Ronnie O]

I think it is better to buy from Apple if you are even thinking about returning it. I've heard nothing but bad things about dji's customer service. When I bought my p2v there was a guy in the store whose p2v was DOA out of the box. Instead of exchanging it for him he had to have it sent to DJI in Asia. The salesman in that instance told me upfront before I paid that I was taking a gamble. If the bird didn't work even just outside of the store after purchase I would be at the mercy of dji and I should expect the same mercy the guy in front of me got, basically 4 to 6 weeks without a phantom.

 

[TheLightSpeedz]

The P4 has terrible battery performance regardless of mode. In 8 flights I am averaging only 17:45. The longest was 20:47 & the shortest 14:12, landing @ ~15%. These flights cover a range of modes from all-out Sport to casual P-mode. This is over TEN MINUTES less flight time, or more than 1/3rd short, of the specified performance. Do I expect a full 28 minutes? No, but 25 would have been nice. 17:45 average is pathetic. It is less than I get with any of my P3's or even my Vision+!

DIRTYBIRD, I wanted to follow up on this thread! Since you were teasing me and my "distances"... I did finally get a clear day to go out on some distance. It was my first my first flight with it out of sight, and it did awesome!

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[Dirty Bird]

Sweet! Nice job pilot!

DIRTYBIRD, I wanted to follow up on this thread! Since you were teasing me and my "distances"... I did finally get a clear day to go out on some distance. It was my first my first flight with it out of sight, and it did awesome!

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[professorpg]

I got mine from Drone World and it is fantastic !


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[John Locke]

I got mine from Drone World and it is fantastic !

They are great, however many are disappointed in the performance. Range has been disappointing for me, having to use an Inspire controller to get the distance and signal integrity of my P3.