Tablets and phones that work well with DJI GO

[dimikoza]

I bought a Teclast x98 air iii from banggood for 122$. Seems to work great after 8 flights. The latency on litchi is 0.2s and on dji go 0.25-0.3

 

[normr]

Does anyone know if the LG "G" Pad works with our systems? I saw someone was going to try it


Sent from my iPad using PhantomPilots mobile app

 

[Slow Polk]

Tablets and phones that work well DJI GO

Overview

There are a wide variety of Apple and Android devices available. It's important to make sure you're using a device that is powerful enough in order to prevent the DJI GO app from lagging, freezing, and/or crashing during use. The following list includes devices recommended by Phantom Help (►), devices recommended by DJI (►), and other devices that are most often recommended by Phantom pilots.


[H][/H]


Apple Devices

►► iPhone 5s ― (4 inches)
►► iPhone 6 ― (4.7 inches)
►► iPhone 6 Plus ― (5.5 inches)
►► iPhone 6s ― (4.7 inches)
►► iPhone 6s Plus ― (5.5 inches)
►► iPad Air ― (9.7 inches)
►► iPad Air 2 ― (10 inches)
►► iPad Mini 2 ― (7.9 inches)
►► iPad Mini 3 ― (7.9 inches)
►► iPad Mini 4 ― (7.9 inches)
►► iPad Pro ― (12.9 inches)

Note: Both Wi-Fi only and cellular iPad Air/Mini/Pro models are compatible. Only cellular models have GPS. You do not have to enable the cell service in order to use the GPS. The DJI GO app currently only requires GPS on an Apple device when using the Follow Me feature or to reset the home point to your current location if you've moved elsewhere after taking off.

Note: Tablets wider than 6.75 inches (including the case) will require an extender to be installed on the remote controller mount. The iPad Air will fit without case. This extender is designed well and will securely hold your tablet in place.

Note: Your Apple device will work better out of the box if you follow these tips.


[H][/H]


Android Devices

►► Acer Iconia Tab ― (8 inches)
►► Acer Iconia Tab ― (10.1 inches)
►► Google Nexus 5 ― (5 inches)
►► Google Nexus 7 [2013] ― (7 inches)
►► Google Nexus 9 ― (8.9 inches)
►► HTC One ― (4.7 inches)
►► Huawei Ascend Mate 7 ― (6.8 inches)
►► Huawei P8 Max ― (6.8 inches)
►► Lenovo A3500 ― (7 inches)
►► Lenovo Tab S8-50 ― (8 inches)
►► Nubia Z7 Mini ― (5 inches)
►► Nvidia Shield K1 ― (8 inches)
►► RCA Voyager II ― (7.1 inches)
►► Samsung Galaxy Note 3 ― (5.7 inches)
►► Samsung Galaxy Note 4 ― (5.7 inches)
►► Samsung Galaxy Note 5 ― (5.7 inches)
►► Samsung Galaxy S4 ― (5 inches)
►► Samsung Galaxy S5 ― (5.1 inches)
►► Samsung Galaxy S6 ― (5.1 inches)
►► Samsung Galaxy S6 Edge ― (5.1 inches)
►► Samsung Galaxy Tab 2 ― (7 inches)
►► Samsung Galaxy Tab 2 ― (10.1 inches)
►► Samsung Galaxy Tab 3 Lite ― (7 inches)
►► Samsung Galaxy Tab 4 ―(7 inches)
►► Samsung Galaxy Tab 705c ― (8.4 inches)
►► Samsung Galaxy Tab A ―(8 inches)
►► Samsung Galaxy Tab A ―(9.7 inches)
►► Samsung Galaxy Tab Pro ― (8.4 inches)
►► Samsung Galaxy Tab Pro ― (10.1 inches)
►► Samsung Galaxy Tab Pro ― (12.2 inches)
►► Samsung Galaxy Tab S2 ― (8 inches)
►► Smartisan T1 ― (4.95 inches)
►► Sony Xperia Z2 ― (5.2 inches)
►► Sony Xperia Z3 ― (5.2 inches)
►► Xiaomi Mi 3 ― (5 inches)
►► Xiaomi Mi Pad ― (7.9 inches)

Note: Tablets wider than 6.75 inches (including the case) will require an extender to be installed on the remote controller mount. This extender is designed well and will securely hold your tablet in place.

Note: The DJI GO app currently only requires GPS on an Android device when using the Follow Me feature or to reset the home point to your current location if you've moved elsewhere after taking off.

Note: Your Android device will work better out of the box if you follow these tips.

I am a iOS user and don't know anything about Android. Is a Samsung Galaxy Tab 4 8.0 a good choice? It is from AT&T so it is a cell Tab. I trust your option.

 

[DeeX]

I am a iOS user and don't know anything about Android. Is a Samsung Galaxy Tab 4 8.0 a good choice? It is from AT&T so it is a cell Tab. I trust your option.

Its going to have much lag and struggle to keep up.
You gota remember that not only is the app showing you the FPV but also caching the video and recording the logs.

As far as android most people use nVidia Shield K1(s) or the Galaxy Tab S2 now a days.

 

[Excavator99]

I am a iOS user and don't know anything about Android. Is a Samsung Galaxy Tab 4 8.0 a good choice? It is from AT&T so it is a cell Tab. I trust your option.

I already owned the Samsung Galaxy Tab 4 from AT&T, when I purchased my P3P so that is what I have used for a couple months. I had serious problems getting it to run smoothly. I had to remove every app and process it would let me remove or disable to work okay. I experienced lots of lag and also had issues of DJIGo app freezing on me during flight. After reading reviews from users here I decided to purchase the Nvidia Shield K1 and it is scheduled to arrive today.

 

[Jcarlson1701]

Apple iPads come in either a wifi only version or a wifi + cellular enabled version. Your Phantom has GPS to know where it is and to set the home point for RTH, so you can fly your Phantom with either version. Some optional features require GPS at your RC (controller) so that your RC location is also known. Wifi only iPads are NOT GPS enabled and there's no crowd sourced location data accurate enough to allow the use of the optional features. However, phones, cellular enabled iPads, and most Android tablets DO have GPS that can be used for those optional features. A data plan is not required if you go with a cellular enabled iPad.

Take a look at this high level overview of different options when using the GO app with an iPad. Forgive me if you have seen it before since I have posted it to the forum many dozens of times so you may have seen it before in your research.

Please let me know if I have inadvertently misrepresented or omitted something.

[JAN 13, 2016] A new thing to consider is if you will want internet access in the field so that you can instantly unlock self authorization zones in the emerging GEO system from DJI. Without internet access in the field, you may need to plan ahead and unlock self authorization zones in advance if your country has or is getting GEO and you are impacted by one of the zones. This is similar to how you might plan ahead to cache maps in advance. We will understand more once GEO is implemented. For now, keep it in mind when considering which device to buy.

Wifi only iPad (no internet access in the field)
* Can fly your Phantom
* Can use maps if desired, but maps must be cached in advance
* No access to new maps in the field
* No Follow Me
* Can use Waypoints
* No LIVE STREAMING (this is different than FPV)
* Dynamic Home Point
> Can manually change home point to Phantom location.
> Can not manually change home point to RC location.

Wifi only iPad (tethered for internet)
* Can fly your Phantom
* Can access new maps in the field if desired
* No Follow Me
* Can use Waypoints
* Can use LIVE STREAMING, but likely not well.
* Dynamic Home Point
> Can manually change home point to Phantom location.
> Can not manually change home point to RC location.

Wifi only iPad with an external GPS
* Can fly your Phantom
* Can use maps if desired, but maps must be cached in advance
* No access to new maps in the field
* Can use Follow Me
* Can use Waypoints
* No LIVE STREAMING
* Dynamic Home Point
> Can manually change home point to Phantom location.
> Can manually change home point to RC location.

Cellular iPad with no data plan
* Can fly your Phantom
* Can use maps if desired, but maps must be cached in advance
* No access to new maps in the field
* Can use Follow Me
* Can use Waypoints
* No LIVE STREAMING
* Dynamic Home Point
> Can manually change home point to Phantom location.
> Can manually change home point to RC location.

Cellular iPad (no data plan, tethered for internet)
* Can fly your Phantom
* Can access new maps in the field if desired
* Can use Follow Me
* Can use Waypoints
* Can use LIVE STREAMING, but likely not well.
* Dynamic Home Point
> Can manually change home point to Phantom location.
> Can manually change home point to RC location.

Cellular iPad (with data plan)
* Can fly your Phantom
* Can access new maps in the field if desired
* Can use Follow Me
* Can use Waypoints
* Can use LIVE STREAMING
* Dynamic Home Point
> Can manually change home point to Phantom location.
> Can manually change home point to RC location.

*Notes:
Third party apps
If you are interested in trying something other than the GO app you should check if what you want is available for iOS, Android, or both.

Tethering
Tethering your phone to a wifi only iPad does not share the phone's GPS. Some have noted that it may be possible to share GPS data if you jailbreak and use certain software, but I don't have any first hand knowledge of how to do that or how well it works. [Tethering is connecting one device to another. In the context of mobile phones and tablets, tethering allows sharing the internet connection of a phone or tablet with other devices that may not be able to access the Internet directly.]

MAPS
Maps are not required to fly, but many find them useful.

GPS alone does not transmit map/terrain data for you to download to your device.
If you do not have internet access where you plan to fly and you want to use the maps, they must be downloaded (cached/stored) in advance via the internet.

External GPS
If you have a wifi only iPad already and don't want to jailbreak or buy a new tablet, you might consider an external (bluetooth) GPS device if you want to use the features that require GPS at the RC. There are many threads on the topic. It seems that the most talked about here on the forum are Bad Elf, Dual and the Garmin GLO. Just search and you will see plenty to read for research if you want to look into that option.
A few notes to consider regarding an external GPS with a wifi only iPad:
* They are usually more accurate than the GPS in a phone/tablet
* A wifi only iPad + an external GPS usually cost roughly the same as a cellular iPad.
* If you have an external GPS, you wont need to spend more for the cellular version each time you upgrade your iPad.
* Having an external GPS is one more thing to charge and carry
* It may be easier to use the emerging GEO system noted above if your mobile device has internet access in the field. A wifi iPad + external GPS does not give you internet access.

If this option interests you, one thing to watch for is that iOS 8.3 broke the ability for an external GPS to transfer data. It was fixed with iOS 8.4 and later, and still works in iOS 8.2 and earlier. It is only iOS 8.3 with the issue, but any new iOS might accidentally break it again.

As noted earlier, Android tablets almost always have built in GPS so they are a great option to consider.

'Dynamic Home Point'
This term is used here since that is a common way to refer to the functionality that allows changing an established home point to the current location of either the RC or the Phantom itself. Remember that the home point does not actually dynamically change. You must manually change the static home point to a new static home point.

'LIVE STREAMING'
The feature that allows for posting your FPV to the internet in real time.

RTH
As noted above, RTH works with both wifi only and cellular enabled tablets and phones.

So... am I correct in assuming that if I tether my Nexus 7 II 2013 which has GPS but no cellular to my iPhone 6 Plus via Bluetooth (don't want to use wifi in fear of interface) I would be able to get all of the advantages of follow me, dynamic home point, etc... AND live maps so I wouldn't have to cache maps anymore?


Sent from my iPhone using PhantomPilots mobile app

 

[Oso]

So... am I correct in assuming that if I tether my Nexus 7 II 2013 which has GPS but no cellular to my iPhone 6 Plus via Bluetooth (don't want to use wifi in fear of interface) I would be able to get all of the advantages of follow me, dynamic home point, etc... AND live maps so I wouldn't have to cache maps anymore?


Sent from my iPhone using PhantomPilots mobile app

I've never used an Android device, but I would also assume this would work. I don't see any reason it wouldn't. It should be the same as a cellular enabled iPad with no data plan that is tethered for internet access.

 

[FlyingDoDo]

I just bought this Asus Zenpad 8 (Z380C-1L040A) and tested it works fine. I updated to the latest version of the Android and all good. My ipad air-2 (9.7") was too big and heavy to hold the RC.

A Very good price, £120!

 

[Tkeefe]

I am so done with this. I have a Note 4 and it will not connect to my advanced 3. So I purchased a used samsung tab 2 which is also on the list of compatibility but will not connect to the drone. Is there different versions of phones and tablets the are or are not compatible?

 

[BGriffith]

That list is ******** dude. I've been through 4 tablets on that list and none of them were compatible.

 

[maxwell smart]

I am so done with this. I have a Note 4 and it will not connect to my advanced 3. So I purchased a used samsung tab 2 which is also on the list of compatibility but will not connect to the drone. Is there different versions of phones and tablets the are or are not compatible?

Have you tried different USB cables??

 

[Fat City]

Have you tried different USB cables??

If you haven't already, use the stock white cable. I've tried some other USB cables that didn't work. These were not for charging only. They worked for a multi-media connection a PC, but failed with DJI Go.

 

[Gpanek]

I am using the Amazon Fire HDX 8.9 with the DJI Go ap, and it works pretty good other than I'm not getting any maps. Also fighting with glare problems.

 

[Slow Polk]

I have used iPad only and have never had a problem at all. I have used a iPhone 6plus, iPad 2 and a iPad mini 4. Someone said something about a usb cable and that is something you should look at. Too many others have used the tablet you have tried and they seem to work. Good luck.

 

[Barton261]

I just got a P3S I haven't flown it yet as I have an 1st gen iPad Mini and the lag is awful. I don't want to spend the money on a new iPad just to fly my P3. I'm looking at an Nvidia Shield, Dell Venue 8 7840 or Nexus 9 as I can get them all for relatively close to the same price. Does anyone here have any experience using any of these. I have heard the Nvidia is useless outside as you can't see anything which defeats the purpose of having it. Haven't found much on the other two units. Any advice is appreciated!

 

[Barton261]

I'm open to other tablets just don't want to spend an arm and a leg on one.

 

[mikesmiley]

For the money, I think the Shield K1 is the best deal in town. Mine was $199 delivered to my doorstep. Might even be found cheaper now.

 

[RusWolf]

K1 is no longer available from amazon!
I wonder if a new version is coming soon.
Does anyone know anything in that regard?


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[mikesmiley]

K1 is no longer available from amazon!
I wonder if a new version is coming soon.
Does anyone know anything in that regard?

Oh wow, you're right. I did not see that coming. What a bummer.

 

[movius]

The K1 is great but the screen is poor in strong sunlight. You have to max out the brightness before flying.

On a related subject, is there any way to mirror what's on the K1 screen on another device? Sorry if that's a dumb question, I'm starting to think about having a second device for clients / public to view.

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