what is the general consensus as to the rash of failures?

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I know there is disagreement on the true cause of all the incidents of crashes, fly aways, malfunctions etc, but there has to be some general consensus as to what is causing all this.

I was ready to jump at one of these when I discovered this board and while I am familiar with the emergency room nature of any enthusiast forum the tales of disaster are far to frequent and diverse to be down to poor flying habits or inexperience.

It seems that there must be some sort of:
A: software or firmware bug that under a specific set of parameters causes a system crash
B: lousy quality control resulting in poor connections and build
C: tech that is too susceptible to outside interference rendering control from the ground inoperative.

I was initially thinking that too many people hadn't done preflight adequately or were flying in inappropriate conditions but the stories of drones just flying away or falling out of the sky are too common and to ignore and not everyone can be that irresponsible.

That brings me to my $$$ question. What is the general board feeling on this issue? Do we see it being resolved with a firmware update? Has DJI produced models with this sort of high failure rate or are we seeing a larger number of new flyers and therefore more failures? How is DJI's track record with responding to issues like this?

Don't want to spend $1500 before I can determine that the problems have been limited or mitigated.

Thanks
 
Re: what is the general consensus as to the rash of failures

I've not seen any positive proof it is a DJI firmware/software quality control problem.
I've read many post. All I see is hearsay and no evidence.
The pictures I've seen are good but we need an alternative view from another video or the onboard video to understand what is happening.

The Vision+ is fragile but so are all $1500 dollar cameras.
I have the previous Vision and it is a tank in comparison.

Both are quality made UAV's imho and I don't see a comparable priced alternative that can equal the quality.

Many jump in and attempt to fly these like children running into chuck e cheese's hyped up on coke.

They are a hazard to the hobby and make responsible pilots look bad.

These as well as all UAV's carry a serious risk that could result in death or other property damage if used carelessly.
 
Re: what is the general consensus as to the rash of failures

are we seeing a larger number of new flyers and therefore more failures?

This mainly.
I notice that when there is an incident the details tend to get posted in several threads and it can give the impression they are falling out of the sky like autumn leaves.
The phantom itself is not different from previous models in any substantial way so no reason to assume there will be any new way for them to fail unless crashed.
 
Re: what is the general consensus as to the rash of failures

4wd said:
are we seeing a larger number of new flyers and therefore more failures?

This mainly.
I notice that when there is an incident the details tend to get posted in several threads and it can give the impression they are falling out of the sky like autumn leaves.
The phantom itself is not different from previous models in any substantial way so no reason to assume there will be any new way for them to fail unless crashed.

It is certainly hard to wrap your head around it until its yours! Granted....there are those failures that are purely new flyers making bad decision....BUT there are also experienced flyers experiencing them too! See my post entitled "Bird down!"
 
Re: what is the general consensus as to the rash of failures

I guess part of my question is do previous generations of the Phantom exhibit similar levels of failure? I understand the build may not be as robust as the original but that just takes more care.

While I do tend to believe the higher number of first time flyers (which I will be a part of) does lend to the higher incidence of problems, there are many many reports on this board indicating that everything was fine until it immediately wasn't

The lack of communication from DJI, people leaving messages, waiting for email response is alarming but also to be expected given the volume they are doing right now.

I get the feeling this thread will turn into many of the others. Those who have had problems will swear that the drone just fell out of the sky, and those who have had no problems will contend pilot error.

I am hoping to pull some empirical data from experiences that would give an indication one way or the other as to what could be more likely to blame.
 
Re: what is the general consensus as to the rash of failures

Has anyone noticed that there has been a drastic decline in the number of fly aways and accidents in the last week or so? I'm guessing that people are being more cautious and thus are accumulating more stick time, resulting in fewer accidents, however there's a new wave of newbies coming down the pike so the number should start going up again.
 
Re: what is the general consensus as to the rash of failures

It seems to me that DJI did not do a good job of designing the P2V+. They didn't put enough thought to what they were trying to design and rushed to market too soon. It an RC MODEL QUADCOPTER WITH CAMERA ATTACHED for gods sake and as such it should be able to take a few hard landings, I'm not talking about major crashes but very minor bumps that seem to be stopping the gimbal from operating correctly. There's a lot of posts about the gimbal not being level. Then there is the question of the response time of their customer service. I think that a lot of us would be happier if they would let us know if they are looking into the gimbal problems. It's as if LANDROVER DESIGNED A 4 wheel drive vehicle who's 4 wheel drive stopped working if people took them off road. And then to make it worse had no spare parts to repair them.
 
Re: what is the general consensus as to the rash of failures

The English Guy said:
It seems to me that DJI did not do a good job of designing the P2V+. They didn't put enough thought to what they were trying to design and rushed to market too soon. It an RC MODEL QUADCOPTER WITH CAMERA ATTACHED for gods sake and as such it should be able to take a few hard landings, I'm not talking about major crashes but very minor bumps that seem to be stopping the gimbal from operating correctly. There's a lot of posts about the gimbal not being level. Then there is the question of the response time of their customer service. I think that a lot of us would be happier if they would let us know if they are looking into the gimbal problems. It's as if LANDROVER DESIGNED A 4 wheel drive vehicle who's 4 wheel drive stopped working if people took them off road. And then to make it worse had no spare parts to repair them.

Must say that I have a completely different take on this. Think that DJI has done a great job developing this model, sure we always want more. Vision 2 is much more robust sure, but everyone wanted a 3-accis gimbal and we did get one that most people say is great. In developing this gimbal out of necessity it had to be smaller in order to be light and nimble as such it would be somewhat fragile. Fly-aways is another question and as many has already said, seems to be a verity of reasons but not for us to blame DJI at this stage.
My wife and I both have the new + and have not have any issues what so ever, even if my wife did have a crash and no damage to the drone.
 
Re: what is the general consensus as to the rash of failures

cougar said:
The English Guy said:
It seems to me that DJI did not do a good job of designing the P2V+. They didn't put enough thought to what they were trying to design and rushed to market too soon. It an RC MODEL QUADCOPTER WITH CAMERA ATTACHED for gods sake and as such it should be able to take a few hard landings, I'm not talking about major crashes but very minor bumps that seem to be stopping the gimbal from operating correctly. There's a lot of posts about the gimbal not being level. Then there is the question of the response time of their customer service. I think that a lot of us would be happier if they would let us know if they are looking into the gimbal problems. It's as if LANDROVER DESIGNED A 4 wheel drive vehicle who's 4 wheel drive stopped working if people took them off road. And then to make it worse had no spare parts to repair them.

Must say that I have a completely different take on this. Think that DJI has done a great job developing this model, sure we always want more. Vision 2 is much more robust sure, but everyone wanted a 3-accis gimbal and we did get one that most people say is great. In developing this gimbal out of necessity it had to be smaller in order to be light and nimble as such it would be somewhat fragile. Fly-aways is another question and as many has already said, seems to be a verity of reasons but not for us to blame DJI at this stage.
My wife and I both have the new + and have not have any issues what so ever, even if my wife did have a crash and no damage to the drone.


Idont know... I feel that if they are going to target a new, "beginner" audience with a RTF product that can cost over $1300, there should be BETTER safeguards and an improved QA procedure.

What should they be? I dont know. I'm not the one being paid to figure it out ;p
 
Re: what is the general consensus as to the rash of failures

cougar said:
The English Guy said:
It seems to me that DJI did not do a good job of designing the P2V+. They didn't put enough thought to what they were trying to design and rushed to market too soon. It an RC MODEL QUADCOPTER WITH CAMERA ATTACHED for gods sake and as such it should be able to take a few hard landings, I'm not talking about major crashes but very minor bumps that seem to be stopping the gimbal from operating correctly. There's a lot of posts about the gimbal not being level. Then there is the question of the response time of their customer service. I think that a lot of us would be happier if they would let us know if they are looking into the gimbal problems. It's as if LANDROVER DESIGNED A 4 wheel drive vehicle who's 4 wheel drive stopped working if people took them off road. And then to make it worse had no spare parts to repair them.

Must say that I have a completely different take on this. Think that DJI has done a great job developing this model, sure we always want more. Vision 2 is much more robust sure, but everyone wanted a 3-accis gimbal and we did get one that most people say is great. In developing this gimbal out of necessity it had to be smaller in order to be light and nimble as such it would be somewhat fragile. Fly-aways is another question and as many has already said, seems to be a verity of reasons but not for us to blame DJI at this stage.
My wife and I both have the new + and have not have any issues what so ever, even if my wife did have a crash and no damage to the drone.
I agree 100%
 
Re: what is the general consensus as to the rash of failures

Cult Hero said:
What is the general board feeling on this issue? Do we see it being resolved with a firmware update? Has DJI produced models with this sort of high failure rate or are we seeing a larger number of new flyers and therefore more failures? How is DJI's track record with responding to issues like this?

Don't want to spend $1500 before I can determine that the problems have been limited or mitigated.

Thanks
There is no concensus. The fanboys and shills will insist that it is all pilot error (until it happens to them.)
There are lots of different kinds of failures which are clearly not operator error.
Sometimes they just fly away for no reason.
Sometimes they just lose power and fall out of the sky (not VRS.) This seems to be more common with Phantom 2 series.
Sometimes there are quality issues such as bad solder joints and loose motor bolts.

DJI will not admit to any failure on their part. If they find a firmware error is causing flyaways, they will quietly fix it and not tell us. They may not even want to solve the problems because nearly everyone who has lost a Phantom, buys another.
 
Re: what is the general consensus as to the rash of failures

DJI will not admit to any failure on their part. If they find a firmware error is causing flyaways, they will quietly fix it and not tell us. They may not even want to solve the problems because nearly everyone who has lost a Phantom, buys another.
Well that would certainly stop me, as a newbie ,from buying one.
I'v read the reviews ,read these forums ,searched you tube,,,,it seems customer support is pretty bad
.6 weeks to get parts,outrageous price on parts.And everything is flyer error.
I think I'll leave my DJI + in the shopping cart alittle while
 
Re: what is the general consensus as to the rash of failures

thats kind of where I sit right now. I will wait for this to firm up a little bit before jumping on. I did post a few days ago whether a phantom plus a gimbal might be a sturdier or more robust solution but didn't hear back from anyone.
 
Re: what is the general consensus as to the rash of failures

Yup, I sent mine back for some intermittent flight issues, and took the refund this time.
I'll wait until it's significantly less a "luck of the draw" that you'll get a good one, before I buy again.

I see many people have no problems at all, and I see some that get really decent videos, while others (that I know are not new to flying quads/RC in general) have major issues, and the variances in the quality of videos being posted is beyond that of just managing the different camera settings and different environments.

These things are just not consistent enough in performance from one to the next for me to jump back in right now.
Hopefully DJI can(and will) settle this before they release another set of new, more featured ....... but still just "luck of the draw" products, so when you buy one you can have a reasonable amount of confidence that it will perform properly, and you won't be as subject to getting a pig wearing lipstick as you currently are. :cry:
 
Re: what is the general consensus as to the rash of failures

Flyer91 said:
Yup, I sent mine back for some intermittent flight issues, and took the refund this time.
I'll wait until it's significantly less a "luck of the draw" that you'll get a good one, before I buy again.

I see many people have no problems at all, and I see some that get really decent videos, while others (that I know are not new to flying quads/RC in general) have major issues, and the variances in the quality of videos being posted is beyond that of just managing the different camera settings and different environments.

These things are just not consistent enough in performance from one to the next for me to jump back in right now.
Hopefully DJI can(and will) settle this before they release another set of new, more featured ....... but still just "luck of the draw" products, so when you buy one you can have a reasonable amount of confidence that it will perform properly, and you won't be as subject to getting a pig wearing lipstick as you currently are. :cry:
I'm not sure if DJI has issues or you or your location are bad for UAV's. Looking back at your past post you returned 3 Visions and now 4 Vision plus's. At some point I believe I would look at myself as the cause.. Just saying.. Maybe you should stick with.. Hot wheels or something on the ground..
 
Re: what is the general consensus as to the rash of failures

I couldn't be happier with mine. I've got about 40 flights out of it so far and had one problem - an uncontrolled descent which was totally my fault.
 
Re: what is the general consensus as to the rash of failures

D_Tshudy said:
I couldn't be happier with mine. I've got about 40 flights out of it so far and had one problem - an uncontrolled descent which was totally my fault.
Same here. I have both the original Vision and the plus and no problems at all.
Only thing I'm slightly concerned about is that the firmware/software updates between the two may end up conflicting. So far so good but I haven't updated the Vision yet.
 
Re: what is the general consensus as to the rash of failures

I've been flying my P2V+ since May 17, and an FC40 since April. In all that time, beside operator error, I've had one problem; my gimbal on the P2V+ isn't perfectly level (off by 3 degrees).

But...
I opened my phantom, checked the connections and placed silicon on some questionable connections.
I've switched to NAZA mode.
I've set altitude and vertical distance limits (when I was using firmware 3.0, I now fly 1.08- no limits)
I've tested my s1 and s2 switches for malfunctions (seems to be a problem with some peope).
I switched my s1 to enable manual mode, and learned to fly manually very well, to protect against GPS errors.
I calibrate my IMU after any bump or hard landing.
I preflight my fragile DJI P2 propellers and replace frequently if damaged or dinged.
I check the winds aloft and space weather (signal interference) before I fly.
I calibrate my compass if I travel to a location any significant distance from my home.
I purchased and installed a GPS tracker.
I got the app to boost my wifi range and purchased some stage 1 (video) antennas from FPVLR.com too. I never lose high quality video, but I do lose control connection at about 3000 feet in New Jersey... more antenna purchases to come!
I want to purchase the "getterback" water retrieval system (thanks DirtyBird).

All in all, I read all I could, I'm pretty handy with tech and small parts, and I am confident I've done all I could to protect my investment. If this **** thing lasts 6 months, it will have cost me $250/month to enjoy, and I'll be happy.

If you want an absolutely maintenance free, out of the box, crash-proof and loss-proof multi-rotor with a 3 axis gimbal that performs with the Phantom's specs and requires no research or studying: well, sorry; it ain't been invented yet (and probably won't be).

DJI has been slow, but in the end most of the posts here (except disappeared flyaways and bad crashes) end with a happy ending, DJI replaces or can fix issues. They are a growing company that exploded with the popularity of these things, and like every company that is expanding, they are experiencing some growing pains and some QC issues.

There has never been a flying machine that doesn't require a lot of knowledge and a little bit of luck to operate successfully. But this thing is as close as it comes right now... wait if you want, but I'm flyin', baby.
 
Re: what is the general consensus as to the rash of failures

I've had a P2 non-vision, H32D with Gopro since January of this year.
I've gotten about 8-10hrs total flight time.
Had several low altitude (tree branch) crashes which were all my fault.
Sent the gimbal in for a tune up (new motor and ribbon PCB) because it was not sitting level. Took 5 weeks.
I've upgraded my firmware but not up to 2.0.
I calibrate my compass before every other flight, and on every flight where I change geographic location.
The thing is reliable. Consistently.
I have flown probably a total of 1 hour over the Pacific ocean.
I nearly lost it because I was pushing the stick the right way but lost sight of the phantom and did not know its orientation. (RTH worked just fine until back in sight).
I've never had the cover off.
I use stock plastic white props.
I've flown it in both Naza and Phantom modes. I have about an hour of manual mode flight as well.
This thing is fun to fly and I have achieved some incredible video and photos using it.
I've had it well over 800 feet.
Looking forward to FPV.

Zero complaints. Buy it and keep READING about it on forums just like this one.
 

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