Android person wants stable tablet recommendation (iPad?)

[geigy]

Long time Android person here. It's a bad feeling to lose the video feed, as many of you know, and I don't want my investment in the Mavic to be on hold while I wait for DJI to support my Nexus 5x.

Soooo - that leaves the iPad. Which one is the cheapest? Will a 16 GB iPad work OK, or will I be wanting more memory than that?

I just want to fly my Mavic.

 

[timesnaps]

I have been using a Xiaomi Redmi 3s ever since I started flying about a month ago. No issues, no disconnections no problems. And good price if you can get it (about 600 RMB in China)

Xiaomi Redmi 3s - Full phone specifications

 

[Kestrel]

Ipad mini 4 and call it a day, I use it and a bunch of others use it to and haven't had any problems that I know of.

 

[freelanderuk]

I swapped from an Android tablet to an ipad mini 2 with cellular, I bought second hand and only use for my Mavic, I have had no problems at all and would recommend, I used it with my P4 and no problems, the only thing is the slightly reflective screen

 

[timesnaps]

I would second that... best to have one phone/tablet purely for the flying. In fact I made it a habit to turn the phone to airplane mode, when using it for flying. No data, no calls, no internet, no distractions!

 

[JoostGT3]

Long time Android person here. It's a bad feeling to lose the video feed, as many of you know, and I don't want my investment in the Mavic to be on hold while I wait for DJI to support my Nexus 5x.

Soooo - that leaves the iPad. Which one is the cheapest? Will a 16 GB iPad work OK, or will I be wanting more memory than that?

I just want to fly my Mavic.

Nexus 5x person here, nice to see I'm not the only one. I've only had my Mavic for one week, during which I could fly two days. I had some issues with video getting all blocky and then disappearing partly or the app freezing... I'm still trying to find out whether I can prevent this by putting it in aircraft mode (allways a good idea) and killing all other apps than the DJI G4. Maybe switch to the lowest bandwidth settings for the image transmission and see how it behaves.

If that doesn't work, I will be looking into getting a 2nd hand ipad mini or go for the nvidia shield (about the same price (€200) and would be an investment into FPV )

 

[D95GAS]

I am using the Nexus 7, which I believe is on the DJI list, it JUST fits in the controller, lovely crisp clear screen. I used a guide I found on another forum to set it up for best results, only have the software necessary to use the MP, and its dedicated to MP use.

Loads of the OEM apps are disabled, plus some other tweaks to ensure no interruptions when flying.......... I may be selling my spare Nexus 7 shortly, so keep an eye out for it if anyone is interested.

 

[mephisto]

2012 or 2013 Nexus7?

 

[TrayBoz]

Ipad mini 4 ALL DAY LONG! Get one new on eBay or Craigslist for about $300. Great screen, reduced glare, brightest screen, FAST, fits in controller without an extra mount. 16GB WiFi only version works GREAT. Never a single issue. I used to use the Android Galaxy S7 and got tired of all the issues. iPad Mini4 was the best investment I've made in my Mavic yet.

 

[stafvh]

Nexus 5x person here, nice to see I'm not the only one. I've only had my Mavic for one week, during which I could fly two days. I had some issues with video getting all blocky and then disappearing partly or the app freezing... I'm still trying to find out whether I can prevent this by putting it in aircraft mode (allways a good idea) and killing all other apps than the DJI G4. Maybe switch to the lowest bandwidth settings for the image transmission and see how it behaves.

If that doesn't work, I will be looking into getting a 2nd hand ipad mini or go for the nvidia shield (about the same price (€200) and would be an investment into FPV )

If you buy the Nvidia, don't upgrade it to Nougat, since this leaves your app completely unstable as well.

 

[freelanderuk]

I sold my Nexus 7 2013 to get the ipad mini 2 , the nexus was bought new just to use with the P4 but had lots of problems with the screen glitches and blank screen, tried everything to sort but had to get shut in the end, ipad mini 2 not looked back

 

[JoostGT3]

OK, thanks for the tips! I have a Nexus 7 2012 (completely unusable due to memory problem) and a 2013 as well, which I wanted to try. Still on the fence between the shield and the ipad mini, as I would prefer to stay with android, but if it is going to be such a mess, then I might switch to the ipad. (or an older model iphone maybe?) Does anybody know whether I can run the google photo app with camera upload on ios devices? I loved the fact that I could fly, take some pictures and movies and have the photo/video cache synchronized to upload the data to my google photos...

 

[4wd]

OK, thanks for the tips! I have a Nexus 7 2012 (completely unusable due to memory problem) and a 2013 as well, which I wanted to try. Still on the fence between the shield and the ipad mini, as I would prefer to stay with android, but if it is going to be such a mess, then I might switch to the ipad. (or an older model iphone maybe?) Does anybody know whether I can run the google photo app with camera upload on ios devices? I loved the fact that I could fly, take some pictures and movies and have the photo/video cache synchronized to upload the data to my google photos...

If you already have the Nexus 7 I wouldn't buy anything else until you tried it.
I find it works OK but best with video saving turned off which is not ideal.
I mostly use SamsungS5 phone which has been faultless.
The Nexus screen is nice but is quite a strech to hold it in the arms, to the point it's annoying - though if it fits in your bag mounted you could leave it connected all day

 

[JoostGT3]

I am using the Nexus 7, which I believe is on the DJI list, it JUST fits in the controller, lovely crisp clear screen. I used a guide I found on another forum to set it up for best results, only have the software necessary to use the MP, and its dedicated to MP use.

Loads of the OEM apps are disabled, plus some other tweaks to ensure no interruptions when flying.......... I may be selling my spare Nexus 7 shortly, so keep an eye out for it if anyone is interested.

Do you have a link to that guide maybe?

Hmm, dedicated for the drone would be an issue for me... I use my tablet all the time :-/ Same with my phone though. At the moment I am leaning towards the iPad mini; since I am a long time android fanboy, I think it would be easier for me to use the iPad Mini and keep it dedicated for drone use and use my nexus for my "normal" tablet use.

 

[frankiez]

I as well was a diehard Android fan. I bought a Nvidia Shield thinking it was going to be great to use with my Mavic controller. I had nothing but app crash after crash. I bought an IPad mini4 with 128gb wifi only version and I tether it to my galaxy note4 hotspot. It works great. Haven't experienced a single problem yet (knock on wood). I am so happy I did.

 

[msinger]

Which one is the cheapest?

The iPad Mini 2 should be the cheapest compatible model. You could even save some cash by getting a used/refurbished iPad Mini 2. If you have more cash to spend, then an iPad Mini 4 is a better option. It's faster, lighter, thinner, brighter, has an anti-reflective coating on the screen, and doesn't overheat as quickly (if at all) in hot temperatures.

Will a 16 GB iPad work OK

16GB will be plenty of space if you do not want to cache video on the tablet or install a bunch of other apps.

 

[Johnmcl7]

I'm also an Android fan and really not a fan of Apple at all but if I was to buy a tablet for the Mavic it would be an iPad mini 4 16GB cellular, I've seen refurb ones for a reasonable price. The problem with Android devices is that they seem very inconsistent even for devices on the DJI compatibility list, some people seem to have no issues and other people have lots of issues plus there's a risk a device which worked great will stop working properly with a new software version. From what I've seen of the iPads, they do seem to work a lot more consistently as I've seen quite a few Android people who have tried the ipad mini 4 and found it to work well so it's not the usual Apple hype.

John

 

[Kestrel]

I was a die hard android user, still am. I bought a Ipad mini 4 out of necessity not want. Every android phone and tab I tried gave me issues. I decided to bite the bullet and get an ipad so I can fly my Mavic with peace of mind. I still like android better than apple though as far as every day use goes.

 

[mephisto]

I was a die hard android user, still am. I bought a Ipad mini 4 out of necessity not want. Every android phone and tab I tried gave me issues. I decided to bite the bullet and get an ipad so I can fly my Mavic with peace of mind. I still like android better than apple though as far as every day use goes.

I'm in the same Situation. Android User since ages, for reasons. But I need a stable Videodownlink. The OP3 I own would be the perfect device - if GO4 ran stable. I'm just a fingertip away from ordering a iPad 4 mini 64gb wifi. Other Option would be to get a device still running Marshmellow. Is it really stable as the iPad?

 

[geigy]

Reasons, yes. I'm over a barrel, gritting my teeth, and about to plunk down for an iPad. Yuck, but hey, I wanna start doing longer flights without worrying about rebooting in hopes of not losing the whole drone!

Before you buy, research the exact features. The Wifi version of the iPad 4 actually costs more than the Wifi/Cellular version, and they do not have GPS - so some of the DJI Go functions (follow me, change Home during flight) will not work. The larger iPad costs the same, and has longer battery life. So, things like that could lead to buyer's remorse.

I'm heading to the Apple Store later this afternoon and may line Apple's pockets with some of my money earned on Windows and Android software..

<moan>I really dislike this, since I left the Macintosh world, with prejudice, in the 90's - great hardware and software but the company is antithetical to my philosophy of open hardware and software standards. So this really stings, especially because it's just unstable, poorly tested software driving the deal. I'd rather pay more money for a solid Android system, but there appears to be no such thing in the DJI world. I swear Apple should buy DJI and put the Android port out of its misery</moan>