what's best for the MP, android or ios?

stillflyin · Mar 12, 2017

Red_Raven · Mar 12, 2017

I think most people agree on ios software are by far superior when it comes to function and stability. But that said. Apple batteries suck so bad when in colder environment, many report 15-20mim batt life on new iPhones, I'm one of them except I'm not on new, but iPhone 6s. Almost any android device can do better in that.

Red_Raven · Mar 12, 2017

It's really a no brainer. Software developers always know about the hardware they're coding for when coding for Apple products, and android developers actually have no chance to know of all the hardware that will be using their software. That has to play a huge part in making apple software alot more stable. Android can very quite a bit between devices.

*Knowledge* · Mar 12, 2017

I'm purchasing an iPad mini 4 just for the Mavic. Too many problems associated with Android, unfortunately.

larkin · Mar 12, 2017

Hint: it's not Android.

Hint #2 it's the OS that the iPad mini 4 uses [emoji23]

Johnmcl7 · Mar 12, 2017

svavar said:
It's really a no brainer. Software developers always know about the hardware they're coding for when coding for Apple products, and android developers actually have no chance to know of all the hardware that will be using their software. That has to play a huge part in making apple software alot more stable. Android can very quite a bit between devices.

Android developers don't need to know all the hardware or software they're coding for, they can simply aim for the main hardware platforms (which there's not many of) and restrict to certain OS versions as well then try and handle any of the more unusual or budget platforms. There are plenty of Android software developers that are able to produce stable Android packages that run on a variety of devices including Litchi which has none of the stability problems DJi Go4 has.

The problem isn't Android, it's just sloppy development - DJI Go3, the Mavic and Android worked without issue, the problems started with DJI Go4. To limit hardware issues, DJI only officially support a small number of Android handsets but I have one of them and it crashes the entire handset despite it being stable and no issues otherwise. What's worse is that they have their own Android powered device where they chose all the hardware and DJI Go4 apparently isn't stable on that either, many other Android developers are able to make their software stable on a variety of devices including Litchi. IOS no longer runs on a single platform either as there's an increasingly wide array of different iphones and ipads.

The answer is still IOS, as an Android person who dislikes Apple I'd buy an Ipad Mini 4 as it seems to work well with the Mavic although I'm hanging on to see if DJI improve their software as that's where the problem is, not Android.

Sjez · Mar 12, 2017

Oh no..!! Fanboy alert. Lol.
I've seen posts with problems on both platforms and I've read posts which say their os has no issues.
svavar is certainly correct in saying that Apple products are so tied down that software developers know the limitations/scope of the platform.
Android on the other hand is an OS adopted by a wide variety of manufacturers.. and each of them may have variations of the OS supplied. The very fact that Android is so customizable compared to the locked down Apple Ios is both a positive and a negative.
DJI has a list of approved devices. Check them out. I have one that's not currently listed.. but I haven't had an issue.
The MP is not cheap and I'm reluctant to buy another phone especially since the one I've got seems to work fine.
Bottom line.. it's your money. If you have a listed IOS or Android you should be fine.

Red_Raven · Mar 12, 2017

Johnmcl7 said:
Android developers don't need to know all the hardware or software they're coding for, they can simply aim for the main hardware platforms (which there's not many of) and restrict to certain OS versions as well then try and handle any of the more unusual or budget platforms. There are plenty of Android software developers that are able to produce stable Android packages that run on a variety of devices including Litchi which has none of the stability problems DJi Go4 has.

The problem isn't Android, it's just sloppy development - DJI Go3, the Mavic and Android worked without issue, the problems started with DJI Go4. To limit hardware issues, DJI only officially support a small number of Android handsets but I have one of them and it crashes the entire handset despite it being stable and no issues otherwise. What's worse is that they have their own Android powered device where they chose all the hardware and DJI Go4 apparently isn't stable on that either, many other Android developers are able to make their software stable on a variety of devices including Litchi. IOS no longer runs on a single platform either as there's an increasingly wide array of different iphones and ipads.

The answer is still IOS, as an Android person who dislikes Apple I'd buy an Ipad Mini 4 as it seems to work well with the Mavic although I'm hanging on to see if DJI improve their software as that's where the problem is, not Android.

I wasn't saying by any meens that there weren't any qualified android developers, I was simply saying that I tought life would be easier as a ios dev because of the devices running ios are fewer and therefor less hardware to think about. This is a fact you'd hardly be able to deny, and as you state,of course there are workarounds / known was that android devs use to make their product and work better and more manageable.

You did good in explaining this matter and where I was wrong, I like details.... Alot[emoji16]

triumphrider · Mar 12, 2017

You can tell by just looking at the DJI website that they favor ios. I've been using a dedicated iPad mini 4 Wi-Fi + cellular and have no complaints.

Sjez · Mar 13, 2017

svavar said:
I wasn't saying by any meens that there weren't any qualified android developers, I was simply saying that I tought life would be easier as a ios dev because of the devices running ios are fewer and therefor less hardware to think about. This is a fact you'd hardly be able to deny, and as you state,of course there are workarounds / known was that android devs use to make their product and work better and more manageable.

You did good in explaining this matter and where I was wrong, I like details.... Alot[emoji16]

Thanks.. svavar. I was agreeing with you. I suspect that DJI coded their devices originally with IOS. ...and why wouldn't they? Porting that code across to a different OS would bring it's own set of issues to resolve. Considering the wide range of Android iterations it's not surprising that not all are approved. [emoji106]

Red_Raven · Mar 13, 2017

Sjez said:
Thanks.. svavar. I was agreeing with you. I suspect that DJI coded their devices originally with IOS. ...and why wouldn't they? Porting that code across to a different OS would bring it's own set of issues to resolve. Considering the wide range of Android iterations it's not surprising that not all are approved. [emoji106]

I am fund of Android customization options. (I'm quite a nerd and simply need to have a device too root and go over every line there is with.) but that being my phone always ended up me being unreachable when I was unbricking after some faulty experiment. So I bought an iPhone and keep an LG g4 to mess with on my desk. I've tried to use it with both phantom and mavic and find it quite faulty.... Simply unusable because of its unstable and unreliable. I usually flew home with no connection error on the remote and no footage showing on the phone.
Ios is great to control dji drones imo. But living in iceland, I almost find them unusable too with the lighting port blocked by the remote because I need to charge it while flying. Otherwise my iPhone goes from 100% batt to shutting down in mid flight before my first battery in the mavic is out.

I have saved myself the last few flights with mitten heaters under the phone, but they're single use and quite expensive in the long run. So I need a fix to be able to charge iphone while using the port for data. Any ideas?

flyNfrank · Mar 13, 2017

Most serious Mavic pilots fly using a ipad or tablet. For the most part it's the newbies that use a phone. Currently the ios OS is solid. I'm a android guy and I have used a nVidia K1 Shield until about 4 weeks due to the GO4 app not working with android 7. I also have a mini 2 I bought a year ago and never used it until now. The ios setup feels much more secure while flying.

jbearing · Mar 13, 2017

Nexus 7. Unrooted it. Update and strip all apps. Dedicate it . Fits perfectly and works great. Some report lag, but probably due to conflicts from personal use. Its about raw data , not momentary view.

Got no use for small $ 250 apple device for other uses. I don't like to do same things again and again.

Bought the Mavic to travel abroad on airplaines. Keep it in back of my car here. Loved my phantoms, but too bulky. Canon 7D , two lenses, Mavic, 2 batteries and sling pack.

Red_Raven · Mar 13, 2017

Maybe a little to the side of the topic, but does the dji go older app that I used with phantom work for mavic?

m0j0 · Mar 13, 2017

Up until last week I would say iOS. Friday I had multiple disconnects. I was flying with iPhone 6. I have had my Mavic since November and have hundreds of flights. No problems until Friday. Connected the Shield no problems... IPhone crashed the app 4 times on one battery and 2 more times on the second battery. So I'm not sold on iOS right now. I have them all really. iPad Air 2, iPad Mini, iPhone and Nvidia Shield. I updated everything Saturday because I was behind on updates. So I wont completely blame iOS right now before I test with everything properly updated. I will come back and report my results but after being solidly in the iOS camp. Not so fast...

m0j0 · Mar 13, 2017

flyNfrank said:
Most serious Mavic pilots fly using a ipad or tablet. For the most part it's the newbies that use a phone. Currently the ios OS is solid. I'm a android guy and I have used a nVidia K1 Shield until about 4 weeks due to the GO4 app not working with android 7. I also have a mini 2 I bought a year ago and never used it until now. The ios setup feels much more secure while flying.

I agree I think the iOS is more refined and seems solid but recently my iPhone 6 and Mavic have been oil and water.

NDfan131 · Mar 13, 2017

*Knowledge* said:
I'm purchasing an iPad mini 4 just for the Mavic. Too many problems associated with Android, unfortunately.

About a week ahead of you. Long time Android user (been over 10 years since I owned an Apple product). Over the past month both my Pixel XL and son's S7E have experienced multiple disconnects mid flight. I searched the forums and followed the recommendations but it didn't help. Purchased a used iPad Mini 4 off CL. First flight today with the combo. No problems at all.

m0j0 · Mar 13, 2017

Ok,

Im with you guys on my experience with iOS versus android but... I had 7 disconnects on 2 batteries Friday with iOS. Switched to the shield and didn't have a problem. May be an anomaly but happened none the less.

ronzer · Mar 13, 2017

I did just the opposite and went from a shield to a iPad mini 4. The mini 4 is way better than the shield.

flyNfrank · Mar 13, 2017

m0j0 said:
Ok,

Im with you guys on my experience with iOS versus android but... I had 7 disconnects on 2 batteries Friday with iOS. Switched to the shield and didn't have a problem. May be an anomaly but happened none the less.

What took place that you are referring to it as being on 2 batteries? Also your situation seems rare with not hearing this from others with similar setups like yours.