Angrier than ****! This is all clear as mud! Can't get past compass calibration!

[thomaspiano]

I am trying very hard not to use profanity and being xenophobic towards the Chinese!

I was royally pissed off about my Parrot Bebop2 not having clear instructions. I was unaware about these forums and all the info on Youtube. So I thought with my new Mavic, I would have better understanding. I spent three days watching all the youtube videos about the Mavic Pro I could, and reading this forum.

The first time I try to fly my drone, the firmware seemed to load OK. I tried to calibrate the compass and kept on getting "magnetic interference". I stood out in the middle of a horse pasture 150 yards from anything that possibly could have interfered. I even took my %&#(*&% belt off. I even turned off the current to the electric fence. I had the phone on airplane mode. So, I am standing in the middle of a field, it's 32 degrees F, 15mph winds, my pants are falling down. I put in a mile walking back and forth to the barn. Nothing is *******working!

OK WTF is firmware? Is that the software of the drone itself as well as the controller? If I got to the "calibrate compass point" does that mean my firmware loaded ok?

HTF do I get the compass to calibrate?

Be sure the firmware is updated for the drone, controller, and each battery. Learning all this is an exercise in patience to say the least.

 

[OralndoMavic]

Best Wishes,

 

[CZ-SP01]

I am trying very hard not to use profanity and being xenophobic towards the Chinese!

I was royally pissed off about my Parrot Bebop2 not having clear instructions. I was unaware about these forums and all the info on Youtube. So I thought with my new Mavic, I would have better understanding. I spent three days watching all the youtube videos about the Mavic Pro I could, and reading this forum.

The first time I try to fly my drone, the firmware seemed to load OK. I tried to calibrate the compass and kept on getting "magnetic interference". I stood out in the middle of a horse pasture 150 yards from anything that possibly could have interfered. I even took my %&#(*&% belt off. I even turned off the current to the electric fence. I had the phone on airplane mode. So, I am standing in the middle of a field, it's 32 degrees F, 15mph winds, my pants are falling down. I put in a mile walking back and forth to the barn. Nothing is *******working!

OK WTF is firmware? Is that the software of the drone itself as well as the controller? If I got to the "calibrate compass point" does that mean my firmware loaded ok?

HTF do I get the compass to calibrate?

welcome to the DJI family

 

[Joe Boudreault]

I am trying very hard not to use profanity and being xenophobic towards the Chinese!

I was royally pissed off about my Parrot Bebop2 not having clear instructions. I was unaware about these forums and all the info on Youtube. So I thought with my new Mavic, I would have better understanding. I spent three days watching all the youtube videos about the Mavic Pro I could, and reading this forum.

The first time I try to fly my drone, the firmware seemed to load OK. I tried to calibrate the compass and kept on getting "magnetic interference". I stood out in the middle of a horse pasture 150 yards from anything that possibly could have interfered. I even took my %&#(*&% belt off. I even turned off the current to the electric fence. I had the phone on airplane mode. So, I am standing in the middle of a field, it's 32 degrees F, 15mph winds, my pants are falling down. I put in a mile walking back and forth to the barn. Nothing is *******working!

OK WTF is firmware? Is that the software of the drone itself as well as the controller? If I got to the "calibrate compass point" does that mean my firmware loaded ok?

HTF do I get the compass to calibrate?

Could be a defective drone. However, you didn't say what phone or device you are using on your controller. In spite of what others may say, all DJI drones (ALL, I say) should use ONLY an iPhone. Those cheaper Android phones simply are not reliable. i found that out the hard way. i don't care how much others preach the goodness of Motorola, Samsung, LG or whatever - only an iPhone is the answer. Only Apple platform really sustains the DJI platform. I have had O issues with it since I traded my 'great' LG phone for an Apple 6S. Trying to use a new powerful LG phone got me nowhere in calibrations, no matter what. get a superior apple phone! Even the manufacturer says so. I know that almost all these flying problems here are due to owners using cheapie cell phones instead of Apple. I don't put cheap diesel fuel in my gas car for better mileage either - duh!

 

[ArtsyFartsy]

I am trying very hard not to use profanity and being xenophobic towards the Chinese!

I was royally pissed off about my Parrot Bebop2 not having clear instructions. I was unaware about these forums and all the info on Youtube. So I thought with my new Mavic, I would have better understanding. I spent three days watching all the youtube videos about the Mavic Pro I could, and reading this forum.

The first time I try to fly my drone, the firmware seemed to load OK. I tried to calibrate the compass and kept on getting "magnetic interference". I stood out in the middle of a horse pasture 150 yards from anything that possibly could have interfered. I even took my %&#(*&% belt off. I even turned off the current to the electric fence. I had the phone on airplane mode. So, I am standing in the middle of a field, it's 32 degrees F, 15mph winds, my pants are falling down. I put in a mile walking back and forth to the barn. Nothing is *******working!

OK WTF is firmware? Is that the software of the drone itself as well as the controller? If I got to the "calibrate compass point" does that mean my firmware loaded ok?

HTF do I get the compass to calibrate?

I totally feel your pain! I was experiencing all the same issues as you describe. I had to put the s**t away several times yesterday because I was about the stomp on it all!! I was getting very inconsistent warnings. Compass issues, controller signal week, no fly zone inside my house. I will post about the no fly zone stuff separately, but back to you. Today I decided to start fresh with a different (much newer) cell phone. The updates worked! I flew (inside my house) for 15 seconds when the aircraft forced landed itself because of no fly zones...in my house! I am off to complain in a separate post!!!

 

[Meta4]

Could be a defective drone. However, you didn't say what phone or device you are using on your controller. In spite of what others may say, all DJI drones (ALL, I say) should use ONLY an iPhone. Those cheaper Android phones simply are not reliable. i found that out the hard way. i don't care how much others preach the goodness of Motorola, Samsung, LG or whatever - only an iPhone is the answer. Only Apple platform really sustains the DJI platform. I have had O issues with it since I traded my 'great' LG phone for an Apple 6S. Trying to use a new powerful LG phone got me nowhere in calibrations, no matter what. get a superior apple phone! Even the manufacturer says so. I know that almost all these flying problems here are due to owners using cheapie cell phones instead of Apple. I don't put cheap diesel fuel in my gas car for better mileage either - duh!

What a load of bunk.
That would be like me suggesting Apple equipment is all rubbish because an original iPad doesn't run the app properly.
The app runs perfectly if you have a device with a fast enough processor and RAM and it doesn't matter whether it's Android or Apple.

 

[Aaron24]

Could be a defective drone. However, you didn't say what phone or device you are using on your controller. In spite of what others may say, all DJI drones (ALL, I say) should use ONLY an iPhone. Those cheaper Android phones simply are not reliable. i found that out the hard way. i don't care how much others preach the goodness of Motorola, Samsung, LG or whatever - only an iPhone is the answer. Only Apple platform really sustains the DJI platform. I have had O issues with it since I traded my 'great' LG phone for an Apple 6S. Trying to use a new powerful LG phone got me nowhere in calibrations, no matter what. get a superior apple phone! Even the manufacturer says so. I know that almost all these flying problems here are due to owners using cheapie cell phones instead of Apple. I don't put cheap diesel fuel in my gas car for better mileage either - duh!

What rubbish! Yes the cheaper Android phones and tablets should be avoided. But Samsung and LG produce high end devices as good as or in some cases better than Apple.

I am not going to get into an Apple VS Android stoush here, but to say only Apple is the way to go is nonsense.

 

[Mr. Salty]

get a superior apple phone! Even the manufacturer says so.

I see you're still posting that lie even though it's been pointed out to you that you're wrong.

From DJI:

Android Version v4.2.6.
Android version 4.4.0 or later. Compatible with Samsung S8 ,Samsung S7 edge, Samsung S7, Samsung S6, Samsung S5, Samsung NOTE4, Samsung NOTE3, Samsung tabs 705c, Ascend Mate 9, Ascend Mate 7, Huawei Honor 8, Huawei P8 Max, Vivo X7, Xiaomi 5, Google Nexus 6p, Nexus 9, Google Nexus 7 II, LG V20.

I know that almost all these flying problems here are due to owners using cheapie cell phones instead of Apple.

I wouldn't put the cause of the problems being the brand of device even in the top 10.

I have to laugh at the Apple zealots who think anything not made by Apple is cheap. It immediately torpedos their credibility on anything tech related. And I'm writing this on an iPad Pro.

 

[Asgard]

From experience Farmers tend to bury all sorts of crap with little regard, perhaps there is an old hunk of farm machinery under your feet.
Try walking round the area with a conventional compass and seeing if it deflects oddly

 

[W2EJ]

By any chance do you wear an Apple watch?
There are reports that some Apple watches interfere with compass calibration.
See this post:
Apple Watch Magnetic Interference

That is a distinct possibility. I used to have a very difficult time getting the compass to calibrate, which it seemed to always be required before I could fly. Then I thought to remove my Leatherman bracelet (fairly large stainless steel) before trying to calibrate the compass. I started getting more success. Then I learned to take that bracelet off before I even power up the drone. Now I seldom get asked to calibrate the compass, and if I do, it's an easy one time procedure. BTW, I do also wear an Apple Watch, but that's on my left wrist, and that does not affect the startup.

 

[Wade Gizzy]

What I discovered was the mistake I was making was that I did not have the nose of the drone printed far enough away from objects. I think they said that the nose of the drone had to be pointed at least three feet away from the ground when pointed straight down. Even then I think my hands were getting over nose of the drone.
However I was not getting a error message relating to that aspect. I was just getting a magnetic interference error message.
Once I corrected that everything was fine.