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Can I control a Mavic 2 Pro from both a smart controller and a crystalsky mounted in a Mavic Air controller?

johnbirt

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Hi all. A novice with only a couple of flights after some proper training with a pro!

I have a Mavic 2 Pro which came with a smart controller. I also have access to a Mavic Air with a Crystalsky monitor and also a cheapo VISUO812 drone for learning with.

I would perhaps like to have someone else with me who can observe what the drone is seeing and vice versa not so much controlling it. I imagine it might be possible even with tablet or mobile for 2 people to connect to a Mavic 2 Pro albeit with very limited range which would be fine for practice? I would have thought also possible with the basic VISUO812 as that is controlled entirely via wireless link from a phone and as such range is limited to circa a 100m which is absolutely fine also until I gain more experience.

I believe with the latest firmware for Mavic 2 Pro it is possible to have a primary and a secondary pilot with separate controllers but I have no experience of such although I am aware there is at least 1 video which outlines the procedure which i will study .Could I do that for the Mavic Pro 2 and/or the Air with the kit I have?

I know i could could try it out myself but weather has not been suitable for a while and I need to travel a bit as I am in a NFZ and even moving out of that there are likely to be too many people around so a heads up would save me a lot of experimenting.

Any advice/experience and thoughts gratefully received.

Regards.

John B
 
Hi all. A novice with only a couple of flights after some proper training with a pro!

I have a Mavic 2 Pro which came with a smart controller. I also have access to a Mavic Air with a Crystalsky monitor and also a cheapo VISUO812 drone for learning with.

I would perhaps like to have someone else with me who can observe what the drone is seeing and vice versa not so much controlling it. I imagine it might be possible even with tablet or mobile for 2 people to connect to a Mavic 2 Pro albeit with very limited range which would be fine for practice? I would have thought also possible with the basic VISUO812 as that is controlled entirely via wireless link from a phone and as such range is limited to circa a 100m which is absolutely fine also until I gain more experience.

I believe with the latest firmware for Mavic 2 Pro it is possible to have a primary and a secondary pilot with separate controllers but I have no experience of such although I am aware there is at least 1 video which outlines the procedure which i will study .Could I do that for the Mavic Pro 2 and/or the Air with the kit I have?

I know i could could try it out myself but weather has not been suitable for a while and I need to travel a bit as I am in a NFZ and even moving out of that there are likely to be too many people around so a heads up would save me a lot of experimenting.

Any advice/experience and thoughts gratefully received.

Regards.

John B
No you would need another Mavic 2 remote to use the Mavic 2 or another Mavic Air remote to do it with the Mavic Air. Those two aircraft use very different radio protocols.

You cannot have dual remotes using device only connection.
 
Thanks Brett8883 for prompt reply. I guessed the controllers might not be compatible but good to have it confirmed.

The cynic inside of me suggests that DJI wouldn't be very happy with a universal remote given they can charge large amounts for separate ones! Despite the RC codes/protocols for the craft being different (why asks a novice?) surely the controller should be able to cope with that? I may be wrong but I thought that the latest firmware for the smart controller allows swapping between craft so if so must be able to cope with different protocols? I know little about RC craft but have worked in computing forever and translating protocols isn't exactly a big deal.

For the customer 1 remote easily upgrade-able via firmware would be nice as it would take care of upgrading to newer drones but AFAIK it is not possible to buy a DJI drone separate from its controller as they all seem to be bundled and tied via code. Revenue considerations?

However compatible or not, is it not the case that since the Air connects via Wifi you can fly it without a controller and just with a phone/tablet?

If that is the case then the question I was interested in was can you control/observe just with the app and can 2 devices connect to the same aircraft. I suspect not as likely blocked in firmware, but confirmation would be good.

As regards the cheapo VISUO812 which is still in its box, this definitely doesn't require a controller to fly it so I can't think of any reason why 2 phones/tablets can't logon to the same aircraft network as the app provided doesn't seem to be too smart and is quite basic. Could be some smart firmware on the craft disallowing more than 1 connection. I will have to give it a try when unboxed.

I would probably never use the dual connection in anger. It was just a passing thought that it could be a useful facility for training purposes. The pro who trained me had a Phantom 4 while I had my M2 Pro. I thought it would have been much easier for all concerned if he had some dual control with me then so he could illustrate/correct without us looking over one another's shoulders and peering into the distance at what his/my aircraft was doing. Maybe with the firmware update that allows dual control this will now be adopted by trainers?
 

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