Connection lost with the mobile device

[Freddy K]

Hi everyone,
I just had a scary moment (and my wife next to me even more).
I was flying my mini 2, just training fly-by's and circles, distance about 300m, when suddenly I got a grey screen with the message "connection lost with the mobile device".
This was the first time this happened, so I thought it meant the connection with the drone was lost (my mistake).
After unsuccessfully turning the RC trying to re-establish connection, I clicked the RTH button on de RC and to my relief the drone obediently came back until it hovered right in front of me (no landing).
At that moment the screen was still grey, which made me think "why isn't it reconnecting, it's right here?"
I decided to restart the RC and lo and behold, a few seconds later the screen came back to life.
Since I still had 63% battery left, I went up again and had 5 more minutes of fun flying around.

It was only when I finally landed and started packing up, that I realized the real meaning of the warning message: the connection between the RC and my phone was gone. It now made sense that it didn't reconnect when the drone came back, but did so when I restarted the RC.

My question: what reasons are there for this to happen?
It's the original cable (USB-C), no visible damage. I did not replug the cable when restarting the RC.

Any insight into this matter is highly appreciated.

 

[3rdof5]

I have only ever had this issue when the usb cable is getting worn out. They don't last forever. Although it's possible that your phone glitched, thats usually not the case.
And to confirm, losing the connection between the RC and the phone/tablet does not affect the flight controls on the remote. The sticks and RTH button will still work normally.
It is also possible to take off and fly without even connecting your phone/tablet to your RC however in the case with my P3P, the range and altitude are severely reduced forcing you to stay close and in VLOS.

 

[Yorkshire_Pud]

If this were a micro USB cable I'd be more inclined to think the phone's socket was wearing out or had suffered damage but I don't know if a USB-C socket is as susceptible to damage. Checking the surety of the phone/cable connection would be my first response in this situation.

 

[teccer]

Hi everyone,
I just had a scary moment (and my wife next to me even more).
I was flying my mini 2, just training fly-by's and circles, distance about 300m, when suddenly I got a grey screen with the message "connection lost with the mobile device".
This was the first time this happened, so I thought it meant the connection with the drone was lost (my mistake).
After unsuccessfully turning the RC trying to re-establish connection, I clicked the RTH button on de RC and to my relief the drone obediently came back until it hovered right in front of me (no landing).
At that moment the screen was still grey, which made me think "why isn't it reconnecting, it's right here?"
I decided to restart the RC and lo and behold, a few seconds later the screen came back to life.
Since I still had 63% battery left, I went up again and had 5 more minutes of fun flying around.

It was only when I finally landed and started packing up, that I realized the real meaning of the warning message: the connection between the RC and my phone was gone. It now made sense that it didn't reconnect when the drone came back, but did so when I restarted the RC.

My question: what reasons are there for this to happen?
It's the original cable (USB-C), no visible damage. I did not replug the cable when restarting the RC.

Any insight into this matter is highly appreciated.

this happened to me recently with my mini2 after about 2 minutes in the air, all I done was to wriggle/push the cable into the mobile and it reconnected right away, maybe I hadn't pushed the cable in correctly

 

[Freddy K]

Thanks for the feedback everyone.
Next time (if there is a next time), I will try wriggling the USB connector to get connection again.

Anyway, this experience has made me (again) a bit more confident flying my little drone.
And thank God (the one of your choice) for the RTH button.

 

[Starz]

Spare cable may be in order.

 

[izikl]

Hi everyone,
I just had a scary moment (and my wife next to me even more).
I was flying my mini 2, just training fly-by's and circles, distance about 300m, when suddenly I got a grey screen with the message "connection lost with the mobile device".
This was the first time this happened, so I thought it meant the connection with the drone was lost (my mistake).
After unsuccessfully turning the RC trying to re-establish connection, I clicked the RTH button on de RC and to my relief the drone obediently came back until it hovered right in front of me (no landing).
At that moment the screen was still grey, which made me think "why isn't it reconnecting, it's right here?"
I decided to restart the RC and lo and behold, a few seconds later the screen came back to life.
Since I still had 63% battery left, I went up again and had 5 more minutes of fun flying around.

It was only when I finally landed and started packing up, that I realized the real meaning of the warning message: the connection between the RC and my phone was gone. It now made sense that it didn't reconnect when the drone came back, but did so when I restarted the RC.

My question: what reasons are there for this to happen?
It's the original cable (USB-C), no visible damage. I did not replug the cable when restarting the RC.

Any insight into this matter is highly appreciated.

Hi

it happened to me in the last month couple of times
before I had more than 2 km without losing connection
now it happen only after 200 meters in a distance that I can see him

 

[Yorkshire_Pud]

before I had more than 2 km without losing connection
now it happen only after 200 meters in a distance that I can see him

Disconnection related to distance is an entirely different thing since it relates to radio disconnection of the drone and controller.
This thread is about the 'cable' disconnection of the phone from the controller whilst the radio connection between the drone and controller remained intact.


BTW welcome to the forum.

 

[Capt KO]

Good reason to keep the little guy in sight at all times

 

[Freddy K]

Good reason to keep the little guy in sight at all times

You are absolutely right.
But you also know it's not easy to spot a small light grey drone against a light grey sky.

I knew exactly where it was and I had a clear view to it, but still I only saw it when it was almost directly above me (and I heard it before I saw it)

 

[GaryFlorida]

Your smartphone might not be able to handle multiple processing demands while droning.

Your smartphone is a computer too. It just happens to double as a phone.
Make your phone fully committed to the drone. NO "side" computing while droning.
Especially if it is an older smartphone with less powerful processor.

How?:
1). Turn off all other phone apps before launching. Just allow the DJI app, that's it!
2). Go to airline mode to shut off cell and wi-fi. This consumes processing power. (WiFi comms are between controller and drone, no phone WiFi used or needed for droning).
This should reduce the chances of lost video and lost info/comms seen on your smartphone.

And replace the cable between the drone and the controller. Sometimes a "simple" cable can be the culprit. And they don't cost much, either!!

When I upgraded to a newer version iPhone a few years ago, my "similar" problem stopped.

 

[Freddy K]

Thanks for the tips Gary.
I already shut down WiFi and Bluetooth and stop any running apps before connecting to the controller. Putting it in airplane mode would even be better.

Just out of curiosity: is it possible to configure 2 smartphones for the same drone and use either one of them or do you need to "unlink" the first one to be able to connect to the other?
Just thinking of preparing my previous phone as a dedicated controller screen.

 

[3rdof5]

Thanks for the tips Gary.
I already shut down WiFi and Bluetooth and stop any running apps before connecting to the controller. Putting it in airplane mode would even be better.

Just out of curiosity: is it possible to configure 2 smartphones for the same drone and use either one of them or do you need to "unlink" the first one to be able to connect to the other?
Just thinking of preparing my previous phone as a dedicated controller screen.

You can use as many devices as you want, only the RC is bound to aircraft.
You just have to install the app and login on any device.

 

[GaryFlorida]

Thanks for the kind words.
I don't know if two phones can be set up. But Freddy K has it covered...

I would caution using the "older, weaker" phone with the drone.
Use your best processor while flying.
Video can be flaky at times, a lot of data, NOW. A "faster" phone will be better able to handle a weaker, more noisy video feed.
RF transmissions need all the help they can get.