Controller battery life

[catowner7]

I just found out that I cannot charge the controller using the USB port, I was hoping I could attach a power bank to it while flying, but no :-( So what do people do when going out in the field with 2 or 3 spare drone batteries and you start to run out of controller power when the first drone battery is empty?

 

[Not A Speck Of Cereal]

This doesn't happen to me — I can use 5 drone batteries during one full charge of the standard controller.

Are you using an Android device?

 

[catowner7]

Yes.

 

[Thomas B]

Using my CS along with the controller I easily get 6 full batteries of flight time using my M2P.
Suspect your problem may be that the controller battery is charging your Android phone. This is a known issue and I don’t think anyone has posted a work around that they have proven.
A car or remote charger may help you get back in the air quicker.

 

[ff22]

I just found out that I cannot charge the controller using the USB port, I was hoping I could attach a power bank to it while flying, but no :-( So what do people do when going out in the field with 2 or 3 spare drone batteries and you start to run out of controller power when the first drone battery is empty?

I believe that folks have been able to attach a power bank to the side (small) usb while using the larger/lower usb to connect to their phone/tablet. But as suggested you should be able to get more than one drone battery/flight on a controller charge.

 

[Tommy85]

I was having the same problem since I use a Samsung Tablet. If I didn't have the tablet fully charged as soon as I hooked up the bottom USB cable to the Tablet it would show the RC was charging the tablet.
I have now switched to the C.S. ultra-bright since my eyes are bad at 84. Now I can fly my MPP for all the 4 batteries & still have 87% battery on the C.S.

 

[catowner7]

84? Congratulations, great to hear. I still got 15 years to reach that and hope I also will be able to fly by then.

 

[CareyL]

I just found out that I cannot charge the controller using the USB port, I was hoping I could attach a power bank to it while flying, but no :-( So what do people do when going out in the field with 2 or 3 spare drone batteries and you start to run out of controller power when the first drone battery is empty?

You are charging through the side port?
Or charge while you fly! (Ignore the home-made tablet holder; I now use a Lekufee Tablet / phone holder ). See the pic.

 

[jimlips]

Regarding the RC discharging fast when an Android device is attached, see this thread (and many others if you use the search function) on how to address it:

AVOID Mavic Remote DISCHARGING with Android

 

[catowner7]

Thanks, I followed the tips to charge via the side port but it still drains the controller. So I decided to test this properly. I used:

- my mavic 2 zoom
- standard dji controller
- samsung s7 edge smartphone
- ravpower power bank 14.000 mAh

First test over 1 hour with the power bank connected and everything else powered up fully charged:

Charge after 30 min: drone 81%, controller 92%, phone 97%
Charge after 60 min: drone 62%, controller 87%, phone 93%

2nd test without the power bank, but using a different drone battery:

Charge after 30 min: drone 84%, controller 80%, phone 98%
Charge after 60 min: drone 67%, controller 58%, phone 95%

So YES, the charging is working, even if it cannot keep up with the discharge speed. 87% controller level after 1 hour is great compared to the 58% otherwise. Thanks for the tips.

 

[CareyL]

Thanks, I followed the tips to charge via the side port but it still drains the controller. So I decided to test this properly. I used:

- my mavic 2 zoom
- standard dji controller
- samsung s7 edge smartphone
- ravpower power bank 14.000 mAh

First test over 1 hour with the power bank connected and everything else powered up fully charged:

Charge after 30 min: drone 81%, controller 92%, phone 97%
Charge after 60 min: drone 62%, controller 87%, phone 93%

2nd test without the power bank, but using a different drone battery:

Charge after 30 min: drone 84%, controller 80%, phone 98%
Charge after 60 min: drone 67%, controller 58%, phone 95%

So YES, the charging is working, even if it cannot keep up with the discharge speed. 87% controller level after 1 hour is great compared to the 58% otherwise. Thanks for the tips.

The only other thing to test is whether your power bank is outputting 2.1A from both ports simultaneously. I have attached a picture of a Mavic Mini setup. Note that its controller cannot charge simultaneously. Android devices need about 500mA for the port to be active.
Good test. Outside I have my tablet at max brightness. This increases the drain.