Did you know you could fly the Mini with no phone?

[svenmarbles]

I honestly never knew....

You can simply power on the drone and controller and fly....

This is super cool in times when you just really need the drone up quick..

 

[Saigondroner]

I honestly never knew....

You can simply power on the drone and controller and fly....

This is super cool in times when you just really need the drone up quick..

Whizz bang!! Nuthin' better than having no clue what the drone is up to, when a selphie moment just cannot wait.

 

[Lastrexking]

This is super cool in times when you just really need the drone up quick..

And, also the easiest way to lose your drone as you have no idea if you have a home point, gps, compass issue....

So, when you take off using only the controller, and your drone flies off - kiss it goodbye.

No chance of finding it with find my drone, or the flight logs - because there won’t be any.

That’s why this isn’t in the manual.

Be better than this. Fly intelligently and responsibly.

 

[Saigondroner]

And, also the easiest way to lose your drone as you have no idea if you have a home point, gps, compass issue....

So, when you take off using only the controller, and your drone flies off - kiss it goodbye.

No chance of finding it with find my drone, or the flight logs - because there won’t be any.

That’s why this isn’t in the manual.

Be better than this. Fly intelligently and responsibly.

Send me your +44 number...I will need a voice of reason in ~2 weeks.

 

[svenmarbles]

And, also the easiest way to lose your drone as you have no idea if you have a home point, gps, compass issue....

So, when you take off using only the controller, and your drone flies off - kiss it goodbye.

No chance of finding it with find my drone, or the flight logs - because there won’t be any.

That’s why this isn’t in the manual.

Be better than this. Fly intelligently and responsibly.

Good lord,.. Some people just can’t pass up an opportunity to talk down to someone..

 

[Lastrexking]

Good lord,.. Some people just can’t pass up an opportunity to talk down to someone..

Not at all. I’m just trying to help people to not lose their drones by explaining the possible consequences of flying using the remote only. I wasn’t personally attacking you, or taking down to you. But, if you’re going to share something like this you need to also explain the risks involved.

If someone new to drones followed your information and lost their drone, how would you feel?

 

[meens]

I did try to pilot the drone without a phone and it worked very well. I simply waited a bit to be sure I had a good GPS signal. The reason why I did that was to know what would happen if for some reason my phone powered down in flight. I was simply reassured that I could bring the drone back by simply using the flight controller. Otherwise I use my phone all the time but it is good to know you will not loose your drone if you loose your phone.

 

[FoxhallGH]

One big reason for fly-aways is that the drone is launched and flown off before it has a chance to get its 'fix' on where it is in the world. Although it's possible to fly the drone without a mobile, and that's a useful thing to know if your mobile/pad 'crashes' while your drone is up, I'd recommend that you don't actually use this as a way to get your drone up quickly - but take the same amount of time that you would if you had the mobile connected to the controller, and could see that you had GPS fix etc.
Besides, what are you going to use to get the photo's you want?? ?

 

[DanMan32]

Rear LEDs will tell you if you have GPS or not. There's always VPS to fall back on for stability if you don't have GPS and if you are low enough.
If you take off without the app, your height and distance will be limited. You'll definitely want to fly VLOS. You can record video for later viewing.

I flew my Mini cautiously last weekend without a phone. It was a bit stressful but doable. I made sure I saw sky all around my Mini.

I've rarely flown a DJI without a phone. One time was my P3 because I had the wrong USB cable for my phone/tablet, and no-one to watch my stuff in the park while I go to my car to get the correct cable.

 

[dlincecum]

Good lord,.. Some people just can’t pass up an opportunity to talk down to someone..

I too am amazed by how quickly people jump on others on this forum. I appreciate the tip on the ability to launch With no phone. This forum is a place to learn about these odd features. the Risks of doing this is obvious.

 

[Thomas B]

Looks like all the pertinent facts are here.