DroneLink for MM changes everything

[mike.alexander]

I am using a Samsung S8+

Good point , the mobile processing power should also be factored in . I had not considered my phone as not powerful enough for this function but I would be interested to see results from any newer top line mobile devices.

I have an iPhone 11 available but unfortunately I have purchased the app once for android platform already and I can not transfer it.

It looks like if you pay via their website, your account can be used on any supported platform (i.e. iOS/iPadOS and Android).

You could try cancelling your subscription via the Google Play Store and then sign up via the website?

 

[KiloMeater]

True, I will give it a try with iPhone 11 and will report back.

 

[Bussty]

True, I will give it a try with iPhone 11 and will report back.

I have purchased the app too and have been going over the videos and feeling like I'm getting to know the program. Seems pretty cool. Haven't flown yet. Just a couple of things, app is still in beta for Mini and have you raised the orbit jerkiness with the developers via the DroneLink Forum? Would be interesting to see what they have to say...

 

[Kyle76]

There are some settings regarding FPV and gimbal movement. Have you checked those out? It looks like the gimbal is not fixed on the POI.

Also, it’s no longer in beta. Update issued last night for Apple iOS.

 

[KiloMeater]

It looks like the gimbal is not fixed on the POI.

I could not locate such a specific setting; if you could point me to it may make a difference
I am setting values regarding gimbal pitch during flight but that is only the degrees

 

[egoldy]

I could not locate such a specific setting; if you could point me to it may make a difference
I am setting values regarding gimbal pitch during flight but that is only the degrees

You can set the altitude of the POI if you want. We have seen some issues with it not being "perfectly" focused on the focused object. Got to do with the info that the drone is sending back to Dronelink. Can try gimbal calibration which has helped some.

 

[RogerDH]

Let us know if you can tell any difference in the sound when flying around with the app
Definitely record an orbit focusing on video smoothness and let us know your assessment of it

The video is still uploading to YouTube, but I can report similar results. I did a 450-foot orbit for 120 degrees which is noticeably wobbly, followed immediately by a curved path with a point-of-interest on the other side of the road, followed by a straight path home with a point-of-interest. Unfortunately I didn't realize the camera would be turned off after the first component, so I don't have video of the second component, but I can tell you from watching the screen that, being closer to the building, it was worse, very similar to your test. The third path didn't get executed at all -- it just hung there and I couldn't get RTH to work, so I flew it home manually. I had a "weak signal" warning, but it didn't appear to ever disconnect, so I don't know what happened. Because of that, I didn't do any further testing.

 

[egoldy]

Created a quick video to showcase the use of Dronelink for the Mavic Mini..

Bottom line: If you have a Mavic Mini, this is the ONLY solution out there that will give you waypoints.. And waypoints are only the tip of the iceberg as to what you can do with this software..

Check it out..

 

[bobzdar]

Created a quick video to showcase the use of Dronelink for the Mavic Mini..

Bottom line: If you have a Mavic Mini, this is the ONLY solution out there that will give you waypoints.. And waypoints are only the tip of the iceberg as to what you can do with this software..

Check it out..

Awesome! What are some of the other things it can do with the mini specifically that it can't otherwise do? Can it use any of the built in dji modes? Like do the rocket launch and then run a waypoint mission? I'll probably start playing around with it this afternoon.

 

[egoldy]

Awesome! What are some of the other things it can do with the mini specifically that it can't otherwise do? Can it use any of the built in dji modes? Like do the rocket launch and then run a waypoint mission? I'll probably start playing around with it this afternoon.

If you want to use the DJI modes, you should use the DJI modes on DJI Fly..

This takes the Mini to the next level..

Start with Waypoints (which you may have seen on other drones) and add in a ton of additional functionality that ONLY Dronelink has..

Check out www.dronelink.com and watch the Dronelink 101 videos to get a flavor of what you can do.

 

[RogerDH]

This is video from my orbit test, 450-foot radius:

It's straight from the Mini, and I had -0.7 EV set, so it's a bit dark -- I like to control that in post.

 

[KiloMeater]

So I have spend a couple of hours this afternoon trying again, this time using my work ipad pro, one of the latest, which is a monster with respect to processing power.

I can see significant improvement on the smoothness of the orbit ... if I would be extra picky i would say its not 100% smooth like the DJI orbit but at this point its good enough . Moreover whenever you do some easier curves you dont even notice .
I would say my orbit this afternoon (big radius and slow) was even better than the one seen in the promo video linked above, around 7:10) which by the way is indicative of the jerkiness we have reported.

all in all I am very happy with this product, it adds to my MM functionality that I did not expect to have.
There are things than can be improved , either bugs (AirData integration is not good, besides the time when the flight took place there is practically no information passed on, or some times the plans not being saved ) or enhancements (frequency channel selector)
I would definitely recommend it, looking forward to explore further its potential .

 

[Capt KO]

Let me know when it has “Active Track”. The one I miss most on the mm.

 

[Steelgtr]

I'm in the beta testflight Dronelink program and my ipad mini 4 won't connect to the MM. Is it released for iOS yet? The program launches but no aircraft connection?

 

[Keule]

Is it released for iOS yet?

Yes - v1.7.0 is the actual version

 

[KiloMeater]

I posted this on the DroneLink forum, I hope they can resolve it
The integration with AirData is not working , only the flight start time and drone model are being passed on
Nothing on the flight duration battery map etc is saved

 

[egoldy]

I'm in the beta testflight Dronelink program and my ipad mini 4 won't connect to the MM. Is it released for iOS yet? The program launches but no aircraft connection?

Download the version from the store..

 

[Kyle76]

The jerkiness seems to me a gimbal issue rather than a flight issue. I don’t think the drone itself is making those quick movements. Hopefully, it’s a fixable issue.

 

[RogerDH]

So I have spend a couple of hours this afternoon trying again, this time using my work ipad pro, one of the latest, which is a monster with respect to processing power.

I can see significant improvement on the smoothness of the orbit ... if I would be extra picky i would say its not 100% smooth like the DJI orbit but at this point its good enough . Moreover whenever you do some easier curves you dont even notice .

Well, if the S8+ isn't fast enough, I'm not sure the latest S20 is any huge improvement. The S8+ has 4 CPUs running at 2.35 GHz and 4 at 1.90 GHz, whereas the S20 has 2 at 2.73 GHz, 2 at 2.60 GHz and 4 at 2.0 GHz -- so only about 15% faster in aggregate. That's not worth the upgrade price to me, so I guess I'll just have to wait and hope that performance can be improved.

 

[RogerDH]

<snip>
all in all I am very happy with this product, it adds to my MM functionality that I did not expect to have.
There are things than can be improved , either bugs (AirData integration is not good, besides the time when the flight took place there is practically no information passed on, or some times the plans not being saved ) or enhancements (frequency channel selector)
I would definitely recommend it, looking forward to explore further its potential .

And it should be said, point-of-interest focus is only one of the things you might want to do with waypoint missions, and Dronelink seems to be very capable of doing a lot of the other things well.