Poor signal on the return leg

[simonr23]

I enjoy long distance flights.

I’ve noticed that every time I turn around to come home, the signal is terrible and cuts out numerous times (video and inputs) and the signal bars are only at 1, or 0 (so it’s red) until I’m very close to home.

Does the Mavic 3 only have back leg antennas?

My air 2s had better reception when coming home, vs the outward leg, so am confused (and annoyed)

 

[GadgetGuy]

I enjoy long distance flights.

I’ve noticed that every time I turn around to come home, the signal is terrible and cuts out numerous times (video and inputs) and the signal bars are only at 1, or 0 (so it’s red) until I’m very close to home.

Does the Mavic 3 only have back leg antennas?

My air 2s had better reception when coming home, vs the outward leg, so am confused (and annoyed)

Have you tried flying backwards on the return flight?

 

[simonr23]

Ah the old ‘you’re holding it wrong’ solution

 

[edcMavicPilots]

I have never experienced that with my 3.

 

[KS-6]

I did a long distance trial a couple days ago and had all bars lit up all the way out and then when I turned it around, the signal indicator turned orange and dropped a bar for about 1000 feet and then all came back to normal again.

 

[simonr23]

I went out to about 6kms on the latest flight and had 2-3 bars at the end. It had been white bars for 90% of the flight out.

As soon as I turned around I went to zero bars and had lots of signal and video interruptions, though not enough to trigger RTH.
My speed was stuttering and varying between 0,10,20,10,20kph for about 90 seconds though, as I slowly increased elevation and got closer to home and better signal.

It wasn’t until I was about 2.5kms from home that I got back into ‘white bar’ territory.

Same happened on a max distance tests, but in those cases signal was quite low on the outward leg, so hard to see much difference in this flights.

 

[Suren]

I do plenty long distance flights and mostly only return when it loses signal. Never had an issue where the signal was weaker on return as it should be stronger because the front legs where the antenna sits is now facing towards you making the connection stronger. I would check the front landing legs for any cracks etc.

 

[GadgetGuy]

Ah the old ‘you’re holding it wrong’ solution

It would at least provide another data point for answering his question, along with a possible workaround, if there is a difference. Yes, Apple did seem to have an excuse for everything!

I have not noticed any difference in signal strength on my M3 flying back, but most of my longer distance flights tend to be more oval, then straight line out and back. For me, the battery is the primary limiter, not the signal strength.

 

[akdrone]

this is unusual. I'd consult DJI as I've never heard anyone else make this complaint.

 

[simonr23]

i've bought a rc pro and it arrived today. a quick flight today to the same location and there wasnt any signal loss.
strange, but happy it worked.

 

[akdrone]

Sometimes buying your way out of a problem with a piece of equipment is the fastest solution! Good job. Glad your back to no problems...for the time being .

 

[GadgetGuy]

i've bought a rc pro and it arrived today. a quick flight today to the same location and there wasnt any signal loss.
strange, but happy it worked.

Not strange at all. It has 4x the signal strength of the RC-N1!

 

[akdrone]

Not strange at all. It has 4x the signal strength of the RC-N1!

I questioned that 4x and did a quick web search that led me back to some dodgy web page about mavicpilots.... Lisidora posted (back in june) a jpg that I'll repost here that lays out the output of various controllers. It shows the RC-N1 putting out 398mw and the M3 RC PRO putting out 1995mw. It also lists and Mini 3 RC-Pro but I think the correct title for the Mini 3 controller with the screen is simply the DJI RC, correct? And 398mw vs 1995 is more like 5x the strength or am I missing something? It's also shocking to note the CE variation putting out so much less power. I'm not familiar with that at all.

 

[GadgetGuy]

I questioned that 4x and did a quick web search that led me back to some dodgy web page about mavicpilots.... Lisidora posted (back in june) a jpg that I'll repost here that lays out the output of various controllers. It shows the RC-N1 putting out 398mw and the M3 RC PRO putting out 1995mw. It also lists and Mini 3 RC-Pro but I think the correct title for the Mini 3 controller with the screen is simply the DJI RC, correct? And 398mw vs 1995 is more like 5x the strength or am I missing something? It's also shocking to note the CE variation putting out so much less power. I'm not familiar with that at all.

View attachment 154145

Indeed, and he also incorrectly calls the Mini 3 Pro the Mini 3. DJI RC has the same crippled RC-N1 power output. Main takeaway is that the RC Pro is the best stock DJI controller for power output under FCC, needing no third party antenna mod, and RC Pro support for the Mini 3 Pro is a big deal. CE is very restrictive which is why FCC hacks are so popular in CE regions. Using his chart, RC Pro is indeed 5x more powerful than either the RC-N1 or DJI RC in a compact, ergonomic package. That alone is worth the $1200 cost. All the extra customizable buttons, brighter screen, more internal memory, and ability to install other apps are included, too! RC Pro for the win!