Smart Controller for Mavic Air 2

[Jet skier]

I am pondering on buying the smart controller for my Air 2, wondering if anyone who has flown one with the Smart Controller, and if you had any glitches with the drone not responding to commands, I would hate to destroy my drone due to a sudden failure by the controller.

Thanks,
Bob

Starting early in the summer I had to send my smart controller in to get the board replaced twice overall that took about four months until I finally got a smart controller that worked it works really good now finally the problem I had was that the drone would go out always and then I would get a blank screen all I know is the return to home work when I pushed the hard button so I think there’s definitely a problem with the smart controller at least some of them maybe certain batches

 

[Captain Bob]

I am pondering on buying the smart controller for my Air 2, wondering if anyone who has flown one with the Smart Controller, and if you had any glitches with the drone not responding to commands, I would hate to destroy my drone due to a sudden failure by the controller.

Thanks,
Bob

Good Morning, I purchased my smart controller before the the software update. Since the update, I have been flying my Air 2 with the controller with no issues. Sure is a lot better than using my phone.

 

[Mcscott]

I bought one two weeks ago and I have a serious problem with mine. While it works excellent in controlling the aircraft, my controller shows the aircraft 45 degrees to the right of my controller or behind the controller. I have re-calibrated the drone and controller several times and it’s still happening. I may have bought a bad controller. If it’s not resolved in the next few days, I’ll return it and order another one. If you fly in high heat, as i do, a controller is almost mandatory if you own an iPhone.

 

[Thomas B]

Still love my CS 7.85” display. I do own an SC.

 

[AtortPhotography]

I am pondering on buying the smart controller for my Air 2, wondering if anyone who has flown one with the Smart Controller, and if you had any glitches with the drone not responding to commands, I would hate to destroy my drone due to a sudden failure by the controller.

Thanks,
Bob

I made this video on my thoughts....I would say absolutely no, but that's me. Spend the money on another backup MA2 if you need to spend some cash.

 

[Phantomrain.org]

I made this video on my thoughts....I would say absolutely no, but that's me. Spend the money on another backup MA2 if you need to spend some cash.

I would not say it is amazing - but it is convenient and much faster setup than the phone and carrying Two Drones and one Smart Controller is better than 2 Two drones and 2 Controllers.

We fly in the Extreme Rain/Snow/ Heat so hands down the Smart Cotroller is better.

Its not a hassle , but there is a small learning curve, Being able to Plug and Play HDMI is a huge advantage to quickly show off video footage to a TV . If you let the SD Card do all the work you can skip the file sharing.

I will agree the Update was a hassle and left a bad taste , took me 2 hours, and others never got it and DJI does a very poor job with instructions on there updates .

I also found that I no longer need the Iphone 11 Max Plus now , so im going back to a normal size Iphone and selling the phone , and no more worries about the Iphone and flying low battery.

I wish I could say the SC was amazing, but its not , it does check off a lot of boxes and as More Drones Come out that are Compatible is going to also save money there > So maybe its an investment .

Now if they make a Mavic 3 and it is not Compatible , im going to have that bad taste back.

Phantomrain.org
Gear to Fly your Mavic Air 2 in the Rain and Float on Water.

 

[zeusfl]

I would not say it is amazing - but it is convenient and much faster setup than the phone and carrying Two Drones and one Smart Controller is better than 2 Two drones and 2 Controllers.

We fly in the Extreme Rain/Snow/ Heat so hands down the Smart Cotroller is better.

Its not a hassle , but there is a small learning curve, Being able to Plug and Play HDMI is a huge advantage to quickly show off video footage to a TV . If you let the SD Card do all the work you can skip the file sharing.

I will agree the Update was a hassle and left a bad taste , took me 2 hours, and others never got it and DJI does a very poor job with instructions on there updates .

I also found that I no longer need the Iphone 11 Max Plus now , so im going back to a normal size Iphone and selling the phone , and no more worries about the Iphone and flying low battery.

I wish I could say the SC was amazing, but its not , it does check off a lot of boxes and as More Drones Come out that are Compatible is going to also save money there > So maybe its an investment .

Now if they make a Mavic 3 and it is not Compatible , im going to have that bad taste back.

Phantomrain.org
Gear to Fly your Mavic Air 2 in the Rain and Float on Water.

I completely agree. A nice thing is that you can boost only one device and have all your compatible drones boosted. I am talking about the Allietech antennas or Raptor SR - XR

 

[Phantomrain.org]

I completely agree. A nice thing is that you can boost only one device and have all your compatible drones boosted. I am talking about the Allietech antennas or Raptor SR - XR

That is great , I did not even think of that : ?

 

[RobW01]

Don't want to ruffle any feathers but the Ipad mini 5 is 500 nits.

Yes and the iPad Pro is 600. But it’s correct that tablets and phones tend to throttle back the brightness when they get hot. The Smart Controller’s main drawbacks to me are: 1. It can only be used with DJI drones (and not all of them); and 2. I don’t like the screen being below the sticks.

 

[Robrink]

I bought one two weeks ago and I have a serious problem with mine. While it works excellent in controlling the aircraft, my controller shows the aircraft 45 degrees to the right of my controller or behind the controller. I have re-calibrated the drone and controller several times and it’s still happening. I may have bought a bad controller. If it’s not resolved in the next few days, I’ll return it and order another one. If you fly in high heat, as i do, a controller is almost mandatory if you own an iPhone.

Everyone I've encountered with the Air 2 and SC have the same problem. I have the same problem. I watched 5 different youtube video range tests, and I could see the same problem with the GPS icon in the reviewers screen recordings. I think its an overall SC and Air 2 issue. I'm hoping a Fly software update will fix it.

Does anyone that has the SC and Air 2 have a correct facing GPS icon? My triangle is always pointed in the wrong direction and is behind me no matter how I turn.

 

[TheRock]

I have about 15 flights and no glitches at all. I have always preferred the Smart Controller so being able to use it with the MA2 is really great. As an aside, I have not figured out how to use the ZOOM function yet. Anyone here know?

 

[StevieB]

I am pondering on buying the smart controller for my Air 2, wondering if anyone who has flown one with the Smart Controller, and if you had any glitches with the drone not responding to commands, I would hate to destroy my drone due to a sudden failure by the controller.

Thanks,
Bob

I’ve had my SC a few weeks now, probably had 20 or so flights and I like it. Quick connection set up, although I never found the connection set up with the stock controller slow or tedious. It feels really solid and has a solid connection to the aircraft.

The bright and clear screen is great - in W Australia I fly a lot in the sun and in heat so that’s a big plus for me - last year I was flying over Marina Bay in Singapore using my iPad mini 5, and halfway through the flight the iPad shut down as it got too hot! Minor panic initially but RTH kicked in and I took over and managed to steer her home without any issues.

I’ve had no glitches or any response issues with mine, the Fly app has the same functionality and works for me.

$1100 (Au) is a chunk of cash, but if you have it spare I would recommend the SC. I’m hoping to add the MP3 when it comes out so hopefully it will be compatible. ??

 

[floridakilos]

Not putting down the Smart Controller, but getting in the air with the regular A2 controller is not exactly tedious, especially considering that unlike the crab claw controllers of other models, I don’t even have to remove my phone case. I noticed one of the new iPhone models has 1200 nits of brightness.

It'll have 1200 nits until the phone starts to get hot and then it auto-dims the display on you.

 

[zeusfl]

It'll have 1200 nits until the phone starts to get hot and then it auto-dims the display on you.

Not only that. It happened to me twice already flying with my Ipad 11 Pro that start dimming and them had a message saying was too hut and shutdown completely the Ipad automatically because was too hot and my drone was about 2000 ft. away. GOD bless the RTH that works like a champ. Same thing happened to the iPhone. Lesson learned. I don't fly anymore in direct Florida sun light unless I am using the Smart Controller.

 

[zeusfl]

Another 1200 nits option.

 

[Repaid1]

I have about 15 flights and no glitches at all. I have always preferred the Smart Controller so being able to use it with the MA2 is really great. As an aside, I have not figured out how to use the ZOOM function yet. Anyone here know?

I read somewhere that they used the same function wheel as M2Z...... top right?

 

[mavicpro@2018]

I read somewhere that they used the same function wheel as M2Z...... top right?

Yes it is true ?

 

[Tentoes]

Sounds like we have a new Olympic event. Lets see who can get in the air the fastest. If every starts doing that we are going to have a lot of crashed drones. Take your time and be safe no matter what controller you use.

hehe I'd loose that one!

Like the MA2 controler, but it takes me a LONG time to fiddle it together.

 

[Robrink]

It'll have 1200 nits until the phone starts to get hot and then it auto-dims the display on you.

Yes, my iPhone 11Pro which is around 800 nits over heats and dims to the point you can barely see the screen.

 

[Skyelf]

I am pondering on buying the smart controller for my Air 2, wondering if anyone who has flown one with the Smart Controller, and if you had any glitches with the drone not responding to commands, I would hate to destroy my drone due to a sudden failure by the controller.

Thanks,
Bob

I'm loving the smart controller for the Air 2! We live on a boat and often fly at sea. It is very bright most of the time and the phone (or iPad on my Mavic Pro) just don't work - can't see anything in bright sunlight. With the smart controller there's no having to find a little bit of shade on the boat. It's really nice not to have cords, too. We've had no issues whatsoever with the controller. And we bought one of the refurbished ones from DJI to save some $$.