Things to know before first flight

[okw]

I just got my Mavic last night and "upgraded" to 1000 as it suggested. I saw the same message and was concerned, especially since I'm using an old cell phone with no cell service, so I won't have internet once I'm away from my home wi-fi connection. First flight was today and there was no issue exceeding those limits without the internet, so it must have just needed to connect initially when I was playing around at home last night.

 

[hillridge]

FYI, this was similar to the message text:
For increased safety, the flight is restricted to a height of 30 m and distance of 50 m when not connected or logged into the app during flight, including DJI GO 4 and all apps compatible with DJI aircraft.

It's getting a bit too dark and looks like it's about to rain, so I'm holding off on a maiden flight until tomorrow.

 

[hillridge]

Also, is it worth buying the Refresh plan for $99? I guess I have 2 days to decide.

 

[dewster]

If you cannot launch from a clean area, then a landing pad (like one of these) should keep your Mavic safe. You could also hand launch/catch it like this (if you're careful).

Turn off landing protection and you'll be able to hand launch and catch the Mavic without it trying to avoid you. Just make sure it's not facing you.

 

[QuadKid]

Does this insure the drone itself, or everything I may crash it into?

It will cover loss, theft, fly away, crashes resulting in total loss, pretty much any situation other than software/hardware issues. Will not cover Property Damage/ Liability for that you will need Aviation Insurance which is what you need to do business with most clients. Insured my MP for $ 1,250, if I loose it they write me a check to do what I want with it. Went with the $1250 because someday I think the MP will go the way of the P4 and you will be forced to buy the new MPP $ 1099 + shipping + tax.

 

[tracer bullet]

If you've biked out there before, you'll know what to do. If not... I'd suggest 1) Bring a ton of water with you to slickrock (I drank over a gallon from a camelback & 2 addtional pint bottles on my frame, over a few hours, and never peed once), and 2) Maybe skip the Mavic your very first trip and take on day 2 and onward once you have a feel for things. Oh, and 3) Biek 2 days, then take a day to see the parks, then another day or two to bike, then a park, and so on. Bryce isn't too far and is like another world. Zion is sweet too.

Fun country! Have fun.

 

[dbyantis]

Hi All,

I've been wavering on buying a Mavic, as it's been a month with a few unplanned expenses, but I'm heading to Moab with a bunch of friends in a week, and I feel like it'll be worth it just for the video I'll be able to shoot.

I have experience with quads, and have built a few custom ones from components, as well as flown inexpensive OTS models. I'm familiar with the flight basics and the legal side of things. This will be my first "professional" one, and definitely the most expensive, so I'd like to give myself the best chance of the experience not ending in tears and regret.

We're mainly going to be biking in Moab, with a day of canyoneering thrown in, and I plan to pick up something like this so I can carry it in my backpack: https://www.amazon.com/Philonext-Foldable-Controller-Transmitter-Hardshell/dp/B06XDQJD7C

What do you think are the most valuable things to know/do when starting out?

What are must have extras, and what are just junk? I was planning on a package with a couple extra batteries and props, everything else seemed less useful.

If I buy it today on Amazon, I'll have the weekend to get familiar with it before heading out, plus a couple days in Moab before our the first ride I'd want to bring it on. I mostly want to learn how it all works, so I am ready to go while we're out, and don't have to make folks wait while I fiddle with something.

Advice, o sage Mavic owners?

I also have flown other quads, but the MP is an animal of it's own, so don't get lulled into being an expert with it too soon. The software side of the MP is also a feature to fully understand. Best of luck, don't let your crew talk you into flying something you aren't comfortable with, like"I bet you can't fly it over to that mountain."

 

[hillridge]

If you've biked out there before, you'll know what to do. If not... I'd suggest 1) Bring a ton of water with you to slickrock (I drank over a gallon from a camelback & 2 addtional pint bottles on my frame, over a few hours, and never peed once), and 2) Maybe skip the Mavic your very first trip and take on day 2 and onward once you have a feel for things. Oh, and 3) Biek 2 days, then take a day to see the parks, then another day or two to bike, then a park, and so on. Bryce isn't too far and is like another world. Zion is sweet too.

Fun country! Have fun.

Thanks!

I've biked there a couple times, but this trip will be with ~15 of our friends, most of which have never been out there. That's partially why I decided to get a Mavic, we won't have a trip like this again any time soon. We're doing a couple days of biking, then a canyoneering trip (hoping to get some cool shots of people rappelling), then a couple more days of biking. I'm definitely taking it with me to Slickrock and Amasa Back, and Whole Enchilada. Not sure about Mag7, as I haven't ridden it before. We'll go to Arches for sure, maybe Canyonlands. I did a big loop of most of the parks out there a few years ago, so probably not going to venture too far from Moab this time.

 

[hillridge]

I also have flown other quads, but the MP is an animal of it's own, so don't get lulled into being an expert with it too soon. The software side of the MP is also a feature to fully understand. Best of luck, don't let your crew talk you into flying something you aren't comfortable with, like"I bet you can't fly it over to that mountain."

Ha, I've already gotten most of my dumb drone ideas out of the way (hopefully). The first revelation I had just playing with the sim mode was that the left stick is altitude, not throttle. As in, I don't have to throttle up when flying forward to maintain altitude. I'm also not planning on putting this in sport any time soon. If I want to go zooming around (and inevitably into) things, I'll stick to the $100 FPV drone. I'm thinking of the Mavic as more of an aerial camera.

 

[hillridge]

I got in an hour or two of flight time today, and this thing is amazing.

I have a weird issue though. I tried using both an S7 and an S5 coupled to the controller. They seemed pretty similar, but when I attempted to use active track, there were no options on the S5 and it behaved like it was in spotlight mode. Switched to the S7 and the options were all there.

I checked, and the app version is the same.

Does the app limit the capabilities of the mavic based on what phone it is running on? It seems like maybe the phone is doing the heavy lifting for active track, and not the drone.

 

[okw]

I got in an hour or two of flight time today, and this thing is amazing.

I have a weird issue though. I tried using both an S7 and an S5 coupled to the controller. They seemed pretty similar, but when I attempted to use active track, there were no options on the S5 and it behaved like it was in spotlight mode. Switched to the S7 and the options were all there.

I checked, and the app version is the same.

Does the app limit the capabilities of the mavic based on what phone it is running on? It seems like maybe the phone is doing the heavy lifting for active track, and not the drone.

Interesting. I've been using my S4 and I can't find the Active Track options either. Although, mine appears to be in Trace mode, not Spotlight.

I haven't tried my S7. Could it be based on the size of the screen? I would hope not.

 

[hillridge]

I'm wondering if I have a setting different between the two or something. I noticed that some settings are saved on the drone and some on the phone. I also had a weird thing happen tonight while using the S5 where my C1 button (assigned to switch gimbal from forward to down) had a ton of lag. I'd push it a few times and nothing happened then 30 seconds later it would go up-down-up-down however many times I hit it. Ran out of daylight, so couldn't test it any further.

 

[okw]

I'm wondering if I have a setting different between the two or something. I noticed that some settings are saved on the drone and some on the phone. I also had a weird thing happen tonight while using the S5 where my C1 button (assigned to switch gimbal from forward to down) had a ton of lag. I'd push it a few times and nothing happened then 30 seconds later it would go up-down-up-down however many times I hit it. Ran out of daylight, so couldn't test it any further.

I've also seen lag on a couple flights ... one last night and one or two today. The video on the phone was very smooth, just about 10 seconds behind. I had to land, shut everything off and restart. Maybe something about the older phones.

 

[hillridge]

This is something that I can probably answer for myself tomorrow, but if anyone knows offhand that would be great. I've read that the max speed of active track is 15m/s (~33.5 MPH). What I'm unsure of is if this requires a FW version above .0400.

The release notes for Android App V 4.0.5 say:
-Increase max flight speed to 15m/s in ActiveTrack

This would coincide with firmware .0550, but there's no mention of it in the release notes for that. Everything I've read has said to stay on 0400 if you can. Being limited in my active track speed is about the only thing that would make me want to roll the dice with upgrading.

 

[ABagden]

Hi All,

I've been wavering on buying a Mavic, as it's been a month with a few unplanned expenses, but I'm heading to Moab with a bunch of friends in a week, and I feel like it'll be worth it just for the video I'll be able to shoot.

I have experience with quads, and have built a few custom ones from components, as well as flown inexpensive OTS models. I'm familiar with the flight basics and the legal side of things. This will be my first "professional" one, and definitely the most expensive, so I'd like to give myself the best chance of the experience not ending in tears and regret.

If you have that experience, the mavic will be simple for you to fly. Don't over think it. Read the manual, start in beginner mode learn what the different flight modes are and you will figure it out.

As far as accessories, buy the Fly More package and you will have everything you need.

 

[hillridge]

This is something that I can probably answer for myself tomorrow, but if anyone knows offhand that would be great. I've read that the max speed of active track is 15m/s (~33.5 MPH). What I'm unsure of is if this requires a FW version above .0400.

The release notes for Android App V 4.0.5 say:
-Increase max flight speed to 15m/s in ActiveTrack

This would coincide with firmware .0550, but there's no mention of it in the release notes for that. Everything I've read has said to stay on 0400 if you can. Being limited in my active track speed is about the only thing that would make me want to roll the dice with upgrading.

I flew in active track today, and even though I had the vertical slider on the right hand side of the screen, if I moved it up above the minimum (3.3mph), it just snapped right back down. This didn't seem to matter though, as it tracked my friend on a dirtbike and hit speeds of around 25mph according to the controller. I'm not sure how much straight line travel is needed to get it all the way up to 33mph. We were in a parking lot, and he rode in more of an oval pattern.

I also had my first crash, luckily with nothing more than a minor scuff or two for damage. The drone swung to the outside of him while tracking in profile mode, and clipped a tree on the perimeter of where I was flying. Landed in a pile of brush and leaves, and all was fine once I rebooted it. I think I could have stopped it by hitting the pause button on the controller, but I didn't get it in time.

I also noticed that when switching to active tracking, it takes the camera out of manual and puts it in auto, so I have to go back and switch it each time. Is there a way to stop it from doing this? I'd hate to set up a great shot only to later realize it screwed up my ISO and shutter settings.