What's the lowest altitude you can fly at (at say 400m distance) without losing signal?

[shadow3467]

This DJI mini 3 Pro is my first drone and I'm trying to figure out if its behaving normally or not

If I fly at 20-30m altitude, about 300-400m away, I lose almost all my signal or most times even disconnect entirely

Is the signal being this weak normal?

What's the lowest altitude you can fly at (at say 400m distance) without losing signal?

 

[VenomXts]

Do you have trees in front of you?

 

[shadow3467]

Do you have trees in front of you?

A few sure, I'm trying to figure out how other people and other drones fare in similar situations

Here's a video for example

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Bad signal starts around 2:00 mark, total disconnect around 4:30

Again though this post isn't mainly about my drone, I'm wanting to see what other peoples' experiences are since this is my first DJI drone

 

[VenomXts]

When you have obstacles in front of you like trees it drastically cuts down single on my Air2 and did on my Mavic 3 as well.

Trees in my backyard are about 90 feet tall and extend all the way out and I lose signal if im not up above them significantly at around 1600/1800 feet out.

 

[MAvic_South_Oz]

It’s going to be really hard to compare anyone else’s results to yours.
Those few trees vs at another location vs open LOS from a slight rise.
It’s like asking how long’s a piece of string ?

There are threads in the forum about the mini 3 pro range (lack of), haven’t read them really, but you might find some useful for helping you get a better understanding of what others are finding with the aircraft.

Far better to try out a few different scenarios / flying situations with your own setup, open LOS vs a few trees around vs urban, etc.
Get an understanding of its limitations and what to expect in various places.

 

[shadow3467]

It’s going to be really hard to compare anyone else’s results to yours.
Those few trees vs at another location vs open LOS from a slight rise.
It’s like asking how long’s a piece of string ?

There are threads in the forum about the mini 3 pro range (lack of), haven’t read them really, but you might find some useful for helping you get a better understanding of what others are finding with the aircraft.

Far better to try out a few different scenarios / flying situations with your own setup, open LOS vs a few trees around vs urban, etc.
Get an understanding of its limitations and what to expect in various places.

I know and I get that but again as I don't have much experience with drones or any with any other drones, I dont know whats normal/a given and whats not

I guess the main thing I'm trying to figure out, is if I'm experiencing normal expected signal disruption due to stuff being in the line of sight, or if I'm experiencing abnormal and uncommon signal interruptions

 

[MAvic_South_Oz]

Yeah I know, hopefully some Mini 3 Pro owners might be able to give their thoughts.
Those other threads might be helpful in the meantime, most would be in that aircraft forum section I would think.

 

[shadow3467]

Yeah I know, hopefully some Mini 3 Pro owners might be able to give their thoughts.
Those other threads might be helpful in the meantime, most would be in that aircraft forum section u would think.

Yeah I'm very active in the Mini 3 subforum the past week or two, I've even made several videos showing my flights/signal strength

I just want a good functional drone for the 2 more months of summer we have here in Canada lol then I can't fly it anymore due to weather

 

[MAvic_South_Oz]

Yeah I'm very active in the Mini 3 subforum the past week or two, I've even made several videos showing my flights/signal strength

I just want a good functional drone for the 2 more months of summer we have here in Canada lol then I can't fly it anymore due to weather

I just saw your posts in other thread, and the frustrations.
Really poor to see this and other issues like the map orientation etc from what’s supposed to be the latest DJI offering.
I mean they should be getting better, not worse.
My old M1P is so solid in signal, even my old wifi Spark I never have issues with in some potentially dodgy scenarios.
This is why (new DJI releases with bugs, features missing, etc) I’d wait at least 2 or 3 months IF I was ever tempted by any of their newer offerings.
Hope you get to the bottom of the issue(s) soon.

 

[Yorkshire_Pud]

What controller?
If the DJI RC controller I know it's a bit of a kick in the nuts but have you thought of getting a second hand RC231/RC-N1 controller?
From what I have seen so far I get the impression the range problems are associated with the built in display controller, DJI RC, I do not remember a complaint thread mentioning the use of the RC231.

 

[shadow3467]

What controller?
If the DJI RC controller I know it's a bit of a kick in the nuts but have you thought of getting a second hand RC231/RC-N1 controller?
From what I have seen so far I get the impression the range problems are associated with the built in display controller, DJI RC, I do not remember a complaint thread mentioning the use of the RC231.

There's been several youtubers who have tried both and didnt see a difference

 

[Yorkshire_Pud]

Ah fair enough, I don't watch many youtube drone videos unless I am looking for something specific.

 

[VenomXts]

I just saw your posts in other thread, and the frustrations.
Really poor to see this and other issues like the map orientation etc from what’s supposed to be the latest DJI offering.
I mean they should be getting better, not worse.
My old M1P is so solid in signal, even my old wifi Spark I never have issues with in some potentially dodgy scenarios.
This is why (new DJI releases with bugs, features missing, etc) I’d wait at least 2 or 3 months IF I was ever tempted by any of their newer offerings.
Hope you get to the bottom of the issue(s) soon.

Haha, out of the gate adoption of any DJI drone is a recipe for unhappiness. Why I returned the Mavic 3.

 

[KLRSKIR]

Haha, out of the gate adoption of any DJI drone is a recipe for unhappiness. Why I returned the Mavic 3.

I've never looked at it this way and truly enjoyed early adoption of all DJI products, going back to the Phantom days. This is cutting-edge technology and cannot possibly be fully vetted in a sterile bubble in China. Time brings improvement. Look at the Mavic 3 now.

 

[MAvic_South_Oz]

Look at the Mavic 3 now.

7 months is a decent enough time to see the bugs mostly eliminated.
Not sure, are all the advertised features working now ?

 

[KLRSKIR]

7 months is a decent enough time to see the bugs mostly eliminated.
Not sure, are all the advertised features working now ?

Yes they are, and more. They finally unlocked the C3 button on the RC Pro.

 

[howardK]

I will typically go to my max altitude (legal altitude) of about 400 ft. At that with my strobes i can see it out to about 2000 feet. and have a strong signal.

if i took a 3 or 4 hour drive west of here into the dessert i could probably get out further.

bottom line, the higher up you go the less you will get signal loss from trees or interference from other signals

 

[Tiger64]

Some basic things to think about.

Do you have antennas on controller in recommended position.?
On my mini that's flats of antenna towards drone

Is there a clear line of sight between controller and drone?
Trees , buildings etc can block signal.

I notice that signal was disrupted when you turned the drone.
Turning back so rear legs are towards you and/or increasing altitude ( not above legal limit of course) can improve reception.

It is generally the video reception we loose first , so you still should have the map and orientation display to guide you in getting signal back. It is worth practicing flying using them so it is not so stressful when you have to.

In most countries we have to fly in line of sight .
It is also worth practicing flying just looking at drone , not screen.
You can work out the orientation by flying left or right and seeing what happens.
If it moves opposite to direction you put in it is pointing toward you and if you can't see movement try turning 90 deg and repeat. It can be easiest to have it pointing away as signal will return sooner and it moves in direction you input.

 

[Meta4]

What's the lowest altitude you can fly at (at say 400m distance) without losing signal?

Having the drone at a low altitude doesn't cause a weak signal.
Having obstacles in the line of sight between the drone and controller causes weak signal.
You could have perfect signal at 400 metres or more with the drone at or close to 0 metres altitude or even -100 metres.

 

[LA 2020]

This DJI mini 3 Pro is my first drone and I'm trying to figure out if its behaving normally or not

If I fly at 20-30m altitude, about 300-400m away, I lose almost all my signal or most times even disconnect entirely

Is the signal being this weak normal?

What's the lowest altitude you can fly at (at say 400m distance) without losing signal?

It all depends on what's between you and the drone. Low altitude means a lot more obstructions to interfere with your signal. Be sure you have your "what to do with signal loss" setting set to RTH or stay in place (hover) so you can walk around until you regain signal