Many of you who frequent the forum have had (or at least are aware) of the NO SIGNAL issue where the aircraft seems to function and operation in a 100% normal capacity, however the GO APP screen is completely black.

I'm not really interested in discussing that issue as I spent 2 weeks trying ALL of the "Try This" feedback.  After all of this, I finally gave up and returned my P3P to DJI for service.

First - let me say that DJI service has been far better (to me at least) than what I've read on the forum.  Many have mentioned that they do not answer phones, do not reply to e-mails and keep the craft for weeks on end.  I would like to say that upon my initial e-mail inquiry to DJI Support, it was answered promptly (next day I believe) and after a couple of friendly back-and-forth information e-mails, I was asked to call DJI to request a RMA to return the craft.  They answered the phone and the rep was friendly and helpful.  My RMA arrived the same day that I spoke with the DJI rep.  It took approximately 10 days for the P3P to reach DJI (a couple for me to have a chance to get to FedEx and then normal standard ship time from North Carolina).  The craft arrived at DJI this past Thursday (9/24).  Yesterday I received the response that the craft is ready.  I'm sorry that some of you may not have had the joyful experience but I did want to give kudos to DJI where it's due.  

Now - this leads to me to the real subject of this thread.  I do have a question into DJI about this matter and I have not receive a response yet (they aren't open yet).  But I have an invoice of $ 149.00 US and DJI is not accepting the repair under warranty.  I've had the craft for a few months and have not even used yet to do what I purchased it for.  It would seemingly appear that they are indicating this is a damage repair.  I'm not sure.  My invoice is not very descriptive.  Items listed as "hantom3 left landing gear v3.  Phantom3 FC300 Sensor V9 FPC.  Gimbal Roll Axis Component.  I'm not even sure what all these items are.  Any definitions would be much appreciated.  I will keep this post updated when I receive DJI's response to what they see on their end.

The question is (after writing a book here) - since I've invested over $ 1,000 in this product, I'm tempted to just pay the invoice, shut up and move on.  It means more to me to get the aircraft back and use it than that argue of $ 150.  However, the MAN in me wants to argue on principal that I have done nothing to warrant paying more for the craft - I have not even used it for it's intended purpose yet.  

Penny for your thoughts

Why was the landing gear replaced? did you have a hard landing?maybe that's there conclusion and are invoicing you accordingly ...just sayin

Try and contact Tahoe_Ed and see if he can shed some light on the reasoning behind the invoice..

It seems they are fixing damage to the lading gear and gimbal, presumably after a crash damage but  if you didn't have damage you are aware of them question it..

Had mine a month, same issue as yours. Getting the RMA wasn't too bad although a lot of phone time trying to get through as my email never got a response. This all took about 3-4 days. Sent in on July 30 and just got it back yesterday, Sept. 28. My unit was just like yours. Worked 100% except live feed was black. It was a no charge repair under warranty, actually they replaced the unit and controller. If your craft was not damaged, I would complain. That no signal issue is a known thing...

Now what annoys the crap out of me is how you and others are getting turn around times of a week and mine just got remedied after almost two months. It took longer for me just to get a tracking number after they said they were replacing mine than your whole experience!

If your craft was not damaged, I would go the manly route 100%!

TossinHoss Posted at 2015-9-29 10:29
Had mine a month, same issue as yours. Getting the RMA wasn't too bad although a lot of phone time t ...

In general conversation with the rep, he mentioned that DJI California had just moved into a new facility.  Reading between the lines, I could assume that their prior facility was probably inadequate which could provide less efficiency and finally longer return times.  He did NOT tell me that - just me making a general assumption based on my field of industry.  

I did ask if I could pay more for an overnight order, or even for priority repair status.  He indicated that DJI is not set up for that yet, but they have realized there is opportunity there - just an FYI for some potential "quick-return" options that could be in the near future of DJI.  

sploodge Posted at 2015-9-29 09:57
Try and contact Tahoe_Ed and see if he can shed some light on the reasoning behind the invoice..

It ...

I may do that - I am interested to hear DJIs answer to my question.  

There is no summary on the invoice to describe anything - just the parts listed out.  

Yep - all pre-flight indicators were solid; no issues.  It would take perfect photos too.  Just couldn't see what the hell I was aiming at.  

jblack22785@gma Posted at 2015-9-29 13:40
I may do that - I am interested to hear DJIs answer to my question.  

There is no summary on the  ...

I hope that you took pictures of your unit before it was shipped for repairs?

I had a similar experience with a laptop computer that developed a stress crack along the hinge line. Got an RMA, sent unit for repair. The following day received a phone call that it was going to be $250 for the repair as they stated customer damage.

Called and spoke with the person that left the message and indicated that there was no damage other than the stress cracks. Look at the case, there isn't a mark on it. She held firm, so I instructed her to ship the unit back, non repaired, see you in court. Received a second call, that my case had been recycled and that they were providing the new one out of customer loyalty.

Hold your place and question the repairs.

I believe you should not pay nothing at all, and tell them that exactly.

It happened to a friend of mine on his P2, they wanted to charge him, he just told them its in warranty, and they apologized and fixed it for free.

So mistakes do happen sometimes in dji repair centers, maybe its just that.

I know that you just want a working craft back and willing to pay for finally perfect flights, but imagine it comes back and has issues... which i really dont hope so.
I am also sending tomorrow my P3P for warranty repair, same issue NO SIGNAL, Black screen !!!

COME ON DJI, the problem with so many crafts must be well know by now !!!

Fight it. They know people don't fight it. It's free money for them.

I can tell you both from personal experience and from a sense of ethereal decency that the way to approach DJI (and any other company) is with patience, kindness, and grace.  I have tried the opposite strategy with failing results.  

I sent my p3P to DJI for evaluation and repair, along with a note where I honestly stated that I did not know if it was equipment failure or operator error, but I really didn't think I had made a flight error.  I waited my 9 weeks without contacting them at all (or them contacting me).  Then they sent an email that made my summer!

Be patient, kind, and graceful.  With the emphasis on patience, kindness, and grace.

jjejfjf Posted at 2015-9-30 21:43
Did you fill out the form describing the problems you were having with your craft?

I did.  I read all instructions at least 5 times to ensure that I didn't do anything to create a problem from my end.  I listed all of this information very carefully.

So, update.  I inquired as to why the craft would not be under warranty considering the issue is known, etc.  Well, I let a day go by and just decided to give over and pay the invoice.  I want the thing back and decided not to let $ 150 keep me from it.  I have still never had the chance to use the craft other than some test flights at home to get familiar with the controls, and I got anxious.  I remitted the PayPal confirmation and wrote in a very respectful and courteous manner than I would like a summary of remedial work.  I respectfully noted that I felt it should be a warranty repair but my need to have the craft returned outweighed by disapproval of the non-warranty claim.  I then received an e-mail from DJI that the payment was received and that the craft had now been sent to the repair department.

I guess I thought that since they had already sent me a repair invoice with the items listed and labor rate, that this was done and just ready for my non-warranty payment to be made.  But now I realize that they showed me a quote and the craft moves forward for repair only after the money has been paid.  Now we wait ... I have no summary of what was wrong, my pay-out on this investment increases and I have no idea of when I may expect to receive the unit back.

I'm not mad about it - I guess disheartened is the word.  All the friends / co-workers that I've talked to, hyping up the P3P.  I never imagined I'd own something like this, spending more time trying to get it to work than actually using it.  

Hell, I would buy another one today while this one is being repaired, but after this, I'm terrified to end up with another problem like this.  Some people have called me Pete, but never Re-Pete.  

jjejfjf Posted at 2015-9-30 21:43
Did you fill out the form describing the problems you were having with your craft?

I did.  I read all instructions at least 5 times to ensure that I didn't do anything to create a problem from my end.  I listed all of this information very carefully.

So, update.  I inquired as to why the craft would not be under warranty considering the issue is known, etc.  Well, I let a day go by and just decided to give over and pay the invoice.  I want the thing back and decided not to let $ 150 keep me from it.  I have still never had the chance to use the craft other than some test flights at home to get familiar with the controls, and I got anxious.  I remitted the PayPal confirmation and wrote in a very respectful and courteous manner than I would like a summary of remedial work.  I respectfully noted that I felt it should be a warranty repair but my need to have the craft returned outweighed by disapproval of the non-warranty claim.  I then received an e-mail from DJI that the payment was received and that the craft had now been sent to the repair department.

I guess I thought that since they had already sent me a repair invoice with the items listed and labor rate, that this was done and just ready for my non-warranty payment to be made.  But now I realize that they showed me a quote and the craft moves forward for repair only after the money has been paid.  Now we wait ... I have no summary of what was wrong, my pay-out on this investment increases and I have no idea of when I may expect to receive the unit back.

I'm not mad about it - I guess disheartened is the word.  All the friends / co-workers that I've talked to, hyping up the P3P.  I never imagined I'd own something like this, spending more time trying to get it to work than actually using it.  

Hell, I would buy another one today while this one is being repaired, but after this, I'm terrified to end up with another problem like this.  Some people have called me Pete, but never Re-Pete.  

Over all those months you may have possibly damaged (hard landings, traveling, etc.) some of those components.

Yet they would seem to have little or nothing to do with the App freezing - but maybe they do?

So there are lots of possibilities here.

IF they had nothing to do with your lack of connection - then they should have contacted you and said "you know, the blah blah could use a new one to work better" - then you could have agreed to the charge or not.

On the other hand, if those parts were needed to bring it back to snuff - and if said parts are only damaged (or usually damaged) only by hard knocks....well, they don't warrant drones against hard knocks.

Some people (most) love DJI. Some people hate DJI. One fact remains. If you want a camera quad anywhere from $700-$1300 nothing else is in the ball park.

So it's usually a decision as to whether you want or need a camera quad at all.

Some people focus on these cust. service issues (which I don't dispute) without realizing that over 700,000 of their 2's and 3's are out there now - AND, flying machines of all types suffer problems.

It's a tough thing - because there will never be a "we will fix it, no questions asked" camera or camera drone or even smartphone company. So they have to somehow find the middle ground that keeps most people happy without penalizing all of us ($$$ wise) to take care of anything and everything (hard landings, water losses, etc.).

Me? I'd buy two if I really needed to be up in the air all the time. Actually, I just ordered a P3S (I have P3P) - not really as a backup, but to see what you get these days for $699. I'll give it to my son after I check it out.

droneflyers.com Posted at 2015-10-6 19:37
Over all those months you may have possibly damaged (hard landings, traveling, etc.) some of those c ...

No doubt - I agree with what you say 100%.  Most people are too impatient for typical service and want to be "the only one who exists" in the eyes of the manufacturer.  I have complimented DJI customer service because I have been treated very well so far.  I wanted to make that compliment known because there are so many who blast their service.  

As for the months of ownership / hard landings, I had mine a few weeks.  Took it up maybe under 5 times.  The last time I went out, I started everything up at the house to check the craft's diagnostics.  Everything was great - the NO SIGNAL issue did not exist.  I drove to the site to use it - packed properly of course - and everything again went fine, except I could not see video feed and it said NO SIGNAL.  

I have posted in another thread ALL of the exhausting tips / tricks / magic fixes that I could come up with through reading the forum and using logic.  However nothing availed.  

The experience has been disheartening as I said, but I am not mad or upset from the service or quality of the P3P.  I really HOPE it's something that I inadvertently did so that DJI can recognize that issue, and fix it.  I just want to know.  Either way, the technology is incredible and affordable and I don't dispute that at all either - after all, I purchased one, right?  

I am reluctant to buy a second "back-up" craft because I have not had the first one long enough to feel like "it's worn out", or "well, that last landing took a toll", or "it's been bouncing around in the case a lot".  It was practically brand new.  

I just received an e-mail from DJI that said "Your ticket has been resolved".  Any idea what that means?

jblack22785@gma Posted at 2015-10-7 14:04
I just received an e-mail from DJI that said "Your ticket has been resolved".  Any idea what that me ...

It means they've concluded that the issue/repair/problem is no longer an issue. If you don't respond to the email within 48 hours the case is closed.

fhagan02@me.com Posted at 2015-10-7 14:27
It means they've concluded that the issue/repair/problem is no longer an issue. If you don't respo ...

I received an e-mail from DJI that the unit has now shipped and I have a tracking number.

Obviously the ultimate test will be the test flight.  But all in all, I have to say, I have been treated very well by DJI and they have responded / remedied / shipped the items in an absolutely first rate and fast-paced manner.  I hope anyone else who has to return their craft gets what I got.  

The only real detail I am lacking is an actual explanation of what they found / why I paid.  Maybe that will be included in the box when I receive the unit back.  I will keep this thread updated.  

Thank you for all of your responses fellas.

jblack22785@gma Posted at 2015-10-7 22:37
I received an e-mail from DJI that the unit has now shipped and I have a tracking number.

Obvious ...

Good to know. Hope everything is in supurb working order when you receive. I know it's a good feeling to get that "your unit has shipped" email.

You won't get any information about the fix in your shipment. I've had to call DJI support for both my RMA's to get an idea of what was fixed, happened or whatever. Even then the phone support folks can't tell you much. But sometimes they can look up your ticket and there will be additional information written on it by the techs. My last RMA was this way. Just got the "unit has shipped" email. No details. Called support and apparently my ticket said, "Battery cable was disconnected from the main board." The did say they'd forward my emails and questions to the techs. But I've never heard back from those guys. So there you are.

Does anyone really think that DJI has embarked upon a criminal enterprise of reporting phony damage on units sent in for repair, and then holding them hostage until the owner pays?

I didn't think so.

Either the repair tech made a mistake or the OP, the owner in question here, made a mistake.  The repair tech saw an issue that appeared to him to be the result of damage.  He may be wrong, he may be right.  The OP says that he has not damaged his Phantom.  He may be wrong and he may be right.  He may have sustained damage when he wasn't aware.  He may not have even been PRESENT.  (I have found a couple of broken items in my house that could only have been done by my housekeeper or my dogsitter.  But I didn't know until I went to use the item.)

I suspect that the average roll-with-the-flow repair tech would much rather clear out their assigned repairs and get them to the shipping department and out of their work space.  Holding a unit for repair charges, while a necessary aspect of the process, creates workflow "clutter", conflict, etc.  For that reason, I have a sneaking suspicion that the repair techs probably repair a lot more damage under warranty than they do hold manufacturer's defects for additional payment from the customer.   

bobasbury Posted at 2015-10-1 06:25
I can tell you both from personal experience and from a sense of ethereal decency that the way to ap ...

Well stated. In my 67 years on this planet and 25 years as a Police Officer I have obtained a valuable lesson. Never back anyone into a corner. When you do, the only option left is to come out fighting.

My 2 cents worth.

rodger Posted at 2015-10-8 08:37
Well stated. In my 67 years on this planet and 25 years as a Police Officer I have obtained a valu ...

Wise words - for just about everything!

droneflyers.com Posted at 2015-10-8 11:00
Wise words - for just about everything!

It took a few years and a lot of different situations to gather that in-sight. It all comes with age. Then again some people just block it out entirely and stay on the same path.

This is very interesting. The list you gave Phantom3 left landing gear v3.  Phantom3 FC300 Sensor V9 FPC.  Gimbal Roll Axis Component are the same things they invoiced me for. My P3 went down after it lost connection and RTH failed. I've tried several times to get DJI to explain to me why I'm paying $157 for a repair of damage caused by equipment and or software failure. They will not tell me anything. I paid the invoice and noted it was under protest. I am waiting and hoping enough owners who will undoubtedly run into this issue will join me in an action. Their warranty is only good when they want it to be. We'll see, but I expect there to be more of these issues.

gwkinsey Posted at 2015-10-13 20:14
This is very interesting. The list you gave Phantom3 left landing gear v3.  Phantom3 FC300 Sensor V9 ...

UPDATE:

After the standard shipping time through FedEx, and checking the online tracking number about 9,000 times while on route, the P3P finally landed in my home town and I picked it up last night.

I fired it up - firmware is up to date and everything seems normal.  the BEST thing is that I can now see what the camera is viewing on the app screen.  The NO SIGNAL issue is gone and all is well again.  I will do a test flight later to ensure that everything else is working properly.

The only thing that was not included in the box was the original SD card that I sent with the craft upon request from DJI.  However, I did call, they answered on first ring and they are mailing me a new one.

All in all, my experience has been very satisfying.  Though I still don't know what actually was wrong with it, I'm very happy to have it back and the WHY isn't as important anymore.  I hope everyone has this same luck and turn-around time.  

I still don't claim responsibility to whatever the issue was, but I will say that it's probably likely that it was something I did.  My reasoning is that it didn't work, it went to DJI, and now it does work.  Likely me, unknowingly.  

Happy for you jblack.
Glad its in your hands and working fine.
Enjoy your flights !

Roi

I had absolutely 0 experience when I started this hobby. And now, a year and a half later, and a total of 3 purchases of 1 Phantom 2 vision + v3.0, and 2 Phantom 3 Professionals I consider myself to be fairly experienced and well mounuverable when it comes down to it. But I'm not posting this to tell you my drone life story. My point here is, is that I didn't come out from this year and a half with no scars, but I will say I've came out victourius for sure, and heres why, I have had a total of 9 RMA's with DJI. Yes 9 in under 2 years. Every single one of them was from a crash which I like to make sound in my Customer Usage Sheet is all there fault, whether it was the aircraft, or the app, or a combination of both. No matter what I retain my innocence when filling those out and on my phone calls before to obtain one. Am I proud of wrecking so many of these high dollar drones? Nope. But I get so baffled EVERY SINGLE time I look up a question and get diverted to these forums and start reading them and hearing everybody talk about how DJI has charged me this..DJI has charged me that..Why is DJI charging me for this and that..,???!!!!?? I'm gonna backtrack just a little bit back to how many I've returned in less than 2 years. Not only were they all crashed, but at least 7 of them were freaking CRASHED. 2 of them I hit the top of the Saint Louis MO Gateway Arch and they fell from the top, down to concrete. That's 630' BTW. My first Phantom 3 I owned, I just let that bitch fly away for the most part. Opps.  Lost it the same way that I crashed all the others....Pushing the limits.  That's what this hobby is all about if you ask me. (well that and chasing black people around in parking lots in South Saint Louis City, omg they get so scared!!!)...Ha!! Because trust me, if I thought that wrecking these things back to back, having 3 in the shop all at once at one point, literally one after another (which is why I bought a 2nd P3, for backup during down times) that it was ever gonna cost me a freaking penny then I'm a good enough of a pilot to not even think about wrecking one and save my money. Which brings me to the real reason on why I'm posting this. After saying all of that, guess how much money DJI has charged me..? Not one single dollar. Hell, I JUST got my Phantom 2 back 2 days ago and I bought that thing like 8 months ago! Even better is the story about me loosing my first Phantom 3 Pro. Gone, landed in traffic or possibly in some lucky kids back yard, on a roof, who knows? But the best part is is that they gave me a brand new one for free!!!!!! They started the emails off with, "I have convinced my supervisor that the reason of your loss may have been partially DJI's fault in which case, we would like to offer you 30% off a brand new one" Hahaha, 30% my ass. After a 2 week email battle of arguments, how loyal of a customer I am, how much money I plan on spending in the future, ect. ect.  it timely went from 30% to 50% to free% off a brand new shiny Phantom 3 Pro. I swear, some of my wrecks were so bad that it seems that it took longer to walk around finding all of the little bits and pieces of white plastic scattered all over parking lots and freeways then it took DJI to fix them and send them back, basically brand new. Now, there was this one time about 3 or 5 RMA's ago that I get an Email with an attached invoice saying that I owe $167.00,  And I thought to myself..."this was the only Phantom that I haven't even taken apart, drilled holes in it for numerous reasons, added 3rd party LED's, props, landing gears, everything under the moon to be honest, so why the hell am I getting charged this particular time?? Were they just finally fed up with my excuses and the fixing of my drones that they realized they are loosing more money then they have made off me?? NOPE! lol Because I have such a "record" I accidently sent them the wrong proof of purchase invoice for that aircraft and the numbers didn't match up. Could they have emailed me or even called me to tell me this before just sending me a bill?? Absolutely!! But they didn't, but I sure called them, and had it straitened out in 3 min and owed yet again, NOTHING. So my question to all of you that are giving DJI money for repairs or for anything at all that falls anything less than a brand new drone for yourself because it just came out, is why???? They fix this crap for free people!!!!!!!!!!! ALL OF IT!!! AND SOME!! I'm just so confused on what customers are writing and/or saying when an accident happens for them to be shelling out hard earned money. To sum all of this up, is all I want to say is that DJI is a freaking awesome company!! They're not stupid, they know how many I've sent back to them, but they also aknlowege the fact that in every letter i send I mention how much respect I have for them and that I will continue to spend money everytime a new product comes out!!! And that's the truth!! Not to mention, if you sent a drone in to them about 8 months ago then you are aware of not seeing your aircraft back for the better part of 2 months. Not anymore!! My last turn around was exactely 11 days! Not to bad if you ask me!!!

gregg1r Posted at 2015-9-29 11:41
I hope that you took pictures of your unit before it was shipped for repairs?

I had a similar exp ...

Haha no way, same thing hapebed to me with a "water damaged" laptop

rodger Posted at 2015-10-8 23:37
Well stated. In my 67 years on this planet and 25 years as a Police Officer I have obtained a valu ...

I run a small manufacturing operation that sells all over the world. I offer a 'life time' guarantee on my products, meaning I will cover them until I croak. Most times the ones that are sent back are damaged by the purchaser, and of course they never mention this. But I repair them and send them back.

Only once or twice have I ever refused to repair an item under warranty, and that is because the person has got abusive, it which case I tell them where to go, return the item and screw them.

All that is to say, be nice, or the person at the other end might be someone like me.

Geebax Posted at 2015-11-13 22:37
I run a small manufacturing operation that sells all over the world. I offer a 'life time' guarant ...

You are an honest Gentleman. Feels good doesn't it! I have always been the same in life. It is all about attitude.

rodger Posted at 2015-11-16 07:48
You are an honest Gentleman. Feels good doesn't it! I have always been the same in life. It is all ...

I agree.  Good stuff, guys.  I'd add simply, whether you argue or shut up, be happy!

Hey there, tech support is good they are friendly and knowledgeable only for updating your p3 or why you cannot connect to the unit. I to had a problem sent it back heard from them within 20 or so days saying I had an invoice. I had to call up to actually get the invoice emailed to me, 375 dollars. They did not explain the reasoning why all these parts needed to be replaced. I know for a fact two of them do not. I just sent an email to dispute these facts. for 399 I can purchase another one.

sploodge Posted at 2015-9-29 07:57
Try and contact Tahoe_Ed and see if he can shed some light on the reasoning behind the invoice..

It ...

How can we contact him in private?

Butch

The repair person has to make a judgement call, and my experience has been that they try to give the benefit of the doubt to the customer.  If it were mine, I'd thank them very much and pay the $149.

It never hurts to demand information. I had two returns where they said they could find nothing wrong with the aircraft and could not duplicate the warnings I was getting and sent it back with no repair. Then the warnings happened again on the first flight and I sent it back for the third repair. All of a sudden I received a bill for $625 saying the shell was damaged... two motherboards needed replaced... a damaged gimbal and sd card slot.

I have never crashed my aircraft so I called and wanted to know how two previous techs could miss all the damage you were charging me for when the flight records clearly showed I had not crashed the bird. At first they said too bad I had to pay... Then I demanded they go get my machine and check it out. They did and found no damage and said they had mixed up the serial numbers... yea right.

Anyway they did repair the right one  under the guarantee and it is on its way back. So complaining and demanding information is your right and does pay off.

Butch

Please bear in mind this is a very old thread and probably not relevant today.