I  know I'm not the first to make a request to bring the VPS on/off option  to the Phantom 4, but I'm posting another request to help bring this to  DJI's attention.
As  a cinematographer with many hours of flight time on my Phantom 3 Pro, I  know that I can only obtain optimal results when flying low with VPS  disabled. When a low movement is required on rolling ground (i.e.  rolling, rocky terrain) the VPS system will force the Phantom to  maintain a dynamic height off the moving ground it detects below. This  results in a shot that isn't usable and far from cinematic because the  quadcopter is moving up and down in very subtle ways that affects the  overall parallax visible in the final shot. Turning VPS off solves this  problem instantly. Without VPS, the Phantom 3 can fly seamlessly while  maintaining it's altitude-- not relative to the surface below. For an  advanced pilot and cinematographer, the option to turn VPS on/off  depending on the circumstances is very important.

Now  that I have a Phantom 4 in my kit, I'm struggling to make use of it due  to the lack of VPS control. The first thing I did with my P4 was  disable obstacle avoidance. It's a great feature, but for cinematic  moves with an advanced pilot it's more of an annoyance than a feature  that is beneficial. The P4 performs great without obstacle avoidance,  but VPS is still enabled. That's a problem for me. Enough of a deal  breaker to actually consider returning the P4.


DJI--  please consider providing advanced P4 users with the same VPS on/off  option that you have already given all existing P3P users.

Here's  a great example of a few shots that turned out great because VPS was  temporally disabled on my  P3P: P3Pro - Trail Running - VPS disabled

Thanks,
Doug

Agreed, this option is desperately needed for the Phantom 4. I can't imagine why DJI removed it from the app.

DJI, can you please allow us to turn off VPS on the Phantom 4?

I 100% agree with it too! Please let us choose to turn it off...

DJI can we get a response? Is this something being worked on?

Bump.

This has already caused crashes for people.

Can you guys provide some details on why this should be turned off? Is this the new sensors on the front of the P4, those sensors on the bottom, or what?

kaitlyn.mclachl Posted at 2016-6-7 19:00
Can you guys provide some details on why this should be turned off? Is this the new sensors on the f ...

This is for the sensors on the bottom of the P4, Kaitlyn. The front sensors can already be disabled via the toggle for Obstacle Avoidance. Unfortunately, this toggle appears to ignore the bottom sensors right now.

The P3 system allows the bottom VPS to be disabled with one quick toggle in DJI Go. It's awesome. Many advanced P3 owners have come to love this feature, so when it disappeared with the P4 people took notice.

I'm confident DJI will reintroduce this on the P4 soon. I cannot think of a single reason why they would lock their users out of the ability to control the bottom VPS. It's probably a simple development issue. Just like the OSMO and D-Log taking forever to be released as a pair. Sure, it seems like it should be standard from day 1 but I'm sure the development team has a temporary reason why it's not included yet.

Hopefully DJI will make a comment on this soon.

I believe if the P4 is in Sport mode the VPS is off.

hummingbird.uav Posted at 2016-6-8 10:55
I believe if the P4 is in Sport mode the VPS is off.

Can anyone confirm?

And wouldn't that cause other issues since the P4 flies so much faster in Sport mode?

dmleiter@gmail. Posted at 2016-6-8 10:30
Can anyone confirm?

And wouldn't that cause other issues since the P4 flies so much faster in Spo ...

Well it does.  You need much softer hands on the sticks.  Lots of expo helps too.

100% agree, and hope that the option to disable the VPS will fix the altitude drop problems, had a drop of over 8 meters yesterday (flying over sand, not water)

hummingbird.uav Posted at 2016-6-8 11:41
Well it does.  You need much softer hands on the sticks.  Lots of expo helps too.

Yeah that's not really a solution, more of a mediocre workaround (at best).

DJI really needs to do something about this.

dmleiter@gmail. Posted at 2016-6-9 00:13
Yeah that's not really a solution, more of a mediocre workaround (at best).

DJI really needs to d ...

I concur. Adding VPS option back to Go seems easier than the alternative which would be the ability to control the speed threshold in sport mode so it's more manageable for the cinematographer.

I don't see any indication that VPS is disabled in Sport mode after doing some flight testing this afternoon.

Where did this claim originate from? Is there documebtation to back it up?

I have asked R&D if it will become an option.

dmleiter@gmail. Posted at 2016-6-7 13:27
DJI can we get a response? Is this something being worked on?

Yes, request has been forwarded

dmleiter@gmail. Posted at 2016-6-8 06:28
Bump.

This has already caused crashes for people.

The manual clearly details the VPS limitations and the conditions to watch out for.

hummingbird.uav Posted at 2016-6-8 23:55
I believe if the P4 is in Sport mode the VPS is off.

VPS is ON in Sport mode, not off.
in ATTI mode the bottom camera sensors are INOP and there's no position holding and the GPS is not holding position.

dmleiter@gmail. Posted at 2016-6-9 00:30
Can anyone confirm?

And wouldn't that cause other issues since the P4 flies so much faster in Spo ...

VPS is ON in Sport mode.

aerialphotograp Posted at 2016-6-9 09:20
100% agree, and hope that the option to disable the VPS will fix the altitude drop problems, had a d ...

Have you updated to v1.1.411

doug.upthink Posted at 2016-6-10 02:20
I don't see any indication that VPS is disabled in Sport mode after doing some flight testing this a ...

Someone read it on the internet
Yes, VPS is working in Sport Mode.

DJI-Ken Posted at 2016-6-9 16:10
Someone read it on the internet
Yes, VPS is working in Sport Mode.

Thank you for your input, DJI-Ken. I really appreciate you forwarding this VPS request to the development team. I'll hope for the best.

doug.upthink Posted at 2016-6-10 06:12
Thank you for your input, DJI-Ken. I really appreciate you forwarding this VPS request to the deve ...

Reply to one of my posts Monday and I should have an answer.

Any news on this?

DJI-Ken Posted at 2016-6-9 18:24
Reply to one of my posts Monday and I should have an answer.

Hi DJI-Ken-- Hopefully the DEV team has some good news coming our way. =)

I did some flights over the weekend for a new project I'm working on. One shot required VPS be turned off so I could fly very low over a boulder and then off a cliff edge. The VPS was creating small issues with height as the aircraft passed 12 inches over the boulder, so my only option was switching to ATTI mode. I shot the same scene-- with VPS/GPS and then again with ATTI (no VPS/GPS).

Flying in ATTI mode with any wind makes for a slightly stressful flight. Even though I have lots of experience flying without GPS on my P3P, I don't love doing it. Without GPS, I personally feel as though the pilot cannot safely play the roles of pilot and cinematographer in certain scenarios where hazards exist near the aircraft. I really hope to find GPS ON / VPS OFF option in the next release.... much safer solution when it's necessary for a specific shot.

doug.upthink Posted at 2016-6-13 21:36
Hi DJI-Ken-- Hopefully the DEV team has some good news coming our way. =)

I did some flights over ...

We'll see what happens, I've requested it to R&D.
Hopefully they add it on quickly

The last shot in the video linked below shows where I had to go into ATTI mode to get around the VPS issues while flying  low over that boulder.
https://instagram.com/p/BGpXO_runhn/
Maybe this will help add context for the DJI  dev team.

DJI-Ken Posted at 2016-6-13 09:21
We'll see what happens, I've requested it to R&D.
Hopefully they add it on quickly

DJI-Ken, thank you very much for checking on that for us.

Did DJI happen to acknowledge that they are aware of the issue? Or give an estimate on when that option might be added?

Thanks

dmleiter@gmail. Posted at 2016-6-21 14:14
DJI-Ken, thank you very much for checking on that for us.

Did DJI happen to acknowledge that they ...

Can you explain in detail what you are experiencing.
They have no plans right now to make the VPS disabled. maybe down the road in a few firmwares.

DJI-Ken Posted at 2016-6-21 09:52
Can you explain in detail what you are experiencing.
They have no plans right now to make the VPS d ...

Hi DJI-Ken. Wow, thanks for sharing this unfortunate news.

Can the developers explain why they will not be offering VPS settings in DJI Go? I think I will now be returning my P4 after learning this new information. What a shame.

DJI-Ken Posted at 2016-6-21 09:52
Can you explain in detail what you are experiencing.
They have no plans right now to make the VPS d ...

"Can you explain in detail what you are experiencing." - DJI-Ken

I think this has been covered in great detail within this thread.

1. When flying low to the ground with VPS, the aircraft will follow the ground surface. If the ground is not level, the aircraft ends up undulating up/down with the changing ground. This is a deal breaker for low, cinematic shooting. With the Phantom 3, the problem is easily corrected by temporally disabling VPS.
I provided a link to two examples in this thread-- these videos show the GOOD results that occur when VPS isn't active.

2. Some people report issues flying over water. This is nothing new. It's been an issue since Phantom 3 VPS was initially released.

Is it really that much of an ask for the development team to provide P4 users with the same experience they already provided all of us who also own Phantom 3's? It's nothing new. I would really like to hear an explanation WHY the developers opt to not include VPS on/off option in DJI Go.

Thanks,
Doug

doug.upthink Posted at 2016-6-21 23:04
"Can you explain in detail what you are experiencing." - DJI-Ken

I think this has been covered in ...

This is not an issue, it's explained in the manual as the aircraft's VPS limitations.

DJI-Ken Posted at 2016-6-21 10:26
This is not an issue, it's explained in the manual as the aircraft's VPS limitations.

Wow.

Not being able to fly your P4 over water, any moving surfaces, or any uneven outdoor surfaces is not an issue?

I hope you aren't serious.

Just because it's "explained in the manual as a limitation" does not mean it's not an issue.

There is NO reason DJI couldn't add in an option to temporarily disable it, like on the P3.

Like Doug said, I am very disappointed in DJI and I will be thinking about returning my P4.


The VPS setting is for INDOOR shots, and I do not need it ruining my outdoor shots.

DJI-Ken Posted at 2016-6-21 11:26
This is not an issue, it's explained in the manual as the aircraft's VPS limitations.

How is this not an issue, DJI-Ken?

Everything the manual points out reveals issues with the VPS system during specific usage conditions. It might not be an issue for the average user, but I think plenty of pilots out there can understand where I'm coming from. I want to fly very low (1-6 feet off the ground) for specific shots. I might also want to fly low over water too.

All this manual page reveals are the known problems with VPS.
The solution DJI could provide? Give the pilot the ability to temporally disable VPS within DJI Go.

Did I miss something? Can anyone else chime in who is on this thread and also requesting VPS pilot control. [Thanks for your input, dmleiter]

This means I need to use my P3s for shooting videos over water. Thanks a lot DJI!

doug.upthink Posted at 2016-6-21 23:56
How is this not an issue, DJI-Ken?

Everything the manual points out reveals issues with the VPS sy ...

What I am saying is you are saying DJI has issues and what I am saying is it not issues but limitations of the system and it works as it was designed to do.
I agree if it were able to be disabled it would help and I've already put in that request.
So in the end the VPS works as advertised and the limitations are posted.

DJI-Ken Posted at 2016-6-21 14:37
What I am saying is you are saying DJI has issues and what I am saying is it not issues but limita ...

I understand, DJI-Ken. Definitely not intending to fight you on this because I know you're just trying to help out the community.

What I don't understand is why these "limitations" feature a work around with the on/off in GO for Phantom 3, but not for Phantom 4. I assume the dev team has a valid reason for this. It's just too bad we're unable to get a response from someone directly in the DJI development team that might offer some valuable insight.

Interesting discovery this afternoon.

My P3Pro has so many VPS issues when flying low that I thought they would ALL carry over to the P4 in all situations. Well, that's not entirely true. I did some more testing on my lunch break today.

The P4 (obstacle avoidance turned OFF) actually performed very well in some of my test situations where VPS enabled on the P3Pro would ruin the shot (in cinematic terms).

I don't know what the developers have done, but clearly the VPS algorithms on the P4 are far superior than the P3. Would love to learn more about that from the dev team...

Not saying I don't want a VPS on/off option, but figured it was worth giving some praise to the development team for their current accomplishments. It's an improvement over P3 for sure.

DJI-Ken Posted at 2016-6-21 20:37
What I am saying is you are saying DJI has issues and what I am saying is it not issues but limita ...

I would appreciate this on/off otion as well Ken. When flying lower over water it is not quite stable unfortunately.
Thanks

doug.upthink Posted at 2016-6-22 03:57
Interesting discovery this afternoon.

My P3Pro has so many VPS issues when flying low that I though ...

That's great you are getting good results.
We'll see if it becomes an option.