I have found a work around for the P4Pv2 RC charging my iPad Mini 4.

  

  

First let me say that if you are not VERY careful you could damage the RC or the Mobile Device or Both.

  

What I’ve done is very carefully split the Lighting Cable, pulled out the red wire, cut it and soldered an variable resistor in line. So far, I have found that the best value to set it at is about 2ohms.

  

The iPad does display “This accessory may not be supported” (below) I dismiss that and everything else, so far, is working to spec. The camera looks great and the inputs to the P4 are working as they should.  

The iPad Mini 4 is discharging like it should and the is very little heat coming from the battery.  

The RC ‘s charge is lasting a lot longer and also running a lot cooler.

I will keep you up to date. PM me if you have any questions...............

  

  

There are several reasons why you might see this alert or similar alerts on your iPhone, iPad, or iPod touch. If you see an alert, learn what to do.

  

Here's when these alerts might appear:

• Your      accessory is defective, damaged, or not Apple-certified.
• The      accessory isn't supported by your device.
• Your      iOS device has a dirty or damaged connector.
  

  

Hello. Thank you for sharing this information. Normally, the remote controller charges for Android mobile device. But not all remote controller will charge the iOS device. DJI will still recommend to follow what we have on our manual for safety purposes.

DJI Natalia Posted at 2018-6-14 16:17
Hello. Thank you for sharing this information. Normally, the remote controller charges for Android mobile device. But not all remote controller will charge the iOS device. DJI will still recommend to follow what we have on our manual for safety purposes.

When it’s being charged by the factory charger the iPad knows when to stop charging.
With the RC, it continues to charge even at 100% This overheats the iPad Mini 4 battery significantly.

Would be nice if we could turn this option on or off if we wanted to. Seems like an easy thing to incorporate into an update.

iamjustjohn Posted at 2018-6-16 16:01
Would be nice if we could turn this option on or off if we wanted to. Seems like an easy thing to incorporate into an update.

I totally agree iamjustjohn , this is a, higher than normal current, coming out of the RC. It should be able to be adjusted. This problem is eventually going to bite DJi in the behind. The V2 is relatively new and when people start complaining about over heating to their iOS devices and damage to their RC batteries, maybe they will pay attention to it.

Might be better to use a diode with the appropriate voltage drop rather than a resistor, it will be the voltage drop that makes the difference, maybe you could measure the drop that works...

Nigel_ Posted at 2018-6-17 03:43
Might be better to use a diode with the appropriate voltage drop rather than a resistor, it will be the voltage drop that makes the difference, maybe you could measure the drop that works...

The red wire is used, also, for communication to the iOS device, voltage needs to travel both ways. Good suggestion though

Nigel_ Posted at 2018-6-17 03:43
Might be better to use a diode with the appropriate voltage drop rather than a resistor, it will be the voltage drop that makes the difference, maybe you could measure the drop that works...

Will have a look at this. As a quick test, my iPhone 8 Plus (charged 100% before connecting) pulls 400mA @ 5.04V continuously while the RC is powered up. Earlier I checked with the phone @ 90% charge and it pulled 600-700mA.

ChrisLX200 Posted at 2018-6-17 05:12
Will have a look at this. As a quick test, my iPhone 8 Plus (charged 100% before connecting) pulls 400mA @ 5.04V continuously while the RC is powered up. Earlier I checked with the phone @ 90% charge and it pulled 600-700mA.

[view_image]

Please people This Needs Attention

The RC seems to be monitoring the voltage or current between RC and device (phone, tablet etc). If you just cut the red lead the RC fails to connect to the iPhone. Like the OP I have inserted a resistance decade box between the two to experiment and you can increase the resistance to, say, 2 Ohms and that will reduce the current (to about 250mA) and the voltage respectively to around 4.6V. The RC will still connect to the device just fine - although my iPhone threw a warning message about 'This device may not be supported' (due to the low voltage) but that can be dismissed. However, after a minute or two the RC will alarm - a steady beep-beep-beep which can only be due to it monitoring the charging process. Doesn't matter which method you use to reduce current/voltage, I also tried a forward-biased diode as well, the alarm will sound after a short while. So the 2 Ohm trick doesn't really work I think.

I was reading up on how the lightning cable works and it may be difficult to modify it in a way that won’t cause issues.

Brantel Posted at 2018-6-17 10:55
I was reading up on how the lightning cable works and it may be difficult to modify it in a way that won’t caus issues.

Those issues are mainly concerned with Apple preventing the use of cheap clone cables -  IMHO it is not unreasonable to prevent sub-standard cables being used but Apple take it a step further to disable as many clones as possible (so they can sell more genuine cables at inflated prices).

Anyway, how effective the cable is for charging purposes (i.e., whether the iPhone/Pad reports it may not be compatible) isn't going to stop the RC attempting to pump out current through it. Why the RC should concern itself as to whether it is able to charge the device or not is beyond me.

Overcharging the the battery in the phone/pad is a serious condition, the device will be reporting it is fully charged and the charger _should_ cut out but in this instance it isn't.

ChrisLX200 Posted at 2018-6-17 10:41
The RC seems to be monitoring the voltage or current between RC and device (phone, tablet etc). If you just cut the red lead the RC fails to connect to the iPhone. Like the OP I have inserted a resistance decade box between the two to experiment and you can increase the resistance to, say, 2 Ohms and that will reduce the current (to about 250mA) and the voltage respectively to around 4.6V. The RC will still connect to the device just fine - although my iPhone threw a warning message about 'This device may not be supported' (due to the low voltage) but that can be dismissed. However, after a minute or two the RC will alarm - a steady beep-beep-beep which can only be due to it monitoring the charging process. Doesn't matter which method you use to reduce current/voltage, I also tried a forward-biased diode as well, the alarm will sound after a short while. So the 2 Ohm trick doesn't really work I think.

"a steady beep-beep-beep which can only be due to it monitoring the charging process.|"

Was the aircraft powered up ?

If not then the beeping is simply a battery saving warning that the RC is switched on but has not been communicating with aircraft (starts after five minutes of inactivity on RC sticks when not communicating with aircraft).

Aardvark Posted at 2018-6-17 11:42
"a steady beep-beep-beep which can only be due to it monitoring the charging process.|"

Was the aircraft powered up ?

Ah. didn't know it did that   Yes, I just had the RC in the lab and the AC was powered off.

ChrisLX200 Posted at 2018-6-17 10:41
The RC seems to be monitoring the voltage or current between RC and device (phone, tablet etc). If you just cut the red lead the RC fails to connect to the iPhone. Like the OP I have inserted a resistance decade box between the two to experiment and you can increase the resistance to, say, 2 Ohms and that will reduce the current (to about 250mA) and the voltage respectively to around 4.6V. The RC will still connect to the device just fine - although my iPhone threw a warning message about 'This device may not be supported' (due to the low voltage) but that can be dismissed. However, after a minute or two the RC will alarm - a steady beep-beep-beep which can only be due to it monitoring the charging process. Doesn't matter which method you use to reduce current/voltage, I also tried a forward-biased diode as well, the alarm will sound after a short while. So the 2 Ohm trick doesn't really work I think.

Since I have modified the cable  I have had to make slight adjustments to the potentiometer, I am up to about 2.5 ohms. I still get a warning message but after that the V2 flies perfectly. I have flown it approx. 6 hrs. from top to bottom and have had no trouble with the communication. It's seems to be steady at 2.5 ohms, I am sure that different devices need to be tweaked accordingly.

There are aftermarket cables that are approved by Apple, their description has a MFI in it, simply meaning Made For iOS devices (iPad, iPhone, etc.)

ATJ Posted at 2018-6-17 13:43
Since I have modified the cable  I have had to make slight adjustments to the potentiometer, I am up to about 2.5 ohms. I still get a warning message but after that the V2 flies perfectly. I have flown it approx. 6 hrs. from top to bottom and have had no trouble with the communication. It's seems to be steady at 2.5 ohms, I am sure that different devices need to be tweaked accordingly.

There are aftermarket cables that are approved by Apple, their description has a MFI in it, simply meaning Made For iOS devices (iPad, iPhone, etc.)

Well I guess the forward-biased diode mod seems an OK solution then. It reduces the charging current to about 50mA - that's one-tenth of what it normally puts out. Still get the 'accessory not supported' notice but that's not important.

ChrisLX200 Posted at 2018-6-17 12:08
Ah. didn't know it did that   Yes, I just had the RC in the lab and the AC was powered off.

The red LED flashing, and beeping on the RC can also indicate RC battery critically low. This is briefly mentioned on page 42 of the P4P Manual

ChrisLX200 Posted at 2018-6-17 11:09
Those issues are mainly concerned with Apple preventing the use of cheap clone cables -  IMHO it is not unreasonable to prevent sub-standard cables being used but Apple take it a step further to disable as many clones as possible (so they can sell more genuine cables at inflated prices).

Anyway, how effective the cable is for charging purposes (i.e., whether the iPhone/Pad reports it may not be compatible) isn't going to stop the RC attempting to pump out current through it. Why the RC should concern itself as to whether it is able to charge the device or not is beyond me.

What I was referring to is the fact that the Lightning cable/network is an active/adaptive system.  It appears there are chips built into the cable connectors that work with the host device to dynamically allocate the pins, figure out what the connected device is, etc.  Seems that basically all the pins can be used for communications depending on the device and this process is fairly dynamic.  This includes the power lines from what I am finding.

I am hoping you guys beat the odds and figure out a way around all that because it appears DJI is in denial about this issue.  I just got a response back this morning to my support request for mine acting similar to the reports in  this thread and they basically told me it is normal behavior!  NOT!

Brantel Posted at 2018-6-18 05:04
What I was referring to is the fact that the Lightning cable/network is an active/adaptive system.  It appears there are chips built into the cable connectors that work with the host device to dynamically allocate the pins, figure out what the connected device is, etc.  Seems that basically all the pins can be used for communications depending on the device and this process is fairly dynamic.  This includes the power lines from what I am finding.

I am hoping you guys beat the odds and figure out a way around all that because it appears DJI is in denial about this issue.  I just got a response back this morning to my support request for mine acting similar to the reports in  this thread and they basically told me it is normal behavior!  NOT!

You are absolutely right about the chip Brantel. We have to keep this post going that's the only way this is going to get attention from DJi.  

ATJ Posted at 2018-6-18 06:56
You are absolutely right about the chip Brantel. We have to keep this post going that's the only way this is going to get attention from DJi.

The main purpose of the chip is to reverse all the pins if you insert the connector upside down.

The red wire is on the USB side of the chip, therefore it conforms to USB specification and only passes voltage from the "charger" to the device being charged, and I believe the charging rate is always controlled by the device being charged monitoring the voltage and reducing the rate if the voltage drops.  Some USB devices can negotiate for more current/more voltage, but I very much doubt the controller can support that.

I think the diode would be the better choice because its voltage drop is not dependent on the current flow - the phone will not attempt to charge, rather than trying to charge but then turning down the charge current due to the voltage dropping over the resistor.

Nigel_ Posted at 2018-6-18 07:26
The main purpose of the chip is to reverse all the pins if you insert the connector upside down.

The red wire is on the USB side of the chip, therefore it conforms to USB specification and only passes voltage from the "charger" to the device being charged, and I believe the charging rate is always controlled by the device being charged monitoring the voltage and reducing the rate if the voltage drops.  Some USB devices can negotiate for more current/more voltage, but I very much doubt the controller can support that.

So which tells my iPad Mini 4 to open up its charging circuit-voltage, current or both?

ATJ Posted at 2018-6-18 07:52
So which tells my iPad Mini 4 to open up its charging circuit-voltage, current or both?

For most devices the answer is voltage, and as soon as it takes some power the voltage will drop due to resistance in the cable, capability of the source etc., so if there is enough voltage to start charging then the amount of power taken is controlled by the ability of the source and cables to maintain the delivered voltage while under load.

I assume that since the power is coming from a USB device the iPad has to follow normal practice and not do something Apple specific, the posts above seem to confirm this.

Nigel_ Posted at 2018-6-18 08:52
For most devices the answer is voltage, and as soon as it takes some power the voltage will drop due to resistance in the cable, capability of the source etc., so if there is enough voltage to start charging then the amount of power taken is controlled by the ability of the source and cables to maintain the delivered voltage while under load.

I assume that since the power is coming from a USB device the iPad has to follow normal practice and not do something Apple specific, the posts above seem to confirm this.

For some reason I always thought that current was used to charge a battery-the voltage from the charger always stays the same?

ATJ Posted at 2018-6-18 09:01
For some reason I always thought that current was used to charge a battery-the voltage from the charger always stays the same?

What you need for filling the battery is power, which is measured in watts.  

In USB devices, if they can't supply enough power then they drop the voltage.
Same happens if a battery charger cant supply as much power as the battery can take.  Dropping the voltage will naturally reduce the power supplied if the current remains the same.

Nigel_ Posted at 2018-6-18 09:26
What you need for filling the battery is power, which is measured in watts.  

In USB devices, if they can't supply enough power then they drop the voltage.

Perhaps the best approach is to make a small current limiting circuit, a 317T would do it (configured for current limiting rather than voltage regulation). I'll breadboard an adjustable current limiter circuit and see what values work..

So what I’m getting from this thread is that if I use my iOS devices with my P4P V2.0 controller I should NOT be using the devices at a 100% charged state because the controller will keep attempting to charge the device battery even though it’s fully charged?

So at least until there is a fix for this, making the assumption that DJI will fix this, if I connect my device to the controller as long as long as the device shows less than 100% charge I will do no damage to my devices’ battery? I use an iPad Mini 4 or iPhone 6s Plus with my RC.

iamjustjohn Posted at 2018-6-18 19:00
So what I’m getting from this thread is that if I use my iOS devices with my P4P V2.0 controller I should NOT be using the devices at a 100% charged state because the controller will keep attempting to charge the device battery even though it’s fully charged?

So at least until there is a fix for this, making the assumption that DJI will fix this, if I connect my device to the controller as long as long as the device shows less than 100% charge I will do no damage to my devices’ battery? I use an iPad Mini 4 or iPhone 6s Plus with my RC.

'So what I’m getting from this thread is that if I use my iOS devices with my P4P V2.0 controller I should NOT be using the devices at a 100% charged state because the controller will keep attempting to charge the device battery even though it’s fully charged? '

No. Like most devices these days, the iOS device will determine if the device needs to be charged. The RC controller cannot 'force' the iOS device to charge. DJI most likely will not do anything about this issue, so there will not be a fix. And finally, connecting any phone or tablet to a source of voltage within the acceptable limits (which the voltage from the RC unit is) will not do any damage, irrespective of the state of charge of the device.

It is no different to connecting your phone or tablet to a wall wart, the phone or tablet shuts off charging when the device is fully charged.

ChrisLX200 Posted at 2018-6-18 09:45
Perhaps the best approach is to make a small current limiting circuit, a 317T would do it (configured for current limiting rather than voltage regulation). I'll breadboard an adjustable current limiter circuit and see what values work..

The current limit would still allow the IOS device to attempt to charge, but then limit the charge rate.
A voltage limit would prevent the device attempting to charge which seems to be the goal.

Assuming that the voltage coming out of the controller is constant, a diode with the appropriate voltage drop seems simpler and can be neatly inserted into the cable with some heat shrink tube to protect it.

Geebax Posted at 2018-6-18 19:20
'So what I’m getting from this thread is that if I use my iOS devices with my P4P V2.0 controller I should NOT be using the devices at a 100% charged state because the controller will keep attempting to charge the device battery even though it’s fully charged? '

No. Like most devices these days, the iOS device will determine if the device needs to be charged. The RC controller cannot 'force' the iOS device to charge. DJI most likely will not do anything about this issue, so there will not be a fix. And finally, connecting any phone or tablet to a source of voltage within the acceptable limits (which the voltage from the RC unit is) will not do any damage, irrespective of the state of charge of the device.

What you say is not consistent with post #3, however I think you are correct.  There is no issue with the controller.  If there is a fault then it is with the IOS device, it is in control of charging its own battery but it is unlikely that it does actually overcharge its own battery, even if it does appear to be overheating.

The real issue is that some people may not want their devices to take power from the controller, while other people will.  It seems that the V2 controller is capable of supplying more power than the previous versions so there is a change.

Nigel_ Posted at 2018-6-19 00:04
What you say is not consistent with post #3, however I think you are correct.  There is no issue with the controller.  If there is a fault then it is with the IOS device, it is in control of charging its own battery but it is unlikely that it does actually overcharge its own battery, even if it does appear to be overheating.

The real issue is that some people may not want their devices to take power from the controller, while other people will.  It seems that the V2 controller is capable of supplying more power than the previous versions so there is a change.

First let me say that I have a P4 that I use my iPad Mini 4 on and there is absolutely no problem with the RC trying to charge the Mini. The two work well together like they should.

As far as the iPad Mini being charged by the V2 RC? the answer is YES. The green indicator comes on, the lighting bolt shows and the iPad gets very HOT when at a 100%(problem) also the RC discharges very fast. Now that I have inserted a variable resistor in line with the lightning cable none of that happens. The iPad is discharging normally, the RC is discharging normally and both units are running very COOL like the do on my P4. This problem should not be ignored because eventually this scenario will damaged both the iPad and the RC (or at least their batteries).

ATJ Posted at 2018-6-19 02:11
First let me say that I have a P4 that I use my iPad Mini 4 on and there is absolutely no problem with the RC trying to charge the Mini. The two work well together like they should.

As far as the iPad Mini being charged by the V2 RC? the answer is YES. The green indicator comes on, the lighting bolt shows and the iPad gets very HOT when at a 100%(problem) also the RC discharges very fast. Now that I have inserted a variable resistor in line with the lightning cable none of that happens. The iPad is discharging normally, the RC is discharging normally and both units are running very COOL like the do on my P4. This problem should not be ignored because eventually this scenario will damaged both the iPad and the RC (or at least their batteries).

Post #8 suggests that once the battery is at 100% charge, the controller is just powering the device, not charging it and thus there is no problem, even if it does get a bit hot.

Post #8 is a different device though, maybe you could use a USB power meter on yours to check the actual power being supplied from the controller's USB socket when your device is fully charged and 50% charged...

Nigel_ Posted at 2018-6-19 02:36
Post #8 suggests that once the battery is at 100% charge, the controller is just powering the device, not charging it and thus there is no problem, even if it does get a bit hot.

Post #8 is a different device though, maybe you could use a USB power meter on yours to check the actual power being supplied from the controller's USB socket when your device is fully charged and 50% charged...

Nigel,  I have a P4 and a P4PV2. The P4 works like it should with my iPad Mini (no over heating or fast discharge). The V2 does not, because I have both I can compare the two. When on the V2 the iPad, at 100%, gets VERY, VERY HOT (I cannot stress this enough).

Nigel, I bought my first P3 in 01/01/2016, I am very familiar with DJi's format, Andy

ATJ Posted at 2018-6-19 02:45
Nigel,  I have a P4 and a P4PV2. The P4 works like it should with my iPad Mini (no over heating or fast discharge). The V2 does not, because I have both I can compare the two. When on the V2 the iPad, at 100%, gets VERY, VERY HOT (I cannot stress this enough).

Nigel, I bought my first P3 in 01/01/2016, I am very familiar with DJi's format, Andy

Could it be that this is a problem for a limited number of P4PV2 owners that use iOS devices, perhaps a bad component used in a batch ?.

Are there any P4PV2 owners out there not seeing this problem ?

To add to what you've said, my iPhone 6s plus & iPad Pro 9.7 both show charging for a split second before stopping (irrespective of charge already shown on device) on connection to my P4 & Mavic Pro RC units. Recent iOS updates might also need to be considered.

Aardvark Posted at 2018-6-19 03:27
Could it be that this is a problem for a limited number of P4PV2 owners that use iOS devices, perhaps a bad component used in a batch ?.

Are there any P4PV2 owners out there not seeing this problem ?

The reason I am leaning towards the V2 RC is. When I attach the iPad Mini 4 to my P4 RC the Mini works to spec. (perfectly)

ATJ Posted at 2018-6-19 03:43
The reason I am leaning towards the V2 RC is. When I attach the iPad Mini 4 to my P4 RC the Mini works to spec. (perfectly)

The P4 RC doesn't supply enough power to charge devices, not surprising you don't have a problem using that.

How many people are seeing this problem with very hot Mini 4s?  I don't see many reports of the problem, maybe there is a problem with your iPad?

It is up to the iPad to regulate its power consumption and charging, not the RC.  The RC should provide the power it is asked for, or its maximum power whichever is the smallest.

I did see this guide to keeping the iPad from overheating during flight! :
https://ipadpilotnews.com/2018/0 ... rheating-in-flight/

Nigel_ Posted at 2018-6-19 03:53
The P4 RC doesn't supply enough power to charge devices, not surprising you don't have a problem using that.

How many people are seeing this problem with very hot Mini 4s?  I don't see many reports of the problem, maybe there is a problem with your iPad?

I agree that the iPad should regulate the charging power allowed, but my theory is theV2 RC is sending the iPad just enough information to confuse it (hence my 2.5 ohm adjustment on the varable resistor). I should say iOS devices because there are other devices out there that are having the same problem, not just the iPads.

ATJ Posted at 2018-6-19 04:07
I agree that the iPad should regulate the charging power allowed, but my theory is theV2 RC is sending the iPad just enough information to confuse it (hence my 2.5 ohm adjustment on the varable resistor). I should say iOS devices because there are other devices out there that are having the same problem, not just the iPads.

There are other devices that are charging, but that is not necessarily wrong, some people will want it to work that way.  I'm not seeing other reports of overheating.

Nigel_ Posted at 2018-6-19 04:24
There are other devices that are charging, but that is not necessarily wrong, some people will want it to work that way.  I'm not seeing other reports of overheating.

Over Heating only happens when the iOS device is fully charged.

I have had 3 Phantom 4 Pro 2.0's in my possession over the last 3 weeks and all three of their remote controllers are charging both my Ipad Pro and my Iphone 6s plus.  They are clearly charging at a high rate and the RC battery drains much quicker than what would be normal.  Both the Ipad Pro and the Iphone get very warm which is wasted energy.  Even if the mobile device is at 100% it still gets very warm.
My Mavic Air controller used with the same mobile devices does not have this behaviour.

Brantel Posted at 2018-6-19 06:43
I have had 3 Phantom 4 Pro 2.0's in my possession over the last 3 weeks and all three of their remote controllers are charging both my Ipad Pro and my Iphone 6s plus.  They are clearly charging at a high rate and the RC battery drains much quicker than what would be normal.  Both the Ipad Pro and the Iphone get very warm which is wasted energy.  Even if the mobile device is at 100% it still gets very warm.
My Mavic Air controller used with the same mobile devices does not have this behaviour.

There you go...

Pic #1-P4Pv2 with Resistor:


Pic #2-P4Pv2 without Resistor:


Pic #3-P4 without Resistor: