kenargo for the most part I agree with you typically products get better over time. In response to what you said about as far as companies are concerned when it comes to rare cases of ANY of them going back to recall, replace or modify prior versions I can name a few. Off of the top of my head I can give you two examples. I purchased one on my MAC computers in 2011 in doing so and registering it I stumbled upon a recall for an iPod that was 4 years old. Much to my surprise it was replaced with a new one. Years ago I received a post card from Sanyo regarding a potential fault with the power unit in one of my televisions that was 5 years old at the time. The faulty component was replaced. So in fact it does happen when it comes to well established companies. Do I see a mass recall happening on DJI's end? No of course not however I do feel that known issues should not be simply dismissed. I have several emails from fellow owners here in Europe being instructed by DJI Europe "reroute you GPS cable if that does not work let us know". Why should someone be subjected to a "try this attitude" by DJI, that is ridiculous in my opinion. As far as your statement that the V3 is better than the V2, which is better than the V1, etc. Is that actually a valid statement? Check out the below screen capture I stumbled upon on the DJI Phantom 2 Vision Plus V3 Facebook Group. It is a screen capture of a segment of an ongoing thread. One dealer apparently had 8 issues with the new version of the P2V+ V3 that in the end were returned. In one instance smoke was coming out of one of the arms after turning it on. That unit had never been flown! I have to agree with you DJI is doing moderately well considering the growing pain they are going through. I actually love my DJI products after modifying them myself to fly as expected / advertised. In time I would like to think there products will only become more reliable and customer service will improve in general. I am also a member of the DJI Phantom Vision+ Owners Group on Facebook that consists of 5,749 members as of this moment. There are loads of serious issues with DJI products being shared within that group on a daily basis. In moving forward I would like to think things will certainly get better as DJI continues to grow as a company.

I think Dji will need to get better as there are quite a few company's going to be producing quads in the near future and one of them has 20x the financial  power that dji has.
I eventually cured my sat drop out issues(NO THANKS TO DJI)  after loads of experimenting  and after purchasing ferite sheets @£32   and this was after i fitted a bigger sheild on top of the gps and then fitting ferrites to the camera cables .
Dji should be instructing dealers to check the P2V+ V2's before they sell them to folks and fix them if  they show the sat drop out when recording as they have modified the V3 to prevent this so admitting that there were issues :@.

Just received my PV2+

Mac OS X 10.10.1
Upgraded to the latest firmware for all components.
But outside is too cold to fly!

sean.batson@gma Posted at 2014-12-5 07:56
Just received my PV2+

Mac OS X 10.10.1

Please update us when you can Sean, as my PV2+ arrives next week and I don't want to screw it up with a bad upgrade!  I have the same computer OS.

xzgraham@btinte Posted at 2014-12-5 07:45
I think Dji will need to get better as there are quite a few company's going to be producing quads i ...

If dealers started to open the machines to upgrade or repair I'm sure there would be fewer units sold.  Once the box is opened it becomes an open box sale and needs to be sold at a discount.  Also, would you really want most dealers opening ANYTHING to repair?  I wouldn't!

kenargo Posted at 2014-12-5 12:35
If dealers started to open the machines to upgrade or repair I'm sure there would be fewer units s ...

Ok  sell them at a discount better that than selling a product that has known  faults .Not all the V2's have the sat drop out issue but a lot do .
Just wait untill after xmas when the forums will be full of my Phantom flew away.

I hope the wannabe Steve Jobs is aware of all this.

Well, I am a new owner of a P2V+. Kind of kicking myself in the ass for sending almost $1700 for the craft, extra batteries, and a hell of a case only to find now that there is a major issue with the GPS reception. I've read all the posts, watched the videos, and flown my P2V+ only to see the same issues I've seen complained about!

As I stated on another forum,  I too enjoy getting mine out and cruising around and shooting video/stills of different areas. BUT at the same time, I don't like the fact that one of the technologies I paid for to protect my investment from wandering off and ensuring it finds it's way back to where it started doesn't work as advertised.

I don't like the suggestion either that after spending my hard earned money that DJI has fixed this issue, with V3. That is great for those who have the V3, but I have spent my money on what I have now and would expect that stated technology work as advertised.

I'm not sure how long I have to package my bird up and send it back, but I may just start looking into this. I'm not comfortable at all!

How did you spend that much and not get the V3?   I spent 1500 USD for latest version.  1300 for unit with extra battery, and 200 for backpack and a sunshield iPad mount.  I feel your pain though.  Hope you get GPS issue resolved.  It may be easier to do the foil shield/wire reroute that others have had success with.

watch out the mighty ban you for letting people know how sorry  there customer service  really is , they had just banned  an individual for telling them F Y DJI. I think  they were wrong to do what  they have done to silence the guy that they just ban

Tahoe_Ed Posted at 2014-11-6 08:39
Joseph et al,

I appreciate all your comments.  I agree that we can do a better job at our upgrade r ...

HERE TO HELP COVER UP MAYBE. DELETEING SOMEONES ACCOUNT WHEN SURLEY YOUR COMPANIES AT FAULT IS NOT ACTULLY HELPING OTHER THAN NGETTING YOU MORE BROWNIE POINTS

I bought my first P2V+ one week ago and tried to do a battery update and it failed and now I have a brick for a battery. I contacted DJI and told them what happened during my upgrade using their software and their response was for me to contact the dealer that I purchased my Phantom from and to seek redemption from them first. Fortunately the dealer responded positively and replaced my battery. Shouldn't DJI fix this issue? Now I'm afraid to update my other batteries.

hearttwolove@ya Posted at 2014-12-16 04:55
watch out the mighty ban you for letting people know how sorry  there customer service  really is , ...

I've run large forums and web sites since 1995. We would 100% definitely kick off people who said FU to us.

This is their forum. Not yours. Not unaligned. It's to help people.

Since some of you enjoy so much spitting on the bike seat (so no one else can ride it), I'd think you'd be happier going to a non-aligned forum and complaining full time. Or, start your own. It's easy.

But DJI has 100% right to keep their property clean and to be a place where 100% of their users feel comfortable...might be hard for some to understand, but a lot of this BS scares away the average joe and jane.

hearttwolove@ya Posted at 2014-12-16 05:10
HERE TO HELP COVER UP MAYBE. DELETEING SOMEONES ACCOUNT WHEN SURLEY YOUR COMPANIES AT FAULT IS NOT ...

I am sorry you feel that way, however, when a user cannot use appropriate language and then physically threaten DJI employees with bodily harm, I think that goes way beyond allowing for positive criticism.  You say our company was at fault.  The user admitted that it was his fault that he upgraded his Phantom motors, that was not our mistake and not ours to cure.  However, he felt that we owed him a new Phantom or a refund.  That was not going to happen under the circumstances.  By the way we offered 30% off a new unit, an offer he refused.

Tahoe_Ed Posted at 2014-12-16 11:32
I am sorry you feel that way, however, when a user cannot use appropriate language and then physica ...

First of all the  motors that  he was talking about  was the very first DJI he had purchased and he  was trying  to upgrade his motors but failed in doing that then he contacted you guys regarding the issue that he had you guys told them that you guys could not help him  because he  opened the DJI, and that you guys would not tell him or explained to him how to fix the problem that his best bet was to purchase another one which he did and that's the one that had the problem. So you need to get your  facts correct my friend. He is going to a hard time right now his wife just had a miscarriage he had been injured worker for over two years and the money he had spent was money that he had been saving for quite some time. I know this guy pretty well.  he is not a bad guy he has just been going through a hard time and you guys don't make it any easier by the way treat customers. He is also fighting cancer and then when you guys send him forms to fill out and fill  out  and he turns them, You guys  then tell him that you guys send him the wrong forms that he needs to fill out the other forms that you guys send him. let me give you an history of this individual.  two years ago he had just found out that his mother was raped 35 years ago and he is the outcome that situation along with battling cancer and his wife having miscarriage and on top of that he was injured the only thing that he really enjoyed to do they with his DJI thingy.  I watched in this believe when his drone went haywire  he was trying to hover to take video of us as We watch the drone  just take off. His wife asked me if I would be willing to send you an email regarding his anger issues. As it is he has all this weight on his shoulders and by the way you guys treat your customers after  he had spent $4000 on your guises drones and then you expect them  two bye another drone at 30% off with an outreach for him. I can see you where  he got frustrated. You guys really need to read where he had   wrote that his first DJI was his mistake for trying to upgrade the motors, so that's why he purchased the second drone due to your technical staff telling him that they would not help you with it issues he was having as much is hated to do so he purchased a second DJI. He charge the battery and that  extender thingy all the while he upgraded The software on both the transmitter and the drone. As we watched him with his big cheesy smile as though he was not sick.  his whole life he has   known nothing but  violence  and his mother  treating him as if he were the one that had raped her when reality he is also a victim. There is no excuse for his actions. I  just hate to see this guy all broken I have never ever seen this man as broken as he is now, even when he had found out that he had cancer he excepted it and   faced That issue head-on. When we were kids he was the only one who would defend me when  people would pick on me is my weight. He was the one who had always put bullies in their place when they would get out of line with anyone that try to pick  on less fortunate kids. Though we all know that it is medication that he is on that makes him as he would say a nasal spraying  Viagra using individual. Please understand  that  he has been through a lot. And as I sit here typing you this letter It's hard for me to  try to make you guys understand what he is going  through  I myself along with everyone  else Who knows Gabriel is that it is unlike  him to have acted the way he had, but we understand now from what we read and he sent to you guys, that life has  really taking a toll on him. Please understand that  is unlike him to have acted so much as what he hated which is becoming a bully, we all love this guy so much that we all sit and cry cause there isn't anything we can do to make him feel better as his attitude has changed in ways that we all couldn't being to understand and it breaks my heart to see him so bitter now. I'm sorry I'll  need to put myself together I will answer any question you may have its just hard for all of us to watch him just stay in bed all day with an empty stare of all the anger he has for what life has put on him.
Thanks Zach

Zach, I am sorry but I don't know what to say with that outpouring.  I am sorry for him and his situation.  I will pray for him and his family and for healing.  That is my personal prayer not that of DJI.  I hope that he seeks help for his issues and moves forward in his life.

Tahoe_Ed Posted at 2014-12-17 01:40
Zach, I am sorry but I don't know what to say with that outpouring.  I am sorry for him and his situ ...

Just want to clear his Name for his actions cause I know My Friend would do it for me. Please just understand that he's has been through a lot, Its not an excuse for him to have lashed out like that but we feel that the meds he's on has him all screwed up that way.
Thanks Zach

Zach, I appreciate your friendship as I am sure he does as well.  Thank you for helping us understand the whole story.  I have sent you a email if you would like to discuss this further or allow his wife to contact us.

GOD BLESS YOU. I will inform her to contact you.
Thanks Zach

droneflyers.com Posted at 2014-12-16 09:36
I've run large forums and web sites since 1995. We would 100% definitely kick off people who said  ...

I'm 100% behind you on this issue, that's no way to deal with issues by being disrespectful as he was and I apologize for my friend and his actions. I just hope that you and I mean everyone he might of offended can forgive his actions though there is no excuse, for that behavior and what DJI did was in the best interest of its customers.
Thanks Zach

Tahoe_Ed Posted at 2014-12-17 01:58
Zach, I appreciate your friendship as I am sure he does as well.  Thank you for helping us understan ...

I'm on my way to there home and I will call you once I get there, I don't have anyway to contact you other  then going and using  her phone to call. She's going to take him to his appointment and it always takes a toll on her seeing her husband getting his treatment.

Thanks Zach

josephbobowicz@ Posted at 2014-12-5 05:32
This question is for Tahoe_Ed and or DJI Management. On 2014-11-7 06:27 Tahoe_Ed posted the followin ...

bravo, well said

I just purchased my p2+ with the new updates controller motor and compas. From what I'm reading im scared to fly the thing. I would think factory install of software would be up to date?. But am I walking into a disaster or am I reading into this to much?  

mestill999@aol. Posted at 2014-12-18 21:53
I just purchased my p2+ with the new updates controller motor and compas. From what I'm reading im s ...

mestill999 I want to put your mind at ease a bit. I have a P2V+ with well over 200 flights on it. I have always updated my firmware and upgraded my transmitter to the new on with the dial to control camera tilt. Here is a recent test flight after upgrading my transmitter and firmware: http://youtu.be/io2QphVAsns?list=UUw6tAWNGTLhN01jCDeYx0cw As a side note I have never had any issues with my camera or gimbal and I am still flying with my original props. The only problems that I have encountered is that I had issues with my GPS. In particular when I would turn on video record in 1080p. What would happen is I would mysteriously drop 2-3 satellites on average. I decided to do a few modifications to my GPS and have had zero issues since. The only other issue I have had is when one of the recent firmware updates came out I had an issue updating my batteries. This was overcome by using a previous version of the software. Since the video I shared in this post I have updated the firmware in my RC transmitter as well as in my P2V+, once again I have no problems. In the grand scheme of things DJI produces amazing products. Sadly there have been a fair amount of users that have experienced issues. DJI is going threw explosive growth at the moment which creates problems for many of us in regards to service. I did not want to send my Phantom in to be serviced. I was concerned it would take months to get it back. As far as should you fly your new Phantom I can't see why not. Just make sure you calibrate your RC as well as your Phantom in using the RC and Assistant Software. Also take the time to read the manual several times and watch as many videos as you can on Youtube. If you happen to be on Facebook and have any questions feel free to join our group. Here is the link: https://www.facebook.com/groups/393981554092596/ Will I continue to support DJI and purchase there products. Without a doubt, as time goes on and they continue to grow as a company I would think things will only get better.

Well after reading the majority of the complaints throughout this thread I have yet to notice if this particular issue affects the regular Phantom 2 Vision (non pluses)  I should have one arriving next week and now I am feeling apprehensive from reading all of these complaints....any help would be appreciated!

Hi Joseph and all,
First, I would like to appreciate all the effortand support you have put on DJI. I am really glad we have enthusiastic users like you.

Just like Joseph said, we are experiencing the growing pain right now. As far as I can see on this forum, we do need to improve our interactivity to users. I have brought this up to the highest level of management, and I personally worked with the lead of R&D department. Please give them some time to get on track, and to be frank, it is not practical to answer all the questions on the forum overnight, right?

UAV technology was just getting popular in recent years, and it is still at the early stage to be mature. The theory of how to design it is simple, but when come to the actual application and large scale manufacture, it is a whole different game. It is no longer to just put the parts together and see if it flies. In large scale manufacture, we need to consider if the parts are designed easy to assemble, if the process is error-proof, and the design of product can function under all kinds of corner cases. When Apple released the first gen iPhone 7 years ago, they also struggled, and it took them many years to improve it generation by generation, and finally got a nearly perfect iPhone 5 at 2013 after fixing a lot bugs and design flaws from previous generations, that is over 5 years of developing. And not mentioning it is done by a well-established company. UAV just started populating in recent a couple years, DJI, Parrot, 3DR, and a lot other company are all still exploring. Luckily we have mature internet technology now, users and developers have many ways to communicate, this would largely help us to design better products for users. We shall not need to wait for 5 years to get a nearly perfect drone, . DJI as a company releases new products in favor of the market need and as well as to let users try the latest technology. We will try our best to solve existing issues on old products, but in a bigger picture, we need move forward. We can't afford losing a war for a battle. Hope you can understand this. Last but not the least, the 3.08 FW update indeed was a chaos, we have fixed the problem already to prevent such issue happen again. This is a lesson learnt to us. And the recommendation of including update steps in the release notes is also well received.

In terms of making repair parts available for sale, again, we will try our best to roll this out. As the technology is still in the early stage, and yet a lot changes to come, we would not like to open the flood gate at this state. I believe users on this forum can do the repair on their own, but there are a lot other users can't. If we make parts available, a lot other users could have issues during repair and potentially cause safety problems. We have invested a lot resource to bring up the customer service in US, so we welcome you to contact our customer service center for any technical support. Same effort is being brought out in Europe as well,

Thank you all again for the support and passion to DJI. Let together build the future of possible.

Sincerely

Jack

GM of DJI USA

josephbobowicz@ Posted at 2014-12-18 22:49
mestill999 I want to put your mind at ease a bit. I have a P2V+ with well over 200 flights on it. I ...

thank you for you response this has put me at ease for now. im going to remove the camera for the first week or so til i get the hang of it. i have also purchased a mini quad to practice inside using the controls. i know alot of accidents are pilot error. but you would think that dji would have as stock equipment a gps locator incase you phantom does decide to fly away? as long as its not in the river or ocean you could atleast retrieve whats left. all that aside i am looking forward to my new experience. i will definatley check out the face book page you described. thanks again

mestill999@aol. Posted at 2014-12-19 04:50
thank you for you response this has put me at ease for now. im going to remove the camera for the  ...

If you remove the camera (assuming V3) then you will be removing camera electronics, leaving the wires dangling.  In this case, you will have no feedback via WIFI; no battery level reporting, no satellite lock information, etc as the WIFI unit is powered through the camera connection.

I wanted to mention this to save you the headache of wondering why your not seeing any information on your cell phone/tablet.

chrisgreenback@ Posted at 2014-12-19 00:20
Well after reading the majority of the complaints throughout this thread I have yet to notice if thi ...

^^anybody?

chrisgreenback@ Posted at 2014-12-19 06:22
^^anybody?

Honestly, there are far more successful flights than problems.  People come online to complain; they rarely come online to praise so you need to take most complaints with a grain-of-salt and it doesn't help when the topic for a thread is as threatening as this one.

If you want to compare, pick anything and search online.  For example, out VW Jetta, has a large crop of people carrying on about the fuel system failures and costing thousands or non-warranty repairs.  We've had it for many years, no problems.  However, as with anything electric there can be problems; some user induced, some with the electronics and the more automatic something is the easier it is to have a small issue become a large one.

IMO, the Phantom is a very nice machine and the few issues raised are a rarity given the number of successful flights.  There are also a few people who just love to stoke the flames and that doesn't help but in the end you need to make up your own mind; you can wait for the perfect quad (which likely will never come) or you can go another route.  You need to choose but my suggestion would be to take most complaints for what they are; a few online complaints.

If you need additional comfort, visit the DJI Owners page on Facebook; there are over 6000 pilots, some with many DJI drones and that would be a better audience to ask about reliability and in fact there was just that pose a few days ago and the reply was a resounding yes, the Phantom is a good and reliable quad.

The Phantom 1 is a nearly perfect drone at this point! But it's probably being discontinued.....as Jack says, the market is asking for more advanced products, even if they are imperfect.

These are not toys and in many ways they are not true consumer products. They require skills to fly and skills to troubleshoot and maintain. Eventually, if the government doesn't mess things up, there will be more and more places to get your drone updated, checked or fixed.

Even then, there are many people who should simply never fly a quadcopter. This is just like anything else. Many people should not sail a boat - or pilot a plane or ride a motorcycle. Consumers really have to do their research first and not pretend that flying an aircraft is going to  be like using netflix.

I just had to replace my Phantom Transmitter - after a year - because I dropped mine a couple times and broke it. Just the process of buying the right one and binding it to my Phantom required skills that many people don't have.

Someday - like we have Jiffy Lube now - maybe we'll have Jiffy Drone.

DJI-JS Posted at 2014-12-19 02:33
Hi Joseph and all,
First, I would like to appreciate all the effortand support you have put on DJI.  ...

Jack, I wish DJI good luck in 2015.
I think we'll wait and see what the USA UAV market needs in the near future. I recognize DJI as developing a very good product (Phantom is doing great in terms of easy to fly in the right conditions - low to medium wind, good GPS coverage, etc). That was the reason why I've decided to buy a P2V+ myself.
The UAV market may actually end up different than the smart phone or other gadget business. I'm not sure if "latest and greatest" with higher speed, range or lift capacity is what's going to be the number 1 factor for future buyers (depending also on FAA regulations). I think the USA users value good customer support or, at least, good customer engagement, and good product reliability (better diagnostic tools, ways to prevent or recover from flyaways, flight logs, crash avoidance, etc), especially with all the news about safety (and privacy) concerns related the UAV usage.