randy.sauder Posted at 2018-7-4 21:49
"Both your warranty and Care refresh clearly state that only if third party app causes crash will your app be null and void, both your care refresh are 100% covered in the event of aircraft malfunction."

Good to know ...however based on many user's experience, the above statement should be a major concern.  It is likely that DJI Support may simply blame the 3rd Party App for any issue you may experience and deny any support and you will have no warranty .  

I’m not sure if warranty is nulled by problem caused by app, I suspect they’re could be a problem if for instance , you are flying in a highly populated urban area or in the middle of the city and lose RC signal or GPS, these are not malfunction of the aircraft, and are caused by controller, much of this stuff is covered in the manual, so for third party apps I would presume it’s the same, i had asked a lawyer friend of mine to check out the very simple contract with Care refresh, which covers all aircraft malfunctions, his opinion on I think it’s point 11, dji will not cover Care refresh if crash is due to use of third party app, for him the clear meaning in this point was and considering other point unequivocally, that if using these apps you crashed due to aircraft malfunction you would have 100% cover.
I have never seen any case that was refused a care refresh because of use of third party app, I have only seen one on inspire where there was a crash using litchi , and there was no problem with warranty , because warranty is used in the case of aircraft malfunction and not care refresh.
If what your saying about dji not relying on flight data from third party apps, then those with care refresh should have no problems, as dji would have no proof as to what happened to their aircraft , and this would fall into the same category as accidental damage, IE dropping you Aircraft down the stairs , which is covered, and also comes without any data as to what occurred , but is still covered.
I also don’t believe there is some covert practice going on to disprove no aircraft malfunction. If you think about this one, a simple disgruntled employee turning up at the press core, to tell of shady unscrupulous practices at dji, would almost certainly do much more damage to the company than trying to dishonestly deny a customers genuine warranty.
Having said all that insurance is a tricky business, and it’s important we know and understand, what cover we have.

Ex Machina Posted at 2018-7-4 14:12
I would argue that the operating system is analogous, all those apps have to transparently work on multiple devices, in this case, all apps to rule them all, but fair enough to want something lean and mean.

I rather suspect the large size of the app isn't so much due to the number of devices it needs to support but instead the video editing features, soundtracks and such -- all of which I hardly ever use personally, but understand why they are there.

Point well made.  I guess in this analogy, the drones are the pcs, the firmware is the driver package, and the DJI Go 4 is the OS.

if that's the way we should view it, then you're right.  There is no way we'll get a different version of  Go4 for each.

Ex Machina Posted at 2018-7-4 14:41
A couple things -- Litchi, Autopilot, et al, do write flight logs, they just can't currently sync logs to DJI's back-end servers that update one's Go 4's stats and forum member stats. DJI has confirmed several times that their warranty covers owners who use these apps, unless the apps, themselves, were responsible for the loss of an AC.

The Android problem is a sticky one for sure, what with all the myriad devices and versions. Seems like some devices were compatible until the owners upgraded to the latest OS, at which point things went south. Autopilot doesn't offer an Android version afaik, and Litchi doesn't even provide a list of supported aOS devices -- instead they offer a money back guarantee if it desn't work on your particular device. Caveat emptor, I guess.

There were also issues with iOS a few times, and corrections were made because the iOS camp was going ape after an iOS update. Other times iOS lose feature functionality on some products in the Go app. This round is a bad one for Android mostly, but there are still feature issues with some on iOS and now a few iOS users complaining of similar digitized fpv they call like flying in Minecraft mode. I saw that recently on a members Mavic Air and newer iPhone (X).

Android related issues are another thing, but again just about every device sold today can handle Go4. Many have been. Nvidia Shield, Samsung S3, Zen 10, Iconia, all devices sold at common stores. Not on the list. Note 4 is on the list and it is many years older than the Note 8 which blows the Note 4 away by a mile in power, cpu, ram etc. Yes there are hoards of other devices, but when most people shop the stores for a phone these days, the most common ones and S series, a couple LG, Nexus, and other top enders from Huewi (spelling) in the overseas markets.

hallmark007 Posted at 2018-7-4 06:51
It still begs the question how much is caused by other devices, it is very clear around here that iOS have had a lot fewer problems with updates.
I’m also surprised that no one who operates commercially at your club hasn’t tried dji go pilot app, designed for commercial completely stripped back of bells and whistles not needed commercially, and has complete privacy of all data, which is becoming the norm for commercial.
As one who has a few different drones I have never seen any cross contamination regarding firmware or software, and it seems to be a very new occurrence , with no official recognition from engineers at dji , although I don’t expect they would comment on it.

I'd have to ask them if they use the Pilot app. I'm sure they are aware of it.

Still all this begs the question... why now all these other devices deemed not usable when 2 mos ago they all worked fine before updates POST 4.2.16

It's silly imo to tell a person on the same exact device that had no update from their device mfg that now their device is a pos and can't be used with Go4 when it runs other versions of Go4 and latest versions of Litchi just fine. Makes zero sense to anyone you ask.

DJI just needs to admit they don't really care to use Android devices with these products. Go all iOS and then deal with issues much simpler, one platform... done. Of course I don't think they want to alienate a vast group of Android product users, but if this is not remedied soon, more people will look to other companies that do support their device when those options are there.

If word gets out that Android is fine on Autel products...Anafi, or others... what do you think those consumers will do?

What is more inconvenient? Buying a new phone or tablet, updating all contacts pics etc, or is finding a product that works with their device a better solution? That will be a question based on the marketplace soon enough as more competition enters, improves, and offer similar options to hobbyists and pros alike.

miketmtpro Posted at 2018-7-5 07:26
I'd have to ask them if they use the Pilot app. I'm sure they are aware of it.

Still all this begs the question... why now all these other devices deemed not usable when 2 mos ago they all worked fine before updates POST 4.2.16

Its already clear that very few android devices work on Autel, they have made this very clear, parrot the same.
I do believe dji will work on this, and from what I read above, it’s highly unlikely that a separate app for each individual piece of equipment is feasible,
We remember when dji go was running, using it then was Osmo, all phantoms including P4, Ronin, inspire and matrice, there since has been a separation between the go app and go4app , and I believe we may see a third app, but I don’t believe we will see 14/15 separate apps or anything like it.
There are very few apps that run smoothly with no problems and apps being updated all the time, phones that can no longer receive updates, so cannot avail of new additions. This is the tech world we now live in , in my younger days when tv broke or any household appliances broke you called the the repair man, sadly nowadays when it’s broke you dump it.

I think we will have to wait and see what dji come up with, but I don’t believe they have any intention of loosing android customers, and Autel or parrot are still a ways behind even with all dji’s problems.
Let’s hope that they take notice of discussions like this one and come up with the necessary to keep us happy.

miketmtpro Posted at 2018-7-5 07:26
I'd have to ask them if they use the Pilot app. I'm sure they are aware of it.

Still all this begs the question... why now all these other devices deemed not usable when 2 mos ago they all worked fine before updates POST 4.2.16

A friend recently sold his P4 to get a Mavic Pro and found his Android tablet no longer displayed smooth video in the same version of Go 4, the difference being the Mavic's newer, apparently more resource-intensive downlink video tech. His girlfriend's old iPhone 5s worked fine, so he picked up a used iPad Mini 2 and is happily back in the air.

My point here is that this stuff is complicated and hard, old equipment can both become obsolete and still work within the DJI system depending on a whole lot of variables. I won't argue that DJI doesn't need to do better, especially on the Android device front.

I vote 3rd option: Provide a Crystal Sky integrated into the controller, forget about supporting  Phone devices.  They will never solve this problem on their current path, they would save development costs.  I wonder the actual cost of building the Crystal Sky, after all it is made in China.

Ex Machina Posted at 2018-7-5 11:29
A friend recently sold his P4 to get a Mavic Pro and found his Android tablet no longer displayed smooth video in the same version of Go 4, the difference being the Mavic's newer, apparently more resource-intensive downlink video tech. His girlfriend's old iPhone 5s worked fine, so he picked up a used iPad Mini 2 and is happily back in the air.

My point here is that this stuff is complicated and hard, old equipment can both become obsolete and still work within the DJI system depending on a whole lot of variables. I won't argue that DJI doesn't need to do better, especially on the Android device front.

I have used iOS and Android. I can use one when another version fails. Have done so in past when the iOS versions were bad or not performing properly.

My Android devices are newer Tab S3, and Note 8. Both devices are 3x the basic DJI requirement. I've used the Note 8 since last Nov, and the S3 since March. All were fine. Updates after 4.2.16 showed a few bugs. 4.2.20 absolutely ruined the flight experience. I also have a mini4. I can use at any time, but I really prefer and have prefered the screens on the Gal Tab S3, and Note 8. Also works fine on 4.2.14

Sorry, but no way do I accept that an S3 from 2017 is inferior to a 705c (Tab A from 2014) when it completely outspec's the old tablet, or Note 8 which has double the process speed and 6G Ram is not recommended but a dated Note 4 is?

not buying it

Had iOS users been getting the feed the Android users are seeing, there would be far more stuff in the fan !

miketmtpro Posted at 2018-7-5 06:52
There were also issues with iOS a few times, and corrections were made because the iOS camp was going ape after an iOS update. Other times iOS lose feature functionality on some products in the Go app. This round is a bad one for Android mostly, but there are still feature issues with some on iOS and now a few iOS users complaining of similar digitized fpv they call like flying in Minecraft mode. I saw that recently on a members Mavic Air and newer iPhone (X).

Android related issues are another thing, but again just about every device sold today can handle Go4. Many have been. Nvidia Shield, Samsung S3, Zen 10, Iconia, all devices sold at common stores. Not on the list. Note 4 is on the list and it is many years older than the Note 8 which blows the Note 4 away by a mile in power, cpu, ram etc. Yes there are hoards of other devices, but when most people shop the stores for a phone these days, the most common ones and S series, a couple LG, Nexus, and other top enders from Huewi (spelling) in the overseas markets.

"flying in Minecraft mode."

...I love it