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Well, Hello there viewers...today, we are going to take a look at a well known affliction I like to refer to as 'L.O.C.S. Syndrome'.
You see, the DJI Forum Community often makes mention of 'L.O.C.S. Syndrome' throughout umpteen hundreds of their comments, discussions and so on. 'L.O.C.S.' is more commonly referred to in the following long hand definition as; Lack Of Customer Service. Yes, when repeated out loud, this verbal communicationcan can cause serious mental and physical issues such as the following;
1. Chills- Severe forms of these have been documented in forum members who have recently discovered their Inspire 1, Phantom 3 or other DJI product must be sent in for repair.
2. Nausea- This is most common with any owner of a DJI product who has come in contact (or lack there of) with an anointed DJI 'Specialist'. When said 'Specialist' begins demonstrating obvious qualities of 'L.O.C.S. Syndrome' it becomes quite sickening to the consumer that he/she must face the fact they are on the 'fast track' to not seeing their beloved investment (hobby or professional use) for a minimum of six (6) weeks.
3. Uncontrolled Outbursts of Anger and/or Aggression- Simply, obvious signs of 'L.O.C.S.' enrages the victim to the point they begin talking of inappropriate use of 12ga shotguns, poor quality beers, even certain misgivings of marital status and situations, often times leading to the well known, 'T.M.I. Syndrome'.
4. Paranoia- This feeling seems more common in a forum member who, after a firmware "update", comes to the unexpected conclusion, their once graceful and glorious flying contraption has now become, an overqualified deep sea fishing weight. Additionally, this results in all three (3) of the abovementioned symptoms of 'L.O.C.S. Syndrome' manifesting.
5. Ridicule- The symptom is brought to light by some, 'high and mighty, pat themselves on the back-er fan boy' who has yet to accept the fact they truly have a non-existent life, save for the constant scrolling and reading of every...single...post and making a (or several) condescending comments against each person posting said thought, grievance, inspiring story or informative and positive tutorial. These persons are, at times referred to as 'Trolls', the preferred terminology is, "Grey Skinned-Near Sighted-Left Handed-Monkey Spanker" or 'G.S.N.S.L.H.M.S.' which we will discuss in another thread.
6. Some severe cases of 'L.O.C.S.' have been reported in instances where a forum member has been subjected to several poorly structured sentences (where improperly placed pronouns and/or adjectives have been utilized) leading to meandering answers with no conclusive outcome or direction.
If you, a loved one, a friend or even a well liked forum member suffers from 'L.O.C.S. Syndrome' be kind. Let the poor bastard know there are thousands more out there in the world, feeling the same, still somewhat baffling, way. Please DO NOT mention items such as missed deadlines, contractual losses, loss of family time due to long phone wait times, or even the fun you may be having with the flying product of your choice, as this may cause a severe reaction in which all listed sypmtoms will cause the head of the individual to literally implode in a supernova, scene from Poltergeist: the Movie, sort of way.
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Okay, I'm done with the sarcasm, my apologies to you, the reader. The truth of the matter is this, in many of us there lays dormant, an evil and somewhat veil creature. For those of us who will openly admit this common fact, we utilize humor to convey things like (in my case) anger and (also in my case) irritation. I'll get to the point...in a minute.
After several months of diligent searching, watching and investigating, I decided to purchase the well talked about (even by POPMech) DJI Inspire1. Dun-dunn-duhhhhh!!!!! Mind you, I do not blame DJI in any way, shape, or form for enticing me to purchase. Oh no!!! The technology, if it were as it states, could've been, and still may be, incredible.
So, why the sour grapes then, Sky Ninja? BTW- I set the name as a joke and it stuck, so...sue me. And NO, I'm not a 'real' ninja.
Anyway, here goes. By the way, the information contained herein, is backed by RMA #s, documentation, photos and screen shots. So, to those little 'G.S.N.S.L.H.M.S.' beware! You may find yourself on the receiving end of a swift smack to the neck fat, should you try some of your 'monkey business' with ol' Sky Ninja. {:2_29:}
Here's the factual deal;
Purchased I-1 on 2/17/15, it arrived 2/23/15. (Giddy with joy was I) Jump to 2/27/15- During eighth (8th) flight, while still in the process of checking telemetry, responsiveness and familiarizing myself with all aspects of controls, the unit (noted as an IMU issue) suffered a severe crash. I obtained and RMA on 2/30/15. On 3/03/15 paid $79 to ship unit in it's original, new case inside of a box with 2" of styrofoam on all 6 sides, to protect it. (Why $79? No shipping was offered, I know better now.) I patiently waited eight (8) weeks, (yes, eight weeks or two months) not knowing what to expect as there were so many horror stories surfacing on the web and forum. Then, the news came, my faulty unit was to be returned, completely repaired. Once more, life would be good...so I thought. Please see below and feel free to ask questions;
1st Repair- Sent 3/03/15
DJI, LA Diagnosed/Replaced-
1. Damaged Center Frame
2. Right Motor Arm
3. Camera
4. Nose Cap
Was the unit-
*Camera checked? YES- Worked perfectly
*Updated? NO- Pilot App indicates required update (DJI said it was in email)
*Test Flown by DJI? NO- Pilot App indicates no flights after incident (DJI said it was in email)
*Warranty Repair? YES
*Flown after returned? NO- Several issues were visibly evident unit was not fit for flight.
Returned 4/23/15
***Turn around time- 8 weeks (as expected with typical RMA)
Upon return, the following issues were noted;
1. Did not replace obviously cracked front, left arm as noted on RMA and in email(s)
2. Right/Left rear motor arms were different lengths and were not installed properly
3. Center frame (in travel & landing gear down) was out of square to the left @ approx 7degs (+/- .5deg)
4. The props (@ nose, landing gear down) left to right were not aligned. The left prop tip was @16-1/8 while the right prop tip was at 16-5/8
5. The Right Rear Motor was out of alignment. Motor tilt should be between 4 & 5degs, R/R Motor was @ 9degs O/S (+/- .5deg)
6. Front span of unit was wider than rear span to center of prop thread by 1/8”+
7. 1-week old case came back with a sufficient amount of Interior/Exterior damage and missing shipping transport foam pieces
8. New props/locks not shipped with unit
*Action taken- Called XXX of XXX, XXX on 4/23/15 and was instructed to retain new RMA from DJI and email him with issues. After several attempts, unit was returned via an RMA-ESC and return shipping label from DJI, LA
2nd Repair- Sent 5/04/15
DJI, LA Diagnosed/Replaced-
1. One Motor (which one?)
2. Central Frame Unit (Again? See item 1, under 1st Repair) 
3. Left Motor Arm
4. One ESC Board (which one?)
5. Battery Plate
6. Props
7. Case (original damaged by DJI on 1st repair attempts)
Was the unit-
*Updated? YES- Pilot App indicates ‘Newest Firmware’
*Test Flown by DJI? YES- Pilot App indicates flight
*New Props & Locks (pre-installed) Included? YES- 2 sets each= 4 props/4 Locks
*Warranty Repair? YES- Repair completed on Friday 5/8/15 and shipped ‘Overnight Saturday Delivery’, via FedEx to WRONG ADDRESS on same date. Correct and NEW address was clearly typed on RMA. (Luckily, the new owners of the house held the door tag for me) Had to pick the unit up at the FedEx hub as no one was to be at our new home to sign for the unit during the week and I did not want the Inspire returned. The drive was 70 miles, round trip and took 2-1/2hrs to complete (driving only)
*Flown after returned? NO- Camera issues and missing securing hardware. The unit is still not fit for flight.
Returned 5/09/15
***Turn around time- 5days (Kudos!) and packed to the hilt!!!!
Upon return, the following issues were noted;
1. Camera responds to gimbal directions given but now does not show video/photo and shows ‘ No Signal’ on pilot app after updates and/or reloads of IOS and Android systems. In addition, camera has been inspected and cleaned with no positive outcome.
2. Airframe Bottom Cover plate is missing mid-section securing screw. There is no evidence the screw was ever installed as plastic sleeve shows no indication of wear or ‘scrub’ marks.
This is the plate holding the camera and gimbal in place.
***Update- The" missing" screw as reported above is actually supossed to be left blank for future adaptaions of hardware, per Marc of DJI. Therefore, I was erroneous in my evaluation.***
*Action taken- Called XXX of XXX, XXX on 5/11/15 and was instructed to email him with issues and thusly, said issues would be forwarded to proper channels at DJI, LA. Email was sent requesting full refund of unit with explanations, in addition to abundant issues concerning Inspire 1, lack of customer service (poor repairs) and no longer having the faith in product to put the unit in the air for fear of safety to all living and structural entities.
Response from XXX was that DJI, would be contacting me “… very fast…” to resolve the situation. With the following from DJI, who could blame me for not putting much faith in the product. I'm the one held liable for EVERYTHING THAT HAPPENS. Though this is common practice for companies of this type, as well as in this type of hobby/profession, I'm sorry, but there are too many variables at this point.
“* Notice:
As DJI Innovations has no control over use, setup, final assembly, modification(including use of non-specified DJI parts i.e. motors, ESCs, propellers, etc.)or misuse, no liability shall be assumed nor accepted for any resulting damageor injury. By the act of use, setup or assembly, the user accepts all resultingliability.”
*Current date of this posting 5/19/15…and still no word from DJI. (que the Elvis music...I feel so lonely, I could die.)
In closing, I am the not so proud owner (requesting a refund) of a 3-1/2 month old Inspire 1, with 8 flights and less than 20 minutes air time, who still can't do a darn thing but- leave it in it's case while awaiting a response.
I promise to update with any GOOD NEWS should the opportunity present itself.
>To 'dundee'- Thank you for the very generous offer of assistance with the camera issue and posting your personal SKYPE info.
>To 'Abe'- If your reading this buddy, I feel your pain.
>To 'Mike Starley'- Thanks for the laughs and finding your space bar...kinda. 
A SWING...and A MISS!!!
...more like a foul ball if you ask me.
Thanks for reading, -S.N.
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lvl.3
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First Officer
