How I Crashed My Mavic 2
Last month I went on a short trip to Guangzhou with my friend. Unfortunately, whilst I was there my Mavic 2 Pro crashed when I was bringing it in for a manual landing under a tree. But at about 70ft altitude my drone fell straight down and got tangled in the branches, before finally crashing into a pile of cement.
I’m not sure how this happened. I thought maybe I must of inadvertently hit the RTH button and it was trying to go for its return altitude, but it's not supposed to do that low altitude. Whatever the case may be, the head of my Mavic 2 Pro was completely cracked. The right gear was totally damaged. The only comfort was that I got it without diving into some mysterious water or climbing onto a cliff.
After I almost got over the panic of crashing my drone, I started to realize my M2P was not bound to any DJI Care refresh plan! My panic soon turned to rage as I cursed myself for not spending the extra $139 to get it insured.
So if you are like me and are trying to save some cash and think you are too good for insurance, believe me and let me be evidence, you are not! Buy the insurance, you will no doubt thank yourself later for it!
Booking for Quick Service
At first, I was worrying and hoping to figure out what to do next. I know that there are some flagship stores here in China that can provide a quick maintenance service, but my drone was the US version, so I wasn't sure they'd take it in for repair. Then I contacted DJI Support through email, and they kindly provided me with the following two choices:
• Send it in for repair. As I was in Guangzhou, my M2p will be sent to the DJI Shenzhen warehouse, and it’ll probably take 5 days to have it back. • Go to the Shenzhen flagship store to have a quick repair. It’ll take only 2 hours if I choose the quick service.
Anyway, as I was not so far from Shenzhen, I decided to take a little detour and head to Shenzhen DJI Flagship Store.
Here are some useful tips for you:
• If your drones got broken, smashed or whatever while you are in China, going to the flagship store would be the best choice. Their after sales team will basically REPLACE your drone with a new one instead of fixing it for god knows how long. So, if your drone was not that badly broken (this means it won’t generate so much maintenance fee), you can get a new drone at a fairly acceptable cost.
• As far as I know, DJI has both Authorized and Recommended Service Centers in over 100 countries. It’s probably not very convenient for most guys to come over to China, then the DJI service centers ( https://www.dji.com/service/repair/centers ) will also be a good choice.
Visit Shenzhen DJI Flagship Store
I successfully made a quick service appointment online, and arrived at their store. The entire building was very futuristic.
Shenzhen DJI Flagship Store
I went into the store and some DJI staff named Davy received me. After a short conversation, he had a quick check on my M2p, to see if my SD card was still in. As I possess so many DJI products from Phantom 4 to their latest Osmo Pocket, I asked a lot of questions and the DJI Customer service staff was patient and professional enough to clear all my doubts.
DJI after sales staff checking my crashed Mavic 2 pro
DJI Customer Service
In DJI Flagship Store, the main service mode would be QUICK REPLACEMENT, I guess they want to do it in the most convenient way for customers. So even though my drone was very damaged, they solved my problem in less than an hour.
In about 30 minutes, I got my quotation from them:
This is their official explanation for the replacement product. I saw many guys online complaining about the refurbished drones from DJI, but it is actually not a problem to me. Finally I paid about 3133 RMB ($480) for the repair fee. Though the price is a bit high, I got my problem solved real quick without any further hassle. Besides, the new product will receive extra 90-day warranty. I think this is somewhat worth it. In about 1 hour, I got the replaced new Mavic 2 Pro and I was ready to take it home!
dji flagship store inner space
Here are some more tips about how the quick service goes at DJI Store:
• In DJI flagship store, they won’t accept selective maintenance! So if they detected other errors that you were unaware of before, they’ll charge you for that part also. So, the best advice I can give you is: DJI CARE REFRESH is a must-have if you are not much of a well-practiced pilot. • If you expect to finish all the procedure and get your new replacement within an hour, make sure you make an appointment for their quick service on DJI Support page before your visit. Otherwise, you may have to wait behind those who have made reservations.
The whole customer service experience is fast and smooth. I felt that DJI after sales staff know how to treat their customer right and think in their shoes. After they learnt about my situation, they explained everything to me patiently, and also sent me an extra 3 month warranty (though this can only be applied in Mainland China). So I really hope they can keep up their excellent service.
Finally after I got my new Mavic 2 pro, and I flew it right away around the Shenzhen Flagship Store. Hope you guys like the clip:
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