After I updated the smart controller firmware to 0400 i noticed that all my pictures captured from my mavic 2 pro all ended up with the same date regardless of the day they were taken on.

After playing around with the controller I now find that the date and time is reset everytime I turn the controller off and back on.

I see several others reporting problems with date and time issues in other threads - and wonder if they are all related to the same issue.

DJI support does not seem to be aware of the issue and suggested I send my controller in for repair - but that would not make sense to me if it worked with the prior firmware and others are having the same issue.

So can others confirm that turning the controller off and then back on causes the data and time to be reset (note that I dont automatically resynch with WIFI but if I do the Date and Time is lost on restart until I do resynch with wifi).

It would seem obvious to me that the internal date, time and time zone in the controller shouldnt reset because its powered down.

Is that a correct assumption?

Glenn

Hi Glenn, we're sorry to read your post. For the reset issue, please kindly upload a short video of your operation (change the date manually, then restart the Smart Controller), we'd like to check the exact status, thank you!

Also, how did you contact our support at that time? Please kindly offer your email address/phone number when you contacted us, we'll double check.

Glen, I am having the exact same problem.  Also on the "Inspire" tab of this forum, I ran across this:  For the last couple of weeks the photos and videos I have taken using my Inspire 2 have been set to January 2013. The date/time on the Crystal Sky is set correctly.
My Smart Controller reverts back to January 18th, 2013 every time I power it up.  Also for the photo files it is keeping the same date of March 23 regardless when I take the pictures.

DJI Susan Posted at 3-27 00:23
Hi Glenn, we're sorry to read your post. For the reset issue, please kindly upload a short video of your operation (change the date manually, then restart the Smart Controller), we'd like to check the exact status, thank you!

Also, how did you contact our support at that time? Please kindly offer your email address/phone number when you contacted us, we'll double check.

I apologize in advance but you should not need a video.  Enough people have posted this problem and they have also posted screen shots of files showing a date with a YEAR of 2013.  

In the attached photo, the BLUE boxes show the files dated March 8.  They were taken on March 20.  The RED boxes show files with a YEAR of 2013.  Those files are also from March 20.  This has been occurring for more than a week or two at this point.



The files dated March 8 match the date, March 8, that I had previously flown.  So that that date stuck to the March 20th photos.  The 2013 date is obviously WRONG.  

ff22 Posted at 3-28 19:18
I apologize in advance but you should not need a video.  Enough people have posted this problem and they have also posted screen shots of files showing a date with a YEAR of 2013.  

In the attached photo, the BLUE boxes show the files dated March 8.  They were taken on March 20.  The RED boxes show files with a YEAR of 2013.  Those files are also from March 20.  This has been occurring for more than a week or two at this point.

I understand your point, and sorry for the inconvenience. As you mentioned, the date and time reset when restarted the Smart Controller, that's the reason why we need the operation video for double check. Hope for your understanding.

mike9887 Posted at 3-28 03:55
Glen, I am having the exact same problem.  Also on the "Inspire" tab of this forum, I ran across this:  For the last couple of weeks the photos and videos I have taken using my Inspire 2 have been set to January 2013. The date/time on the Crystal Sky is set correctly.
My Smart Controller reverts back to January 18th, 2013 every time I power it up.  Also for the photo files it is keeping the same date of March 23 regardless when I take the pictures.

Hi Mike, could you refer to 2# and provide us a short video of your operation? We're checking the exact status and try to reproduce the issue at our end, thanks so much!

DJI Susan Posted at 3-28 22:30
Hi Mike, could you refer to 2# and provide us a short video of your operation? We're checking the exact status and try to reproduce the issue at our end, thanks so much!

DJI Susan, who do i send the video to or do I just post it on here?

I verified today that the Smart Controller(SC) reverts to the January 18 2013  date and time of 0150 when shut off. Today I planned a waypoint flight while on WIFI verified the date and time was correct and saved the plan then shut off the SC. When I turned on the SC minutes later with no WIFI connection, to fly, I noticed the date & time was back to January 18 2013 and 0150. I went to where I could reconnect to WIFI and let the SC update to the correct date and this time, left the SC on, disconnected from WIFI, and flew. The resulting flight log, and videos stored on the Mavic 2 zoom onboard MicroSD card, had the correct date and time.  Conclusion: when the SC is shut off it reverts to a date & time of January 18 2013 and 0150, it doesn’t retain the correct date and time and as a result all subsequent flight logs, videos, and photos are stamped with this incorrect date & time. See attached Screen shots showing the SC time when turned on before updating using WIFI network time, then the SC time after updating using WIFI network and the last screen shot attachment shows todays flight log with the correct time. All the previous flight logs have the January 18 2013 date because the SC reverts to that date when it is shut off.

The SC must be able to retain the correct date and time when shut off and without the WIFI network(except for perhaps occasional updates) otherwise all flight logs, videos, photos and anything else that requires a date and time reference will be provided erroneous information.

Can the SC and MAVIC 2 use the GPS network for date and time?

RWPilot Posted at 3-30 13:46
I verified today that the Smart Controller(SC) reverts to the January 18 2013  date and time of 0150 when shut off. Today I planned a waypoint flight while on WIFI verified the date and time was correct and saved the plan then shut off the SC. When I turned on the SC minutes later with no WIFI connection, to fly, I noticed the date & time was back to January 18 2013 and 0150. I went to where I could reconnect to WIFI and let the SC update to the correct date and this time, left the SC on, disconnected from WIFI, and flew. The resulting flight log, and videos stored on the Mavic 2 zoom onboard MicroSD card, had the correct date and time.  Conclusion: when the SC is shut off it reverts to a date & time of January 18 2013 and 0150, it doesn’t retain the correct date and time and as a result all subsequent flight logs, videos, and photos are stamped with this incorrect date & time. See attached Screen shots showing the SC time when turned on before updating using WIFI network time, then the SC time after updating using WIFI network and the last screen shot attachment shows todays flight log with the correct time. All the previous flight logs have the January 18 2013 date because the SC reverts to that date when it is shut off.

The SC must be able to retain the correct date and time when shut off and without the WIFI network(except for perhaps occasional updates) otherwise all flight logs, videos, photos and anything else that requires a date and time reference will be provided erroneous information.

Mine exhibits the exact same behavior.  When connected to WiFi the time and date updates to the correct time.  But when the SC is powered on without WiFi it reverts back to 03:50, January 18, 2013.   I noticed that yours is showing 01:50 and mine is 03:50 and I'm guessing we have different time zone settings.  Mine is Eastern Daylight Time.  

The biggest problem is being in the field where there is no WiFi.  Setting the system manually before you fly is not acceptable.  

I really hope that the posted images convince them there is a REAL problem with the time/date process on the Smart Controller and they can find the problem.  Besides the 2013 date issue, there's another, at least, I have had another date/time issue.  The time stamp for drone images were wrong.  They were stamped with the date of my previous flights two weeks earlier.  So rather than March 20 (new flight date), they shows March 8 which was the previous time I had flown.  Those were the images inside the drone.

mike9887 Posted at 3-29 12:18
DJI Susan, who do i send the video to or do I just post it on here?

You may upload to Google Drive or Dropbox, then share us with the link in PM, I'll check and forward to the engineers to look into it.

RWPilot Posted at 3-30 13:46
I verified today that the Smart Controller(SC) reverts to the January 18 2013  date and time of 0150 when shut off. Today I planned a waypoint flight while on WIFI verified the date and time was correct and saved the plan then shut off the SC. When I turned on the SC minutes later with no WIFI connection, to fly, I noticed the date & time was back to January 18 2013 and 0150. I went to where I could reconnect to WIFI and let the SC update to the correct date and this time, left the SC on, disconnected from WIFI, and flew. The resulting flight log, and videos stored on the Mavic 2 zoom onboard MicroSD card, had the correct date and time.  Conclusion: when the SC is shut off it reverts to a date & time of January 18 2013 and 0150, it doesn’t retain the correct date and time and as a result all subsequent flight logs, videos, and photos are stamped with this incorrect date & time. See attached Screen shots showing the SC time when turned on before updating using WIFI network time, then the SC time after updating using WIFI network and the last screen shot attachment shows todays flight log with the correct time. All the previous flight logs have the January 18 2013 date because the SC reverts to that date when it is shut off.

The SC must be able to retain the correct date and time when shut off and without the WIFI network(except for perhaps occasional updates) otherwise all flight logs, videos, photos and anything else that requires a date and time reference will be provided erroneous information.

Thanks so much for your feedback. I've reported this to our engineers and will keep following up.

ff22 Posted at 3-31 09:14
I really hope that the posted images convince them there is a REAL problem with the time/date process on the Smart Controller and they can find the problem.  Besides the 2013 date issue, there's another, at least, I have had another date/time issue.  The time stamp for drone images were wrong.  They were stamped with the date of my previous flights two weeks earlier.  So rather than March 20 (new flight date), they shows March 8 which was the previous time I had flown.  Those were the images inside the drone.

Hi ff22, just to verify, does the issue only appear in the last flight? Have you connected with WiFi to check the date and time on the Smart Controller?

DJI Susan Posted at 3-31 23:23
You may upload to Google Drive or Dropbox, then share us with the link in PM, I'll check and forward to the engineers to look into it.

Here is a link to the video:  

mike9887 Posted at 4-2 09:59
Here is a link to the video:  

Are you absolutely sure it is not 2013?  

Thanks for the demonstration on video.

PLEASE DJI FIX THIS!! 2013 WAS A GOOD YEAR BUT ITS 2019, ALL MY FILES ARE SCREWED UP BECAUSE OF THESE DATES. How can we enjoy the Smart Controller when we cannot find our files as they are scattered all over the place and dates are all mixed up... PLEASE FIX THIS PROBLEM! No one has wifi everywhere they go and we paid hundreds of dollars, not to set the date everytime we boot up the drone. come on, please get with the program!

DJI Susan Posted at 4-1 00:02
Hi ff22, just to verify, does the issue only appear in the last flight? Have you connected with WiFi to check the date and time on the Smart Controller?

Please Please have this fixed, I am losing flights and files are being mixed up everyday because all my files are from the same dates, in jan 2013, very annoying. What may not seem like a big deal to DJI, actually is a huge inconvenience to be able to log actual time of events and organize media. This happens everytime I turn on the controller.

mike9887 Posted at 4-2 09:59
Here is a link to the video:  https://youtu.be/QW7oGMWNDPE

Thanks so much! I've forwarded to our engineers to check and will keep following up.

CODRONEzoom Posted at 4-2 14:56
Please Please have this fixed, I am losing flights and files are being mixed up everyday because all my files are from the same dates, in jan 2013, very annoying. What may not seem like a big deal to DJI, actually is a huge inconvenience to be able to log actual time of events and organize media. This happens everytime I turn on the controller.

I‘ve reported to our engineers and they are locating the exact status. Please allow them some time to confirm the root reason, thank you!

Hi All,
Sorry for keeping you waiting. I just got an update from our engineers that they will fix the date issue in the next firmware update.
We'll release as soon as it is ready. Currently, you may turn off the automatically obtain network time feature and manually modify the time to the correct time. Appreciate your support and patience.

DJI Susan Posted at 4-3 02:06
Hi All,
Sorry for keeping you waiting. I just got an update from our engineers that they will fix the date issue in the next firmware update.
We'll release as soon as it is ready. Currently, you may turn off the automatically obtain network time feature and manually modify the time to the correct time. Appreciate your support and patience.

That is great news!!

DJI Susan Posted at 4-3 02:06
Hi All,
Sorry for keeping you waiting. I just got an update from our engineers that they will fix the date issue in the next firmware update.
We'll release as soon as it is ready. Currently, you may turn off the automatically obtain network time feature and manually modify the time to the correct time. Appreciate your support and patience.

For those who may be curious, you can turn the auto-update feature off by going to the "4 squares" icon on the 1st screen (go to Android I guess it means), then Settings (gear icon), scroll down to System, then Date & Time.

More one date/time problem here.

Thank You Susan!

mike9887 Posted at 4-3 09:52
That is great news!!

Hope we can figure this out soon.

coloradoskier Posted at 4-3 13:23
For those who may be curious, you can turn the auto-update feature off by going to the "4 squares" icon on the 1st screen (go to Android I guess it means), then Settings (gear icon), scroll down to System, then Date & Time.

Thanks so much for the detailed instruction!

aerography.pt Posted at 4-3 15:15
More one date/time problem here.

Thank You Susan!

Hi aerography.pt, our engineers have been aware of the issue and will fix it soon. Sorry for the inconvenience caused.

coloradoskier Posted at 4-3 13:23
For those who may be curious, you can turn the auto-update feature off by going to the "4 squares" icon on the 1st screen (go to Android I guess it means), then Settings (gear icon), scroll down to System, then Date & Time.

Just fyi... for me this does not work.  When I set the time manually and the automatic update turned off when I power the unit up it always reverts back to 3:50am, January 18, 2013.  The only way for me to get the correct time at start-up is with wifi and auto update feature on.  I have tried multiple combinations to see if anything will allow me to start up with the correct time without wifi connection; nothing works.

With auto-update off you can set date & time manually… Not a very convenient workaround.

FWIW – this has nothing to do with FW .400 – the issue appeared on my SC randomly this week, while still running on .360.

Yep same here. Switch off SC and on again without WiFi and it reverts to a date of 18th January 2013. 08:50am  

What  is all that about? Seem such a basic thing to screw up.

Another dent in the confidence that I have for my £579 SC.

It just seems it's been such a half arsed experiment all this. Such a shame.

Poor poor form DJI.

mike9887 Posted at 4-4 02:58
Just fyi... for me this does not work.  When I set the time manually and the automatic update turned off when I power the unit up it always reverts back to 3:50am, January 18, 2013.  The only way for me to get the correct time at start-up is with wifi and auto update feature on.  I have tried multiple combinations to see if anything will allow me to start up with the correct time without wifi connection; nothing works.

It doesnt work for me either.

My only option is to restart/startup SC and manually set the date or connect Wifi to get correct date.

This is just not right is it ?  #poorshow

Sunstone Posted at 4-5 01:28
It doesnt work for me either.

My only option is to restart/startup SC and manually set the date or connect Wifi to get correct date.

Same here, except mine went to 0150 hours (it retained the timezone)

[bI have the same issue with the date and time reset problem as everyone else with my DJI Smart Controller...….just for the record, my Smart Controller resets to January 18th 2013, but the time is 12:50 AM (who the heck flies at mid-night?).  Occasionally when I turn my Smart Controller back on I get a March 2018 date setting, but in general I get the January 2013 date like everyone else.  My Flight Logs are also miss-dated, and this problem is extremely frustrating...…...thumbs down to DJI ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ]

I have my Smart Controller TIME FORMAT set for 12 hour format, not 24 hour format, so what the heck is 12:50 AM?  It should say 00:50 AM...….yet what it appears to me is that even though I set the Date and Time for a 12 hour format, when I turn off the Smart Controller and then power it back up the unit resets the date and time to January 18, 2013 with 12:50 AM in a 24 hour format...…  I am extremely unhappy with this date and time issue.  Manually having to set the Date and Time each and every time you want to take aerial videos is a real pain......and more offer than not, I forget to set the date and time before I fly...…..and on occasion when I do manually set the date and time before take-off that process in it's self takes away from my flight time.

Could this be isolated only to certain timezones or certain settings? I'm using GMT+1 Brusells, 24 hours format and even when I turn off wifi and turn off controller and power it back it will hold its date and time. I have done experiment even with hard shut down which is kind like disconnecting battery - holding power button around 10s until it shuts off. Only I was able to see in this scenario was that time was late 2 - 3 secs after this hard reset which probably corresponds to time when battery was disconnected. Other than that I have never experienced any issue with time. I'm on 0400 firmware. hard to say if this is software or hardware related thing.

DH_Pilot Posted at 4-6 23:59
Could this be isolated only to certain timezones or certain settings? I'm using GMT+1 Brusells, 24 hours format and even when I turn off wifi and turn off controller and power it back it will hold its date and time. I have done experiment even with hard shut down which is kind like disconnecting battery - holding power button around 10s until it shuts off. Only I was able to see in this scenario was that time was late 2 - 3 secs after this hard reset which probably corresponds to time when battery was disconnected. Other than that I have never experienced any issue with time. I'm on 0400 firmware. hard to say if this is software or hardware related thing.

Without wifi, your smart controller is keeping the correct time at power-up?  I am curious without wifi if some controllers do keep the correct time at power-up and others do not.

mike9887 Posted at 4-7 00:46
Without wifi, your smart controller is keeping the correct time at power-up?  I am curious without wifi if some controllers do keep the correct time at power-up and others do not.

Yes I tried it multiple times, without wifi it will remember correct time, only discrepancy is when I do hard reset then it will be late few seconds (2-3) seems to correspond to time when electronics reconnect internal battery during hard reset.

Just right now powered it on and saw that time was 9:50 and immediately synced via wifi to 12:47 correct one, so maybe my tests were not so accurate. Let me try do more test also with situation when controller will be powered off for longer time.

OK it is strange now when I disconnect wifi I'm on January 18, 2013, and 09:50 time, it is really strange as before it was working correctly for me even without wifi, only thing what has changed by the time that we have entered summer time.

Having the same problem, mine is connected to wifi, but I have SSID broadcast turned off on my home wifi, which seems like it's why the Smart Controller is not able to connect to my network. I also noticed when setting the Smart Controller up there was no option to manually connect to a network, could only choose from SSIDs.

I also have exactly the same problem