Hi,

I just bought an action 2 camera and so far I'm very disappointed. It arrived on Saturday and I was hoping to test it out over the weekend but so far I haven't been able to shoot a single image.

The problem is that after consulting the 'Quick start' guide I now find I cannot start the camera without first downloading an app onto a 'smart' phone. I don't have a smart phone and nowhere in DJI's advertising materials does it say that this is required. Since there is a USB cable and you can transfer files to a laptop why can't you set up the camera from a laptop?


I've tried to use andriod emulators but the the furthest I've got is a message that says, "DJI mimo keeps stopping".


Has anyone successfully managed to use an emulator to set up their action 2 camera?

You only need a smart phone to activate it,   could you ask a friend to help with that?

DAFlys Posted at 5-10 09:50
You only need a smart phone to activate it,   could you ask a friend to help with that?

Yes I had thought of that but I hear that the app asks you waive certain privacy rights and may access data on your phone. There's suggestions that it may be spying on you and apparently there is even a clause in the contract that the user must agree to waive their right to go to court should a legal dispute arise.... All of this is probably why google refuse to allow it in their app store.

I don't think it with all those concerns it would be fair to ask a friend if I can use their phone.

I think it's pretty poor that you can't use a camera straight out of the box and you have to download an app (onto another device that weren't told before purchase that you needed) and then you have to agree to some questionable T&C's that even google are choking on.

Hello there Bluetiger. Thank you for reaching out and I am sorry for the trouble this has caused. As posted above I am sorry to say that you need the DJI Mimo ( https://www.dji.com/downloads/djiapp/dji-mimo ) application to activate your new DJI Action 2 and for you to be able to use the intelligent modes features of your DJI Action 2. In addition the DJI Mimo offers live HD video feeds and unique, easy-to-use intelligent modes, empowering you to shoot, edit, and share your world with endless creativity. Thank you.

DJI Stephen Posted at 5-10 19:55
Hello there Bluetiger. Thank you for reaching out and I am sorry for the trouble this has caused. As posted above I am sorry to say that you need the DJI Mimo ( https://www.dji.com/downloads/djiapp/dji-mimo ) application to activate your new DJI Action 2 and for you to be able to use the intelligent modes features of your DJI Action 2. In addition the DJI Mimo offers live HD video feeds and unique, easy-to-use intelligent modes, empowering you to shoot, edit, and share your world with endless creativity. Thank you.

That's all well and good but I suffer with eletrosensitivity, which is why I don't have a smart phone. That's why I wanted a small action camera that could shoot great footage and was easy to carry.

The fact is, you supply a USB cable because you know that most people will be downloading and editing their footage on a laptop or desktop. That being the case I don't know why you can't supply an app to run on those devices at least to get the camera set up. Gopro do it, so I'm not sure why you seem to have a problem.

I'm also disappointed to find that both the bluetooth and wifi on this camera can not be turned off. Not only is this not good for people like myself but also drains the battery unnecessarily. I'd rather have the option to shoot more footage than have the battery drained by things I won't use and don't want.

Also has DJI considered the safety implications of the fact that this product cannot be put into airplane mode? What if it were found out that some of the plane crashes over the years were caused by DJI devices interfering with the plane's electronics?  What would that do for DJI's reputation?

In short, this appears to be a great product but it seems to me that privacy and safety are a low priority for DJI. Unless DJI address these issues I can't see myself buying anymore of their products.

As a new customer, I had high hopes for this camera but had I known what I know now I wouldn't have bought this product. I'm very disappointed with DJI.

Sounds all too familiar, except for me, it was the Pocket 2. Had the same activation problem (though I had a smartphone, it just wasn't a compatible one) and emulator on a Windows tablet didn't work.

I hope you will find a satisfactory solution to your problem, I am not wondering why you are having these thoughts.