I have a Phantom 4 RTK that has never been used.  I am trying to figure out how to fly this damn thing and am really struggling.  I have the GL300L controller with an iPad connected.  I have tried every DJI app as well as several 3rd party ones and NOTHING seems to connect to the drone.  What app are people using and should this really have taken me 3 hours to get to this point?  

My A****l drone was out of the box and in the air in about 15 minutes!

gs RTK should be about as turn key as it gets my friend. I just got my P4 RTK the other day so I know the struggle. Good luck! Are you using a base station?

NAP3XD Posted at 6-3 17:58
gs RTK should be about as turn key as it gets my friend. I just got my P4 RTK the other day so I know the struggle. Good luck! Are you using a base station?

I am not able to find GS RTK for my iPad.  Are you using an iOS or Android device?  Or are you using the controller with screen?  Maybe I just need a different controller?

I currently don’t have a base station.  

You must have the SDK controller (the one w/out a built-in mobile device).

Lots of threads on here about using the SDK w/ iPad and Android devices. You can use DJI GS Pro (iOS), DJI Pilot (Android only I believe), and a variety of third-party apps developed using DJI' MSDK.

https://www.dji.com/ground-station-pro

https://www.dji.com/downloads/djiapp/dji-pilot

Yeah, I think it’s the sync to the drone that I am missing.  I’ll try again later.

After lots of trying, I FINALLY got it to work!  I had to try 3 different usb cables.

Unfortunately, I still can’t fly the drone. . 6 out of 6 batteries go from full to empty in about 3-5 minutes.

New dilemma, do I buy a new controller with integrated screen and 6 new batteries, or scrap the unused P4R and get something different?  I will say, my first experience with DJI has been less than impressive.

YL_DronePilot Posted at 6-5 05:26
After lots of trying, I FINALLY got it to work!  I had to try 3 different usb cables.

Unfortunately, I still can’t fly the drone. . 6 out of 6 batteries go from full to empty in about 3-5 minutes.

It sounds like you have a P4R that sat for a long time unused before you started working with it.
Yes, batteries go bad if they are not maintained properly, and leaving them w/ no charge for long periods can damage them.
Your experience with this P4R is not the typical one and at least partially due to the condition of the aircraft and batteries. DJI (and this kit) have their issues, but you shouldn't take this as indicative of all DJI gear.
Get some new batteries. You should be able to use your SDK controller, no need to buy a new one unless you'd just prefer the integrated screen one and GS RTK.

I have two new batteries on order.  Hopefully this changes my experience.  

OK, slight progress.  Now I am getting errors when booting up the drone.

Aircraft Encoder Error
Unknown error (code: 119), cannot take off, please contact DJI support.

UGH!

YL_DronePilot Posted at 6-7 17:05
OK, slight progress.  Now I am getting errors when booting up the drone.

Aircraft Encoder Error

I just got mine and went through all of this. All my other drones use the ipad and runs great. The RTK model does NOT. I ended up buying an android tablet and everything runs great using the DJI Pilot app. That app lets you fly normally and do mapping. The encoding error, i found out after days of trying to get help was caused by using the IOS device