I have had two power failures while flying and freaked out.  After reluctantly putting it back in the air; I flew maintaining a low altitude; after about 10 minutes of flight I'm hovering 8 ft off the ground in a landing approach.  I am waiting for the battery to drain so I have no movement on the sticks at all.  Power dies and it lands upside down on its prop.  I'm so tired of working on this thing!!!!!!!  For those thinking of buying a drone.  Look else where!

I have flown my father in-laws FC 40 without incident.  Maybe I have a lemon but I don't have time for this after spending this kind of money!!!!!!

From you post, it does not seem to me that the problem is the Phantom. It seems to me the problem is you, the pilot in command. Remember, this IS an aircraft and must be flown which means you need to understand your drone and everything it can and cannot do. I hope you will try to become a better pilot.

I suggest that you take the time to learn the the basic controls and flight maneuvers in the phantom manual.
I did and it helped greatly.
I'm not implying that you haven't, I hate to see any investment damaged.... as a pilot one must practice practice practice.

Good luck

JRbob, please tell us your set up procedure so we may help you get this right. Have you done these essential actions?
read the manual?
loaded the drivers for the software ?(before downloading the software)
loaded the latest software?
Updated to the latest revisions for drone and RC?
Calibrated your controller?

the above must be done before even starting it.

In the field:
Did you calibrate the compass with both switches in the up position and away from any magnetic interference after waiting for more than 6 satellites with slow flashing green rear lights?
Did you fly in phantom mode or naza mode?

and why were you waiting for the batteries to go flat? were you trying to trigger RTH mode?

This is meant to help not to patronise, so many new flyers miss some of these steps and the phantom is a technical piece of equipment that requires certain set up and instructions to fly properly.  So give us an update and we can help you from there.
Cheers!
Rod

I read the manual before and after receiving the Phantom.  Previous RC plane pilot so the Phantom is a lot easier learning curve.  All firmware updated, compass calibrated, etc. etc.  Still have receiver in Phantom mode.  I was not wanting to trigger RTH I was just wanting to discharge further before a recharge.  

Thanks for the replies.

Momochi....I'm sure you are some kind of RC God but how does the pilot impact when the drone is hovering with no stick commands at all????

jrbob2 Posted at 2014-12-25 09:06
I read the manual before and after receiving the Phantom.  Previous RC plane pilot so the Phantom is ...

Hmmm-- so if you were in Phantom mode and running down the batteries RTH should have triggered automatically when the battery reached a certain low point- ascend to RTH height and then descend and land. But it didn't apparently.

Here's a thought: I wonder whether this was because you were so low that the RTH algorythm thought that because it was vertically stationary and at an immeasurably low altitude, that it thought it had already landed and then went through the motor shutdown procedure?  
Rod  

rod@voxvideopro Posted at 2014-12-25 11:53
Hmmm-- so if you were in Phantom mode and running down the batteries RTH should have triggered auto ...

Rod interesting theory and I really don't know.  Doesn't explain the other "drop" from higher altitude.  Battery was still at about 30% so I don't think it should of came into play.  Reading other comments/reviews, the only thing that adds up is possible defective battery.  I noticed the Phantom Assistance didn't recognize the battery as a "DJI" a few times I was connected; sign of battery trouble?  I suppose I will replace and hope for the best.  

BTW....my RTH is set to 100 Ft and it definitely did not ascend to this height........

jrbob2 Posted at 2014-12-25 14:25
BTW....my RTH is set to 100 Ft and it definitely did not ascend to this height........

Yes that doesn't make sense at all.  I think my logic of low altitude  (IE near zero) plus no vertical movement may have accounted for the shutdown, but the higher event remains a mystery. It should not shut down at height but should execute a RTH.  DJI any thoughts on this for RJbob?

jrbob2 Posted at 2014-12-25 14:25
BTW....my RTH is set to 100 Ft and it definitely did not ascend to this height........

is IT?  c heck all your settings,  most people forget that when they change something they should press enter to store the new setting....  then always re-open and check anyways....

None of these posts even mention the model....that's very important!

The Vision definitely acts weird at 30%. I would not expect it to ascend in any case at that point since it likely knows it may run out of power.
I think it's difficult to work out all the relevant logic for each situation.

The first question I had when I read the OP was why you  were trying to run the battery down? I don't remember anything about that in the manual and the Vision+ certainly has weird manners when the battery is at 30% of lower. From my experience, I doubt the P2V+ would execute much of anything at 30% or below....more like it wobbles down and scares the heck out of me at the speed it attempts to descend.

My regular P1 has much better manners since it's not carry as heavy of a load.

I think a lot of folks get confused by the claimed 20+ minutes flight times. Depending on the situation, flight can be as short as 10-12 minutes (I found about 14 to be the longest in my case).

Also, it seems many people think the Phantom is really an "autonomous" vehicle. Remember that all the RTH and failsafe systems are not designed to be used. They are like the airbags in your car - that is, they MAY help in some situations when they deploy, but should not be relied on or tested/used regularly. In fact, the P1 manual clearly indicated that a pilot should not even test these systems! In over a year of flying Phantoms, I never have!

They say if we put an infinite number of monkeys at an infinite number of typewriters, the works of Shakepeare would eventually be written by one. The point is that the factory can never duplicate every single situation that we pilots create.

I think budding pilots should learn from the machine as to what it does and wants to do rather than hope the machine behaves in a way that they think it should.In the case of my P2, this means I want to definitely land or be quite near the ground (soft ground) when I am at 30%.

I'm not sure if the newer version behaves a bit better - someone else will have to comment on that. But the older P2V+ flies very heavily and great care must be taken. It is a a delicate flying camera - not an all-around quadcopter.

It is a Phantom 2 and at the time I was flying without the Gimbal.....manual says to discharge the battery to less than 8% every 20 charge cycles.  Now granted I didn't' expect to fly at that level but hoped to drain down to 25% and discharge further indoors.

jrbob2 Posted at 2014-12-26 03:11
It is a Phantom 2 and at the time I was flying without the Gimbal.....manual says to discharge the b ...

A bare P2 should act fairly well - although if it was a vision and you removed the gimbal, it still may think it has a gimbal - I'm not sure how the FC is programmed. That is, whether it responds to the actual weight or to the weight it thinks it has based on connections to the F/C. I suspect the former.

I think if you are going to discharge batteries, doing it at idle will work better. Or, try flying it 100% in ATTI mode instead of GPS. In GPS it tries too much to react to it's perceived status...

All in all, it seems - from a lot of problems reported -  to be that flying in GPS too much can be trouble. Even DJI says clearly in one of the manuals to only use GPS in open areas with no obstructions (that includes the ground as well as tree cover and near buildings, etc.

The Phantoms are simple to fly in ATTI mode as they still maintain stability and altitude hold. The only thing different is that they drift with the wind, which is easy enough to counteract.

guymacdonald@ip Posted at 2014-12-26 12:50
Hello Rod

Although what you are saying makes sense to me I cannot find anywhere it says you must h ...

You do not need a GPS fix before you calibrate the compass.  That just sets the magnetic variation.  Six sats will mark your home location as soon as you take off.

guymacdonald@ip Posted at 2014-12-26 13:01
Sorry I misunderstood this .....Did you calibrate the compass with both switches in the up positio ...

Both switches in the up position. You can calibrate the compass even before you get GPS fix with 6 sats minimum.

guymacdonald@ip Posted at 2014-12-26 13:07
OK I understand now and thank goodness have been doing it right!

Thanks again

Happy flying

Gerry1124 Posted at 2014-12-26 13:04
Both switches in the up position. You can calibrate the compass even before you get GPS fix with 6 ...

I bow to your wisdom! I never knew that.  As a matter of belt and braces I have always waited for sat lock prior to compass calibration. I just like the bird to know exactly where it is, and what direction it is facing-seems logical to me.( And  I have never had a non self inflicted event so far.)  we continue to learn!

rod@voxvideopro Posted at 2014-12-26 13:17
I bow to your wisdom! I never knew that.  As a matter of belt and braces I have always waited for  ...

You can fly NAZA-M mode without having any sats.

guymacdonald@ip Posted at 2014-12-26 13:28
I know it is like asking how long is a piece of string but how many hours flying would you say I s ...

Once you get comfortable and confident with what the sticks will do, switch to NAZA, you will still have RTH on the bottom S1 switch and home lock on s2 to bring you home in NAZA.  This is the only video that I have actually edited, but I was using the cheap class 4 sd card that came with the Phantom and a lot of pixilation in the video.  

I was woefully unimpressed with the quickstart guide, so I found the REAL manual online almost immediately.  I assume EVERYONE has done this. I hate people that tell others to "read the manual," which implies the poor slob is ignorant.  And then they ask "why were you running down the battery?"
I guess just because you've read the manual doesn't mean you've learned anything.
AND BTW---RC does NOT need to be calibrated right out of the box. The sticks should work just fine.

birdfolk@dishma Posted at 2014-12-26 13:48
I was woefully unimpressed with the quickstart guide, so I found the REAL manual online almost immed ...

You're putting 1300 dollars worth of faith that  the person making minimum wage or less in China is doing his job.

Off topic

Great video Gerry1124.  Really nice work.  Where do you live that there is a drive in left?

flhx2010@icloud Posted at 2014-12-26 14:19
Off topic

Great video Gerry1124.  Really nice work.  Where do you live that there is a drive in le ...

WWW.blackriverdrivein.com

Very cool!  West-coast for me.  WA state.  60 miles north of Seattle.  Again great video.

flhx2010@icloud Posted at 2014-12-26 14:57
Very cool!  West-coast for me.  WA state.  60 miles north of Seattle.  Again great video.

I've got a 16 gig sandisk  ultra pro sd card now, it's 90 times faster at read/write to it.  No more pixilation.

flhx2010@icloud Posted at 2014-12-26 14:57
Very cool!  West-coast for me.  WA state.  60 miles north of Seattle.  Again great video.

got a few more pics here

https://www.skypixel.com/#/user/gerry-webb

Another fall with no warning!  This time at about 20FT; another set of props for DJI profits!:@  Current battery capacity 38%....
I'm about ready to do a major reset on the Phantom and in the assistant software it says network error, please....etc. I'm obviously connected or wouldn't be making this post!  
Anyone interested in buying a Phantom at grossly reduced price PM me.

jrbob2 Posted at 2014-12-27 23:54
Another fall with no warning!  This time at about 20FT; another set of props for DJI profits!  Cur ...

When it falls is the power completely off? Can you power it back up again or is it dead until you recharge the battery?

Yes power completely off......yes I can power right back up.  It is hooked up right now and shows 35%.  Starts fine.....sitting still starting stopping, everything appears normal.

UPDATE: While having the Phantom 2 sitting on ground going through start ups, props spins and shut downs, it's sitting they idling with props turning, LED lights all showing normal, then everything dies and it just starts beeping with no LEDs; will not power back on now!  If I had been in flight guess what:@

http://youtu.be/88tVPwmRMaI]
This is all I have now.   All 4 LEDs flash green one and all it does is beep.  It will turn itself off after a while.

jrbob2 Posted at 2014-12-31 05:41
http://youtu.be/88tVPwmRMaI]
This is all I have now.   All 4 LEDs flash green one and all it does is ...

Push once and release and second push, hold it in.  You're releasing second push way to early.  2 seconds minimum on second push in

I wish it was that easy....I can hold 2 or 10 seconds and the results are the same.

i dont really know why ppl here asking you if the compass was calibrated etc.. this has nothing to do with the failure. Its most likely the common and well known batterie problem of the P2 series and that includes vision and non vision models. The problem of power outs is well known within the P2 series and many dropped from the sky as i read in many international forums. For whatever reason the smart batterie or the contact points have problems. I have an older smart batterie with an old loader version that cant be upgraded and a newer one which i updated, one of them also said no inteligent flight batterie in the beginning, now this message is gone. Now i have another problem, my iOSD mini says 0.0V from time to time and motors wont start with the CSC command. Only when i reinsert batterie a few times i get the correct voltage and motors will start.  

Thanks Daninho......after a lot of research and reading, battery failure is my best diagnosis of what happened.  Right now I've got a Phantom that want start and a trashed gimbal!  Not happy but live and learn I suppose.  I'll post what happens once it's received at DJI for "repair".