Folks, I am seeing a 20%-30%+ battery drain per Mavic flight/battery on my iphone. This seems pretty high. Is anyone else seeing this? I am asking this because it doesn't happen when flying my Phantom 3, it is like only 10% drain per battery Ricky

Yes. Experienced that too. iPhone 5s.

Yes! Only manage to do 1 or 2 flights before my iPhone 6 is complaining of 20% battery!

Yesterday my phone was on 92% before flying, then I flew for 10 mins while recording live to Facebook. By the time I'd finished my phone was down to 28%

What happens if my phone dies mid way through a flight? Will the Mavic automatically return to home, or will I be able to continue flying but without knowing where the Mavic is if it's out of sight?

Anyone got any suggestions for another device I can use with better battery life?

d6nje Posted at 2017-2-16 02:22
Yes! Only manage to do 1 or 2 flights before my iPhone 6 is complaining of 20% battery!

Yesterday my phone was on 92% before flying, then I flew for 10 mins while recording live to Facebook. By the time I'd finished my phone was down to 28%

Agreed!
DJI please reply!

I can't remember where I read this but supposedly the remote is draining battery from your phone to charge itself. If you use the bottom USB port to plug your phone in it supposedly does not do this.
Had to return my Mavic so can't confirm this.

Also make sure you're on flight mode and close all other apps etc. etc.

lachyb Posted at 2017-2-16 03:17
I can't remember where I read this but supposedly the remote is draining battery from your phone to charge itself. If you use the bottom USB port to plug your phone in it supposedly does not do this.
Had to return my Mavic so can't confirm this.

Phone power drops quickly but i dont think the controller drains it

I've noticed the same with the DJI Osmo Mobile. While taking video it "seems" to drain the battery quickly which is understandable considering it's running the camera and software. Whats odd is once I disconnect the phone and shut down the DJI app the phone is back up to normal battery status and very little of the phone's battery is used. Haven't noticed too much when flying the Mavic. That said... I charge my iPhone while in the car all the time.

I was just coming to ask the same question.

Have had my mavic for 3 days, and each flight will take my iPhone from 100% down to about 55-60% and the phone itself is very warm.  I tried to get thru a second flight and phone went dead when mavic battery was at 34% so I had to come in just using the controller.   The controller only uses about 15% of tis charge per flight.  

Another oddity, is when I plugged phone into charger, the charge indicator within a minute jumps back up to 35% from dead after that flight.

Some thoughts:

iPhone 6s users should check into the Apple's battery replacement program -- there's a serial number range that Apple qualifies for free replacements.

Battery life can be severely shortened by cold weather. I've read here that some people use chemical hand warmers in freezing weather to keep the phone and battery warm and working optimally. Guess as a bonus it could keep your hands from freezing, too. ;)

Battery life will also be negatively impacted by:

• Screen brightness turned all the way up
• Poor cell service areas, causing the phone's radio to work harder
• Live broadcasting your flight to social media (might not be so bad in an area with strong cell/data service)?
• Age of the phone/battery
  

Whenever I'm in an area with poor cell service, I switch to Airplane mode to preserve my battery life -- it really works wonders.

I have a new iPhone 7 and haven't noticed anything out of the ordinary, I keep my phone on a charger when I'm driving, so it's typically at 100% when I arrive at my flight location, burn through three Mavic batteries and my RC might be 50% depleted with the phone maybe 25% depleted. Now, that's cold weather experience, so I may see an improvment as the weather warms up.

I did end up accidentally half-discharging my phone last weekend before arriving at that day's flying spot -- gave me a chance to try the Fly More Combo's battery adaptor to leverage whatever was left in my first flight's Mavic battery to boost up my phone during the hike to the next flight location. Wasn't sure I'd ever use that bad boy but it def came in handy that day. ;)

Ive got a 5s, so its not specific to the IPhone 6's.

Ive read elsewhere they theorize it may be with the the newest IOS version 10.2

ChasinTail Posted at 2017-2-19 23:53
Ive got a 5s, so its not specific to the IPhone 6's.

Ive read elsewhere they theorize it may be with the the newest IOS version 10.2

Some of the iPhone 6s models actually had defective batteries, but only those in a specific serial number range are affected.
I had misremembered the problem as affecting iPhone 6 models, so I've corrected my original post.

Also flew today in upper 60's temps and my RC only depleted 25% after three 20 minute flights, def better performance than when I flew in 30's temps.

The system is using the iPhone's GPS correct?  Any time the GPS in the phone is being used there will be a pretty good drain on the battery.

superjet96 Posted at 2017-2-20 17:57
The system is using the iPhone's GPS correct?  Any time the GPS in the phone is being used there will be a pretty good drain on the battery.

That's a good question -- it has to use it for Follow Me mode, but I'm guessing maps are pulling coords from the Mavic's gps.

I would imagine that it is hitting it up from time to time to make sure every thing is still good.  It does show on the map where the remote is and where the Mavic is during flight I believe?
There is a lot of processing going on with just the software but I know GPS just tears into battery life.  I am going to have to try what you did by putting it into airplane mode to see if that helps.  I really don't need texts and hockey score updates during my flight anyway.

It is particularly a problem for iPhones in cold weather. I started a conversation to collect tips on how to minimize this problem here:

iPhone tips

I use an Iphone 7plus with my Mavic - no noticeable battery issues.  I flew yesterday for 90 minutes.  My phone was charged to 100% when I started and was at 85% when I finished - not too bad IMO.

Iphone 7 plus here as well. 0 problems

I use an iPhone 6, which supposedly does not have a battery issue (although I feel mine drains fast all of the time) and have noticed some battery depletion, but nothing more than what other apps may draw (Google Maps really draws battery).  I just make sure all apps are closed, except DJI Go 4, before starting a flight.

I have seen less than a 10% draw on a battery, to a 30% draw on a battery.  I am almost always topping off my battery throughout the day not matter what apps are running.  So between batteries/flights, I charge up my phone a little with a mostly depleted battery.  Having the capability to charge devices off of a fight depleted battery is very helpful.  So, I might add 10-20% over a 15 minute charge.  Bottom line, I make sure I have plenty of power for my iPhone before starting a flight........

The first time I flew in lower than 10 degrees Fahrenheit , I had my iPhone 6 go from 98% to shutting down in less than 18 minutes flying time.  This was a huge problem  and was mostly due to the cold. I have since added heating pads to keep my iPhone warm, and run it in airplane mode and made a few more changes and can now fly at least two batteries with capacity still left in very low temps.

Yup. IPhone 7, iPad Pro (9.7) and iPad mini.  I will start a flight with 100% battery, and will lose 20 to 30% of my battery life in just one flight with the Mavic..

d6nje Posted at 2017-2-16 02:22
Yes! Only manage to do 1 or 2 flights before my iPhone 6 is complaining of 20% battery!

Yesterday my phone was on 92% before flying, then I flew for 10 mins while recording live to Facebook. By the time I'd finished my phone was down to 28%

I've had my phone battery die mid flight just once. Luckily my Mavic was in sight at the time. you still have full control, but cannot see from the camera, so if its out of LOS you will need to hit that return to home button if you want to see your Mavic again.

Phan-TOM Posted at 2017-7-18 15:21
Yup. IPhone 7, iPad Pro (9.7) and iPad mini.  I will start a flight with 100% battery, and will lose 20 to 30% of my battery life in just one flight with the Mavic..

Yup, I agree with your assessment ...

This happened after the last Go 4 App update. It is overloading the CPU, causing extra heat and wasting iPad / iPhone batteries!!

Rich

Does the RC controller charge the iphone when plugged in? I don't want it to waste battery on my phone

Same issues with my 6s.  I burn about 30% of phones battery per flight.  The RC does great, and will still be at 70-75% while the phone is about to die.  Haven't been too happy with battery life in general with my last 3 phones (2 iPhone 6, I 6s).  Apples phones and iOS is starting to suck more every year and is no longer the superior product it used to be.  But since apple has everybody convinced that it is, people have no idea of what is really out there, and that their iPhone on iOS 10 really isn't that special.

Can't say I've had any problems with my 7 Plus. Can definitely fit in 2 fits per day over 2 days before it needs a charge.

I can also confirm this battery draining, I have two phones with me just to be sure that I can fly 3 (Mavic) batteries.
Pls find the bugg DJI, it used to work so good.  

I burn through ~30% battery on my iPhone 7S for five flights. During the day with max screen brightness so seems reasonable.

Not a major issue with my iPhone 7. Does drain a little more than you'd expect it to but not massively.

New Mavick Pro, current firmware as of today, and new iPhone 7 (no background apps enabled).  Flew for 25 minutes today with a fully charged iPhone when I started.  At the 25 minute mark, the iPhone 7 was down to 28%.  I am burning 3% battery per minute on the iPhone.  It is also getting VERY warm.  Considering trying the Belkin dual lightning splitter and using the center USB Port to connect a cable to splitter.  I should be able to charge off of a 20,000 mah battery and fly.  Any advice on a quick power fix?  It does not seem logical the phone should drain that quickly.

The application uses a heavy CPU load. GPS/Video/Active video processing and person tracking, often having max screen brightness when you're outside. All naturally things that will use a large amount of your battery, 26 mins and my 6s+ is down to 55%.

I use low power mode if I'm planing to use the phone after and won't have a source to power it. This is what I expected to be honest.

I just received new The Mavic Pro Platinum, I was concerned using my 6S  business phone while flying so I purchased a new Iphone 8, and used my Iphone 6S to fly my first time. I have 4 flight batteries, and after a few minutes on the fouth battery my phone was at ten percent and the App was crashing (I cancelled the cellular and now the phone is wifi only, and I did not use my other phone as a hot spot). I plan on using my Iphone 8 as a backup, and I will see how the battery life compares

Yes! I have a 1 year old iPhone SE that I use with my MA and Go4. I just got in from a flight and had to cut it short because my phone died while it was 400ft up! I started w 50% phone battery and it took all of 10 minutes to drain to shut down. DJI, what is going on?

benj4786 Posted at 2018-4-20 14:45
Yes! I have a 1 year old iPhone SE that I use with my MA and Go4. I just got in from a flight and had to cut it short because my phone died while it was 400ft up! I started w 50% phone battery and it took all of 10 minutes to drain to shut down. DJI, what is going on?

Likewise, I use an iPhone SE and Mavic Air, it drains the battery totally flat after two flights, mind you haven't tried shutting down all other apps, etc. This certainly seems over the top. Come on DJI what is going on with your app, give us some information. I'd hate to lose my Mavic Air because the Go4 app drains the battery of my iPhone SE

did this issue ever get a fix? - iphone 6S is dying 100% down to sub 20% in only 2 batteries of flying time... why bother selling the fly-more if this is how it dies?

yup, my iPhone 6 plus will only last 2 flights from full charge, im only using the 6 plus for the drone and nothing else, no sim card and everything turned off, only had the MA a few days and a bit disappointed about the battery drain on the phone

will RTH still work when the phone dies and switches off mid flight

Hi!
I’ve experienced that just today but with a different trick   My phone X was 90% of battery, I started flying my Macic air and after one and half minutes, battery alert 20% , activated straight way Return home and below my head 10%  battery alert.  I could landed but the way uff but was annoying. I turn off my phone! I continued filming with my camera, after a wail I turned on my phone to watch the time and my battery was 70%. Someone has experienced the same thing?
What can be?
Thank for help.

I had this issue happen to me yesterday while using an iPad 4 and Mavic 2 Pro. I was on the third battery with back to back flights. The iPad died while I was pretty far away and 350' up. Pretty hard to see orientation to fly home so I hit the RTH button and she made a perfect landing within a few inches of the take-off point. Noice!

When it happened I was confused as to why the ipad screen was off. Then I tried restarting the ipad and it showed the red dead battery icon on the screen. After the Mavic was safely on the ground I was packing up the ipad had restarted on its own and the battery was at 45%. Very odd. There is no way the iPad would show the dead battery icon with 45% charge. Im going to try a procedure mentioned in my search of this problem where the ipad and DJ4 app is started and connected to the RC before the RC is turned on.And verify that the charge indicator is OFF on the ipad. It may be caused by plugging the cable from the remote into the iPad/iPhone lightning port when the remote control is ON and the iPad thinks it should be getting a recharge. By plugging the iPad in when the remote control is OFF it doesnt detect whatever it is that makes it think it should be getting a charge.

lachyb Posted at 2017-2-16 03:17
I can't remember where I read this but supposedly the remote is draining battery from your phone to charge itself. If you use the bottom USB port to plug your phone in it supposedly does not do this.
Had to return my Mavic so can't confirm this.

That's only with Android devices.

That there is an apparently lower drain when flying the Phantom 3 is a bit odd, but if you have an older phone, it's possible the battery needs to be replaced.

If you are on an iOS device and running iOS11.3+ you can check the health by going into your Settings app and checking the new Battery Health feature.

I have zero problem flying 3 batteries on my Mavic Pro /iPhone 7, even with screen brightness turned all the way up, but I replaced the phone's battery last year.