Hi guys just curious ive seen that quite a few of you use litchy instead of dji go.
I would like to know if posible the differences between the 2.
For example what are the pros and cons that litchy has over dji go?
is it a more stable platform over a wider range of devices?
does it have special features that the go app doesnt?
I guess my biggest question is why do you guys use litchy instead of dji go ?
Can litchy work in conjuction with other apps?

Go is best for general flying for most flyers, most of the time.
Litchi is mostly used for the additional features it offers, particularly waypoint flying.
Litchi and Go are only ever used on their own - never together.

Labroides is correct, the biggest difference is waypoints plus point of interest. With Go, you have to fly the waypoints and set them based on where th AC is, same with POI, you have to hover over your POI to set it. With Litchi, you can set all your waypoints plus all of the options about them (AC speed, height, gimbal position, etc) on the map without the AC even being on. Saves battery, and time. Same with POI.

Ok so not really worth spending $30 on for general flights then

Hi. Yes to what Labroides states, but not so sure about the first statement. Litchi is a good all-round flying app, and the features get richer with each release. But the key reason why most people use GO 4 for general flying is because it's free - Litchi isn't.

So, not trying to repeat but:
Litchi is intended to be a full replacement, so you don't run the two at the same time - it's like driving a car with two steering wheels, although that could be handy sometimes if my girlfriend is driving.
GO has configuration options which Litchi still doesn't have (e.g. IMU calibration), so you still need to use GO for some things.
Litchi's key selling feature is it's autonomous way-point flying, supported by their on-line Mission Hub which allows you to create those missions on your PC screen for later up-loading into the craft. That allows you to pre-plan perfect flight paths and angles which are repeatable e.g. if you want to get video of a forested area through the changing seasons and cut them together.
Litchi doesn't seem to have the same video decoding demands that GO 4 now has with under-powered tablets and phones which resulted in transmitted video cutting out or corrupting. I suspect that's because GO 4 is now very feature-bloated, and because Litchi is potentially a better coded app.
That said, I quite like the DJI GO Editor for auto creating short videos for FB upload when you're still in the field and away from your PC. But then, if your cached video has been cutting out due to the decoding issue...
The other upside or downside of using Litchi - depending on which way you look at it - is that Litchi flight data is not retained in the same way as GO, and is not able to be synchronised to DJI's cloud. Litchi, however, does have an arrangement with Airdata for that (and they are quite comprehensive reports which can be produced). BTW, should you have a fault with your craft and make a warranty claim, because DJI won't interrogate a Litchi log they'll want the craft to extract data directly from it, otherwise they won't honour the claim.


I could keep going... Both have their benefits, and that's why I use both.

I use Litchi for all my flights.  I only load the Go app in order to calibrate IMU if needed.  Aside from the waypoint structure on Litchi, the main reason I use it is because of the FPV with goggles.  I almost always use goggles to fly, and with Litchi, it is easy to do.  Gimbal control by tilting my head, voice announcement of critical flight data, more options for programming the c1 and c2 buttons, offline waypoint programming, etc.    For me, Litchi was worth every penny.

Kneepuck Posted at 2017-11-9 18:02
I use Litchi for all my flights.  I only load the Go app in order to calibrate IMU if needed.  Aside from the waypoint structure on Litchi, the main reason I use it is because of the FPV with goggles.  I almost always use goggles to fly, and with Litchi, it is easy to do.  Gimbal control by tilting my head, voice announcement of critical flight data, more options for programming the c1 and c2 buttons, offline waypoint programming, etc.    For me, Litchi was worth every penny.

Ah, good point Kneepuck. I forgot the FPV mode for goggles. That's actually the reason I originally bought Litchi last year, but haven't used it much.
For the OP's benefit, that mode splits the phone screen so that you can insert your phone into Google Cardboard-compatible goggles ($20 off eBay) and fly in virtual reality. A cheaper alternative to $800 DJI Goggles...

I tried the goggles once and couldnt focus on the screen due to old eyes lol so i never bothered with them since

I think for the type of flying i do.
Ie very little serious video work im probably better off just staying with the go app

Hellsgate Posted at 2017-11-9 18:30
I tried the goggles once and couldnt focus on the screen due to old eyes lol so i never bothered with them since

Aloha Hellsgate,

    For most goggles, and it is advertized with DJI Goggles, you can wear readingglasses inside the goggles.  I have Eachine Two Goggles with a 1080p screen and with the 3.0 reading glasses (John Lennon style), I get 20/20 vision and full view of the screen.  Quite an experience.

Aloha and Drone On!

Do you have  the same distance limitations on Litchi for the smartphone only use, I mean you are still limited to 50/100m  without RC?

thewhatever Posted at 2017-11-10 03:35
Do you have  the same distance limitations on Litchi for the smartphone only use, I mean you are still limited to 50/100m  without RC?

Litchi doesn't change anything about the way the drone operates.
You can't fly a Phantom without a controller.

Hellsgate Posted at 2017-11-9 18:30
I tried the goggles once and couldnt focus on the screen due to old eyes lol so i never bothered with them since

You should wear your reading glasses, the goggles are designed for that.

As a general remark, surely $30 cannot be a serious issue for someone spending $1500 or more on a drone. Sure Litchi has some advantages as mentioned above, multiple screen use, offline and off-field flight planning to mention a couple. But if you don’t want to risk the price or a couple of big macs then let it be.

Dockater Posted at 2017-11-10 04:45
As a general remark, surely $30 cannot be a serious issue for someone spending $1500 or more on a drone. Sure Litchi has some advantages as mentioned above, multiple screen use, offline and off-field flight planning to mention a couple. But if you don’t want to risk the price or a couple of big macs then let it be.

Agree with Dockater too. I also use Litchi mostly for the waypoint missions, which I do a lot of. Yes, we are forced to keep the "free" DJI app because we do need to be able to access some of those settings for sure.
But, come-on...........if $30 bucks is too much for you to play with leave it alone. It is a very small price to pay in my opinion too for something that really enhances my flight experiences.

I use litchi for all my flights, it’s much more stable on older devices especially ones that are experiencing video lag and waypoints are second to none....

Litchy may have more features, but please note the DJI will not responsible for the damage caused by third party APP.
We suggest to use our own DJI Go APP and we are always working on improving its compatibility and stability.

DJI Mindy Posted at 2017-11-12 00:18
Litchy may have more features, but please note the DJI will not responsible for the damage caused by third party APP.
We suggest to use our own DJI Go APP and we are always working on improving its compatibility and stability.

Thanks mindy. If i may make a request then is it posible to add pre flight planning to dji go 4.
Waypoint flights are fine but to conserve battery power the option to plan flights with precision without having to connect to aircraft would be a great advantage.

Dockater Posted at 2017-11-10 04:33
You should wear your reading glasses, the goggles are designed for that.

I tried wearing my glasses the same result i couldnt focus on the screen. So ive not bothered with the goggles since

Dockater Posted at 2017-11-10 04:45
As a general remark, surely $30 cannot be a serious issue for someone spending $1500 or more on a drone. Sure Litchi has some advantages as mentioned above, multiple screen use, offline and off-field flight planning to mention a couple. But if you don’t want to risk the price or a couple of big macs then let it be.

The price is not the issue im just trying to find out that from the point of view of a hobby flyer is it worth bothering to get lithcy or am i better to just stick with dji go 4.
For precise flights i currently use drone harmony and i only use that when flying for search n rescue aplications as i can easily set up a search pattern over a selected area

Hellsgate Posted at 2017-11-15 13:12
The price is not the issue im just trying to find out that from the point of view of a hobby flyer is it worth bothering to get lithcy or am i better to just stick with dji go 4.
For precise flights i currently use drone harmony and i only use that when flying for search n rescue aplications as i can easily set up a search pattern over a selected area

I've been thinking about getting Litchy to try as well - I think I will because there are some applications where I'd like to fly exactly the same route in different seasons for post editing effects.  

Questions I have for Litchy users -

How accurate are the waypoints on a map compared to real life?  I have heard lat-long locations on online maps like google etc. can be off by quite a bit

Can you save programmed routes and use later?

Can you program for example, a route between two waypoints and have a start - end altitude?  I have a route in mind where I want to have the first part about 1 meter high, then about 3 meters high, then about 5 meters, then for the last part about 75 meters high to clear some trees.  Would additional waypoints between Point A  (start) and B (end) need to be entered with different altitudes? (I'm thinking yes), and if so, can it be done in such a way that altitude gain between points is done gradually?  

cameracollector Posted at 2017-11-15 14:28
I've been thinking about getting Litchy to try as well - I think I will because there are some applications where I'd like to fly exactly the same route in different seasons for post editing effects.  

Questions I have for Litchy users -

cameracollector Posted at 2017-11-15 14:28
I've been thinking about getting Litchy to try as well - I think I will because there are some applications where I'd like to fly exactly the same route in different seasons for post editing effects.  

Questions I have for Litchy users -

Hi cameracollector,

I have found the waypoints to be reasonably accurate, we are talking about a few meters one way or another. The waypoints can be easily adjusted and the entire route saved and recalled as you require. There are no restrictions on the amount of saved routes as far as I know. There are a lot of factors affecting the accuracy of GPS, the weather, signal strength, location, sun flairs, equipment used etc. The exact position of a measured way point can vary slightly from day to day, even so the routes are repeatable and accurate.

All the parameters of a waypoint can be individually set or set to have common characteristics. If the ac is set to fly from one waypoint to another at a different altitude it will do this in a direct manner. That is to say it will gain/loose height continuously to arrive at the new waypoint and altitude at the same time, even if the ac is flying a curved path. Points of interest can be programmed, set at various altitudes if required and linked to one or more waypoints. The camera tilt is automatically calculated, taking into account distance to the POI and its relative altitude difference. This means you can fly the aircraft on a set route but direct the camera where you want. For a fly-bye the ac will orient itself to the waypoint, effectively flying sideways to maintain its route. Routes can be set up with sharp corners or curves of chosen radius or both as required. Route length, segment length, speed, flight time, panoramas, pauses, still photos etc. can be set or calculated.

That should provide you with answers and no doubt generate more question. Try youTube, just search Litchi. There are lots of good reviews and training films.

Just for interest I have included a sceenshot of a flight over the 3 Trolls (a group of large rocks) off the south coast of Iceland. The original planning was done in Frankfurt.

Dockater Posted at 2017-11-15 16:11
Hi cameracollector,

I have found the waypoints to be reasonably accurate, we are talking about a few meters one way or another. The waypoints can be easily adjusted and the entire route saved and recalled as you require. There are no restrictions on the amount of saved routes as far as I know. There are a lot of factors affecting the accuracy of GPS, the weather, signal strength, location, sun flairs, equipment used etc. The exact position of a measured way point can vary slightly from day to day, even so the routes are repeatable and accurate.

Thanks - very helpful, I've been meaning to add Litchi to my tablet for awhile now, so I have even more reasons to now.  I may even try the cheapo goggle setup with the cardboard & my phone.  I have a pair of Fat Shark FPV goggles but I used them with my non DJI FPV flying and they aren't HDMI.

Hellsgate Posted at 2017-11-15 13:12
The price is not the issue im just trying to find out that from the point of view of a hobby flyer is it worth bothering to get lithcy or am i better to just stick with dji go 4.
For precise flights i currently use drone harmony and i only use that when flying for search n rescue aplications as i can easily set up a search pattern over a selected area

Hi Hellsgate,

I did not want to pick on you personally, I wanted to make the general point that in relation to the costs of the hobby $30 or so is more or less insignificant. This forum is there for all of us to learn and find answers to their questions. I won’t even give out $1.50 for an App if l am not sure if it is a waste of money or not. Check out my reply to “cameracollector” post 22# above, it might give you a better idea about the App.

Hellsgate Posted at 2017-11-15 13:02
I tried wearing my glasses the same result i couldnt focus on the screen. So ive not bothered with the goggles since

Most people don’t need glasses with goggles, a lot just need a pair of cheap reading glasses with 1 to 2 diopters so they can focus up close. Others need an optician or more, thats when it starts to get complicated and expensive, you are right, let it be.

I will give litchy a try and see how it goes and wether it is suitable for my type of flying i guess thats the only way to really find out. And yes the cost is insignificant.
But ill download it and see if its not suitable its easy to uninstall lol