I have noted that my Spark seems to favour the 5.8GHz band. I didn't really like this because I believed the 2.4GHz band should have a better range. However, some research has changed my mind on that issue, and confirmed for me what a clever little beast the Spark is.

It appears that Australia uses the SRRC standard, which is limited to 18dBm on 2.4 GHz, and 26dBm on 5.8GHz. So on 5.8GHz, my Spark should be tranmitting over 6 times more power than on 2.4GHz. I don't know what the difference in antenna gain is between the two frequency bands, but I doubt whether it is any where near 8dB.

Of course all of this is somewhat irrelevant, since our VLOS rule would limit the range to around 300m in the country. In the cities, interference may be even more limiting, although less of a limit on 5.8GHz.

You didn't mention what range you were getting in terms of distance. I would recommend you fly out the AC to about 300m and check the signal strength on the app. If you are getting more than 2 bars, you should be OK. Anything less than 2 bars may lead to sudden loss of signal between AC-RC and although RTH will bring it back safely home, you can never fly with confidence with such an erratic connection. This is the reason people go for FCC hack or buy parabolic reflectors/range extenders.

nilanjan118 Posted at 3-5 17:41
You didn't mention what range you were getting in terms of distance. I would recommend you fly out the AC to about 300m and check the signal strength on the app. If you are getting more than 2 bars, you should be OK. Anything less than 2 bars may lead to sudden loss of signal between AC-RC and although RTH will bring it back safely home, you can never fly with confidence with such an erratic connection. This is the reason people go for FCC hack or buy parabolic reflectors/range extenders.

I once flew my Spark out 500m and although I can't remember how many bars of signal strength there were, I do remember that the Spark was OK at that distance and could have gone a fair bit further.

Unfortunately that park is subject to large variations in interference, and at other times I have been lucky to get 250m. As a precaution, I limit my range to about 250m at that park. Otherwise, I need a very good reason to go beyond 300m.

Warriewoodlad Posted at 3-5 18:37
I once flew my Spark out 500m and although I can't remember how many bars of signal strength there were, I do remember that the Spark was OK at that distance and could have gone a fair bit further.

Unfortunately that park is subject to large variations in interference, and at other times I have been lucky to get 250m. As a precaution, I limit my range to about 250m at that park. Otherwise, I need a very good reason to go beyond 300m.

I think that range is good enough. I live in a non-FCC country too and before learning to force FCC, I used to get barely 150m from my backyard and about 300m on a good day in an open field. After forcing FCC, I tested it once and could fly till 1.3kms when the signal snapped and RTH kicked in. Now I usually stick to within 300-400m and I get almost full signal strength (4 bars) at that distance.

nilanjan118 Posted at 3-5 18:45
I think that range is good enough. I live in a non-FCC country too and before learning to force FCC, I used to get barely 150m from my backyard and about 300m on a good day in an open field. After forcing FCC, I tested it once and could fly till 1.3kms when the signal snapped and RTH kicked in. Now I usually stick towithin 300-400m and I get almost full signal strength (4 bars) at that distance.

I was considering that mod too. I am now glad that I stayed with the standard settings since on 5.8GHz I have the same output power as FCC.

Warriewoodlad Posted at 3-5 18:48
I was considering that mod too. It is a pity that DJI

It is not a mod. I use the latest DJI Go4 app and firmware. I only use an app called Floater to change my location. If you are not aware of it, try searching "force fcc dji spark floater" on YouTube.

nilanjan118 Posted at 3-5 18:52
It is not a mod. I use the latest DJI Go4 app and firmware. I only use an app called Floater to change my location. If you are not aware of it, try searching "force fcc dji spark floater" on YouTube.

It might help me out in the country side where 2.4GHz is not so crowded as where I normally fly.

how do you change video from jpeg to raw

Sharpshooter60 Posted at 3-5 19:04
how do you change video from jpeg to raw

Get yourself a different drone

Sharpshooter60 Posted at 3-5 19:04
how do you change video from jpeg to raw

video ?

Your logic is flawed. if your spark is a CE version then it will be CE for both 2.4 and 5.8. Sorry. Also here in OZ we don't have the same number of channels available at 5.8. Make sure that you use the RC controller with a OTG cable. It's supported on the Spark now for both iOS and Android.

bjr981s Posted at 3-6 04:40
Your logic is flawed. if your spark is a CE version then it will be CE for both 2.4 and 5.8. Sorry. Also here in OZ we don't have the same number of channels available at 5.8. Make sure that you use the RC controller with a OTG cable. It's supported on the Spark now for both iOS and Android.

There is no "CE-Version" of DJI Drones.
Just drones which switch, forced by GPS coordinates, to the one mode, FCC, CE, SRRC or MIC, which is accurate for the country you are flying in.
Or if not a exact match, the nearest, but lower output, the law permits in that country.

DJI Spark Transmitter Power (EIRP)
2.4 GHz
FCC: ≤26 dBm; CE: ≤18 dBm; SRCC: ≤18 dBm; MIC: ≤18 dBm
5.8 GHz
FCC: ≤28 dBm; CE: ≤14 dBm; SRCC: ≤26 dBm; MIC: -

I believe that Australia is supposed to be SRRC, but am not 100% sure, since the regulations are confusing. I hope that DJI actually uses SRRC for Australian GPS coordinates.

Update.

After another more determined  attempt at the ACMA site (Australian version of the FCC), I stumbled on this gem:   https://www.acma.gov.au/Industry ... devices-fact-sheet.
(Modified text that was here)

Unfortunately the number of  hopping frequencies required is more than the Spark has, so back to the search.

Sharpshooter60 Posted at 3-5 19:04
how do you change video from jpeg to raw

Spark does not have RAW capabilities, you would need a higher-end drone (starting from Mavic Air) to take RAW photos.

Final Update.   

After much research and confusion, I gave up with Australian regulations and emailed DJI. In less than an hour I had my information. Why didn't I do that first up?

"        Alex （DJI Support）
3月7日 CST13:48

Hi Rupert,


Thank you for contacting DJI Technical Support.

Regarding your concern, the reference certification in Australia for the 2.4Ghz its CE and FCC for 5.8GHZ bands.

If you have any other concerns, don't hesitate to email us back. Thank you for choosing DJI and have a nice day, Rupert!
Best Regards,

Alex"

So in Australia 18dBm for 2.4GHz and 28dbm for 5.8GHz. Not much different from the SRRC levels that I started this thread with, only now 5.8GHz gets 10 times the power transmitted compared to 2.4GHz. Guess which band I will be favouring in future.

Warriewoodlad Posted at 3-6 23:47
Final Update.   

After much research and confusion, I gave up with Australian regulations and emailed DJI. In less than an hour I had my information. Why didn't I do that first up?

Interesting. I would not have guessed that.

But don't forget that 2.4ghz propagates much further than 5.8Ghz.

I will have to try my sparks with range tests. I don't know if this is a HW or FW GPS based feature.

I have 6 Sparks. 2 from DJI direct and 4 from "other sources" that should be FCC.

I hope that they actually got the correct information back to you.

I do have an RF power meter but I would have to pull the controllers apart to test.

Good job on the research.

Cheers

That must have been in the last fw update, methinks
"Regarding your concern, the reference certification in Australia for the 2.4Ghz its CE and FCC for 5.8GHZ bands."

So in Australia it makes sense, then, to manually select a 5.8Ghz channel

Warriewoodlad Posted at 3-6 23:47
Final Update.   

After much research and confusion, I gave up with Australian regulations and emailed DJI. In less than an hour I had my information. Why didn't I do that first up?

Try this link to the ACMA:
https://www.acma.gov.au/Industry ... -devices-fact-sheet

In short, it states (Maximum EIRP - radiation after antenna gain?):
500 milliwatts @ 2.4 Ghz with a minimum of 15 hopping frequencies (13 + 2, one at each end) ;
4 watts @ 2.4 Ghz with frequency hopping & digital modulation & a minimum of 75 hopping frequencies;  (does not apply to 'normal' 13 ch (+2) wifi but still worth a mention)
4 watts @ 5.8 Ghz with frequency hopping & digital modulation & a minimum of 75 hopping frequencies.

Re the official Spark Specs (as published online):
The Aircraft @ 2.4 Ghz is FCC 25 dBm, CE 18 dBm, SRRC 18 dBm or MIC 18 dBm
The Aircraft @ 5.8 Ghz is FCC 27 dBm, CE 14 dBm, SRRC 27 dBm or MIC -

The Remote Controller @ 2.4 Ghz is FCC 26 dBm, CE 18 dBm, SRRC 18 dBm or MIC 18 dBm
The Remote Controller @ 5.8 Ghz is FCC 28 dBm, CE 14 dBm, SRRC 26 dBm or MIC -

14 dBm is 0.025 watts
18 dBm is 0.060 watts.
25 dBm is 0.316 watts
26 dBm is 0.390 watts
27 dBm is 0.500 watts
28 dBm is 0.630 watts

Regardless, double the power does not mean double the distance.  I forget the equation exactly, but double the power may only increase distance by 25%.  So you may need 4 times power to double the distance. Something like that - I forget the exact equations required to solve RF issues in my head. I just use a program to solve these things.  Line of Sight is the key. I can pump 100 watts out, but if an mountain or obstacle is in the way, I am no better than using  0.5 watts.
Good luck.  

Sparkz71 Posted at 3-15 21:49
Try this link to the ACMA:
https://www.acma.gov.au/Industry ... -devices-fact-sheet

I looked at that reference - see my post of 6/3.

I seem to recall the following (bear in mind that I have been retired 15 years):
As far as propagation loss, it is inversely proportion to frequency, so over the same distance 5.8GHz should have over twice the loss of 2.4GHz  in a vacuum. (5.8 loss is higher for obstacles).
Distance is related to radiated power by the square law, so to double the distance, 4 times the power is required.
Then for antenna gain, higher frequencies usually have higher antenna gain, depending on the antenna type.
Putting that together depends on where you want to go with it.
If you want to compare the power needed to go the same distance with 2.4 and 5.8, then you need twice the power leaving the antenna, but the antenna gain is higher for 5.8, hence they are about the same. See the DJI specs for FCC - 2.4 and 5.8 have about the same range  for very approximately the same transmitted power (26 v's 28dBm or 60% more).
So in Australia, on 5.8GHz, we do better than on 2.4GHz, and should not be too far behind FCC. Unfortunately, interference plays a large part and makes nonsense of the above, except out in the country side with a clear line of sight.