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NVidia Shield K1 is a Big Magnet! Is it Causing your App Cras...
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Cetacean
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Aloha,

      The nVidia Shield K1 is having problems with app crashes.  Android, nVidia and DJI are working hard to try to solve the problem.  From the front line though, it is beginning to look like the strong magnet built into the back of the nVidia Shield K1 may be a major part of the problem.  I am currently up-to-date with Nougat 7 and nVidia Shield K1 5.1 as well as all the DJI firmware and apps.  My crashes only happen when I take my parabolics off the antennae or some other scenario where the strong magnetic field can get to the antennae.  That is why I am working on a shielding solution.  Someone on another thread mentioned that shielding the nVidia Shield K1 with aluminum foil helped with a related problem.  Suddenly the light came on and I realized that my parabolics were acting in a similar capacity as the proposed aluminum foil shielding.  

      Now, I will be trying the aliminum foil shielding to see if it helps.  With this approach, I can test with and without the parabolics and aluminum foil shield to see the result with the app crashes.  There is almost no cost to this effort.  With just the parabolics, my system is really very stable.  Crashes almost never happen anymore and now that it all makes sense, I may be able to improve on even that performance.  That will be a big relief!

      The problem is that the nVidia Shield K1 is designed and built as a gaming tablet.  With the magnet, the tablet can be placed on a metal surface for stability while gaming.  But, it is also used for flying.  The flying technology is getting so sensitive that the magnetic field is beginning to interfere with the newly more sensitive antennas.  This causes the app crashes in my theory.

      Also according to this theory, the only way to stop the app crashes is to make the antennas less sensitive (others are rolling back software), unless you remove the magnet or shield the magnet.  Making the antennae less sensitive brings back some of the other problems that were solved by the DJI app and firmware improvements.  This is also the case with nVidia and the Android OS upgrade to Nougat.  Going backward is not the solution.  It can be a temporary solution to get you up in the air, but it is not a permanent solution.  We need to keep the more sensitive antennas and get rid of the magnetic interference.

      One solution is for nVidia to make Shield versions without the magnetic back and sell them as flying tablets.  This could even cut costs for nVidia.  Until then shielding the nVidia Shield K1 magnetic back from the antennas with parabolics and / or aluminum foil allows the latest firmware, software and apps to make the antennas more sensitive and still keep the app from crashing.  At least that is what is hoped for!

Aloha and Drone On!

2017-4-3
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Kneepuck
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Makes me glad I have the original 8 inch Shield tablet.  It works great, no issues at all.
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Cetacean
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Kneepuck Posted at 2017-4-3 20:19
Makes me glad I have the original 8 inch Shield tablet.  It works great, no issues at all.

Aloha Kneepuck,

     Really, and yours came with a stylus!  Glad to see you are up and running again!  How was the damage?

     I was rather surprised to see this magnet pulling on things and then I learned the purpose.  There were a couple other things that I feared the magnet might create problems for - like RAM and drives.  But this antennae problem really takes the cake.  I just finished putting my foil (heavy duty, doubled) on the back of my nVidia Shield K1 so I am ready for experiments tomorrow.

     It occurs to me that since you are alive and kicking and I am in need of some tech advice and you are quite capable in that area.  I should ask you for assistance on this issue before you get blown away in the next gale.

     What common material stops magnetic fields.  I have put foil and metal tape over the magnets hoping to absorb the field with the metals, but it occurs to me that the metal might just increase the field.  Any ideas on what would block or disrupt the field?

     Also, the magnets are in the last two inches of the narrow ends of the Shield, where the speakers are.  They probably do double duty as speaker magnets.  So blocking the magnetic field will be easier than thought if I can figure out what to use.  I was even thinking about using some thin wooden boards taped in place, or even cardboard.  It may be the plastic backing for the metal parabolics I use that is blocking the magnetic field.  Any ideas?

     Glad to see you are back!

Aloha and Drone On!
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Labroides
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I haven't heard of anyone having problems due to the magnets (there are 5 of them on the inside of the back cover and easily removable).
But I have heard of people having issues with the latest version of Android.
If you want to remove the magnets, just pry the back off - use a knife to split it away from the case and with a little gentle bending of the back cover you can get a knife under the magnets which are glued on, and pop them off.
The back cover snaps on and off easily.
I removed my magnets ages ago when they were upsetting the compass but I think Nvidia must have fixed that now.
The speakers work just fine without the magnets.  I think they were to hold a cover on ... or so you can put the tablet on the fridge - they're very strong magnets.
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Nigel_
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The only issue the magnets cause is with calibrating the compass - you should leave your controller at least 10m away from where you do the calibration with the aircraft.

You can't block magnetic fields with aluminium.  It is very very difficult to block magnetic fields, but static magnetic fields like this don't do any harm to anything other than compass readings.

Potentially radio signals to or from the tablet may cause a problem but I don't think that is an issue here.

On half my flights, my Shield K1 sits inside an aluminium box which I use for a sunshield, totally enclosed except for the front, I don't notice any difference between the flights with and without it.   On the first couple of flights after using the sunshield I did, but on average after lots of flights there is no difference.

The current crashing issue is due to bad software, I suspect in the part of DJI GO that handles video, or maybe in the part of the updated Android operating system that handles video and the DJI GO fails to deal with the error in an acceptable manor.  It seems to be triggered by corrupted video data, your parabolics probably reduce the chances of corrupted video and thus reduce the chances of the software failing to handle the corruption.  It needs a fix to the software, until then the answer is to not use the latest version of Android.
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Nigel_ Posted at 2017-4-4 01:40
The only issue the magnets cause is with calibrating the compass - you should leave your controller at least 10m away from where you do the calibration with the aircraft.

You can't block magnetic fields with aluminium.  It is very very difficult to block magnetic fields, but static magnetic fields like this don't do any harm to anything other than compass readings.

I have a new K1 that I use with my 3PA, but I also have the Itelite antenna mod. I have never experienced any issue with interference. Have been using the new style for 6-months at least. I agree with Nigel that you need to have your RC away when calibrating the compass and I do, but I don't calibrate only a couple times a year or whenever it tells me, otherwise I leave it alone.
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Eric13
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I have the feeling with the K1 that it is somehow a memory/buffer/cache problem. Don't know much about these things.
I always clear any cache before a flight - still, and usually towards the end, screen is lagging extremely, sometimes resulting in app crash.
It seems to me that the app can't deal with transmission/screen problems.

The K1 started killing the fun for me.
Being on Windows/Android forever I just bought the Ipad Mini 4. Can you believe it?
Curious if everything will be better, didn't have a chance to fly yet.

Let's face it:
DJI tells us in clear words what their products are made for.
I was close to throw the K1 out of the window but in this thread I learned what it can be good for.
I always looked for something to hold my big paper clips.  


No offense, Cetacean. Don't mean to make fun of your efforts!
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RicardoGray
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Eric13 Posted at 2017-4-4 08:46
I have the feeling with the K1 that it is somehow a memory/buffer/cache problem. Don't know much about these things.
I always clear any cache before a flight - still, and usually towards the end, screen is lagging extremely, sometimes resulting in app crash.
It seems to me that the app can't deal with transmission/screen problems.

That sad to hear, but it is your choice. I do think the K1 is an excellent device and I have a number of friends that feel the same way. I never clear my cache, and I always have clear video. The problem is the Nouget 7 software. I had same problem until I rolled mine back to 6.0 Marshmallow. Anyway, no sense going down this road any more. Good luck with your new device!
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RicardoGray Posted at 2017-4-4 12:24
That sad to hear, but it is your choice. I do think the K1 is an excellent device and I have a number of friends that feel the same way. I never clear my cache, and I always have clear video. The problem is the Nouget 7 software. I had same problem until I rolled mine back to 6.0 Marshmallow. Anyway, no sense going down this road any more. Good luck with your new device!

Thanks -
I did roll back to Marshmallow early on but it didn't result in major change of issues.
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Mark The Droner
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My K1's flight app does crash on occasion.  Marshmallow 6.  And the whole device crashes once every blue moon.  I can't discount the possibility that it's the magnets.  If so, that's good news because it should be easy enough to solve.  Another theory is it gets EMF interference from the controller which causes crashes, which somebody posted a few days ago.  That could be solved with 3M aluminum foil applied to the back, leaving the top area alone to account for the wifi and GPS antennas.  He said that worked for him but he only tested it in the house, not in the field yet.  
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I fly with a shield k1 with nougat 7 and Litchi never crashes.  It's djigo that's the problem.
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Cetacean
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Labroides Posted at 2017-4-3 23:54
I haven't heard of anyone having problems due to the magnets (there are 5 of them on the inside of the back cover and easily removable).
But I have heard of people having issues with the latest version of Android.
If you want to remove the magnets, just pry the back off - use a knife to split it away from the case and with a little gentle bending of the back cover you can get a knife under the magnets which are glued on, and pop them off.

Aloha Labroides,

     Mahalo for the input.  I am still at a loss for what causes the problem, as is everybody.  Your suggestion about prying off the magnets sounds like a good idea.  They just bother me since all my years working on computers just made me leary of magnets near computing equipment.

     The flight I did today with the foil and metal tape was near perfect and not even a hiccup with the nVidia Shield K1.  But apparently I have covered a ventilation port with tape because the tablet was noticeably hot when I turned it off and that never happened before.  If you come up with any ideas on what the problem is or any solutions, I am all ears.

     Geebax also assures me that the magnets are not the problem but they are going anyway.  But, somehow the parabolics are a factor.  Maybe Nigel is right in that they strengthen the signal and that overcomes the problem.

     Still looking for a solution even though mine works like a champ!  Mahalo again for the help!

Aloha and Drone On!
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Nigel_ Posted at 2017-4-4 01:40
The only issue the magnets cause is with calibrating the compass - you should leave your controller at least 10m away from where you do the calibration with the aircraft.

You can't block magnetic fields with aluminium.  It is very very difficult to block magnetic fields, but static magnetic fields like this don't do any harm to anything other than compass readings.

Aloha Nigel,

     Interesting theory.  I certainly cannot comment in any way against it.  Somehow though, I do not see the issue as software other than the software has made the equipment more sensitive.  In my view, the sensitivity of the software is not a flaw, but a boost that the equipment cannot handle somehow.  And that is actually in agreement with what you said about the parabolics.  Not an easy one this one.

     I had a flawless flight today for the whole 28 minutes or so.  All my firmware and software is up to date including nVidia and Android.  Oh, yeah, I was flying on 5.8 GHz to.  Does that fit into your theorizing at all?

     Interesting what you said about your aluminum box.  It made me think about my cardboard sunshade.  (Maybe I could cover it in aluminum foil.)  My worst flight with the Android problem was when I flew without the sunshade and the parabolics.  It was quite like the harrowing flights reported here when we first started having these problems.

     Keep the ideas coming.  We will solve this problem yet.

Aloha and Drone On!
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Cetacean
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RicardoGray Posted at 2017-4-4 07:33
I have a new K1 that I use with my 3PA, but I also have the Itelite antenna mod. I have never experienced any issue with interference. Have been using the new style for 6-months at least. I agree with Nigel that you need to have your RC away when calibrating the compass and I do, but I don't calibrate only a couple times a year or whenever it tells me, otherwise I leave it alone.

Aloha Ricardo,

     Good to hear your input.  I was hoping someone who has an antennae mod would offer input.  In my experience, I could not imagine that such an antennae mod would experience the problem so your comments have been reinforcing.  

     When I first noticed the strong magnet in the nVidia Shield K1, I actually worried that someone would take their system apart and put their Phantom compass near or on their tablet when storing, traveling or just preparing to put things away.  I thanked my lucky stars I had learned early about the magnets before I made that mistake.

     Mahalo for your input!

Aloha and Drone On!
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Cetacean
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Eric13 Posted at 2017-4-4 08:46
I have the feeling with the K1 that it is somehow a memory/buffer/cache problem. Don't know much about these things.
I always clear any cache before a flight - still, and usually towards the end, screen is lagging extremely, sometimes resulting in app crash.
It seems to me that the app can't deal with transmission/screen problems.

Aloha Eric,

     You one real funny guy!  One day when we work out these issues, I am sure you will come back to your nVidia Shield K1.  Just the camera is worth more than you paid for the tablet.

     Let us know how things go with your new device.  BTW, did you shut down the competing apps and downloads for your nVidia Shield K1 before your flew?  With the Android 7 Nougat installation, I had to do it all over again and actually learned more about the process that I think helped.

     I am sure one day you will come around to really appreciate your nVidia Shield K1.

Aloha and Drone On!
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Cetacean
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Mark The Droner Posted at 2017-4-4 13:26
My K1's flight app does crash on occasion.  Marshmallow 6.  And the whole device crashes once every blue moon.  I can't discount the possibility that it's the magnets.  If so, that's good news because it should be easy enough to solve.  Another theory is it gets EMF interference from the controller which causes crashes, which somebody posted a few days ago.  That could be solved with 3M aluminum foil applied to the back, leaving the top area alone to account for the wifi and GPS antennas.  He said that worked for him but he only tested it in the house, not in the field yet.

Aloha Mark,

     That EMF interference thread is what made me think about the magnets, but Geebax and Labroides assure me that the magnets are not the problem and I trust their experience.  I covered the entire back of my nVidia Shield K1 with foil and the batteries with two layers of metal tape before I heard from Geebax.  Then today, I did a test flight that was flawless.  Oh, yeah, I also do use the parabolics.

     The foil was over so much of my tablet that I appear to have covered some ventilation ports with tape because the tablet was noticeably hot when I shut it down.  So if you go that route, be sure to keep the ventilation ports clear.

     Tomorrow, I will be removing the magnets so I can take the foil off and test without the magnets.  Hey, that gives me an idea.  If I remove the magnets and keep the foil and metal tape, I can test with and without the foil barrier to see if it was the magnets that were the problem.  Hmm.

     Ya got me thinking, so it is all your fault!

Aloha and Drone On!
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fanseb85c303 Posted at 2017-4-4 14:32
I fly with a shield k1 with nougat 7 and Litchi never crashes.  It's djigo that's the problem.

Aloha fanseb,

     Litchi is an interesting case.  Some have reported the nVidia Shield K1 crashing with Litchi.  Glad to see that that is not your problem though.  It might be a problem with other programs operating in the background or simply installed and downloading.  The problem started with the new Android 7 (Nougat) installation and it had tons of accessory apps and headache programs.  It took me an hour to sort it out.  Who knows, maybe that is part of the problem.

     Today, I flew flawlessly for almost half an hour and my tablet and system firmware and DJI GO 4 app are all up-to-date.  I did use my parabolics and was trying the aluminum foil test.  It was worrisome though that maybe having the foil and metal tape could cause a problem.  I am sure we will get to the bottom of it all.

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Mark The Droner
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Cetacean - good to hear - thank you.  Please keep us updated...
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Nigel_
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Cetacean Posted at 2017-4-5 00:50
Aloha Nigel,

     Interesting theory.  I certainly cannot comment in any way against it.  Somehow though, I do not see the issue as software other than the software has made the equipment more sensitive.  In my view, the sensitivity of the software is not a flaw, but a boost that the equipment cannot handle somehow.  And that is actually in agreement with what you said about the parabolics.  Not an easy one this one.

I suggest that you remake your cardboard sun-shield out of aluminium.  1/2mm aluminium sheet is easy to cut with scissors and fold by hand with the help of some straight edges and blocks of wood.  Easier to work with than cardboard.  Stick it together and cover the sharp edges with Gorilla (duct) Tape and it will be strong and look good.  Mine is made out of a single piece, folded and taped.

I don't really know anything about 5.8GHz, but I'm fairly sure that the problem is a result of corrupted video data.  It should be able to cope with corrupted data as there is always going to be some corruption, but of course when Android/NVidia write their software they are dealing with perfect video files so it is maybe not surprising that it is us that find the faults.

When you do your testing, don't make conclusions on a single day of flying.  I find that some days I get perfect video and other days I get the odd green corruption band across the screen, occasionally I get a lot of corruption even in places that I expect to have no reception issues.

"When I first noticed the strong magnet in the nVidia Shield K1, I actually worried that someone would take their system apart and put their Phantom compass near or on their tablet when storing, traveling or just preparing to put things away.  I thanked my lucky stars I had learned early about the magnets before I made that mistake."
I store my K1 in the Phantom's standard case, never had a problem, and I haven't calibrated the compass for about 8 months.  The magnets are not dangerous to electronics, even magnetic hard disks will not be effected - you need a very strong alternating magnetic field to affect those from outside their case.
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Eric13 Posted at 2017-4-4 12:29
Thanks -
I did roll back to Marshmallow early on but it didn't result in major change of issues.


Sorry it didn't work out for you. Maybe my situation is a little different because like I mentioned, I have the Itelite antenna mod. I still maintain that 7.0 Nougat did not work out for me, and I deleted every app I could that I didn't want. Still crashed on me. Obviously a lot different opinions here, and that is good. I guess everyone has to do what works for them. I'm sure your I-pad will work fine for you. The only reason I didn't go that route was quite honestly, I didn't want to spend that much if I didn't have to. At least there is some good conversation here, and glad to see that everyone isn't throwing crap at each other. I think everyone has some good feedback and not every scenario is going to be the same. That is just the way life is, and it  is a good thing. How boring would it be if we all thought the same things! LOL
Happy flying with whatever you use.
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Nigel_ Posted at 2017-4-5 03:10
I suggest that you remake your cardboard sun-shield out of aluminium.  1/2mm aluminium sheet is easy to cut with scissors and fold by hand with the help of some straight edges and blocks of wood.  Easier to work with than cardboard.  Stick it together and cover the sharp edges with Gorilla (duct) Tape and it will be strong and look good.  Mine is made out of a single piece, folded and taped.

I don't really know anything about 5.8GHz, but I'm fairly sure that the problem is a result of corrupted video data.  It should be able to cope with corrupted data as there is always going to be some corruption, but of course when Android/NVidia write their software they are dealing with perfect video files so it is maybe not surprising that it is us that find the faults.

Aloha Nigel,

     Maybe that is why there have been no data corruption problems that I could trace to the magnets.  As for single flight conclusions, I agree.  I try to make single flight observations which can then be combined with other observations.  Eventually something can be said to get a discussion going.  If I have misrepresented an observation as a conclusion, my apologies to all involved.  I am just interested in getting the problem resolved.  

     If we waited until conclusions could be drawn, we would really have a problem getting a handle on the issues we face flying.  In my opinion, observations are always in order.  For example, the title of this thread is an observation.  In making that observation I received a lot of really good comments, including that magnets should not be a problem.  But, this discussion is reaping a lot of reward - like the next paragraph!

     I have made a number of sunshades in the last couple years, but this is the first I have heard about making it out of 1/2 mm aluminum!  That sounds very doable.  Is it very heavy?  Does that thickness match a credit card or driver's license in thickness?  If it gets thicker than that, I have a problem keeping the tablet in the holder.  An aluminum one would have to be full-backed to isolate the tablet.  I will have to put some more thought into it.  Right now, I am trying to figure out how big to make the awning part.  Weight vs coverage.  Now aluminum!

     Mahalo again for the help!

Aloha and Drone On!
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RicardoGray Posted at 2017-4-5 03:51
Sorry it didn't work out for you. Maybe my situation is a little different because like I mentioned, I have the Itelite antenna mod. I still maintain that 7.0 Nougat did not work out for me, and I deleted every app I could that I didn't want. Still crashed on me. Obviously a lot different opinions here, and that is good. I guess everyone has to do what works for them. I'm sure your I-pad will work fine for you. The only reason I didn't go that route was quite honestly, I didn't want to spend that much if I didn't have to. At least there is some good conversation here, and glad to see that everyone isn't throwing crap at each other. I think everyone has some good feedback and not every scenario is going to be the same. That is just the way life is, and it  is a good thing. How boring would it be if we all thought the same things! LOL
Happy flying with whatever you use.

Aloha Ricardo,

     Really, this has turned into a very good discussion.  I am even learning about aluminum sunshades!

Aloha and Drone On!
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Cetacean Posted at 2017-4-5 16:44
Aloha Nigel,

     Maybe that is why there have been no data corruption problems that I could trace to the magnets.  As for single flight conclusions, I agree.  I try to make single flight observations which can then be combined with other observations.  Eventually something can be said to get a discussion going.  If I have misrepresented an observation as a conclusion, my apologies to all involved.  I am just interested in getting the problem resolved.  


One thing I haven't worked out is: Should the aluminium shield be connected to ground, eg the zero volts pin on the USB or HDMI connector?  I haven't tried because as a reflector for the antenna I don't think it should be, but as a shield maybe it should?

My sunshield weighs 145g, but probably half of that is the Gorilla Tape, most of which isn't really necessary.  I used more Gorilla Tape than necessary because being black it saved painting the shiny aluminium and it also makes it feel a lot more durable, less delicate.   It also includes a full aluminium back which wasn't really necessary as a sunshield but I left in because I was wondering if it might help with the transmissions - if the parabolic reflectors are made of aluminium and work then a flat aluminium sheet just a little further back may also work as a reflector.  Not being parabolic just means that it doesn't concentrate the signal so much so will be less directional, but it will still reflect the 50% that is traveling backwards.

A credit card is 0.8mm thick, the aluminium I used is 0.5mm.  You don't want it much thicker than that because it will become hard to cut with scissors and thinner will not be very strong.  0.5mm is nice to work with.  I made a cardboard template first to get the dimensions right, but the aluminium version is much nicer.

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Nigel_ Posted at 2017-4-5 23:30
One thing I haven't worked out is: Should the aluminium shield be connected to ground, eg the zero volts pin on the USB or HDMI connector?  I haven't tried because as a reflector for the antenna I don't think it should be, but as a shield maybe it should?

My sunshield weighs 145g, but probably half of that is the Gorilla Tape, most of which isn't really necessary.  I used more Gorilla Tape than necessary because being black it saved painting the shiny aluminium and it also makes it feel a lot more durable, less delicate.   It also includes a full aluminium back which wasn't really necessary as a sunshield but I left in because I was wondering if it might help with the transmissions - if the parabolic reflectors are made of aluminium and work then a flat aluminium sheet just a little further back may also work as a reflector.  Not being parabolic just means that it doesn't concentrate the signal so much so will be less directional, but it will still reflect the 50% that is traveling backwards.

Aloha Nigel,

     Yes, the flat aluminum is a 50 % reflector.  I really like that about your design.  Have you held one of DJI's sunshades?  I have one and my disappointment was only that I had already figured it out.  It does not fit my Androids.  

     But, as an example of what I had learned, using the duct tape around the edges allows you to change materials so that the aluminum is only used as a radio wave reflective surface.  The duct tape allows you to fold the parts nicely for storage or traveling.  The sides and top could be out of plastic, but as you note, thinner than a credit card.  That could keep the weight down.  Then use flat spray paint for appearance.  What media are you using for the top and sides?

     Are you using Velcro to hold the parts in place when not folded?  They actually sell adhesive backed Velcro that works great.  As for the grounding issue, the parabolics work great without grounding so it looks to me like grounding is not an issue.

     As for the magnet question, I removed mine as per Labroides instructions (it was not quite as easy as he made it sound).  But, everything went back together and worked fine.  I used it with my P4, which has the worst problem with the nVidia Shield K1.  It worked way better than previously without parabolics but not enough for a conclusion.  My range without parabolics was a bit better and I added the parabolics when I started getting serious video issues at about 1200 meters and 400 meters altitude.  I went a little further and went into a POI and was disconnected even though the video had improved greatly.  I did a RTH while I restarted the app since I had about 40% or less already on the battery.  Once reconnected, I took her home manually and uneventfully.

     During the early part of the flight, and without the parabolics, I went to an area about 32 meters above me that is flat so the edge acts like a berm to block signal when the Phantom is low.  It allows me to test connections and performance with low connectivity.  The app really acted like it was trying to stop a disconnect.  I tested that a few times.  That is just an impression but it allowed me to experience a near signal loss without a disconnect.  Since the site is only 250 - 300 meters away, it makes for a more controlled environment as I play Hide-and-Seek behind the edge of the flat and low bushes.  It was good for testing and training.

     Generally, it was a pretty good day.  I am glad I do not have to worry about the magnets anymore and Labroides is right, them little buggers are strong!  I hope you are getting plenty of air time!

Aloha and Drone On!
2017-4-6
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Mark The Droner Posted at 2017-4-5 02:10
Cetacean - good to hear - thank you.  Please keep us updated...

Aloha Mark,

     My magnets are history!  I removed mine as per Labroides instructions (it was not quite as easy as he made it sound).  But, everything went back together and worked fine.  I am glad I do not have to worry about the magnets anymore and Labroides is right, them little buggers are strong!

     I flew with my P4, which has the worst problem with the nVidia Shield K1.  It worked way better than previously without parabolics but not enough for a conclusion.  My range without parabolics was somewhat better and I added the parabolics when I started getting serious video issues at about 4000 feet distance and 1500 feet altitude.  I went a little further and went into a POI and was disconnected even though the video had improved greatly.  I did a RTH while I restarted the app since I had about 40% or less already on the battery.  Once reconnected, I took her home manually and uneventfully.

     During the early part of the flight, and without the parabolics, I went to an area about 100 feet above me that is flat so the edge acts like a berm to block signal when the Phantom is low.  It allows me to test connections and performance with low connectivity.  The app really acted like it was trying to stop a disconnect.  I tested that a few times.  That is just an impression but it allowed me to experience a near signal loss without a disconnect.  Since the site is only 800 to 1000 feet away, it makes for a more controlled environment as I play Hide-and-Seek behind the edge of the flat and low bushes.  It was good for testing and training.

     Generally, it was a pretty good day.  I hope you are getting plenty of air time!

Aloha and Drone On!
2017-4-6
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Mark The Droner
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Great!  Thanks for the update
2017-4-6
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G1DTF
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What difficulties did you encounter removing the magnets and what did you use to pry the back off without marking/damaging it.
2017-4-6
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Cetacean Posted at 2017-4-6 03:04
Aloha Nigel,

     Yes, the flat aluminum is a 50 % reflector.  I really like that about your design.  Have you held one of DJI's sunshades?  I have one and my disappointment was only that I had already figured it out.  It does not fit my Androids.  

Mine is a simple aluminium box made from one piece of aluminium with all four sides folded up and fixed in place using black, non-reflective, duct tape.  The sides, including the bottom are all 6.5 cm tall, because more than that makes it difficult to operate the touch screen.  It has a hole in the side for the USB connector and a hole in the top for pressing the power button.

After my previous plastic attempt, I found that having a bottom side is important to block the reflected light from my cloths, and big top edge does not seem as important as I expected when used at the normal angle.  Having all four sides the same height makes it far more useful as a box for storing things and makes it easier to pack away - there is no need for it to be foldable.  I can even put a lid on it.
2017-4-6
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G1DTF Posted at 2017-4-6 06:13
What difficulties did you encounter removing the magnets and what did you use to pry the back off without marking/damaging it.

Aloha G1DTF,

     First, read Labroides post at the beginning.  To pry off the back, you need to determine where the seam is first.  Then use a minimum 1.5"  sharp, straight blade and try lightly to pry open the seam to about 2 inches before the corners.  Flip the nVidia Shield K1 over and do it again from the other direction.  This will show you the easy spots without damaging the seam.  Then use the blade to pry open the easiest lengths of seam and when there is separation, use a shim or screw driver tip to hold open the seam.  

     You will notice that the back is plastic and the frame is most likely metal.  The back will damage before the frame.  There are also ports, slots and speaker openings right next to the back.  Be very careful in those areas.  If you have a plastic or wood pry, you will have less chance of damaging the back.  The blade damages the back easily and the screw driver tip is not much better.  Then pry the back off.

     Removing the magnets with a knife can be frustrating if the glue used is of sufficient volume to have left no pry points.  That was my problem.  So, I used a Tie-Wire Pliers with a very flat nose to twist off the magnets.  Be sure to do this on a very flat surface because you will have to press down hard to get a grip on the magnets.  Twist the magnets off.

     Hope this helps!

Aloha and Drone On!
2017-4-6
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Nigel_ Posted at 2017-4-6 07:11
Mine is a simple aluminium box made from one piece of aluminium with all four sides folded up and fixed in place using black, non-reflective, duct tape.  The sides, including the bottom are all 6.5 cm tall, because more than that makes it difficult to operate the touch screen.  It has a hole in the side for the USB connector and a hole in the top for pressing the power button.

After my previous plastic attempt, I found that having a bottom side is important to block the reflected light from my cloths, and big top edge does not seem as important as I expected when used at the normal angle.  Having all four sides the same height makes it far more useful as a box for storing things and makes it easier to pack away - there is no need for it to be foldable.  I can even put a lid on it.

Aloha Nigel,

     That is what it sounded like in your first post on this subject.  Interesting concept.  I will have to wrap my brain around that for a while.

Aloha and Drone On!
2017-4-6
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OK I am an iOS guy and ordered a K1 because I just couldn't bring myself to pay the $400 for an iPad mini 4 with cellular.  The K1 is arriving today and now I read this! LOL

Just wondering how bad this problem is? Is it affecting everyone and immediately noticeable or is it a rarity affecting only those who have magnetic personalities?  
2017-4-7
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sean808080 Posted at 2017-4-7 01:46
OK I am an iOS guy and ordered a K1 because I just couldn't bring myself to pay the $400 for an iPad mini 4 with cellular.  The K1 is arriving today and now I read this! LOL

Just wondering how bad this problem is? Is it affecting everyone and immediately noticeable or is it a rarity affecting only those who have magnetic personalities?

Aloha sean,

     As Labroides posted, the magnets are probably no real problem.  You might want to look into some Parabolics though since they do protect against much of the interference that seems to be at the root of the problem.  And they are very inexpensive.  You can look at an old thread of mine on the subject at;

http://forum.dji.com/thread-60563-1-1.html

There is a lot of information including a video and photos.  Parabolics are the only hardware that we have found that helps with the problem.

     If you do experience a problem, a temporary fix is to hang a piece of aluminum foil between the nVidia Shield K1 and the antennas.  You might tape it on a thin piece of cardboard to make it more manageable.  Sunshades are easy to make out of the cardboard for a 12 pack.  Then you can mount the aluminum to the sunshade so it is between the tablet and the antennae.  Works two ways!

     Another "maintenance" solution that has an effect on reducing the problem is to clean the apps and services off of the tablet.  This is done in settings under managing apps.  Uninstall apps you do not obviously need, turn off auto download and after you have all the Internet you need done, put it in Airplane Mode so it does not download while you are flying.  That takes up processor time, RAM and storage space.  It really helps in general.

     But, the problem we are having is only a temporary issue.  There will be other issues that come along.  When you are dealing with cutting edge technology, you have to expect these types of issues and learn how to resolve them.  For many of us on the forum, solving the problems is a lot of fun.  Not as much fun as flying, but still a lot of fun!

Aloha and Drone On!
2017-4-7
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JackA
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sean808080 Posted at 2017-4-7 01:46
OK I am an iOS guy and ordered a K1 because I just couldn't bring myself to pay the $400 for an iPad mini 4 with cellular.  The K1 is arriving today and now I read this! LOL

Just wondering how bad this problem is? Is it affecting everyone and immediately noticeable or is it a rarity affecting only those who have magnetic personalities?

I have a K1 that is dedicated to the Phantom 3 Standard that I fly.  I have not had any issues.  I do not think you will have any issues as long as you stay with Android 6.X or lower.  I do not recommend that you "upgrade" the K1 to the next higher K1 firmware level because that will in fact install Android 7.X and start causing the reported problems.  As said before, if you can dedicate the K1 to flying, the best approach is to remove or disable aLL APPs that are not Android essential and for sure do not allow Auto Updates from Google.  Good Flying.
2017-4-7
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JackA Posted at 2017-4-7 07:43
I have a K1 that is dedicated to the Phantom 3 Standard that I fly.  I have not had any issues.  I do not think you will have any issues as long as you stay with Android 6.X or lower.  I do not recommend that you "upgrade" the K1 to the next higher K1 firmware level because that will in fact install Android 7.X and start causing the reported problems.  As said before, if you can dedicate the K1 to flying, the best approach is to remove or disable aLL APPs that are not Android essential and for sure do not allow Auto Updates from Google.  Good Flying.

Aloha Jack,

     Good advice!  I had wondered how well the K1 worked with the P3S.  You are probably running DJI GO?  If you do ever upgrade to Android 7 (Nougat), please let us know.  Your WiFi transmission system is different with the P3S (and P3 4K) and with DJI GO, that is two significant variables that may make a difference in performance when compared with DJI GO 4 and USB connection between RC and AC.

     Personally, I think a great deal of the problem is your apps comment.  They have to be disabled!  I noticed that with Nougat, I got tons of new and revived apps!  It took me an hour just to disable or uninstall them.  Anyone who did not take that hour to cut out that interference could be expected to have a lot of problems.  That may explain the worst case scenarios we read about here.  

     With the USB, those with a USB connection can go into Airplane Mode to cut out the downloads, but that would ruin your flight since you need the WiFi.  So what you do with your P3S is really important to this discussion.  Mahalo for the help!

Aloha and Drone On!
2017-4-7
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sean808080 Posted at 2017-4-7 01:46
OK I am an iOS guy and ordered a K1 because I just couldn't bring myself to pay the $400 for an iPad mini 4 with cellular.  The K1 is arriving today and now I read this! LOL

Just wondering how bad this problem is? Is it affecting everyone and immediately noticeable or is it a rarity affecting only those who have magnetic personalities?

For most people the crashes are only with the recent upgrade to Android 7 and they happen on all Android 7 devices, I'm sure they will get fixed fairly soon.

Sometimes iOS devices have problems and Android is better, this time it is the other way around.

My only issue using Android 6 is that I sometimes get some video corruption on the live view, but normally only when the aircraft is very close to the controller, other times there is no problem.
2017-4-8
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Just got the K1 and flew it for a bit. No issues seen and I confirmed the the Android OS version is 6.x.  I am getting nagged to update the Shield K1 Tablet Software 5.1 FULL.  I haven't done it yet.  Is it safe to do? I want to keep it at the Android 6.x level and am not sure if that is packaged in with the K1 Tab upgrade.  Thanks in advance!


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2017-4-8
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sean808080 Posted at 2017-4-8 16:05
Just got the K1 and flew it for a bit. No issues seen and I confirmed the the Android OS version is 6.x.  I am getting nagged to update the Shield K1 Tablet Software 5.1 FULL.  I haven't done it yet.  Is it safe to do? I want to keep it at the Android 6.x level and am not sure if that is packaged in with the K1 Tab upgrade.  Thanks in advance!

Aloha sean,

     DJI, Android and nVidia are all working very hard to solve this problem.  When we refuse to accept their help, by not using their updates, we leave ourselves in limbo.  Unless your tablet is defective, or your Phantom system is defective, both of which are highly unlikely, you should bite the bullet and dive into all the updates.

     The most simple explanation I have come across for this problem is that when Android introduced Nougat, they also loaded a lot of apps and services that people do not need with the upgrade.  The first panic struck users that reported this problem did not realize that this new BS was now on their system.  They only expected superior performance from a superior upgrade.  Unfortunately, nVidia makes money when they include those apps and services in their upgrades.  It all gets back to "let the buyer beware."  Personally, it took me an hour to dump the BS from my Nougat upgrade.  But, my system flies with almost not problems at all.  DJI, Android and nVidia are working on the only remaining and somewhat minor problem.

     If you load up the latest of everything and then go into the settings to disable or uninstall the BS, and then use "Airplane Mode" when you fly, you should get the superior performance you expect.  If you can spring for a less than $20 (including shipping) set of parabolics that will help isolate the antennae from the tablet, you will improve your odds of not getting a disconnect while DJI, Android and nVidia continue to work on the problem.  The problem has become really marginal.

     Hope this helps!

Aloha and Drone On!
2017-4-8
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Cetacean Posted at 2017-4-8 18:11
Aloha sean,

     DJI, Android and nVidia are all working very hard to solve this problem.  When we refuse to accept their help, by not using their updates, we leave ourselves in limbo.  Unless your tablet is defective, or your Phantom system is defective, both of which are highly unlikely, you should bite the bullet and dive into all the updates.

Hi Cetacean:

What are the only basic apps needed on the Nvidia Shield K1 to operate the DJI Phantom 3 series quad copters?  I don't use my K1 for anything other than flying my P3 Std.  Also, should I have airplane mode switched on or off?  I could never figure that out.

Thank you,
Chuck
2017-4-8
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G1DTF
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I would also like to know what apps including system apps and services can be safely uninstalled or stopped (i am rooted) to give the GO4 APP the best chance of maximum performance. I am currently running Marshmallow as I ran into all the problems associated with 7.0 Nougat and rolled back to 6. I am currently flying a P4 .
2017-4-9
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Goldchucker Posted at 2017-4-8 21:55
Hi Cetacean:

What are the only basic apps needed on the Nvidia Shield K1 to operate the DJI Phantom 3 series quad copters?  I don't use my K1 for anything other than flying my P3 Std.  Also, should I have airplane mode switched on or off?  I could never figure that out.

Aloha Chuck,

     Good luck with that one.  It really depends on what you need.  For example, sometimes I use email to give myself the link for an upgrade or update.  So I allow the email function.  Then there are the language and translation options that you really do not need.  You have to go into the App Manager and spend some time thinking about whether you really need that app.  It took me an hour to clean up Android 7 Nougat.

     When you uninstall the most obvious apps, the Android operating system will give you the standard warnings.  Remember those.  Then when you try to uninstall the less obvious apps, if they add that they are part of a group of apps that Android needs, then you just disable them so they can be enabled if the Android Operating System says it needs the program.  

     I probably still have a bunch of junk on my tablet, but using the Airplane Mode cuts down on the interference downloads create while flying.  There is also a setting that deals with apps running in the background.  Disable them all.  There should be no programs running except DJI GO 4 so all the processor speed is dedicated to the Phantom.

     It is really shooting from the hip.  Hope this helps!

Aloha and Drone On!
2017-4-9
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