Feedback for Beta (Mini 3 Pro) - Performance & Stability Non-flight regime - UPDATED!!!! NOW FLOWN
Hello All:
I wanted to give some feedback as to non-flight regime software stability and performance status during my navigating of the Dronelink software while connected to my DJI Mini 3 Pro. Hardware/software listed below (as of 4-25-2023):
- DJI Mini 3 Pro with v01.00.0600
- RC-N1 Controller with v1.10.1
- Moto G Power 128GB running Android 12
- 128GB SD Card in both the Smartphone and Drone
- Dronelink DJI App (for modern DJI drones) v4.6.0 (254) Kernal 4.6.0
PLEASE NOTE: I HAVE NOT TEST FLOWN THE DRONE - THIS IS A STATIC TEST AND I'VE NOT PAID FOR HOBBYIST OR PROFESSIONAL ACCESS. I was simply trying to connect my drone to the Dronelink app to get telemetry, camera image, and play with settings.
Issues Detected:
- Once connected to the drone and loading up the telemetry/map interface, going from menu to menu (camera, gimbal, etc.) causes a crash. This seemed to happen ONLY WHEN I was connected to a wifi source other than the drone's. In other words, if I disconnect from wifi sources (say my home's wifi) and the phone is only connected to the drone's wifi, this crash does not occur. So make sure you are not connected to any other wifi source when connected to the drone via Dronelink's app. This also must be done in order to use DJI's own Quick Transfer of files from the drone to your phone.
- DJI's Fly app definitely needs to be killed before using the Dronelink app. This has been already indicated but I can confirm it as well.
- Dronelink's app needs to be killed before using the DJI Fly app. If I do not kill the Dronelink app, DJI's Fly app will load but will not connect to the drone. The introduction screen showing the Connection Guide, Album, SkyPixel, etc. will only load and the drone will not connect to the DJI Fly app.
Interestingly, Map Pilot Pro also makes an app similar to Dronelink but I cannot use it as their website indicates the following:
- DJI has limited the Enterprise version to only support Android versions 7 through 11.
I can verify this to be the case with their app because as soon as the MPP app detects my drone, a message stating that my phone isn't compatible pops up (and indeed I am running Android 12).
I find it odd that DJI would not support the latest Android versions. Had I know, I'd not have updated my phone.
This is for now. I am hoping to purchase the Hobbyist Premium plan or become a Beta tester.
Anyway, hope this helps.
Comments
261 comments
Okay, it seem i have to wait until final relases.
Okey, i try PIX4Dcapture Pro , i think they using same SDK for Mini 3 Pro. The App works with only one crash during flight (650pics) , but this was not a problem because the mission start at the point the app crashed . What is the difference to the Dronelink App regarding SDK ?
We don’t know what the difference is as their app is closed source, and if we knew what the problem was or how to work around it, we would have already fixed it.
Or in other words, their app crashed too. I've been monitoring the litchi forums as well, their app is also crashing. All signs point to the DJI SDK.
And I would like to add that Rainbow Pilot also suffers from random app crashes IMO 😂🙈😱
only for clarification: the (free) litchi pllot app crashes every third flight and dronelink crashes three times a flight ….😂
Yes that's correct Litchi Pilot beta is free but sure do at a cost when released. As we speak compared to the legacy Litchi app the Beta one on MSDKv5 ONLY wp missions. 🙈😱😂
If it's critical to fly reliably, get an Air2s, or other DJI drone using the DJI SDK4 protocol. Dronelink works great for those drones. The M3P is probably not meant for serious commercial work. Till DJI fixes SDK5 the Mini 3 series won't work reliably. Just sayin.
How to explain that Dji is not able to fix ?
Usually everything they do works fine.
The App crash is not comparable, i flown a mission with three batteries over one hour with more than 650 pics. One crash occur , but after restart the PIX4Dcapture Pro app 10 seconds later the mission resumed and finished. With DL i got 2 pics and a couple of crashs, the time for the restart takes so long that the battery has discharged so much that it is not possible to continue.
Just for clarifying my clarification:
I was used to fly my Mavic Pro for a very long time using autonomous waypoint missions for years with no app crash at all.
I was then waiting a year after the release of the Mini 3 Pro until the SDK was released to allow waypoint missions with a 47min-battery-life.
As an Apple user with the newest hardware I had to buy some <android device to use a third party app (with waypoints).
Dronelink was the first app that offered a payed(!) beta version so I could finally use my new drone (and the new Android device) as planned for some nice hyperlapses.
At the end I spent 50€ for a really very very often crashing app- that is honestly unusable in this (beta) stadium. There is nothing else I got for my 50€- the Mavic Pro is not included in this 50€-version
And on the other side there is a free Litchi beta that offers the function that were not offered by the original DJI app: I can load and use all my waypoint mission that I made for my Mavic Pro, can make new ones and, most important, it works in most cases.
I'm not a programmer and can't imagine the complexity of the dronelink app, but i clearly favor the approach that a beta version is free of charge- and the beta tester supports the developer with his feedback during the development- and when a stable product has been created he can decide if it's worth 50€ to him.
And a working waypoint app is definitely worth its 50€ for me.
So please, go ahead and make it more stable please! :-)
Not sure how many times we have had to repeat ourselves here, but here it is again from the how to join the beta article:
To be super clear, the target audience for the Dronelink beta is existing power users who have long since paid for an account and thus joining the beta is no extra cost from their perspective. We have no shortage of users that fit this category and there is really no point in opening up the beta to a bunch of tire-kickers as the feedback from such people isn't useful by comparison, no offense. Feel free to request a refund and please read the disclaimers more carefully next time.
And when doing this there's an obvious risk to get a message like this which I just minutes ago received. Come on Jim 😂
"14 okt. 2023 01:10Jacob Rachniowski skrev:
Hello Mats,
Sorry, but our refund policy only applies within 14 days of a first time purchase. Unfortunately, we cannot issue you a refund.
Best,
Jacob"
Yes, obviously you have to request a refund within a reasonable amount of time of your purchase.
.... then u're frequently recommending all of us struggling with app crashes believing that's not your liability rather than MSDKv5 related to ask for a refund? 😂
Without noting that your good grace is limited in time from purchase of app? Haha
We're all providing you with automated app crash logs for assessment and I'm totally convinced that some flaws are related to your code rather than MSDKv5. And u're asking for payment from all of us guinea pigs in contrast to the colleagues Rainbow Pilot and Litchi Pilot. Yeah right this conversation doesn't age well.
You are entitled to your opinion. We believe our policies are fair, transparent, and well documented. If you prefer Rainbow or Litchi, then by all means, use their products.
It's not my position to defend a company I'm unaffiliated with, but I don't really get why it's reasonable to request a refund at all (especially after using it for a month)? It's pretty clearly spelled out on the beta page what the risks are and that there are no guarantees. If it was advertised as production ready and it was behaving as it does, then I'd be upset too. But it is so clearly not described that way in so many places.
At the end of the day I'm happy that companies like Amazon and Best Buy hasn't adopted such a fair and transparent well documented B2C approach. 😂❤️😜
Amazon is the good guys now and Dronelink is the evil empire? I have to admit I got a good laugh out of that one - thanks Mats.
Well Sir, since u're repeatingly recommending frustrated Beta users to ask for refund (!) w/o adding the well documented time window for achieving that I do believe u've created this exchange of badwill by ur own making. It's not helpful to address the users that way. Ok? 😂❤️😜
Mats Hägglund, the refund procedure is fully explained here https://support.dronelink.com/hc/en-us/articles/1500000580482-How-do-I-cancel-my-account-and-or-get-a-refund- personally finding out such things is the type of research I do before buying a product, research is key
Martin. Still the app author Jim discourages the frustrated users of Dronelink DJI pointing us towards the refund solution without mentioning the t&c's. This isn't helpful, it creates obviously badwill and poor customer services judgement. It's rare to be approached with harsh wording pointing us to the exit door. I believe any marketing oriented person would realize the danger with such behavior. Disappointed reviews travels faster than the opposite. In market research a good experience is published only a tenth vs bad ones.
It's simply stupid to induce such values and wordings in a users community open to everyone. I'm okay with savvy tech guys being rude & blunt in communication with the outer world but here's an example above from Jim whereas he's engaging in a back and forth unpleasant word exchange with a paying customer on Premium plan. Do you get the picture bro? 😂😜❤️
Never ever bite the hand that feeds you, they're saying.......
I speak as a UAT tester. the problem is that the beta version is not functional at all and does not evolve over time. Normally a beta version is functional with residual bugs or missing features which are taken into account in real time by the developers with a dialogue with the beta testing clients (who are really doing a job to compensate for the lack of resources of the IT company ) . Testing an app that doesn't work is ridiculous and somehow misleads customers about the release date of a working product that they claim to be the first to launch to beat the competition. For my part I had the choice between litchi and dronelink, I took dronelink for my mini 3 pro because it was in beta while litchi did not offer a release date
U're totally correct on circumstances as Beta tester. Unfortunately there's a vast number of new hopefully DL customer's here.
But at the end of the day, u simply can't mock them repeatingly with RT*M lookalike comments nor showing them the exit door when they're posting comments with obvious signs of negligence and ignorance?
U self is a good example of good behavior though. Seen ur comments in a variety of social media platforms. U're helpful, not mocking or adding inflammatory sarcastic wordings.
On the other side we've got a CEO doing this multiple times towards all hopeful newbies.
Imagine the CEO of Walmart doing that when customers end up whining and comparing brands and other retail stores?
Wouldn't happen IMO ❤️😂😁
I'm now ending this exchange on a nothingburger topic. Period
Esta mañana , red de un solar de 3000m² ,2 órbitas en foto y una de vídeo, solo una desconexion y recuperada al iniciar aplicación de nuevo.
Dji mini 3 pro.
Thanks again to the devs for all the hard work, that now entails not only explaining to their beta testers the reason they have to work even harder (DJI's currently buggy sdk) but now also placating beta testers who clearly shouldn't be beta testing to begin with. Beta testers who are in overt violation of the beta testing terms (using the software not to help test it but to gain new features). For whatever it's worth please know that the vast majority of your beta testers fully support your work and fully understand the terms of the beta test and greatly appreciate your work.
I am not sure how test a beta do not run for a couple of minutes without crash ? i also not sure what should i test ? PIX4Dcapture Pro app run very stable over a long time, so i am not sure its a SDK Problem . Regardless, I'm glad that DL exists and I hope that the problems can be solved soon.
I get a crash every time I use Pix4DCapture. The fact that it crashes less doesn't strike me as significant. I'd much rather the problem be fixed at the root than have Dronelink make compromises to work slightly better with a buggy sdk. If you disagree and just want something to give you new features as soon as possible then you clearly shouldn't be using the beta. The terms of thr beta make that clear. We all hope it gets fixed soon.
Wrybread, you are harsh on beta testers. You seem to have information that I don't have access to about how DL works. Personally I don't know if the DL developers are working hard but what I am sure of is that the application still doesn't work so, what do you conclude?
Violation of a beta tester contract, on which planet? DL needs beta testers to help it finalize a (delayed) product, which is why DL makes it accessible. In fact, we don't really do beta testing, we just install each new version, and we launch a mission, which fails... I guess DL doesn't need testers for that.
Gilles: the devs clearly say, again and again, that the beta is for existing long time Dronelink power users, not for new people looking to add features to their Mini 3 Pro. They've also documented how they had to rewrite much of the code base in an attempt to make it work better with DJI's obviously (currently) flawed sdk. Its fine if you don't want to help with the beta of course, no one is asking for your help, especially if you're not an existing power user of Dronelink. But (not talking to only you here) at least consider not getting in the way of the developers if you decide to go against their recommendion and use the beta anyway.
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