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EVO failed distance test, very frustrating.

mixchief

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OK fixed the video, sorry I had to take it down, but it just looked terrible to me
 
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I thought the bird was gone, lost my bearings for a second. There was really no warning as you can see and the video was perfect except for an instant before the RTH kicked in, I could not believe there is no button present to cancel RTH on the screen like on , dare I say it , the DJI Go app. even after re connecting it didn't let me take over. Yes scary and stressful.
 
There is a pause button on the controller, you have to hold it in long enough for the blue bar to travel across the controller screen. I have found that the main variable in distance is the location. Perhaps all the buildings in the area introduced some interference. I got 3.75 miles over water in a sparsely developed area recently before battery level forced me to turn back.IMG_0024.PNG
 
I agree, but I made a point of testing in that area. Also I was pointing more or less at the side of the bird when it lost transmission, maybe antenna location on the bird was not optimum, though being omnidirectional that shouldn't be an issue, but I've heard it again and again from Inspire owners, that you would be pointed at the back of the craft OR the front of the craft as it will loose signal on the sides. However I am still miffed at the total loss with absolutely no warning.
 
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The video was removed before I got a chance to view it. It's always scary when the drone takes off without any control. Nice to know that it did come home though. I've gained a lot of trust with my Evo, knowing it will come back. Although I know there are some cases where it wont come back.

I never get close to the 4 mile range Autel claims anywhere I've flown mine but I've always been over trees and other things. Urban areas are the worst for trying to fly long distance. Despite what the manual states, I have found that pointing the antennas down and slightly away from each other / \ makes a difference. That gets them away from your mobile device and is the only way you can actually get the right angle (antenna to drone) that the manual says while still holding the controller in comfort. I don't know if the antennas are directional as from front and back.??
All that said, about 1.2 miles is as far as I've flown from the controller in an urban area. I have about 20 flights on my drone and I've only flown in a couple different places. I get more distance at mom and dads where the area is a lot more open. My yard is small and I'm standing near trees at my house. I have lost vision signal at a half mile in those conditions.
 
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There is a pause button on the controller, you have to hold it in long enough for the blue bar to travel across the controller screen. I have found that the main variable in distance is the location. Perhaps all the buildings in the area introduced some interference. I got 3.75 miles over water in a sparsely developed area recently before battery level forced me to turn back.View attachment 2762
I agree. No matter the drone, I’ve found the environment controls distance. Flat, no obstacles, no RF/EM interference gives you max distance. If any of those things are present, it’s a crap shoot. Literally anything can happen. RTH has always worked for me, even when I had no idea where the bird was — except one time, I had a refurb XSP with a faulty compass. After a lengthy search using the flight map, I found it and sent it to Autel. They fixed it for free...
 
The video was removed before I got a chance to view it. It's always scary when the drone takes off without any control. Nice to know that it did come home though. I've gained a lot of trust with my Evo, knowing it will come back. Although I know there are some cases where it wont come back.

I never get close to the 4 mile range Autel claims anywhere I've flown mine but I've always been over trees and other things. Urban areas are the worst for trying to fly long distance. Despite what the manual states, I have found that pointing the antennas down and slightly away from each other / \ makes a difference. That gets them away from your mobile device and is the only way you can actually get the right angle (antenna to drone) that the manual says while still holding the controller in comfort. I don't know if the antennas are directional as from front and back.??
All that said, about 1.2 miles is as far as I've flown from the controller in an urban area. I have about 20 flights on my drone and I've only flown in a couple different places. I get more distance at mom and dads where the area is a lot more open. My yard is small and I'm standing near trees at my house. I have lost vision signal at a half mile in those conditions.
SORRY I DELETED IT AS I DIDN'T LIKE MY IMAGE ON IT,LOL. I didn't intend for it to be there anyway but just wanted to put the video up maybe to soon. Also I didn't give myself the time to figure out how to get the video from the Nvidia shield to my computer, as I'm not really an Android/PC dude but an Apple dude, where I can air drop at will. Seemed the only option I had for sharing that was possible was direct to YT.
So if anyone knows how to get a screen grab from the Nvidia Shield to the computer, give me a heads up please. I will repost it once I edit in video from the bird, just because it looks so damn good.
 
There is a pause button on the controller, you have to hold it in long enough for the blue bar to travel across the controller screen. I have found that the main variable in distance is the location. Perhaps all the buildings in the area introduced some interference. I got 3.75 miles over water in a sparsely developed area recently before battery level forced me to turn back.View attachment 2762
Thanks Hawaiian, I knew there must be something I didn't think, I just pressed the home button and finally the "go home" on the screen both of which gave me the finger LOL. Panic sets in and you can't think, this is the very first time I allow an autonomous RTH on any drone, sorry I lie 2nd time, I had my Inspire come back successfully after a low battery warning. The real getter for me here was the lack of notice, the warning flashed and didn't stay on for more than a couple of seconds giving me no time to react, in fact you can see in the video that the signal was recovered before it turned around which should have been enough time for the EVO itself to cancel RTH.
 
Thanks Hawaiian, I knew there must be something I didn't think, I just pressed the home button and finally the "go home" on the screen both of which gave me the finger LOL. Panic sets in and you can't think, this is the very first time I allow an autonomous RTH on any drone, sorry I lie 2nd time, I had my Inspire come back successfully after a low battery warning. The real getter for me here was the lack of notice, the warning flashed and didn't stay on for more than a couple of seconds giving me no time to react, in fact you can see in the video that the signal was recovered before it turned around which should have been enough time for the EVO itself to cancel RTH.
Yea, panic does set-in, and it’s your #1 enemy. You really need to remain calm and cool. Easier said than done. Having lost/crashed so many times with the XSP, I now know to focus on recovery steps immediately b/c as you say, there’s often very little time. I once saved an XSP from certain death over the ocean by immediately taking control flying up and over a sea cliff & tree. It immediately landed just after clearing the tree w/o any control by me... I had about 20 sec of battery left...
 
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I just had a couple of anxious moments with my Inspire LOL, another Long distance run, but I started with 86% battery so I didn't reach my destination, plus it seems at 300 feet we have some wicked wind at the surface just a strong breeze, with 11 mph gusts but upon RTH I pushed the speed and at one point was doing 64 mph, pretty cool, fortunately wind was blowing in my direction so the bird ran quick upon return, might have had enough juice to get to my destination if the battery was full and air was calm, but of course it wasn't.
 
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