Goodbye my dear Evo

[thomasr]

My Evo just sits around threatening to fly away.

 

[Bulldoggboyz]

Damn MacoMan, that sux! Those huge ships are loaded with so many electronics it's hard to know what could have transpired. They use/produce sonar signals, GPS, marine radio signals, microwave freq signals, etc etc. Then you add in the fact it's thousands of tons of metal, and it's a crap shoot. I have flown very close to and under some big metal bridges and never had an issue in flight, but I have also set my Evo on a concrete table with rebar in it and had it come up with "magnetic interference" on my display. I guess we are all learning about the Evo's "In's and out's" together, as we go forward. I have decided to move on from my Evo. "Agent Orange" will be going to my son as soon as I purchase my Mavic 2 Pro with Smart controller. I am not a patient person, and the fact that Autel is dragging A** on updating the Evo's potential, as well as a lack of an aftermarket for accessories, I am bailing. I really hate to convert to the "Dark Side", but the M2P is way ahead of the Evo in many regards that appeal to me and frankly, it suits my needs better at this time. If only DJI customer service was half as decent as Autel's...SMH! I am glad Autel is taking care of you though. Word of advice Macoman….Get the State Farm personal articles insurance on the new Evo. It's worth $45 a year to replace your drone in case Autel doesn't come through.

 

[macoman]

Damn MacoMan, that sux! Those huge ships are loaded with so many electronics it's hard to know what could have transpired. They use/produce sonar signals, GPS, marine radio signals, microwave freq signals, etc etc. Then you add in the fact it's thousands of tons of metal, and it's a crap shoot. I have flown very close to and under some big metal bridges and never had an issue in flight, but I have also set my Evo on a concrete table with rebar in it and had it come up with "magnetic interference" on my display. I guess we are all learning about the Evo's "In's and out's" together, as we go forward. I have decided to move on from my Evo. "Agent Orange" will be going to my son as soon as I purchase my Mavic 2 Pro with Smart controller. I am not a patient person, and the fact that Autel is dragging A** on updating the Evo's potential, as well as a lack of an aftermarket for accessories, I am bailing. I really hate to convert to the "Dark Side", but the M2P is way ahead of the Evo in many regards that appeal to me and frankly, it suits my needs better at this time. If only DJI customer service was half as decent as Autel's...SMH! I am glad Autel is taking care of you though. Word of advice Macoman….Get the State Farm personal articles insurance on the new Evo. It's worth $45 a year to replace your drone in case Autel doesn't come through.

Thank you for the advice, Autel told that they only replace it once and under warranty. I will check the state farm personal article, to me it's worthy the $45 dollars a year.

 

[Jagerbomb52]

Thank you for the advice, Autel told that they only replace it once and under warranty. I will check the state farm personal article, to me it's worthy the $45 dollars a year.

Wow, they said they will only replace it once? (one replacement per costumer) I would like to know where in their warranty does it say once you use it your warranty is no longer valid. I guess I have to read over the very small print lol
Sounds like a legal battle could come from a simple legit warranty claim.

 

[macoman]

Wow, they said they will only replace it once? I would like to know where in their warranty does it say once you use it your warranty is no longer valid. I guess I have to read over the very small print lol
Sounds like a legal battle could come from a simple legit warranty claim.

I think what they told me if an aircraft is lost and not your fault. They will send you one but it appears that if it's happens again, It will not be covered... Even though it's a new aircraft. I will have to read the warranty again as well to see if it's says that.

 

[xspwhite]

So true, they dont have to replace. As I remember with the XSPs, it seemed that it was always the same people on the forum that kept losing their drones. I dont believe the XSP really ever had a fly away problem. My advice is to stay away from those ships, or even off the water completely, and get the SF insurance plan. I have flown my XSP quite a ways over the river, but I dont like to. Buy a cheaper drone for that kind of stuff. I think that's what i will do next time I have the urge to take a water flight. I know its tempting thow.

 

[macoman]

So true, they dont have to replace. As I remember with the XSPs, it seemed that it was always the same people on the forum that kept losing their drones. I dont believe the XSP really ever had a fly away problem. My advice is to stay away from those ships, or even off the water completely, and get the SF insurance plan. I have flown my XSP quite a ways over the river, but I dont like to. Buy a cheaper drone for that kind of stuff. I think that's what i will do next time I have the urge to take a water flight. I know its tempting thow.

I have flew numerous times around big container ships and never had issues with the Evo. This was not my first time doing that.

 

[Jagerbomb52]

I have flew numerous times around big container ships and never had issues with the Evo. This was not my first time doing that.

No it was not your first time doing that but it was the first time something went wrong. There might have been some kind of radio or sonar equipment running on that ship that the others did not have running. Marine radios are powerful two way radios. Maybe all it took was someone sending a message from the ship. We will never know for sure. Best advice is stay a good distance away.

 

[dondi]

We all are just speculating on what happened without pertinent data that should explain the situation. Right now we don't know if mechanical or pilot error were issues.

 

[macoman]

We all are just speculating on what happened without pertinent data that should explain the situation. Right now we don't know if mechanical or pilot error were issues.

There were not errors on the screen or warnings... Flew numerous times same way with big container ships, never an issue, took off with GPS locked. Flew away or mechanical it's what most likely what happened. The screen went black and lost communication immediately.

 

[xspwhite]

I have flew numerous times around big container ships and never had issues with the Evo. This was not my first time doing that.

This kinda reminds me of the guys over on the Phantom forum who have a fetish for flying around the water towers. Usually the result is; the drone gets to the other side of the tower, loses signal, and when it trys to fly back it smashes into something on the tower because the RTH function wasn't set high enough to clear the tower. I'm not saying that's the case here; I'm just simply suggesting that you use a cheaper drone for your cargo ship projects. Something simple, like a 200-300 dollar one or something. Again, just a suggestion.

 

[dondi]

Again I repeat, until independent data that is undisputed is reviewed, all comments are purely speculation.

 

[UnRanged]

Wow, they said they will only replace it once? (one replacement per costumer) I would like to know where in their warranty does it say once you use it your warranty is no longer valid. I guess I have to read over the very small print lol
Sounds like a legal battle could come from a simple legit warranty claim.

I have flew numerous times around big container ships and never had issues with the Evo. This was not my first time doing that.

I was half joking when I said they brought you down... But a buddy told me last night that some insurance companies are offering incentives for shipping companies to add Anti-Drone technology to their fleets for anti-piracy. Theory being that a drone operator drops a repeater or explosive on top of a cargo ship and then can track it on the open ocean, or threaten the company for ransom... Got me wondering if there are already some in place on foreign ships that sail through hostile waters.

But the most important thing is that Autel said it wasn't your fault, and stepped up. That should relieve all of us.

 

[Madhungarian]

Damn MacoMan, that sux! Those huge ships are loaded with so many electronics it's hard to know what could have transpired. They use/produce sonar signals, GPS, marine radio signals, microwave freq signals, etc etc. Then you add in the fact it's thousands of tons of metal, and it's a crap shoot. I have flown very close to and under some big metal bridges and never had an issue in flight, but I have also set my Evo on a concrete table with rebar in it and had it come up with "magnetic interference" on my display. I guess we are all learning about the Evo's "In's and out's" together, as we go forward. I have decided to move on from my Evo. "Agent Orange" will be going to my son as soon as I purchase my Mavic 2 Pro with Smart controller. I am not a patient person, and the fact that Autel is dragging A** on updating the Evo's potential, as well as a lack of an aftermarket for accessories, I am bailing. I really hate to convert to the "Dark Side", but the M2P is way ahead of the Evo in many regards that appeal to me and frankly, it suits my needs better at this time. If only DJI customer service was half as decent as Autel's...SMH! I am glad Autel is taking care of you though. Word of advice Macoman….Get the State Farm personal articles insurance on the new Evo. It's worth $45 a year to replace your drone in case Autel doesn't come through.

When you get that Mavic 2 keep us updated on your comparison with the Autel. I am curious on what is better on the DJI that made you buy one? I know the range is the best but I heard some stories with the new controller that range is pretty bad, maybe they fixed that by now. If you live near any airports or if you have the opportunity to fly up a hill or mountain starting from the base without any issues that would be a great selling point for me.I cannot seem to find any videos of a Mavic or DJI product flying from 0 feet to 1800 feet up a hill/mountain. I tried this with my Bebop 2 and the software did not let me go higher up the hill. I really do not plan on hiking up a hill anytime soon(to launch), so your input would be great. I do know the VR head tracking is smoother and that panning is available but its very disorienting when you have panning enabled. Thank you.

 

[thomasr]

Wow, they said they will only replace it once? (one replacement per costumer) I would like to know where in their warranty does it say once you use it your warranty is no longer valid. I guess I have to read over the very small print lol
Sounds like a legal battle could come from a simple legit warranty claim.

I worked in repair for a few years --

There is usually caveats for how long the repairs are guaranteed -- but nothing about how long a replacement item may be guaranteed.

Some manufacturers were nice and not only warrantied the repairs but also the replacements for 30 days - 180 days.

Some stick to the legal-lingo -- if a customer had a problem with a replacement -- they were stuck. The manufacturer claimed it had done all it can do -- by repairing or replacing the original purchase. Once replaced, you no longer have your original item purchased to make a claim on the original warranty.

 

[bbrod68216]

Lost a Mavic Pro once, I know your pain!
Sorry, hope Autel can help!

 

[Leon N Gauthier]

Regardless of how you lost contact, why didn’t RTH work?

Did you not answer your own question?

 

[norman.hicks.35]

Don’t discount @thomasr ‘s suggestion that radar may have impacted your drone. I’ve heard about drones having their electronics fried by flying to close to broadcast towers as well as scuttlebutt about sailors being barbecued by shipborne radar systems.

 

[thomasr]

scuttlebutt about sailors being barbecued by shipborne radar systems.

I was going to explain that -- but tried to keep it simple as possible. I was going to mention the more pleasant -- roasted seagull -- in my explanation... lol and 2.4 GHz is no different -- you can control your drone, keep Amazon Alexa happy, surf the web, talk on the phone, cook your dinner. 2.4 GHz is really a robust frequency in itself... lol

 

[Apollo11capcom]

When you get that Mavic 2 keep us updated on your comparison with the Autel. I am curious on what is better on the DJI that made you buy one? I know the range is the best but I heard some stories with the new controller that range is pretty bad, maybe they fixed that by now. If you live near any airports or if you have the opportunity to fly up a hill or mountain starting from the base without any issues that would be a great selling point for me.I cannot seem to find any videos of a Mavic or DJI product flying from 0 feet to 1800 feet up a hill/mountain. I tried this with my Bebop 2 and the software did not let me go higher up the hill. I really do not plan on hiking up a hill anytime soon(to launch), so your input would be great. I do know the VR head tracking is smoother and that panning is available but its very disorienting when you have panning enabled. Thank you.

There is a trick with the Bebop 2 that gives you unlimited altitude, the only thing is that it has to be an automated flight- you have to set a way point, go back in and edit that waypoint, and instead of using the slider just type in whatever altitude you want. Test low first, and remember at a certain height you'll loose controller connection, so remember to end your flight plan with the proper waypoints. It's great if you need to go higher than the allowed altitude and you already know where, and how high you need to go.