Solo, GoPro & Gimbal...Check! Connection to GoPro...Not so much....

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So, after shelving the Solo for almost 2 months and numerous battles with 3DR the gimbal showed up yesterday. So I anxiously get everything wired up and screwed in place after watching numerous gimbal install videos. First issue was the fight to get all the cables to sit properly in the cavity left over after getting the gimbal in place. Very tight fit, I had to use the screws to crank the gimbal down in the end. I did take it apart a couple of times to see if I could run the cables differently but looks to be only one real way of doing all of this. Powered everything up ...did all the updates and everything looked good and ready to go. So, i head out to a nice open area and got everything powered again only to be reminded of how painful it is to get the Solo to get signal ...then when i finally do(5-7 minutes) it then asks for a calibration. Yep, took off all the props and did the whole dance...sat it up nice and leveled...and waited....and waited (5-7 minutes) I finally got GPS. I hit fly and let it hover..well tried to get it to hover. The Solo was drifting, not just left to right but oddly up and down. I was trying to hover so i could see if the GoPro was on or not because the app said "GoPro not connected". But i could see on my iPhone just fine. I thought that maybe it was a glitch and figured if i hit record it would and everything was fine. I flew maybe 1000ft away and instantly got the dreaded "lost connection" followed by the even better "lost transmission" and i could see the Solo turn around and head home. The entire time the screen read "lost connection" up until it was maybe 10 feet about me then it finally regained connection.

Ok, just to be clear. This exact location is the same place i fly my P3 and easily get about 2 miles out with no problems. Anyways, I landed the Solo and tried to figure out the GoPro and gimbal. The GoPro is getting power..i know this because it is charging when the Solo is on. The GoPro is getting signal because if i disconnect the HDMI connector from the gimbal the screen on my iPhone goes black and picture when i plug it back in. I know the gimbal works because it tilts up and down with no problems. With that said, i think it is safe to say the installation is good and all the connections are secure. But why can't i control the GoPro from the remote? All software is up to date on the Solo and the GoPro Silver. Anyone got any ideas? Suggestions? I have waited so long for this gimbal only to have it not work will be the last straw with 3DR. If it is my error in the end and it can be fixed with a little trouble shooting then great. because then i would only have to worry about flying it any further than 1000ft away from me. But if this is another hardware issue...i think i am done.
 
I would double/triple check to make sure you do have all the latest updates including the app.

And you cant use the GoPro remote because it works on WiFi and could interfere with your RC/Solo connection.

After losing connectivity it was common for me to have connectivity but the app did not show that it had reconnected. Everything worked fine so I just ignored it.
 
GoPro Hero 3+ Silver is not compatible with the Solo... From 3DR support:

Hello, Steven.

I hope you are doing great!

Unfortunately, you are right, the Gimbal does not support the GoPro Hero 3+ Silver, only the GoPro Hero 3+ Black and later versions.

Regards,

Ivan.
Customer Advocate
3D Robotics
Mon-Fri 8am-5pm PST
Sat-Sun 9am-2pm PST
(858)225-1414(855) 982-2898
 
Are you kidding me????? I just bought a Hero 3+ Silver as the documentation indicates Hero 3+ is required for camera control and I only had a Hero 3...now they are saying Hero 3+ Black only...This is ridiculous where the heck did it say Hero 3+ Black only????
 
Are you kidding me????? I just bought a Hero 3+ Silver as the documentation indicates Hero 3+ is required for camera control and I only had a Hero 3...now they are saying Hero 3+ Black only...This is ridiculous where the heck did it say Hero 3+ Black only????

They have always stated this.
 
Agreed. I was tracking this from the beginning.

Sent from my VS985 4G using Tapatalk
 
Well the site has evolved over time but currently it say "By working directly with GoPro, we’ve made Solo the first drone to offer complete control of your HERO4® camera during flight. The new 3-axis gimbal delivers fluid HD video to your mobile device, offers in-flight recording control and access to GoPro settings—and oh yeah, it powers your GoPro, too"

I can't tell you if it was on the site originally or not but I do know from watching videos that 3DR has always said Hero 3+ Black or Hero 4 for full functionality.
 
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Well now I have a GoPro Hero 3 white and Hero 3+ Silver for sale as well...

Sent from my Nexus 6 using Tapatalk
 
I have been using my Hero3 Black NO ISSUES!! No Gimbal yet though(Slated Mid Sept.). And I am aware of the incompatibility, So I sent a Bitch email to GoPro. They said they were sorry and offered to RMA my Gorpro 3Black and give me 20% off the Website. If I was in the USA I might have jumped on it however with the USD in the tank its not worth the CAD exchange rate. So I bought a 4 Silver off of Amazon.

@aerial eyecon it sounds like this set up is not for you. Ditch the Apple products and go with Android, I have never had a connection problem! And I have been getting 625m distance with everything stock. Which is far enough for what im doing.
 
UPDATE:: I went ahead and grabbed another GoPro Hero 4 that I have and did the software update to it. I have 2 Hero 4 Silvers and 1 Hero 4 Black. Plugged it in the Solo and it began to work. Though at times the app kept telling me to check the HDMI connection. Ignoring it i took it up to fly and all was good. I was able to start and stop recording using the remote and the app. So all is good there. With that said i still could not get far at all. I don't remember the distances i was able to achieve exactly but definitely less than a quarter mile. Far less. I honestly do not thing this is an Apple thing. I just can't see the app being the cause for all of this. I am sure its the remote telling the app that it can't communicate with the Solo. Not the other way around. Going to take the Solo somewhere completely different tomorrow and see what happens. The place I'm going tomorrow i recently took my P3 and got almost 3.5 miles out on stock hardware.
 
Well the site has evolved over time but currently it say "By working directly with GoPro, we’ve made Solo the first drone to offer complete control of your HERO4® camera during flight. The new 3-axis gimbal delivers fluid HD video to your mobile device, offers in-flight recording control and access to GoPro settings—and oh yeah, it powers your GoPro, too"

I can't tell you if it was on the site originally or not but I do know from watching videos that 3DR has always said Hero 3+ Black or Hero 4 for full functionality.
Yes, I do remember seeing that myself. In general description it does say Hero 3, 3+, and 4.
 
Solo Specs Site:
Specs:

Cameras: Compatible with GoPro® HERO3, 3+ and 4; optimized for HERO3+ and 4.

A little confusing when they say Compatible with Hero3+, then optimized with Hero3+

EDIT:
More specs

Fully compatible with 3DR Solo and GoPro HERO3+ and HERO4; camera charging and stabilization only with HERO3
 
Confusing for sure.

I just remember limited capability from the beginning and jumped to Hero 4 black right away.

You also have to wonder if it has anything to do with GoPro's ability/desire to change the needed firmware. As we know they made some last minute changes apparently that delayed functionality on the gimbal. So it might not all be on 3DR's back.
 
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Is there a way to switch from video to photo during flight or am I stuck in whatever setting I take off in?
 

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