What's new with the latest SOLO ?

[Mr GruntHunter]

I am completely new to the world of quadcopters and have been curious about the 3DR SOLO vs the new new DJI P4. The current date is April 2, 2016. I've been reading a lot about all kinds of mods being made to the 3DR to increase flight distance (changing WiFi cards, upgrading antenna's, adding amplifiers, etc.) and reducing vibration (changing to a ribbon HDMI cable).

My questions are:
1.) Has 3DR started incorporating any of these mods in their latest builds or are the end users still struggling along having to 'upgrade' their 3DR's on their own?
2.) Has the latest DJI P4 release incorporated all of the flight modes that 3DR has provided (Orbit, Selfie, Cable Cam, Follow me)?
3.) It appears that the "Fly Away" warranty is quite a marketing tool for 3DR since I read everywhere that DJI has the worst Customer Service but I wonder what the "Fly Away" warranty really covers. Is it just in case of some software glitch or does it cover any mechanical issue , like a prop breaking etc. ? I can't find any mention of this "Fly Away" warranty mentioned on their wed site :-(

I'm not sure whether or not I should wait another few months to see if anything new will be incorporated by 3DR. I'm getting more confused about these quadcopters by the day! :-(

 

[Joe Horn]

... I can't find any mention of this "Fly Away" warranty mentioned on their wed site :-(

It's on the main Solo web page here: Solo Smart Drone | 3DR | Drone & UAV Technology -- The section titled "ON THE SAFE SIDE" ends with this sentence: "If the flight log shows that a system malfunction caused the loss of your copter — 3DR will replace the copter and the gimbal if one was installed, and we’ll even give you credit to buy a new GoPro."

 

[pete]

My questions are:
1.) Has 3DR started incorporating any of these mods in their latest builds or are the end users still struggling along having to 'upgrade' their 3DR's on their own?

Solo is quite good out of the box, you don't need any of these modifications, if your are buying your first drone, you don't need 3M range. As your objectives change at some point, you may decide to do some mods, but those are not required. As with anything, broader user base finds improvements on their own, some work well, some don't.

2.) Has the latest DJI P4 release incorporated all of the flight modes that 3DR has provided (Orbit, Selfie, Cable Cam, Follow me)?

yes and no, or not as good as Solo, have read here :
Cable Cam and the Competition..

3.) It appears that the "Fly Away" warranty is quite a marketing tool for 3DR since I read everywhere that DJI has the worst Customer Service but I wonder what the "Fly Away" warranty really covers. Is it just in case of some software glitch or does it cover any mechanical issue , like a prop breaking etc. ?

Best marketing tool is the fact that you are buying a drone and don't need to buy another one year later to upgrade if you want new features.

Fly away warranty covers failed parts as well, my motor no.4 malfunctioned last weekend and my Solo disappeared behind a cliff. 4 days later 3DR offered me full replacement of everything even before I had a chance to go back and recover it. I'm not a fan of this policy, but there you go.

 

[Mr GruntHunter]

It's on the main Solo web page here: Solo Smart Drone | 3DR | Drone & UAV Technology -- The section titled "ON THE SAFE SIDE" ends with this sentence: "If the flight log shows that a system malfunction caused the loss of your copter — 3DR will replace the copter and the gimbal if one was installed, and we’ll even give you credit to buy a new GoPro."

OK, Thanks. I see it now. I wonder just what they consider a "System Malfunction". That would appear to only mean a software problem.

 

[Maddog]

OK, Thanks. I see it now. I wonder just what they consider a "System Malfunction". That would appear to only mean a software problem.

Hardware failures are included, so if a motor fails and causes Solo to crash, 3DR will replace Solo and your GoPro if it is also damaged.

The flight logs are stored in the hand-held controller and can be used to diagnose the cause of a crash.

 

[Cody]

I feel like the only thing you really "need" to do is put better antenna on the controller. Solo's cable cam beats DJI's by far.

 

[Rusty]

<<Fly away warranty covers failed parts as well, I'm not a fan of this policy, but there you go.>>

 

[Rusty]

<<Fly away warranty covers failed parts as well, I'm not a fan of this policy, but there you go.>>

what else could they do ?

 

[Maddog]

I feel like the only thing you really "need" to do is put better antenna on the controller. Solo's cable cam beats DJI's by far.

Actually some guys swear by the stock antenna. Just depends on the terrain, wifi interference, etc., where you fly.

 

[pete]

what else could they do ?

they can't do better than that.

I just don't like it, it's too generous and can be taken advantage of (in the wrong sense).

I prefer 3DR to stick around for a while and invest in innovations, policy like that can run their business to the ground.

 

[Vernon Deck]

I love my Solo and on the odd occasion that I've flown out of range its always come back and reconnected. About the only thing that I don't like is the GPS. It takes waaay to long to find enough satellites and won't find enough if I have some trees around or are in a narrowish valley. My old Microcoptor Octo would find plenty of satellites in exactly the same locations. I hope there is an upgrade for this soon.

 

[rassalas]

So, The Answer is NO. 3DR has done none of these improvements. The most interesting thing that's come out of them after the pre-orders got filled is an occasional 20% discount or two for one battery deal. I think it's time us users start to press 3DR for some of the promised upgrades, heck how about just make the promised performance standards, Solo was supposed to have 25 minutes flight time out of the box. I never got more than 20. Once I added the gimbal my flight time dropped to 14 minutes. Now almost a year later my batteries only support 12 minutes tops. I'd like to replace those batteries, but am hoping for an improved design. How about some AR Goggles that work with the app? How about object avoidance? Instead of making up excuses for 3DR and why Solo is losing the drone competition, how about we discuss the improvements we'd like to see?

 

[Greg Parker]

One of the selling points for the Solo was that you wouldn't have to buy a new bird each year because it would be upgrade-able. What upgrades are available? If nothing is announced at NAB this may be another unfulfilled commitment by 3DR.

 

[fpvsteve]

Greg, actually it is pretty open to DIY and to extend by plenty of other gear and to develop your own stuff on top.
- other cameras
- site scan
- Lidar
- other GPS
- parachutes
- precision landing
- ....
on the software side:
- Arducopter
- Dronekit
- smartshots
......
and many more things.
Yes you require some hardware and software development skills to do such things. But there is no more open platform available on the market today to my knowledge.

 

[JonW]

Best marketing tool is the fact that you are buying a drone and don't need to buy another one year later to upgrade if you want new features.

This was one of the marketing promises that hooked me at the product launch, but it is becoming irrelevant. I saw it as a way to keep Solo up to date for maybe 2-3 years. The concept of "future proof" high tech devices is really an oxymoron, especially in a field where more competitors are popping up and making leaps and bounds forward in hardware and software based features and improvements. It's like with smart phones. They give you occasional improvements and new features from time to time with system updates. But eventually you need the latest new phone if you want the most up to date performance. It's the same with drones. Sure, it's nice to get some new features like MPCC now and then through firmware updates, but that can only carry you so far into the future before a major hardware upgrade is necessary to remain up to date with the competition. And on top of it all, 3DR really kind of squandered almost a whole year of "future proof" just trying to make the Solo do what they promised at NAB. It was more like "past proofing." The best upgrade that 3DR could offer me right now is a set of 4 new improved reliable motors that don't introduce shake and vibration into the bird. You can't fix that with a firmware update.

 

[stampbags13]

Greg, actually it is pretty open to DIY and to extend by plenty of other gear and to develop your own stuff on top.
- other cameras
- site scan
- Lidar
- other GPS
- parachutes
- precision landing
- ....
on the software side:
- Arducopter
- Dronekit
- smartshots
......
and many more things.
Yes you require some hardware and software development skills to do such things. But there is no more open platform available on the market today to my knowledge.

So true some people I think solo is just to advanced for them! and 3DR will have new stuff very soon!!!

 

[stampbags13]

dji p4 active track could not even keep up with a guy walking backwards and moving left or right it lost track of him! youtube on Watched chanel that review proved that the p4 was far from ready to be released!!!

 

[EyeWingsuit]

So, The Answer is NO. 3DR has done none of these improvements. The most interesting thing that's come out of them after the pre-orders got filled is an occasional 20% discount or two for one battery deal. I think it's time us users start to press 3DR for some of the promised upgrades, heck how about just make the promised performance standards, Solo was supposed to have 25 minutes flight time out of the box. I never got more than 20. Once I added the gimbal my flight time dropped to 14 minutes. Now almost a year later my batteries only support 12 minutes tops. I'd like to replace those batteries, but am hoping for an improved design. How about some AR Goggles that work with the app? How about object avoidance? Instead of making up excuses for 3DR and why Solo is losing the drone competition, how about we discuss the improvements we'd like to see?

Who says they're "losing the drone competition?"
They perhaps don't sell as many recreational drones, but for professional use (from Canada to LA, Las Vegas to Seattle) I've seen more Solo on mid-size shoots than Phantoms, and moreover, Solo dominates the sub 5000.00 category for commercial/enterprise use due to the number of FLIR cameras, live feed straight out of the box with no mod. 3DR are very appealing to the commercial market due to open source, field replaceable, and easily programmed for repeatable flight.

 

[pyrate]

So, The Answer is NO. 3DR has done none of these improvements. The most interesting thing that's come out of them after the pre-orders got filled is an occasional 20% discount or two for one battery deal. I think it's time us users start to press 3DR for some of the promised upgrades, heck how about just make the promised performance standards, Solo was supposed to have 25 minutes flight time out of the box. I never got more than 20. Once I added the gimbal my flight time dropped to 14 minutes. Now almost a year later my batteries only support 12 minutes tops. I'd like to replace those batteries, but am hoping for an improved design. How about some AR Goggles that work with the app? How about object avoidance? Instead of making up excuses for 3DR and why Solo is losing the drone competition, how about we discuss the improvements we'd like to see?

Let is know how you "users" pressing 3DR works out for you.

Solo is advancing, maybe not so the out of the box gang would notice, they are better served by DJI

Plus Pixhawk 2 will spread its wings soon.

 

[fpvsteve]

The best upgrade that 3DR could offer me right now is a set of 4 new improved reliable motors that don't introduce shake and vibration into the bird. You can't fix that with a firmware update.

LOL. Maybe you try it with prop balancing.