UPDATE - I highly do not recommend getting this dongle. It will cause more problems than good. Get my DJI Drone Cheat Sheets and Luts here - dmprovisuals.com
Looks like the on board antennas are directional. They need to add a separate omnidirectional antenna to the top panel that's removed and not use the on board antennas.
I wonder if flying without the cover plate over the dongle would make any noticable difference? I know it isn't practical, but maybe the fact that it's incased weakens the signal.
Hello, we are very sorry for the unpleasant experience you have. We attach great importance to the user experience. In order to better analyze this issue, could you please export the aircraft log after using DJI Cellular Dongle 2? We will convey it to our engineers to further locate and analyze this issue. Exporting Flight Controller Aircraft Data (1) Download DJI Assistant 2 from the official website. (2) Launch DJI Assistant 2. Within 20 seconds after the aircraft is powered on, connect it to DJI Assistant 2. (3) After DJI Assistant 2 recognizes the aircraft, choose "Log Export", and then click "Save to local". (4) The final exported data are ".dat" files.
@@uptowndisco2 Your feedback is incredibly valuable to us, and expressing your needs and desires as a consumer can contribute to shaping future products and features. Thank you for sharing your perspective.
Hey DJI.. Do you have an agreement for hobbyists with the CAA.. Or do we need a license from OFCOM to be legal? Do we need express permission from OFCOM to use your dongle?
@@whotshisface Hi there. Thank you for sharing your concern with us. Rest assured, we will check with our relevant team and will revert back to you. We appreciate your kind patience.
The possibility that the dongle doesn't work as well as it should, is that there may be a few reasons for this. 1. The location of where the Cell masts are located/installed. 2. How many people at the current time of using the dongle are connected all at the same time to whichever mast the DJI dongle is connected to. (What time of the day?) 3. What data speeds you would or should be getting, due to how many people are connected to that cell mast at that certain time of the day/location. 4. The infrastructure of the network that you are using. (How fast and reliable are they?) 5. Try a different network/sim card and try again in the same area.
I’m in Sweden and the Dongle 2 is working amazingly good. Are you in UK your 4G net is rubbish. It’s not the Dongle 2 fault. So blame your 4G provider not DJI!!
@@Scoobadive köpte den på DJI store. Hade lite otur med DHL så det tog några extra dagar men DJI kompenserade med att dra av 30€. Annars brukar jag köpa DJI prylar på Power i Sverige. Hittills 0,8Gb per flygning om 80% är 4G transmission. Man märker på flygtiden att 4G modulen drar en del ström.
I got mine today. Stuck an EE nano sim in it. Putting the dongle in the drone took less than 5 minutes. I have tested mine in an area where historically i have had Occusync connection problems. Flew and as Occusync dropped out 4g came straight in. No loss of any control and no degradation of video. Mine works far better than I was expecting. I have no problems with it whatsoever. **EDITED TO ADD** Took my Air 3 out on the way home from work this afternoon. Flew without Occusync and the 4g connection kept me in control and with no loss of video quality. Brought the drone back to me and when Occusync was able to re establish connection the switch back over was completely flawless. I really only have extremely positive experiences with the dongle 2 in the Air 3 😊
the guy is complaining about the dongle but the real issue here is the netwrok he decided to choose. he went for GiffGaff. horrible mistake to make as O2(the network giffgaff piggybacks off) is shocking. Best option is what you did and go for EE. EE offer the best 4G coverage by far and im able to get 4G with EE in places ive never been able get whilst using O2.
I have been happy with mine for the last month , I have bought a second one so I dont need to keep sharing one dongle with the Mini 4 Pro and the Air 3 , I have not even used 4 gig of data in the last 4 weeks since it only kicks over to 4g when needed .
I cannot shake off the 4G signal with mine , more checking needed and different city locations, why did you think DJI supplied a screwdriver 😂 plastic bit holds in the antenna plugs when used in the Air 3
Just received my dongle kit for my Mini 4 Pro, using a sky sim and flying over East London, lets just say my only limiting factor was battery. The system for me works almost flawlessly, the only time I had any 4G issues was at max height (120m) and in sport mode, slow down and fly lower and I zero issues....now as for the legality of it all......
bro literally never force open a cover, if it doesnt easily come off then there is for sure a different method for doing it, there is literally a guide of how to install it online if you just took your time with it
Who lives in the UK and thought anything that uses mobile connectivity would be reliable 😂 I can barely get decent 4G in rural areas, built up areas are not too bad but can still be really spotty
Hm, probably the issue is that there are no high building in the area and cellular antennas are set to cover a low altitude (they are always pointing slightly towards the ground, but probably here they are set very low and you are too high to get a signal. You should try flying in an more urban area where antennas are set on 60-80m height.
Tested in Greece with COSMOTE network works flawlessly! In 4 pro he reached 5 km at a very low altitude and among rocks! The problem is... we want a bigger battery!!!
Did you connect the antenna leads to the dongle? The little clip is a spacer/retainer that keeps the dongle antenna leads from pulling out when installed in an Air 3. The clip isn't needed when using the dongle in the Mini 4 mount. Lastly, it could be that particular spot has poor cellular service.
@@uptowndisco2 - i live in the USA. I bought a Dongle 2 & the Mini 4 Pro mount just to check it out. As I anticipated, I get a "Enhanced Transmission not available" here. The Dongle does connect right up to T-Mobile's network & the status light stays green continuously. Really hope DJI activates it here in the USA. Been requesting this feature for years.
Quick question? Did u activate the dji service that is like 29£ a year? I watch another guy yesterday who lives in Ireland and his Dongle worked amazing. No signal loss, absolutly no problem with the device. And also make sure that all the connections are pluged in their slots.
So just keep flying. The fact that the 4G bar is constantly changing is completely normal. You can easily fly up to 10 kilometers with it. Here in Germany, the 4G signal is very strong!
I haven't used this on my Air3 yet. But when I had the MIni 3 pro, I had one that I was using and it worked absolutely perfect. So not sure why this one isn't working well.. from your own experience. I will try and get one and use on my Air 3 and check it out.
I think you need to get clued up on how cellular networks operate. If the area you are flying your drone has poor 4g coverage, of course the dongle will be affected. DJI actually tell you to keep on 2.4Ghz as this has a better range over 5Ghz but has a slower transmission speed. My advice is to do some homework in the area you intend to fly for 4g connectivity. All the gear and no idea
I’ve read at least 100 comments saying this dongle is absolutely amazing vs 1 dude saying it’s a disappointment. I’m gonna listen to the masses over 1 dude that may either not know what he’s talking about or doing something completely wrong. I’ve watched probably 20-25 videos about this dongle and this dude is the ONLY person that says it doesn’t work. EVERYONE else says it’s absolutely amazing
@@ExcelCannabisLimited he's not flying far enough. The signal is trying to grab the remote plus 4g. And he's probably on a iPhone. I use Samsung and if u stretch the distance it'll work great
The problem here is flying away from the cell towers. The closer to the beach, the worse it gets. There also might be something of non agreement between the controllers WiFi and the iPhones hotspot because that happens sometimes when the hotspot just doesn’t provide internet
I agree needs more testing. I wish DJI would test products in each region to determine ahead of time which carriers work best in each region. This would help customers greatly and really reduce the negative impact when things get sketchy.
@@SlaughterHausD and how to determine best carrier? There are multiple phone carriers here in the US that cover my area and the only way I have found is to try them each and compare. Costly and a pain in the *$$. The only decent coverage is crazy expensive. Was paying almost $200 US for a single phone and 2 cellular tablets. All the cheaper options wouldn't work with the tablets. I'm sure if I lived in the city things might be a bit different but there ya go. That's my experience with cellular and if they become available in the US I will wait to see how the big boys figure it out. ;)
The possibility that the dongle doesn't work as well as it should, is that there may be a few reasons for this. 1. The location of where the Cell masts are located/installed. 2. How many people at the current time of using the dongle are connected all at the same time to whichever mast the DJI dongle is connected to. (What time of the day?) 3. What data speeds you would or should be getting, due to how many people are connected to that cell mast at that certain time of the day/location. 4. The infrastructure of the network that you are using. (How fast and reliable are they?) 5. Try a different network/sim card and try again in the same area.
I’ve been using the Dongle 2 for quite a while now, and I’m very satisfied with it. Of course, it’s not perfect. Occasionally, I hit a blind spot, causing my drone to initiate Return to Home (RTH). In most cases, the signal reconnects after a few seconds, allowing me to cancel RTH and continue my flight. Naturally, much depends on the mobile network. I’ve found it’s better to fly at lower altitudes when using the dongle, as mobile networks are designed to serve people on the ground, with antennas directed downward. Flying above 30 meters can sometimes lead to losing the mobile network signal. For me (here in Poland), it works best when I’m flying around 10 meters AGL.
The little black plastic 'plug' is for use with the DJI Cellular Dongle when you use it in the DJI Air 3. It fits over the two antenna connections and helps to keep them in place. It is not used in the DJI Mini 4 installation. Equally the screwdriver included with the Dongle is used on the Air 3 in order to remove the cover. It is not used on the Mini 4 Pro installation. The installation instructions are awful. The installation kit for use with the Mini 4 Pro includes an essential USB-C interface lead. Mine did not work (faulty lead). The Mini 4 Pro 'holder' hides the LED on the Dongle and in daylight makes it nearly impossible to see what it's doing. On my second flight with the Mini 4 Pro, I lost 4G connection between my phone and the RC2 controller, although the 4G connection on my phone was good. i.e. The 'hotspot' connection between the DJI RC2 and my iPhone 15 Pro Max failed.
@@hamradioop5777 I never have great results hotspotting to an iPhone even the one I have now , I tested an Android phone it was 100% constantly linked if used as a hotspot , dunno why apple is not the same it even takes ages to show itself as a hotspot
Hey thank you so much for your honest review! You should get in touch with the welsh RUclipsr ian aka Mads tech to agree to open up the dongle and check it with his spectrum analyser. Maybe this would benefit the both of your channels and we get a deep insight into 4g link quality from DJI e.g. bad antennas, antenna placement, wrong 4g bandwidth for EU customers…. What do you think?
In the UK you can’t just fit a dongle to your drone you need a licence from Ofcom and you need a drone sim card like the ones that EE sell, that’s why yours is not working.
I have the original 4G dongle, which never worked for me in Mexico, as I got it after it got limited for use only in China. Is that limit now lifted in general or only for the dongle 2?
You meant to say controller will connect to the phone over wifi, not 4G. There is no SIM card in the controller) It can only communicate wirelessly over wifi.
Im testing dongle v1 on mavic 3 pro in europe. Have poor connection of 1bar in red of 4g. Its very laggy, bad experience. In phone I have full 4g signal, on drone only 1 bar... servers are bussy of dji? We need more servers. Hope its not only in china
Yeah i would also day its down to not having enough 4G towers in the area. Especially flying towards the coast, i dont see any towers out at sea just to point out. I live near birmingham and it can easily traverse far and beyond a built up area but with O4 alone it would cut out within the first 500m. Also using EE is the best for internet. If using sky, virgin, even O2 in some places just isn't as good as having an EE sim. Hope that helps you buddy
It’s not just a case of getting a good data plan. You need a SIM card designed to be used with it, along with written permission and a licence from OFCOM. ruclips.net/user/liveqTcEessky5c?si=ym3ghLqcjD6Qn_N2
Had my first go on mine this yesterday evening in Ireland and it worked flawlessly apart from me walking away from my phone that i was hot spotting from . I am loving it at the minute.
I've had massive problems with my cellphone whole my drone was sending data to my rc2.. it more or less blocked the signal of the cellphone so much i couldn't browse the internet. I bet that the occusync 4 is interfering with the 4G antenna.
Did you switch off the Pin number request on the sim card? To test if the sim card is connected to the 4g network, call the number from your phone. If you get the announcement, that this number is not available, the dongle is not logged into the 4G network. The display of signal bars on the screen is not proof of a connection. Like on cellphones it just shows existing 4G networks and nothing more. The dongle connects to a DJI server as your RC-2 does over the Phone Hotspot W-lan. On the server your drone and RC-2 are matched to exchange data. If the server doesn't work with british IP connections, it also won't work. IMHO you have a connection problem, either with the network sim, or with the DJI server.
Do cellular towers actually transmit straight up into the air? I'm assuming the Dongle receives 4G from a tower , or is the controller sending the 4G it is receiving from your phone? I know there are coverage maps that show coverage on the ground, but I wonder if there is a chart to see the vertical coverage? I'm wondering if your hotspot was kind of weak on your phone when you were paired with the RC2. When i do updates I use my phone's hotspot. The connection is not the best and the signal fluctuates horribly.
This whole thing seems to be very complex to set up anyways. As I understand I would have to have get another SIM card for the dongle….which would incur another monthly charge. Nope…sorry….occusync 4 is good enough for me.
I have a question is is the Mini 3 Pro obsolete now I still own one and just got an update but do they plan on doing anything different with it or is it just pretty much a throwaway should I sell it and is a Mini 4 Pro worth it
This would operate well in built up areas such as cities where a line of site could be difficult to maintain in low attitude so the 4g connectivity should overcome these issues providing cellular mask are within range to relay the signal back to your controller/phone
@@donologyas mentioned previously I have tested this on giffgaff which uses 02s network, EE which and recently Vodafone, all are hit and miss. The user shouldn’t have to spend money trying each network to hope it may work. It’s going to heavily depend on the location so it’s a flawed product
@@donology lol dude what is your problem, I’m not going to make 5 videos on every network SIM card I test. I have proper videos to make but if you feel you can do better then crack on
I ve seen another video and it worked great. Maybe you installed it wrong or it’s faulty? It seem that the signal from the ocusink and G4 were both going in and out at the same time. Anyhow I hope you get it sorted. I enjoy your videos
Do you think using the 4G dongle in a place with no 4G coverage could be the problem because the area doesn't look heavily populated why would carriers invest in towers
Not all 4G is the same frequency my phone has 4 band 4G but I have a watch that only has single band 4G so my watch has a harder time getting signal. I am guessing the DJI dongle is the same way its soo small it cant be 4 band
If you don't have good 4G signal in the area then this is to be expected. I'd partially understand being upset if there were no issues with signal in that area but I'm guessing there are definitely 4G issues in the area. Have you tried it anywhere else where you know for certain that signals aren't an issue?
@@knightcreature I tried the V2on my Mavic 3 but the Dongle would not stay on a steady green status LED It went as far as green flashing, might check for a firmware update on the Mavic and controller, maybe mine is on older versions
I find it strange because a antenna gets connected with the mavic 3 but with my setup all I have is just the dongle and usb cable. No extra antenna to plug in
Man... Psst... You need to have a sim that corresponds to TOWERS in the area you are flying in. Also, generic sim? Really? Cost? The only people that should have interest in this are commercial users. No hobbyist needs to fly further than O4 allows. That's just bananas...
Hi, Darren, Thanks for this vid, I was tempted with this dongle but after watching your vid, I'm def not bothering just yet. I've watched your channel for a couple of years now and I totally trust what you have to say, No doubt you'll have many ridiculous comments from people, but thanks again for being so honest. Love your cheat sheets too! Very useful for apprehensive flyers like myself! 🙂
Was looking at your video and a possible problem is your connectors are touching the little black piece will clipon keeping connectors square and clip cables . Not sure it will help but maybe either that or a faulty dongle mine has been flawless
All this is in the instructions. Mobile masts don't point into the sky, they point down. The dongle needs 4mbit/s to work - they recommend using the same mobile network - not a virtual operator like smarty or Tesco/Asda - for both Sims. This is not for flying miles away, it's for flying low in congested WiFi areas, which is where mobile networks work perfectly.
Yeah I’ve since tested and EE and voda, still hit and miss. I also don’t encourage flying drones under 4G masts just to get a good signal so really it’s a bizarre product
Hi there! I have both the Mini 4 and the Air 3. I dind't had enough time to do some proper testing since I've just received my Dongle. But for the moment I've observed the same symptoms on my Air 3, while on the Mini 4 the singal remains strong and stable (flying on the same spot, of course). At first I thought that the wiring of the antennas of my Air 3 was defective, since the dongle works perfectly with the Mini 4. But since I have not been able to fly in other locations with the Air 3 I did not give it more consideration... until I saw this video and I see that the same thing is happening to you. Hardware design flaw in the Air 3 hardware (antenna connection to the dongle, perhaps? Software flaw that will be fixed with a future update? Let's hope it's that last one....
When's the air 3s due to come out because you usually get one to trail before everyone else. Also you go quiet on your channel when you've got something new 🤔🤔🤔🤔
Videos might go quiet but I might be editing in the background for days and weeks 👀 editing takes so long when you want it to be high quality. In regards to the first question I know nothing…..
Am interested in the dongle for the air 3 but I am surprised you didn’t know how to install it, it’s been known for a little while on a few RUclipsrs channels how to install it so I am surprised you destroyed yours… oh well 😢
A dongle might make sense but 4G/5G coverage is inconsistent; depending on where you live. There are three (more actually) cellular providers in Thailand and none provide coverage everywhere.
I got mine on Monday, new sim and monthly data plan. Tried one flight and signal dropped and RTH😟 Thought maybe I had done something wrong or not got right sim of plan. Really disappointed a complete waste of money.
Have you watched the Geeksvana video about this? Use of the dongle in the UK without a license from Ofcom is illegal. You also need to have a specific SIM for use at altitude (not able to be bought without the Ofcom license) because otherwise it tries to connect to multiple cell towers at once (which may explain your signal drop outs). Connecting to multiple towers can cause network overload which is why the drive specific SIM operates differently to a standard SIM. Always wise to my check these things before using them.
Well this is also being sold in Poland (European Union 🤣) and we don't care if this is legal or not (I have searched everywhere and it looks like we don't have any rules for using SIM cards in drones at altitude so we can use any, why not? LMAO), it just should work. Also I have never heard about sim cards that work specifically at altitude, lol?!
i have to sat that here in the UK the 4G and 5G networks are hit and miss. Venture into the countryside or coastal areas away from large towns and cities and the network signals are appalling .. personally i would be tempted to blame the UK network and not DJI
I think you would need a Data plan form one of the big 4 networks O2, Voda, 3, and EE as they have the biggest bandwidth for Data. I can’t see myself using this dongle I think it’s a lot of money for something that I’ll only uses a handful of time a month.
What a load. What about line of site. I’m sticking to what I have. Also does it take the Mini 4 over weight? Great information Darren. Keep them coming please. ❤
Thanks for doing this 👍 I certainly won’t be rushing to buy (& subscribe to another data plan!) and one thing to note of course, is that it will put the Mini 4 Pro’s weight over 250g Edit: have you seen Geeksvana’s video tonight? The dongle is pretty much illegal here in the UK for most of us. To use one, you must have a special licence issued by OFCOM. You also need written permission from one of the UK’s four phone network companies.. and use one of their special SIMs meant for drones. You cannot use a regular sim card.
The only thing I could see about having this dongle is if you were doing a job with an Air 3 in an area where there are many buildings and trees and you need a good connection. I’ve had little in the way of any problem with the connection with my RC and most of the things I film are less the 500m. So I don’t see myself needing a dongle at the moment.
I'm yet to buy my first drone and still undecided what one to get but this dongle seems like a complete gimmick and waste of money considering the mini 4 pro I supposed to have all the bells and whistles . . Still confused what to buy
Hello Darren, investigate with Gavin, that's also in England, I think Ireland, he's also using it and comments that it's wonderful, possibly something went wrong when you tried to open it without removing the screws
I saw the DJI advertisement for the dongle 2 this morning and thought that here is something I need to buy but after watching your video I'll give this a pass. Thanks for the review.
I haven't seen those results but I guess it will heavily depend on the area flown, in the area I flew the 4g signal on my phone was excellent and several 4g towers in the area so its very hit and miss. I'll do more testing
@@DMProductions I think when he did it, he purposely flew in an area with heavy trees, so the Occusync 4 cut out at around 800m-1000m and then the 4G signal kicked in exactly how it was expected to. may even be worth reaching out to him direct and get some feedback and see if there is something amiss
interesting video. I have a couple of questions for you 1. which service provider is your mobile phone with 2. which service provider is your sim card with that you are using for the dongle the reason i ask is because I know here in Australia some service providers for mobiles are better than other providers, and the best thing i have found is to use Mobile Coverage maps which gives a really good indication of which provider i should be using
Lol. You've reached that age where you can say ******** though. I'm at that older (51) age where I'm too old for trouble, but still have enough time left to care😂@@uptowndisco2
Good video Darren! Now, I don't know why this worked so poorly for you in this test (Gavin HR as I'm sure you're aware, had a better experience), but as to your overall conclusion, I'd have to agree. The use case here for non-professionals, especially without certifications and waivers to fly beyond visual line of sight, is very weak. I'm sure you could use this to zip around high rise buildings in Hong Kong without worrying about buildings blocking the signal - the question is, would you want to?
Judging from the comments below and other Videos and Posts, it seems like there is a specific problem with your setup in particular an not with all dongles in general.
UPDATE - I highly do not recommend getting this dongle. It will cause more problems than good.
Get my DJI Drone Cheat Sheets and Luts here - dmprovisuals.com
Looks like the on board antennas are directional. They need to add a separate omnidirectional antenna to the top panel that's removed and not use the on board antennas.
I wonder if flying without the cover plate over the dongle would make any noticable difference? I know it isn't practical, but maybe the fact that it's incased weakens the signal.
@@addictedangler4770 I think phone manufacturers might have worked out if plastic repels 4g by now.
@@addictedangler4770Pretty sure a little bit of plastic will have about as much affect on a 4G signal as a damp squid 😉
Did you get a UAS Radio Operator licence from ofcom? If not this is illegal.
Hello, we are very sorry for the unpleasant experience you have. We attach great importance to the user experience. In order to better analyze this issue, could you please export the aircraft log after using DJI Cellular Dongle 2? We will convey it to our engineers to further locate and analyze this issue.
Exporting Flight Controller Aircraft Data
(1) Download DJI Assistant 2 from the official website.
(2) Launch DJI Assistant 2. Within 20 seconds after the aircraft is powered on, connect it to DJI Assistant 2.
(3) After DJI Assistant 2 recognizes the aircraft, choose "Log Export", and then click "Save to local".
(4) The final exported data are ".dat" files.
DJI your 4G Dongle works 100% for me 🙂
@@uptowndisco2 Your feedback is incredibly valuable to us, and expressing your needs and desires as a consumer can contribute to shaping future products and features. Thank you for sharing your perspective.
Hey DJI.. Do you have an agreement for hobbyists with the CAA.. Or do we need a license from OFCOM to be legal? Do we need express permission from OFCOM to use your dongle?
@@whotshisface Hi there. Thank you for sharing your concern with us. Rest assured, we will check with our relevant team and will revert back to you. We appreciate your kind patience.
The possibility that the dongle doesn't work as well as it should, is that there may be a few reasons for this.
1. The location of where the Cell masts are located/installed.
2. How many people at the current time of using the dongle are connected all at the same time to whichever mast the DJI dongle is connected to. (What time of the day?)
3. What data speeds you would or should be getting, due to how many people are connected to that cell mast at that certain time of the day/location.
4. The infrastructure of the network that you are using. (How fast and reliable are they?)
5. Try a different network/sim card and try again in the same area.
I’m in Sweden and the Dongle 2 is working amazingly good. Are you in UK your 4G net is rubbish. It’s not the Dongle 2 fault. So blame your 4G provider not DJI!!
Básicamente estoy de acuerdo en que el problema es de su proveedor de 4g, pero no me parece del todo correcto tu modo de comunicarlo.
Goodness…chill out!
Vart köpter du den och hur mycket data gör den av med ?
@@Scoobadive köpte den på DJI store. Hade lite otur med DHL så det tog några extra dagar men DJI kompenserade med att dra av 30€. Annars brukar jag köpa DJI prylar på Power i Sverige. Hittills 0,8Gb per flygning om 80% är 4G transmission. Man märker på flygtiden att 4G modulen drar en del ström.
Maybe I’ll have to fly to Sweden then in that case every time I want to use the 4G dongle
I got mine today. Stuck an EE nano sim in it. Putting the dongle in the drone took less than 5 minutes. I have tested mine in an area where historically i have had Occusync connection problems. Flew and as Occusync dropped out 4g came straight in. No loss of any control and no degradation of video. Mine works far better than I was expecting. I have no problems with it whatsoever.
**EDITED TO ADD**
Took my Air 3 out on the way home from work this afternoon. Flew without Occusync and the 4g connection kept me in control and with no loss of video quality. Brought the drone back to me and when Occusync was able to re establish connection the switch back over was completely flawless. I really only have extremely positive experiences with the dongle 2 in the Air 3 😊
the guy is complaining about the dongle but the real issue here is the netwrok he decided to choose. he went for GiffGaff. horrible mistake to make as O2(the network giffgaff piggybacks off) is shocking. Best option is what you did and go for EE. EE offer the best 4G coverage by far and im able to get 4G with EE in places ive never been able get whilst using O2.
I have been happy with mine for the last month , I have bought a second one so I dont need to keep sharing one dongle with the Mini 4 Pro and the Air 3 , I have not even used 4 gig of data in the last 4 weeks since it only kicks over to 4g when needed .
Thanks
Thank you bro 🙏
I cannot shake off the 4G signal with mine , more checking needed and different city locations, why did you think DJI supplied a screwdriver 😂 plastic bit holds in the antenna plugs when used in the Air 3
Just received my dongle kit for my Mini 4 Pro, using a sky sim and flying over East London, lets just say my only limiting factor was battery. The system for me works almost flawlessly, the only time I had any 4G issues was at max height (120m) and in sport mode, slow down and fly lower and I zero issues....now as for the legality of it all......
yep GAVINHR youtuber in UK shows it working fine too - this guy doesn't know how to use it lol
bro literally never force open a cover, if it doesnt easily come off then there is for sure a different method for doing it, there is literally a guide of how to install it online if you just took your time with it
brute force sometimes wins lol
@@DMProductions Thats what hammers were invented for bud.👌
Bro nahh 🤣🤣🤣🤣 you just destroyed your drone @@DMProductions
Who lives in the UK and thought anything that uses mobile connectivity would be reliable 😂
I can barely get decent 4G in rural areas, built up areas are not too bad but can still be really spotty
GAVINHR youtube video shows a perfect cutover to 4G in UK - I think this guy has bought a cheap data plan
I was once in UK and you have gsm network coverage there like in third world countries.... drama.
I am flying with it for a week in Greece and it works amazingly
what network provider are you using my friend? i am expecting mine to arive here in Crete.
Hm, probably the issue is that there are no high building in the area and cellular antennas are set to cover a low altitude (they are always pointing slightly towards the ground, but probably here they are set very low and you are too high to get a signal. You should try flying in an more urban area where antennas are set on 60-80m height.
I was looking for this exact comment before I would write one myself. I think this is the issue here.
You got an issue mate, doesn't mean its like this for Everyone!
Tested in Greece with COSMOTE network works flawlessly! In 4 pro he reached 5 km at a very low altitude and among rocks! The problem is... we want a bigger battery!!!
Get an Air 3 🙂
5:25 bro, how do these additional cameras work that you have on the left at the bottom in the corner???
Did you connect the antenna leads to the dongle? The little clip is a spacer/retainer that keeps the dongle antenna leads from pulling out when installed in an Air 3. The clip isn't needed when using the dongle in the Mini 4 mount. Lastly, it could be that particular spot has poor cellular service.
I have bought a second dongle since it worked well for me over the last month , that saves me sharing 1 dongle between 2 drones.
@@uptowndisco2 - i live in the USA. I bought a Dongle 2 & the Mini 4 Pro mount just to check it out. As I anticipated, I get a "Enhanced Transmission not available" here. The Dongle does connect right up to T-Mobile's network & the status light stays green continuously. Really hope DJI activates it here in the USA. Been requesting this feature for years.
@@DirtyBird bummer , I hope you get the option to use it soon .
Quick question? Did u activate the dji service that is like 29£ a year? I watch another guy yesterday who lives in Ireland and his Dongle worked amazing. No signal loss, absolutly no problem with the device. And also make sure that all the connections are pluged in their slots.
only in year 2 you start paying.
GAVINHR youtuber in UK shows it working perfectly too
So just keep flying. The fact that the 4G bar is constantly changing is completely normal. You can easily fly up to 10 kilometers with it. Here in Germany, the 4G signal is very strong!
I haven't used this on my Air3 yet. But when I had the MIni 3 pro, I had one that I was using and it worked absolutely perfect. So not sure why this one isn't working well.. from your own experience. I will try and get one and use on my Air 3 and check it out.
I think you need to get clued up on how cellular networks operate. If the area you are flying your drone has poor 4g coverage, of course the dongle will be affected. DJI actually tell you to keep on 2.4Ghz as this has a better range over 5Ghz but has a slower transmission speed. My advice is to do some homework in the area you intend to fly for 4g connectivity. All the gear and no idea
I am in UK what sim card would you recommend ?
Ive used this in the us for a year no problems even though they say its locked it worked. I can sit in the basement and fly to town
I’ve read at least 100 comments saying this dongle is absolutely amazing vs 1 dude saying it’s a disappointment. I’m gonna listen to the masses over 1 dude that may either not know what he’s talking about or doing something completely wrong. I’ve watched probably 20-25 videos about this dongle and this dude is the ONLY person that says it doesn’t work. EVERYONE else says it’s absolutely amazing
@@ExcelCannabisLimited he's not flying far enough. The signal is trying to grab the remote plus 4g. And he's probably on a iPhone. I use Samsung and if u stretch the distance it'll work great
Did you renew for the dongle service already?
Where are you in the U.S because I live in Massachusetts and it doesn't work
The problem here is flying away from the cell towers. The closer to the beach, the worse it gets. There also might be something of non agreement between the controllers WiFi and the iPhones hotspot because that happens sometimes when the hotspot just doesn’t provide internet
I agree needs more testing. I wish DJI would test products in each region to determine ahead of time which carriers work best in each region. This would help customers greatly and really reduce the negative impact when things get sketchy.
The user is responsible for purchasing a sim card that works on the best carrier in their area.
@@SlaughterHausD and how to determine best carrier? There are multiple phone carriers here in the US that cover my area and the only way I have found is to try them each and compare. Costly and a pain in the *$$. The only decent coverage is crazy expensive. Was paying almost $200 US for a single phone and 2 cellular tablets. All the cheaper options wouldn't work with the tablets. I'm sure if I lived in the city things might be a bit different but there ya go. That's my experience with cellular and if they become available in the US I will wait to see how the big boys figure it out. ;)
@@mpreed62 so you expect DJI to front the cost in EVERY region when you could easily do the research yourself? be realistic.
I think you should've mentioned that using this dongle puts the Mini pro 4 drone over its weight limit.
Will this work in Canada
The possibility that the dongle doesn't work as well as it should, is that there may be a few reasons for this.
1. The location of where the Cell masts are located/installed.
2. How many people at the current time of using the dongle are connected all at the same time to whichever mast the DJI dongle is connected to. (What time of the day?)
3. What data speeds you would or should be getting, due to how many people are connected to that cell mast at that certain time of the day/location.
4. The infrastructure of the network that you are using. (How fast and reliable are they?)
5. Try a different network/sim card and try again in the same area.
I’ve been using the Dongle 2 for quite a while now, and I’m very satisfied with it. Of course, it’s not perfect. Occasionally, I hit a blind spot, causing my drone to initiate Return to Home (RTH). In most cases, the signal reconnects after a few seconds, allowing me to cancel RTH and continue my flight. Naturally, much depends on the mobile network. I’ve found it’s better to fly at lower altitudes when using the dongle, as mobile networks are designed to serve people on the ground, with antennas directed downward. Flying above 30 meters can sometimes lead to losing the mobile network signal. For me (here in Poland), it works best when I’m flying around 10 meters AGL.
The little black plastic 'plug' is for use with the DJI Cellular Dongle when you use it in the DJI Air 3. It fits over the two antenna connections and helps to keep them in place. It is not used in the DJI Mini 4 installation. Equally the screwdriver included with the Dongle is used on the Air 3 in order to remove the cover. It is not used on the Mini 4 Pro installation. The installation instructions are awful. The installation kit for use with the Mini 4 Pro includes an essential USB-C interface lead. Mine did not work (faulty lead). The Mini 4 Pro 'holder' hides the LED on the Dongle and in daylight makes it nearly impossible to see what it's doing. On my second flight with the Mini 4 Pro, I lost 4G connection between my phone and the RC2 controller, although the 4G connection on my phone was good. i.e. The 'hotspot' connection between the DJI RC2 and my iPhone 15 Pro Max failed.
@@hamradioop5777 I never have great results hotspotting to an iPhone even the one I have now , I tested an Android phone it was 100% constantly linked if used as a hotspot , dunno why apple is not the same it even takes ages to show itself as a hotspot
Hey thank you so much for your honest review! You should get in touch with the welsh RUclipsr ian aka Mads tech to agree to open up the dongle and check it with his spectrum analyser. Maybe this would benefit the both of your channels and we get a deep insight into 4g link quality from DJI e.g. bad antennas, antenna placement, wrong 4g bandwidth for EU customers…. What do you think?
In the UK you can’t just fit a dongle to your drone you need a licence from Ofcom and you need a drone sim card like the ones that EE sell, that’s why yours is not working.
I have the original 4G dongle, which never worked for me in Mexico, as I got it after it got limited for use only in China. Is that limit now lifted in general or only for the dongle 2?
You meant to say controller will connect to the phone over wifi, not 4G. There is no SIM card in the controller) It can only communicate wirelessly over wifi.
Will this be able to be used in my ae86pro max
Im testing dongle v1 on mavic 3 pro in europe. Have poor connection of 1bar in red of 4g. Its very laggy, bad experience. In phone I have full 4g signal, on drone only 1 bar... servers are bussy of dji? We need more servers. Hope its not only in china
Mine works fantastic in Australia with zero dropouts. Could it be your service provider or maybe bad 4G coverage?
Did you damage the antennas during installation? Other videos seem to show more success....
Thanks for sharing your experience
Thanks for watching!
So does it switch fully to 4G transmission at launch or does it switch to 4G when it loses RC signal transmission?
@@QuickflixWifhat it switches to 4G on loss of RC signal , so you won’t be constantly using a lot of Data
Yeah i would also day its down to not having enough 4G towers in the area. Especially flying towards the coast, i dont see any towers out at sea just to point out. I live near birmingham and it can easily traverse far and beyond a built up area but with O4 alone it would cut out within the first 500m. Also using EE is the best for internet. If using sky, virgin, even O2 in some places just isn't as good as having an EE sim. Hope that helps you buddy
I'm in the UK I'm buying it lots of other UK youtuber using it fine - get a proper data plan from a proper provider (EE, O2 etc) not a cheap one!
It’s not just a case of getting a good data plan. You need a SIM card designed to be used with it, along with written permission and a licence from OFCOM.
ruclips.net/user/liveqTcEessky5c?si=ym3ghLqcjD6Qn_N2
Had my first go on mine this yesterday evening in Ireland and it worked flawlessly apart from me walking away from my phone that i was hot spotting from . I am loving it at the minute.
In Scotland , me too m8 , all the moaners going to cause issues not the few that use the Dongle
@uptowndisco2 it's a brilliant piece of kit
I've had massive problems with my cellphone whole my drone was sending data to my rc2.. it more or less blocked the signal of the cellphone so much i couldn't browse the internet.
I bet that the occusync 4 is interfering with the 4G antenna.
Thanks for taking the time to review and sparing us the agony and disappointment.
No worries! I hope it can get better, I'll let you know if it does
Did you switch off the Pin number request on the sim card? To test if the sim card is connected to the 4g network, call the number from your phone. If you get the announcement, that this number is not available, the dongle is not logged into the 4G network. The display of signal bars on the screen is not proof of a connection. Like on cellphones it just shows existing 4G networks and nothing more. The dongle connects to a DJI server as your RC-2 does over the Phone Hotspot W-lan. On the server your drone and RC-2 are matched to exchange data. If the server doesn't work with british IP connections, it also won't work. IMHO you have a connection problem, either with the network sim, or with the DJI server.
Do cellular towers actually transmit straight up into the air? I'm assuming the Dongle receives 4G from a tower , or is the controller sending the 4G it is receiving from your phone?
I know there are coverage maps that show coverage on the ground, but I wonder if there is a chart to see the vertical coverage?
I'm wondering if your hotspot was kind of weak on your phone when you were paired with the RC2. When i do updates I use my phone's hotspot. The connection is not the best and the signal fluctuates horribly.
from my experience using the Dongle 4g gets worse the higher your drone is , 10 - 70 mtrs seems to be the optimal signal.
This whole thing seems to be very complex to set up anyways. As I understand I would have to have get another SIM card for the dongle….which would incur another monthly charge. Nope…sorry….occusync 4 is good enough for me.
How many SIM cards can you use. I heard you can use two for redundancy
you can only insert one at a time , But you could swap over to another operators sim if you find poor result in one area .
I have a question is is the Mini 3 Pro obsolete now I still own one and just got an update but do they plan on doing anything different with it or is it just pretty much a throwaway should I sell it and is a Mini 4 Pro worth it
dont make a move until the mini 5 is released.
This would operate well in built up areas such as cities where a line of site could be difficult to maintain in low attitude so the 4g connectivity should overcome these issues providing cellular mask are within range to relay the signal back to your controller/phone
What network is the sim on that you are using? Not all mobile networks are the same. Try others.
Which network provider did you use ? EE works well for me but fallsback to 02 if needed.
02 and I have tested on EE too
@@donology giffgaff uses 02s network
@@donologyas mentioned previously I have tested this on giffgaff which uses 02s network, EE which and recently Vodafone, all are hit and miss. The user shouldn’t have to spend money trying each network to hope it may work. It’s going to heavily depend on the location so it’s a flawed product
@@donology lol dude what is your problem, I’m not going to make 5 videos on every network SIM card I test. I have proper videos to make but if you feel you can do better then crack on
I can see you have deleted donologys comments. What have you got to hide.
I ve seen another video and it worked great. Maybe you installed it wrong or it’s faulty? It seem that the signal from the ocusink and G4 were both going in and out at the same time. Anyhow I hope you get it sorted.
I enjoy your videos
Thank you for the test! Im waifor dji mini 4 pro test. I would like to see the busy city test as well 😊
Do you think using the 4G dongle in a place with no 4G coverage could be the problem because the area doesn't look heavily populated why would carriers invest in towers
Living in the Netherlands my dongle works great with my Air 3. Very strong 4G signal. So I’m very happy with this dongle 😁
Not all 4G is the same frequency my phone has 4 band 4G but I have a watch that only has single band 4G so my watch has a harder time getting signal. I am guessing the DJI dongle is the same way its soo small it cant be 4 band
If you don't have good 4G signal in the area then this is to be expected. I'd partially understand being upset if there were no issues with signal in that area but I'm guessing there are definitely 4G issues in the area.
Have you tried it anywhere else where you know for certain that signals aren't an issue?
I use the m3p with dji dongle 1 and it works perfect. I'm in Liverpool
where did you get Dongle 1 ? I could use one with my Mavic 3 , I wonder what the difference there is between V1 and V2 dongles
I'm not sure what the difference is between them v1 and v2. I got it from Ebay but it did come from China
@@knightcreature I tried the V2on my Mavic 3 but the Dongle would not stay on a steady green status LED It went as far as green flashing, might check for a firmware update on the Mavic and controller, maybe mine is on older versions
I find it strange because a antenna gets connected with the mavic 3 but with my setup all I have is just the dongle and usb cable. No extra antenna to plug in
@@knightcreature was the plug in antenna missing when you bought it ? I would have thought you would lose 4G easily without one .
Man... Psst... You need to have a sim that corresponds to TOWERS in the area you are flying in. Also, generic sim? Really? Cost? The only people that should have interest in this are commercial users. No hobbyist needs to fly further than O4 allows. That's just bananas...
Are you sure the antenna were connected... Correctly? Gavin HR got on well with his.
Hi, Darren, Thanks for this vid, I was tempted with this dongle but after watching your vid, I'm def not bothering just yet. I've watched your channel for a couple of years now and I totally trust what you have to say, No doubt you'll have many ridiculous comments from people, but thanks again for being so honest. Love your cheat sheets too! Very useful for apprehensive flyers like myself! 🙂
really glad you like the cheat sheets, thank you !
this is a dumb question but were you tethered to your phone on the DJI RC2? or which controller were u using? RC-N2?
as your controller has no 4g receiver i would use ya phone bud . then turn on hotspot on ya phone and connect to that hotspot with your drone.
Was looking at your video and a possible problem is your connectors are touching the little black piece will clipon keeping connectors square and clip cables . Not sure it will help but maybe either that or a faulty dongle mine has been flawless
All this is in the instructions. Mobile masts don't point into the sky, they point down. The dongle needs 4mbit/s to work - they recommend using the same mobile network - not a virtual operator like smarty or Tesco/Asda - for both Sims.
This is not for flying miles away, it's for flying low in congested WiFi areas, which is where mobile networks work perfectly.
Yeah I’ve since tested and EE and voda, still hit and miss. I also don’t encourage flying drones under 4G masts just to get a good signal so really it’s a bizarre product
Hi there! I have both the Mini 4 and the Air 3. I dind't had enough time to do some proper testing since I've just received my Dongle. But for the moment I've observed the same symptoms on my Air 3, while on the Mini 4 the singal remains strong and stable (flying on the same spot, of course).
At first I thought that the wiring of the antennas of my Air 3 was defective, since the dongle works perfectly with the Mini 4. But since I have not been able to fly in other locations with the Air 3 I did not give it more consideration... until I saw this video and I see that the same thing is happening to you.
Hardware design flaw in the Air 3 hardware (antenna connection to the dongle, perhaps? Software flaw that will be fixed with a future update? Let's hope it's that last one....
When's the air 3s due to come out because you usually get one to trail before everyone else. Also you go quiet on your channel when you've got something new 🤔🤔🤔🤔
Videos might go quiet but I might be editing in the background for days and weeks 👀 editing takes so long when you want it to be high quality. In regards to the first question I know nothing…..
Am interested in the dongle for the air 3 but I am surprised you didn’t know how to install it, it’s been known for a little while on a few RUclipsrs channels how to install it so I am surprised you destroyed yours… oh well 😢
A dongle might make sense but 4G/5G coverage is inconsistent; depending on where you live. There are three (more actually) cellular providers in Thailand and none provide coverage everywhere.
I got mine on Monday, new sim and monthly data plan.
Tried one flight and signal dropped and RTH😟
Thought maybe I had done something wrong or not got right sim of plan.
Really disappointed a complete waste of money.
Any update on this matter?
Out of curiosity on the mini 4 pro does it take it over the 249g. Cheers
Honestly depends on where your are, some places don’t count accessories to weight some do.
@@MatteWhitePhotography I'm in northwest uk
No, absolutely not, if you put on the mounting bracket and the dongle itself, the weight stays 249!!! numnuts
Every and any accessory beyond a sticker will take the mini 4 pro over 250 G.
@@nebulaM16 so your telling me it weighs less that 249 grams
Off topic, but could you do an instructional video on how to use geo mapping in Europe since that is a requirement for flying in the EU?
Hi what network is the sim card on ? thanks
02 and also tested on EE
I’ve noticed this guy only likes the comments that’s are agreeing with him or are on the fence about it. Something weird about this video
Not the results I would have expected. At this point I have no interested in the cellular dongle. Great testing, and thanks for sharing.
Brilliant Darren, i upgraded firm way on the mini 4 pro last night but didnt understand what the update does till i saw your video lol
lol thanks man, yeah def do not recommend this
@@DMProductions yea DJI mess things when first release but who knows may improve later 😊
Thank you for your honesty.
no problem thanks for watching
Love the videos and love the fits ceep up the good work
That seems like its buggered. Send the video to dji support
Thank you for the video I was quite confused on whether to get the cellular dongle but after watching that I think it is a complete waste of money
Have you watched the Geeksvana video about this? Use of the dongle in the UK without a license from Ofcom is illegal. You also need to have a specific SIM for use at altitude (not able to be bought without the Ofcom license) because otherwise it tries to connect to multiple cell towers at once (which may explain your signal drop outs). Connecting to multiple towers can cause network overload which is why the drive specific SIM operates differently to a standard SIM.
Always wise to my check these things before using them.
Well this is also being sold in Poland (European Union 🤣) and we don't care if this is legal or not (I have searched everywhere and it looks like we don't have any rules for using SIM cards in drones at altitude so we can use any, why not? LMAO), it just should work. Also I have never heard about sim cards that work specifically at altitude, lol?!
+ I don't think that connecting to multiple cell towers is issue at all, this is know as Carrier Aggregation (CA)
i have to sat that here in the UK the 4G and 5G networks are hit and miss. Venture into the countryside or coastal areas away from large towns and cities and the network signals are appalling .. personally i would be tempted to blame the UK network and not DJI
I think you would need a Data plan form one of the big 4 networks O2, Voda, 3, and EE as they have the biggest bandwidth for Data. I can’t see myself using this dongle I think it’s a lot of money for something that I’ll only uses a handful of time a month.
Yeah done more testing on EE and Vodafone and still very hit and miss - can’t see the being something people should spend their money on
What a load. What about line of site. I’m sticking to what I have. Also does it take the Mini 4 over weight? Great information Darren. Keep them coming please. ❤
Thanks mate
I love kislux that on the butterfly bag it says auguri / tanti auguri which means happy birthday
Thanks for doing this 👍 I certainly won’t be rushing to buy (& subscribe to another data plan!) and one thing to note of course, is that it will put the Mini 4 Pro’s weight over 250g
Edit: have you seen Geeksvana’s video tonight? The dongle is pretty much illegal here in the UK for most of us. To use one, you must have a special licence issued by OFCOM. You also need written permission from one of the UK’s four phone network companies.. and use one of their special SIMs meant for drones. You cannot use a regular sim card.
DJI wouldn't be selling it if its illegal doh!
Thanks for the review. I am sure this will be very helpful for many people.
Can send link where i can buy it ?
The only thing I could see about having this dongle is if you were doing a job with an Air 3 in an area where there are many buildings and trees and you need a good connection.
I’ve had little in the way of any problem with the connection with my RC and most of the things I film are less the 500m. So I don’t see myself needing a dongle at the moment.
I'm yet to buy my first drone and still undecided what one to get but this dongle seems like a complete gimmick and waste of money considering the mini 4 pro I supposed to have all the bells and whistles . . Still confused what to buy
Hello Darren, investigate with Gavin, that's also in England, I think Ireland, he's also using it and comments that it's wonderful, possibly something went wrong when you tried to open it without removing the screws
Using this without an OFCOM license & a dedicated uas sim card such as one from BT EE is highly illegal as has been warned by Geeksvana.
All I need to see, TY
I saw the DJI advertisement for the dongle 2 this morning and thought that here is something I need to buy but after watching your video I'll give this a pass. Thanks for the review.
I wonder if its just faulty or something? GavinHR bought one of these and his initial tests worked exactly as expected
I haven't seen those results but I guess it will heavily depend on the area flown, in the area I flew the 4g signal on my phone was excellent and several 4g towers in the area so its very hit and miss. I'll do more testing
@@DMProductions I think when he did it, he purposely flew in an area with heavy trees, so the Occusync 4 cut out at around 800m-1000m and then the 4G signal kicked in exactly how it was expected to.
may even be worth reaching out to him direct and get some feedback and see if there is something amiss
interesting video. I have a couple of questions for you
1. which service provider is your mobile phone with
2. which service provider is your sim card with that you are using for the dongle
the reason i ask is because I know here in Australia some service providers for mobiles are better than other providers, and the best thing i have found is to use Mobile Coverage maps which gives a really good indication of which provider i should be using
Oh crikey, mines due tomorrow. I'll post back my results with my air 3.
Must remember the screwdriver😁
Do let me know ☺️
@@DMProductions after just watching geeksvana, I think I'll be trying to return it.. I'm too old to be in court for bringing a network down😂
@@whotshisface hey m8 , to old ? I am 70 and love this Dongle 🙂
Lol. You've reached that age where you can say ******** though. I'm at that older (51) age where I'm too old for trouble, but still have enough time left to care😂@@uptowndisco2
Good video Darren! Now, I don't know why this worked so poorly for you in this test (Gavin HR as I'm sure you're aware, had a better experience), but as to your overall conclusion, I'd have to agree.
The use case here for non-professionals, especially without certifications and waivers to fly beyond visual line of sight, is very weak.
I'm sure you could use this to zip around high rise buildings in Hong Kong without worrying about buildings blocking the signal - the question is, would you want to?
Judging from the comments below and other Videos and Posts, it seems like there is a specific problem with your setup in particular an not with all dongles in general.
Ummm... I dont think you know how this works
exactly clueless
All the gear and no idea