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Yeah the scenery is beautiful but holy cow what an attractive young lady you’ve got there brother. She’s got a mop of beautiful hair on her! Lol. You make a very handsome couple. Thanks for the great video my friend
Best video so far on the avata! thank you for covering all the details that many others miss instead of regurgitating same basic info we could already find on google and providing some frickin beautiful footage while you're at it
So interesting about the battery coming out. You’re not the only one that has captured this issue. Might have to add something like an apple AirTag onto the unit along with some 3rd party solution to securing the battery to the avata. Seems to me that DJI has done a phenomenal job at making the quad durable though!
Another excellent couple of videos from S & A - excellent vocal delivery and presentation - second to none. I wish I had the skills to offer you my editing facilities - but this is an occasion to say - I don't have what you need - but wish you every success in your quest !
That montage is epic including the behind-the-scenes!!!😅 I’m always intimidated by the fpv world but DJI Avata might change that now. Thanks for the fun review!
I don’t comment enough on your videos, but love your direct approach/reviews that help us creators make better decisions on gear purchases. Sorry about the Avata mishap; could see employing a Velcro strap (or other measure of security) similar to our FPV rigs to avoid this in the future.
Thanks Ryan! 100% - I think a velcro strap is the way forward here. There should be enough space to get it through frame of the Avata without any trouble. Even if others don't have this issue, it's good peace of mind. Cheers!
I think you probably saved the drone by having the battery falling out possibly before being submerged in water which would have shorted the drone out. DJI doesn’t recommend flying their drones in wet weather. Glad it’s still working.
Great review, cant wait to jump into Sports FPV & a bit of Mavic style. mine is on its way !!! Sure Manuel controller will follow (when back in stock !)
I've seen others having the same battery ejection problem so I'm going to use velcro to secure it for sure. Just to comment, Alina's face looks so familiar... Ah yes, FRIDA from ABBA (or her offspring perhaps)🙂 Excellent video!
You can recover the video file. The only reason it didn't play is because the file headers are messed up. There is software to fix it. Sometimes even if you put the memory card back in the drone and just record 1 more clip, it will fix the headers of the corrupted clip. Its just because the recording didn't end correctly, but the file is definitely recoverable, I've done it myself a few times when I lose the last file.
Great show! Sorry about the accidents, but as you say, it's part of owning an FPV drone. I hope DJI fixes that battery problem -- I imagine they have had an earful from users with similar experiences! Keep the Avata videos coming! I will stick with my Mini 3 Pro and Mavic Air 2, but have enjoyed your work for a long time! Stay well!
Like Stewart, I do think this is a great and capable little drone. Sadly I have to agree with him on the battery issue. This is not an imagined. It's real. Flying in Normal mode, twice yesterday my son hit a goal post resulting in the drone going down and the battery self ejecting. The first impact was at just 2m/s (5mph, 7kmh). Side on. Impact detected. Drone dropped about 1.5 metres on to grass. Battery self-ejected. The second impact, on a different battery that was brand new unused, at a speed of 6.7m/s (about 15mph, 24kmh). Impact detected. IMU error. Then GPS loss. Drone went nuts and flew itself randomly in all directions, including upside down, across the field while trying to regain itself. Impacted the ground at 13.9m/s (31mph, 50kmh), threw the battery out, and lost the on/off button for the battery. Meanwhile the drone somersaulted and bounced across the field. On inspection, it actually smashed the battery casing open on the corner where the power button is. Have managed to close the casing but now it has no button cover. I think the way it clicks in is way too flawed. Since the accidents I have been looking closely at the design. The gripping area of the clips is only about 1mm on either side of the battery once in the battery bay. I have found that without using too much force you can actually pull the battery out without pressing the battery release buttons. I can't do that on any of my other DJI drones. It takes less force than pulling the battery out of the Tello! I can see over time, a user wearing out the upper cage clip retention if not quite depressing battery clips properly. I have seen comments from others saying it's a safety feature - but if that's the case, what's the point of designing in find my drone and turtle mode. DJI clearly does not intend for the battery to self-eject at these low speeds. Very, very disappointing for a £1,300 spend. Be prepared to lose your drone or buy additional batteries. Absolutely love it otherwise.
Update. DJI are replacing mine. The support operative agreed this should not happen. Though it is kind of DJI to offer a replacement, I don't think the new one will be any different. Rather than a bad moulding of the upper frame, I suspect it to be a design flaw of the battery retention design. I would put my house on a new battery retention design on Avata II.
Another brilliant video guys! The Avata looks like it has amazing potential but the fact it so easily ejects its battery is a deal breaker. I mean, you two were on familiar ground, had clear LOS and still lost the thing in an open field simply because it can't hold onto its battery. Poor latch design notwithstanding, it's odd that DJI doesn't provide for such scenarios by having a small permanent battery onboard that would last long enough to broadcast their location in the event of a crash. Even a supercapacitor would do just to send out a GPS for a minute or two. Hopefully DJI does a quick redesign to fix what appears to be a fatal flaw.
Love the video 😎👍 I will be getting my Avata Tuesday, I think I will try to using a battery strap from a standard FPV drone to secure the battery. Thanks for the heads up, sorry you had to loss a drone.
It’s actually a good thing the battery dislodged before it became submerged, kept it from shorting out. Use a Velcro strap to secure the battery instead of cable ties.
The DJI cinewhoop is a good example of how FPV drone technology is advancing but there is a lot out there for those who can self build or modify the offerings of manufacturers in the hobby . Great for those with some spare cash who want to try this style of flight but until DJI produce a camera better than the current GoPro at the time of release they will always be second fiddle
Thanks for the comment. We haven't done an in-depth comparison of the picture as such, but I'd say the camera is a match for the GoPro. Particularly when it comes to dynamic range and the ability to recover detail in shadows and midtones when grading - it's a really good image. I was pleasantly surprised.
Fantastic review. Nice to see someone that got the drone free(2 in fact lol) and still talk about the negitive aspects of the bird. Thank you for that.. btw at about a 8 min flight time at best. I now have to add on attaching a zip tie to the drone and battery EACH AND EVERYTIME. HAHAHA. At that point it's really no different then a traditional FPV drone... With GPS of course.. but still mate. This is a major FAIL . MIKEY
Thanks for your comment! As some of the comments have suggested, a reusable cable tie or velcro strap would give peace of mind on the battery. Keep in mind the drone is not aimed at boss-level FPV enthusiasts. Without GPS flight modes and the emergency brake, 99% of existing drone enthusiasts wouldn't even think about trying FPV. There's too much time required to learn the skill for your average person with family/life/work commitments (myself included). This drone opens doors for sure. Added to that, here in the UK the drone itself costs £499. That's not a whole lot more than the price of a new GoPro. Cheers!
@@DroneFilmGuide EXCELLENT points touched on mate.. 💙💙💙 agreed.. it's not for all of us but between me and you. Lol ..I'll use a Velcro trap happily. Lol shush lol. I love there products to much to let every little thing sway me . I wish they would have though I'd the more experienced as well. Maybe add a strapfor them challenging flights lol (that it comes with) hey that's another accessorie they can sell.. lol. Thx for this answer mate. I Love your channel.. 💙💙 Mikey
@@DroneFilmGuide really great review despite all of the tribulations in drone paradise. But I've got to consider the cost of the drone alone as £770 or us$900, because I could never spend that type of money on a drone without also having at least 3 batteries and the charger as well. DJI tech is awesome but both of those crashes could likely have been prevented if they had the equivalent of betaflight crash recovery programmed to the flight controller. The BF crash recovery setting momentarily throws the flight controller into stability mode when a collision is detected, then quickly returns it to manual. Just long enough for the pilot to regain control. It has saved me from a lot of crashes when making my way through tree canopies or when a sudden piece of scraggle pops up out of nowhere.
The battery coming out might be deliberate to save the drone. If it crashes and has the large mass of the battery to contain it would have to be a lot heavier and risk breaking something. Maybe it should keep a capacitor charged in the drone just to run the beeper and close the file on the MicroSD if battery is pulled during operation. I guess the Tile/AirTag/SmartTag+ would work too.
Great vid guys, the suspense of watching the crash unfold it definitely didn't look like it was going to was something else. Sorry to see your experience end the way it did - twice! It feels so crap to crash an FPV. I do wonder how the first one would have gone if the battery didn't come out though, being that it was fully submerged it may have actually been what saved it. Definitely fares a better chance without current going through it. Mine hasn't arrived yet but will certainly keep the battery popping out in mind!
Great review S&A, please have a look into reusable cable-ties, in south africa we get whats called Lumeno flexi ties, they are dark green and can be reused so no need for a side cutter, other more conventional reusable cable ties have a little tab you can lift to release it or else use a Velcro strap, Ive used normal cable ties to hold in batts in some off my rc creations and really sucks compared to a reusable strap
love the video! i used to use the cable ties, i replaced that with velcro straps! change your life :) all you have to do is get a long velcro strap to hold the battery in ALSO attach a air tag to the drone so your will NEVER loose it! You can buy a water proof case for the air tag so you are good to go in any condition ;) have fun love the videos.
I'm betting it was designed to eject the battery on impact. If the battery remains in it's compartment it's weight puts alot more stress on the rest of the frame causing fractures. If the battery ejects itself the aircraft is MUCH lighter and is much more likely to survive the crash unharmed.
Great, informative review from the 'normal' Drone Users perspective. a) Hitting a tree in Normal Mode? Come on... That's like falling off a bicycle while the (Mavic) stabilizers are still on. 😉 b) Interesting about the battery not being overly 'secure'... I can see a 3rd party fastening system being sold. (I've got lots of 3rd party mods for my DJI FPV that solve individual issues) c) One tip if you're looking to go under an object/bridge (whether in Normal, Sports or Manual Mode) is to turn OFF the RTH feature... Tell it to hover instead. Then you can move to get better signal in order to carry on flying safely. The penetration on the DJI FPV ain't good TBH & if it loses signal in a forest or under a bridge etc. I don't want it flying up to the designated height to Return To Home as it'll hit whatever's above it.
Ha! No, no, no...just for us! There's no, err, room for you! Glad to see you still killing it on your channel. No idea how you put out so many videos!!
This review is very helpful. Thank you so much! My Avata arrives tomorrow. I’m going to use cable ties to secure the battery as well. I hope people who buy later versions of this drone will benefit from a better battery latch.
Thanks for the video! Some useful tidbits here that I hadn't seen in other reviews such as the gyro data being accessible for third-party software and that bit about the battery. Will definitely invest in some extra securing mechanism when I get my hands on one.
I do feel bad for you guys getting a software cap of only 2km. That is pretty cold hearted. Even here in the US getting 10km. I haven't seen any video of any of the new Avata's getting anything close to that kind of range anyway. Nice video you guys! PS: Might I suggest a thin piece of rubber you can place between the battery and the drone to help give it that extra grip or some sort of wedge? That really sucks you lost your drone once then the 2nd go around permanently. I hope DJI finds their own solution to this issue and figures out a proper fix and releases it to their customers. Pretty awesome DJI was so good at replacing your drone! Way to go, DJI. Now I am thinking about it too. Perhaps some sort of plastic clip that could go around the back side to help hold the battery in place and lock onto the cage to keep it in place. I am a nerd. What can I tell ya! 🤓
Although it's counter-intuitive for the find my drone and turtle mode features to recover after a crash - I think it may actually be intentional to reduce damage to the drone itself. Having the battery separate in a hard collision relieves a large amount of energy(weight) from the drone frame so that it has a better chance to not damage the camera, electronics, frame, etc. Will be interesting to see if using that zip-tie restraint method results in more common part breakages or not.
In relation to the battery popping out issue surely some velcro / reusable cable ties would be a more viable solution rather than having to cut plastic ones for every flight?
You do excellent videos Stewart. Quick q - did you ad a filter in post to get your footage looking soft like that? Other footage I have seen looks oversharpened. Cheers!
Stewart, one can buy cheap accessory clip that secures battery in case of mishap. As always, Alina is perfect video companion! Ready to assist with gist! She has elegance of presence, glow ready to go! 🇺🇸💛🇬🇧
Love this raw review, good to see Alina back in the video to 😄. How do you think the Avata would handle flying through a building? My biggest concern is the connection. Thanks 🙂.
Hey Glen! In all honesty I think it will struggle as soon as there is a physical obstruction. Definitely an issue with the CE standard here in Europe. Not that I'm recommending it, but the DJI FPV has the same issue and you can hack the goggles to get back to FCC. No doubt it'll be the same for the Avata.
This drone looks so fun. As other ones. Thanks for share your honest experience with it. It reminds me my first drone. I was so excited, waiting for a month for it and it was destroyed in just 30 minutes. if this drone were more resistant, it would be fantastic. I think it would be hard to find if it is crashed in remote zones.
Awesome review, made me chuckle multiple times! As for the drone itself, seems like a pass for me. Reasons include its price tag once you add in all the necessary components (extra batteries, controller) and the battery issue you identified.
ok that is out of the shopping bag :-). waiting for the next version and sticking with home built long range drones. Pros: no limits, no geofencing, turtle mode, do what I want. I will keep my mavic for lazy shots.
Stewart, do you think it would be possible to fix an Airtag to either the drone or battery? It wouldn't help much submerged I am sure, but might offer a secondary location feature to the drone and only add 11 grams, from what I see in the AirTag tech specs. This work around doesn't of course address the issue, but could provide a workaround. As a novice in gps drones, and never having tried any fpv, I do see this as something to peak my interest.
Wonderful video. Out of all the 'testing' videos I've watched over the last few days, I noticed, in retrospect, they all seem to be in warm, sunny, dry conditions. Many include crashes that didn't pop out the battery. Don't know what the temperature was during your shoot, but you are wearing jackets, so I assume it was somewhat cool. Don't know how temperature would effect the characteristics for the plastic frame securing the battery but I just wonder if the cool, wet circumstances contributed. Just a thought.
Great video as always guys! I'm new to FPV and I'm tempted to pick one of these up. After having a look, I'm fairly certain that the drone ships with a motion sensor controller and not the one that you were using for this review. I'd be interested to see what you could achieve with the controller DJI actually ship with the drone? Thanks for the great content.
They make cable ties with a release, so you could use it over and over. I also see the the 3D printer community coming out with something that will work, just give it a bit of time.
Great video. My Avata arrived this morning and I waited almost 7hours for the drone battery to be fully charged. Which seems very excessive, after doing all the upgrades etc I have set the battery on charge again with a dji USB charger in the hope its quicker. On my Mini 2 and Mavic Zoom I am able to import my NFZ authorisations but can't see where this can be done on the Avata, Do you know if its possible ? Interestingly a friend had mentioned the battery falling out and he uses a velcro strap which does save the cable tie's. Tonight after the updates I took off unexpectedly in my front room and after the initial shock it was surprisingly easy to control with the motion controller, however in my rush to try it I hadn't read the documentation fully and didn't know how to make it land so I had to leave it to auto land after battery depletion lol.... lucky escape
This drone and the first fpv dji made are not made to fly in normal mode, manual mode is what will give u proper control , also the older googles are better for longer range transmission and other extra functions, none of that was mentioned
Well done on producing such a helpful and visually exciting video! On the basis of this video and your subsequent solo video (where's Alina?!) using the motion controller, I've ordered one. I have previously flown a cheaper FPV by another manufacturer that was probably more of a toy rather than a flying camera and I couldn't get to grips with it, it was too unstable and difficult to fly smoothly but this one looks like DJI have it just right. Thanks very much and keep up the good work!
Great review as always Stew! The Avata looks good and sounds promising, I was a little bit surprised by DJI's decision to include only the motion controller in the combo. Also its a bit heavy for a cinewhoop, given the fact that they are now upto Mini 3 (all sub 250g) I was hoping it would be lighter. Would love to get your take on that in a future video perhaps. Cheers
Just wondering how safe a lost li-po battery would be. I realise DJI build them to high standards (both physically and electronically). Would a battery like this degrade when exposed to water or weather for some time, or would it retain it's physical integrity? Would the electronic management of the charge render it safe after a few days?
I've ordered the expensive Pro-View Combo and there's also no standard FPV-Controller with Sticks included but only this Gadget Motion-Controller. I had to order the FPV-Controller extra 🤨
Great video and the misses is a beautiful woman to boot,,, Distracting though, had to watch twice to get the drone info,,, ha ha ha ha Keep the videos coming,,,
To be honest, the battery flying out may have saved the drone (not the second time round though), as I wonder what would happen to the electronics if it was still running submerged in water.
🔥Learn aerial cinematography with us!
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Give me two weeks ? And I’m in! But someone is phishing me from your pin that your giving me the Avata on GIVAWAY
Yeah the scenery is beautiful but holy cow what an attractive young lady you’ve got there brother. She’s got a mop of beautiful hair on her! Lol. You make a very handsome couple. Thanks for the great video my friend
Best video so far on the avata! thank you for covering all the details that many others miss instead of regurgitating same basic info we could already find on google and providing some frickin beautiful footage while you're at it
So interesting about the battery coming out. You’re not the only one that has captured this issue. Might have to add something like an apple AirTag onto the unit along with some 3rd party solution to securing the battery to the avata. Seems to me that DJI has done a phenomenal job at making the quad durable though!
For sure, based on the comments here, a velcro strap will sort that and then you've got an indestructible little drone.
Another excellent couple of videos from S & A - excellent vocal delivery and presentation - second to none. I wish I had the skills to offer you my editing facilities - but this is an occasion to say - I don't have what you need - but wish you every success in your quest !
Thank you John!
TY. Both for your Avata Videos. We have ours sat waiting on the coffee table. First flight Monday. Wire ties at the ready.😀
That montage is epic including the behind-the-scenes!!!😅 I’m always intimidated by the fpv world but DJI Avata might change that now. Thanks for the fun review!
I don’t comment enough on your videos, but love your direct approach/reviews that help us creators make better decisions on gear purchases.
Sorry about the Avata mishap; could see employing a Velcro strap (or other measure of security) similar to our FPV rigs to avoid this in the future.
Thanks Ryan! 100% - I think a velcro strap is the way forward here. There should be enough space to get it through frame of the Avata without any trouble. Even if others don't have this issue, it's good peace of mind. Cheers!
Congratulations sir, you are the record holder for the biggest nerd with the best looking partner! There's hope for us
i like that it can release the battery, it can save the drone from tearing apart, the most cases it can be a life saver,
Best drone reviews on RUclips!
Спасибо Ребята! Как всегда, интересно и приятно вас смотреть.
Great video. Still waiting for my drone. Really glad I watched it. Definitely going to secure that battery.
I've been waiting for YOUR review all week! Thanks!
Music to our ears!
Even in that weather, your content still high quality.
Kudos to Alina for putting up with a crazy guy and crappy weather. I hope she was rewarded with a fancy dinner in a classy restaurant.
ur patience is what i learned from this video
Your wife truly loves you lol. That was one heck of a first experince with the Avata.👍
"Coordinated turns" Its unbelievably ironic it turned right into the tree when everywhere else was clear.
I think you probably saved the drone by having the battery falling out possibly before being submerged in water which would have shorted the drone out. DJI doesn’t recommend flying their drones in wet weather. Glad it’s still working.
Very interesting upload!
Cheers from Bucharest Romania!!
Hook and loop strap should do the trick nicely. Thanks for pointing out this shortcoming!
Great review, cant wait to jump into Sports FPV & a bit of Mavic style. mine is on its way !!! Sure Manuel controller will follow (when back in stock !)
You are the best mate 😍👋
What a beautiful spot that is in front of that mountain ✨
I've seen others having the same battery ejection problem so I'm going to use velcro to secure it for sure. Just to comment, Alina's face looks so familiar... Ah yes, FRIDA from ABBA (or her offspring perhaps)🙂
Excellent video!
Tough weather conditions is what makes the Scottish people strong 💪🏻🏴
You can recover the video file. The only reason it didn't play is because the file headers are messed up. There is software to fix it. Sometimes even if you put the memory card back in the drone and just record 1 more clip, it will fix the headers of the corrupted clip. Its just because the recording didn't end correctly, but the file is definitely recoverable, I've done it myself a few times when I lose the last file.
Great show! Sorry about the accidents, but as you say, it's part of owning an FPV drone. I hope DJI fixes that battery problem -- I imagine they have had an earful from users with similar experiences! Keep the Avata videos coming! I will stick with my Mini 3 Pro and Mavic Air 2, but have enjoyed your work for a long time! Stay well!
Like Stewart, I do think this is a great and capable little drone. Sadly I have to agree with him on the battery issue. This is not an imagined. It's real.
Flying in Normal mode, twice yesterday my son hit a goal post resulting in the drone going down and the battery self ejecting.
The first impact was at just 2m/s (5mph, 7kmh). Side on. Impact detected. Drone dropped about 1.5 metres on to grass. Battery self-ejected.
The second impact, on a different battery that was brand new unused, at a speed of 6.7m/s (about 15mph, 24kmh). Impact detected. IMU error. Then GPS loss. Drone went nuts and flew itself randomly in all directions, including upside down, across the field while trying to regain itself. Impacted the ground at 13.9m/s (31mph, 50kmh), threw the battery out, and lost the on/off button for the battery. Meanwhile the drone somersaulted and bounced across the field. On inspection, it actually smashed the battery casing open on the corner where the power button is. Have managed to close the casing but now it has no button cover.
I think the way it clicks in is way too flawed. Since the accidents I have been looking closely at the design. The gripping area of the clips is only about 1mm on either side of the battery once in the battery bay. I have found that without using too much force you can actually pull the battery out without pressing the battery release buttons. I can't do that on any of my other DJI drones. It takes less force than pulling the battery out of the Tello! I can see over time, a user wearing out the upper cage clip retention if not quite depressing battery clips properly.
I have seen comments from others saying it's a safety feature - but if that's the case, what's the point of designing in find my drone and turtle mode. DJI clearly does not intend for the battery to self-eject at these low speeds. Very, very disappointing for a £1,300 spend. Be prepared to lose your drone or buy additional batteries. Absolutely love it otherwise.
Update. DJI are replacing mine. The support operative agreed this should not happen.
Though it is kind of DJI to offer a replacement, I don't think the new one will be any different. Rather than a bad moulding of the upper frame, I suspect it to be a design flaw of the battery retention design. I would put my house on a new battery retention design on Avata II.
Thanks for the comment! Glad you got it sorted with DJI.
Excellent review Stuart. Think it’ll be a while before I try an FPV but enjoyed this from you. Made a lot of sense.
Brilliant video, really well put together! Can't wait to get out with mine this week
Alina needs to lead half of these videos
Another brilliant video guys! The Avata looks like it has amazing potential but the fact it so easily ejects its battery is a deal breaker. I mean, you two were on familiar ground, had clear LOS and still lost the thing in an open field simply because it can't hold onto its battery. Poor latch design notwithstanding, it's odd that DJI doesn't provide for such scenarios by having a small permanent battery onboard that would last long enough to broadcast their location in the event of a crash. Even a supercapacitor would do just to send out a GPS for a minute or two. Hopefully DJI does a quick redesign to fix what appears to be a fatal flaw.
Love the video 😎👍 I will be getting my Avata Tuesday, I think I will try to using a battery strap from a standard FPV drone to secure the battery. Thanks for the heads up, sorry you had to loss a drone.
It’s actually a good thing the battery dislodged before it became submerged, kept it from shorting out. Use a Velcro strap to secure the battery instead of cable ties.
Indeed!
The DJI cinewhoop is a good example of how FPV drone technology is advancing but there is a lot out there for those who can self build or modify the offerings of manufacturers in the hobby . Great for those with some spare cash who want to try this style of flight but until DJI produce a camera better than the current GoPro at the time of release they will always be second fiddle
Thanks for the comment. We haven't done an in-depth comparison of the picture as such, but I'd say the camera is a match for the GoPro. Particularly when it comes to dynamic range and the ability to recover detail in shadows and midtones when grading - it's a really good image. I was pleasantly surprised.
Great review with real life events and tons of learnings! Nice job guys!
Fantastic review. Nice to see someone that got the drone free(2 in fact lol) and still talk about the negitive aspects of the bird. Thank you for that.. btw at about a 8 min flight time at best. I now have to add on attaching a zip tie to the drone and battery EACH AND EVERYTIME. HAHAHA. At that point it's really no different then a traditional FPV drone... With GPS of course.. but still mate. This is a major FAIL .
MIKEY
Thanks for your comment! As some of the comments have suggested, a reusable cable tie or velcro strap would give peace of mind on the battery. Keep in mind the drone is not aimed at boss-level FPV enthusiasts. Without GPS flight modes and the emergency brake, 99% of existing drone enthusiasts wouldn't even think about trying FPV. There's too much time required to learn the skill for your average person with family/life/work commitments (myself included). This drone opens doors for sure. Added to that, here in the UK the drone itself costs £499. That's not a whole lot more than the price of a new GoPro. Cheers!
@@DroneFilmGuide EXCELLENT points touched on mate.. 💙💙💙 agreed.. it's not for all of us but between me and you. Lol ..I'll use a Velcro trap happily. Lol shush lol. I love there products to much to let every little thing sway me . I wish they would have though I'd the more experienced as well. Maybe add a strapfor them challenging flights lol (that it comes with) hey that's another accessorie they can sell.. lol. Thx for this answer mate. I Love your channel.. 💙💙
Mikey
@@DroneFilmGuide really great review despite all of the tribulations in drone paradise. But I've got to consider the cost of the drone alone as £770 or us$900, because I could never spend that type of money on a drone without also having at least 3 batteries and the charger as well. DJI tech is awesome but both of those crashes could likely have been prevented if they had the equivalent of betaflight crash recovery programmed to the flight controller. The BF crash recovery setting momentarily throws the flight controller into stability mode when a collision is detected, then quickly returns it to manual. Just long enough for the pilot to regain control. It has saved me from a lot of crashes when making my way through tree canopies or when a sudden piece of scraggle pops up out of nowhere.
Thanks again for your honest review, it has helped me make my decision
The battery coming out might be deliberate to save the drone. If it crashes and has the large mass of the battery to contain it would have to be a lot heavier and risk breaking something. Maybe it should keep a capacitor charged in the drone just to run the beeper and close the file on the MicroSD if battery is pulled during operation. I guess the Tile/AirTag/SmartTag+ would work too.
Great vid guys, the suspense of watching the crash unfold it definitely didn't look like it was going to was something else. Sorry to see your experience end the way it did - twice! It feels so crap to crash an FPV.
I do wonder how the first one would have gone if the battery didn't come out though, being that it was fully submerged it may have actually been what saved it. Definitely fares a better chance without current going through it. Mine hasn't arrived yet but will certainly keep the battery popping out in mind!
Nice drone 👍👍👍
The scenery is amazing
Great review S&A, please have a look into reusable cable-ties, in south africa we get whats called Lumeno flexi ties, they are dark green and can be reused so no need for a side cutter, other more conventional reusable cable ties have a little tab you can lift to release it or else use a Velcro strap, Ive used normal cable ties to hold in batts in some off my rc creations and really sucks compared to a reusable strap
Thanks for the advice!
love the video! i used to use the cable ties, i replaced that with velcro straps! change your life :) all you have to do is get a long velcro strap to hold the battery in ALSO attach a air tag to the drone so your will NEVER loose it! You can buy a water proof case for the air tag so you are good to go in any condition ;) have fun love the videos.
Really looking forward to your in depth video using the motion controller if you're planning on it still.
I'm betting it was designed to eject the battery on impact. If the battery remains in it's compartment it's weight puts alot more stress on the rest of the frame causing fractures. If the battery ejects itself the aircraft is MUCH lighter and is much more likely to survive the crash unharmed.
hmm...this is an interesting view
Great, informative review from the 'normal' Drone Users perspective.
a) Hitting a tree in Normal Mode? Come on... That's like falling off a bicycle while the (Mavic) stabilizers are still on. 😉
b) Interesting about the battery not being overly 'secure'... I can see a 3rd party fastening system being sold. (I've got lots of 3rd party mods for my DJI FPV that solve individual issues)
c) One tip if you're looking to go under an object/bridge (whether in Normal, Sports or Manual Mode) is to turn OFF the RTH feature... Tell it to hover instead.
Then you can move to get better signal in order to carry on flying safely. The penetration on the DJI FPV ain't good TBH & if it loses signal in a forest or under a bridge etc. I don't want it flying up to the designated height to Return To Home as it'll hit whatever's above it.
FAMOUS LAST WORDS
I really need to get up to the Highlands 🤜
Ha! No, no, no...just for us! There's no, err, room for you! Glad to see you still killing it on your channel. No idea how you put out so many videos!!
@@DroneFilmGuide haha 😂 I’ll invade and get out quickly ! 😂🏴 Thank you means a lot 🙏
Excellent video! Not having at lest a forward sensor was my only concern. My drone should be arriving tomorrow, cant wait to try it out.
This review is very helpful. Thank you so much! My Avata arrives tomorrow. I’m going to use cable ties to secure the battery as well. I hope people who buy later versions of this drone will benefit from a better battery latch.
Thanks for the video! Some useful tidbits here that I hadn't seen in other reviews such as the gyro data being accessible for third-party software and that bit about the battery. Will definitely invest in some extra securing mechanism when I get my hands on one.
you can get extra long battery straps for a normal fpv quad, this should help avoid battery being ejected,
Been waiting for your review. Thank you!
I do feel bad for you guys getting a software cap of only 2km. That is pretty cold hearted. Even here in the US getting 10km. I haven't seen any video of any of the new Avata's getting anything close to that kind of range anyway.
Nice video you guys! PS: Might I suggest a thin piece of rubber you can place between the battery and the drone to help give it that extra grip or some sort of wedge? That really sucks you lost your drone once then the 2nd go around permanently. I hope DJI finds their own solution to this issue and figures out a proper fix and releases it to their customers. Pretty awesome DJI was so good at replacing your drone! Way to go, DJI. Now I am thinking about it too. Perhaps some sort of plastic clip that could go around the back side to help hold the battery in place and lock onto the cage to keep it in place.
I am a nerd. What can I tell ya! 🤓
Good review Stuart. Shame about losing the drone and battery.
Fantastic video, great showing us how you use it and what the results were, teaching us how to look for a crashed one and so on. Thx!
You can buy a spool of 1cm double-sided velcro tape that can be cut-to-length. Might be a better alternative to single-use plastic cable ties.
Awesome video particularly in that kind of weather.
Although it's counter-intuitive for the find my drone and turtle mode features to recover after a crash - I think it may actually be intentional to reduce damage to the drone itself. Having the battery separate in a hard collision relieves a large amount of energy(weight) from the drone frame so that it has a better chance to not damage the camera, electronics, frame, etc. Will be interesting to see if using that zip-tie restraint method results in more common part breakages or not.
In relation to the battery popping out issue surely some velcro / reusable cable ties would be a more viable solution rather than having to cut plastic ones for every flight?
100%
or even gaffer's tape.
Hello Stewart, been waiting on your review 👋
I like how you grade this footage
GREAT Review as usual, and thanks for keeping it REAL!!! ~Cheers 🍻
You do excellent videos Stewart.
Quick q - did you ad a filter in post to get your footage looking soft like that? Other footage I have seen looks oversharpened.
Cheers!
Stewart, one can buy cheap accessory clip that secures battery in case of mishap.
As always, Alina is perfect video companion! Ready to assist with gist! She has elegance of presence, glow ready to go! 🇺🇸💛🇬🇧
Nightmare with the battery ejection when I eventually get one I'll definitely use the cable ties, great initial video I'm looking forward to more.
Appreciated!
Love this raw review, good to see Alina back in the video to 😄. How do you think the Avata would handle flying through a building? My biggest concern is the connection. Thanks 🙂.
Hey Glen! In all honesty I think it will struggle as soon as there is a physical obstruction. Definitely an issue with the CE standard here in Europe. Not that I'm recommending it, but the DJI FPV has the same issue and you can hack the goggles to get back to FCC. No doubt it'll be the same for the Avata.
@@DroneFilmGuide As I thought. Thanks for getting back to me 👍.
This drone looks so fun. As other ones. Thanks for share your honest experience with it.
It reminds me my first drone.
I was so excited, waiting for a month for it and it was destroyed in just 30 minutes.
if this drone were more resistant, it would be fantastic. I think it would be hard to find if it is crashed in remote zones.
I think a Velcro strap would do the trick to secure the battery. DJI should have engineered a better locking system but a removable strap will work
Awesome review, made me chuckle multiple times! As for the drone itself, seems like a pass for me. Reasons include its price tag once you add in all the necessary components (extra batteries, controller) and the battery issue you identified.
mine arrived yesterday - its freakin awesome!
ok that is out of the shopping bag :-). waiting for the next version and sticking with home built long range drones. Pros: no limits, no geofencing, turtle mode, do what I want. I will keep my mavic for lazy shots.
You both guys are fantastic thanks for this nice review!!!
Fantastic! Thanks for the review.
Stewart, do you think it would be possible to fix an Airtag to either the drone or battery? It wouldn't help much submerged I am sure, but might offer a secondary location feature to the drone and only add 11 grams, from what I see in the AirTag tech specs. This work around doesn't of course address the issue, but could provide a workaround.
As a novice in gps drones, and never having tried any fpv, I do see this as something to peak my interest.
Hey Mark. Yes, an Airtag would probably be a good solution. Other suggestions in the comments are reusable cable ties and velcro straps.
I've ordered a battery anti drop buckle especially for that reason .. to keep the battery in place
In the settings for the custom mode (M mode) can you set it up so that it's basically like S mode but uncap the max speed?
Wonderful video. Out of all the 'testing' videos I've watched over the last few days, I noticed, in retrospect, they all seem to be in warm, sunny, dry conditions. Many include crashes that didn't pop out the battery. Don't know what the temperature was during your shoot, but you are wearing jackets, so I assume it was somewhat cool. Don't know how temperature would effect the characteristics for the plastic frame securing the battery but I just wonder if the cool, wet circumstances contributed. Just a thought.
Continue the great work and show us the Scottish Highlands. Love that btw. This definitely made my mind up to buy it!
Footage seems dark, but the dynamic is AWESOME!!!
Great video as always guys! I'm new to FPV and I'm tempted to pick one of these up. After having a look, I'm fairly certain that the drone ships with a motion sensor controller and not the one that you were using for this review. I'd be interested to see what you could achieve with the controller DJI actually ship with the drone? Thanks for the great content.
Great video. The way the battery locks in, it's hard to believe that the battery would come out. I can hear the click of both battery tabs.
They make cable ties with a release, so you could use it over and over. I also see the the 3D printer community coming out with something that will work, just give it a bit of time.
Great video. My Avata arrived this morning and I waited almost 7hours for the drone battery to be fully charged. Which seems very excessive, after doing all the upgrades etc I have set the battery on charge again with a dji USB charger in the hope its quicker. On my Mini 2 and Mavic Zoom I am able to import my NFZ authorisations but can't see where this can be done on the Avata, Do you know if its possible ? Interestingly a friend had mentioned the battery falling out and he uses a velcro strap which does save the cable tie's. Tonight after the updates I took off unexpectedly in my front room and after the initial shock it was surprisingly easy to control with the motion controller, however in my rush to try it I hadn't read the documentation fully and didn't know how to make it land so I had to leave it to auto land after battery depletion lol.... lucky escape
This drone and the first fpv dji made are not made to fly in normal mode, manual mode is what will give u proper control , also the older googles are better for longer range transmission and other extra functions, none of that was mentioned
Well done on producing such a helpful and visually exciting video! On the basis of this video and your subsequent solo video (where's Alina?!) using the motion controller, I've ordered one. I have previously flown a cheaper FPV by another manufacturer that was probably more of a toy rather than a flying camera and I couldn't get to grips with it, it was too unstable and difficult to fly smoothly but this one looks like DJI have it just right. Thanks very much and keep up the good work!
Great stuff! Hope you enjoy your Avata!
Nice! I subscribed. You had me at the intro.
Welcome to the channel!
Great review as always Stew! The Avata looks good and sounds promising, I was a little bit surprised by DJI's decision to include only the motion controller in the combo. Also its a bit heavy for a cinewhoop, given the fact that they are now upto Mini 3 (all sub 250g) I was hoping it would be lighter. Would love to get your take on that in a future video perhaps.
Cheers
I bet tourist are hoarding to its last known location. The avata looks like a great deal of fun.
Just wondering how safe a lost li-po battery would be. I realise DJI build them to high standards (both physically and electronically). Would a battery like this degrade when exposed to water or weather for some time, or would it retain it's physical integrity? Would the electronic management of the charge render it safe after a few days?
ViFly make a strobe that has good life when charged and using one of them you would only need to look for the red or green or white flashing light.
Forget about that bloody drone! How can you do anything when you have THAT BEAUTY of Halina next to you! Wow!
That sounds creepy AF.
German brother, Stewart’s wife is Alina. And I agree! 💛😊
@@michaelfinch1965just wanted to say the same thing :D
Creepy comment, no doubt...
I've ordered the expensive Pro-View Combo and there's also no standard FPV-Controller with Sticks included but only this Gadget Motion-Controller.
I had to order the FPV-Controller extra 🤨
I’ve had to do the same & it’s a bummer but I guess that’s the price to pay when you don’t want to wait for them to release other combo packages
Great video and the misses is a beautiful woman to boot,,, Distracting though, had to watch twice to get the drone info,,, ha ha ha ha Keep the videos coming,,,
CE transmission limitation screwed up this drone for europe
sorry for your loss, mate. thank to dji sent u another one. 😀
Amazing video, so useful. Thank you!
From experience, paint your batteries with Florescence Orange or Pink to easily spot it.
Totally. If the ducts were luminous orange then we would have stood more chance of finding it.
To be honest, the battery flying out may have saved the drone (not the second time round though), as I wonder what would happen to the electronics if it was still running submerged in water.