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Here at Drone Shop Canada we see a lot of crashed drones.  There are some more advanced techniques to avoid crashes and flyaways, those will be covered in a another post. Sometimes the simplest solutions are the best. And although they’re all quality products, there are a couple of things you should be aware of in order to prevent your drone from malfunctioning.

The software needs to be regularly updated

If this isn’t done, your drone can end up crashing midflight. To prevent this from happening, you need to be extra careful when it comes to updating the following three things:

  1. The firmware on your Phantom 3 drone

This is especially important because sometimes even brand new products don’t come with the latest firmware. Before taking your new drone for a spin, check if it needs to be updated, to help prevent it from malfunctioning.

  1. Its transmitter

The transmitter uses software that you’ll need to update on a regular basis if you want your drone to function properly. Luckily, it’s basically the same update you’ll be making on the aircraft itself, as it uses the same download file direct fro DJI.com

  1. The DJI Pilot App

The latest version of this app is a must-have for a safe flight. You can easily update it by using your iOS or Android device. Simply go to Google Play or iTunes, download the app and enjoy the flight.

A few other considerations should be taken into account to ensure a safe and trouble free flight:

The process of acquiring satellites shouldn’t be interrupted

Impatience can lead to all sorts of accidents, and one of the biggest problems when it comes to drones is the impatience with the process of connecting to all the satellites that are necessary for a safe flight. That’s why you should never interrupt this process. By leaving the Phantom on the ground in clear view of the sky for a minute or so it can acquire all the satellites needed to get a good home lock and set the home point correctly.  If you are too hasty and take off before the home point is set the return to home feature can malfunction.

The camera can be damaged even by heavy landings

The camera of the Phantom 3 drone is placed in such a way that it’s not adequately protected from all the damage that can be done to it by heavy landings. Nevertheless, if you’re extra careful, you can save yourself the trouble of having to send it for repair.

Batteries do not function well when cold

If flying in cold or sub zero weather that we get up here in Canada, be sure your batteries are fully charged and warm. If the batteries are cold their runtime can be greatly reduced and even lead to a damaged cell which could ultimately cause a crash. As an aside the batteries also have an automatic drain function, it is best to top up your batteries before flight. If the battery percentage is above 75% turn the battery on before charging.