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New Parrot Anafi owner needs help w/ 2 problems: 1) drifts heavily left when hovering, 2) phone video and video clip playback show corruption

ecsdude

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I fairly recently got a Parrot Anafi. Chose it over DJI Mavic Air because it's quieter, a bit simpler/faster setup (to me), and has some unique features (camera tilt up and zoom).

PROBLEM 1: However, after my first flight, ever since I've been experiencing heavy drifting LEFT. Today, when I did a re-test, I let the Anafi hover at eye level and it seemed to hold position for the 1-3 seconds I left it there.. then I moved it around and upwards and it started drifting heavily left ever since. If I let go of the controller, it keeps drifting left. I have to counter that by keeping the joystick hard right. When I got the drone, it did a FW update, and I had not crashed the drone prior to it exhibiting this "drifting left" problem. I also tried recalibrating the camera, controller and the drone to no avail. Someone suggested letting the drone sit for a while before launch and that didn't seem to help me. I waited a minute or so only. Would seem ridiculous to have to wait like 30 minutes each time and I probably wouldn't put up with that. If I bring the drone down, it comes straight down and doesn't really drift heavily left. I didn't pay attention to see what the GPS signal state was though...

PROBLEM 2: Ever since day 1, I've not been able to successfully capture clean video. I've noticed the video output on my cell phone showed some video artifacts/corruption.. in some areas it looks like multi-colored specs/spots on the lower left of video output.. and around the upper-middle of the video output it showed more of a radiant arc of multi-colored corruption.. it persists for the entire flight and appears in my clips upon playback on PC. Today, I did an extended flight and while looking at my phone screen, I noticed that when I pulled up to a higher elevation, I didn't seem to notice any of that corruption on the phone display.. and when I lowered the drone to around 100ft or so, I started to see the corruption return to display.

Could someone please help me with these problems? I really want to keep and like this drone because it's quieter, has camera tilt-up and zoom, and no forced geo-fencing.. but these are some serious issues.

At first I thought maybe PROBLEM 2 was due to poorly seated SD card due to the design of the slot being unconventional (seems the sd card can go loose/out of place). But that wouldn't explain why the corruption also appears on my phone display. I'm hoping it's not a camera defect.

Should one or both problems be unresolved for me, how is the warranty/tech support? The drone is only a couple months old or so but I purchased it off eBay (new).

Thanks in advance.
 
That is not normal behavior for Anafi, call customer support.

Customer support can be very helpful or not in my experience.

If not already done update Anafi and the controller then reload the app.

If still no good send it in.
 
First I would try to help myself, because I don't think you are having a hardware problem ...:

Problem 1:
The drifting should be better or not existant after hard reset and recalibrating.
You don't need to wait 30 minutes before takeoff, but both GPS indicators must be green.

Problem 2:
If this problem mainly appears at low height or near you, then try:
A) set smartphone to flight mode (always!)
B) install a wifi analyzer app on your smartphone and have a look at the used wifi channels. Choose a free or less crowded channel for your Anafi.

If all that doesn't help: do what Vegasrobbi said.
 
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First I would try to help myself, because I don't think you are having a hardware problem ...:

Problem 1:
The drifting should be better or not existant after hard reset and recalibrating.
You don't need to wait 30 minutes before takeoff, but both GPS indicators must be green.

Problem 2:
If this problem mainly appears at low height or near you, then try:
A) set smartphone to flight mode (always!)
B) install a wifi analyzer app on your smartphone and have a look at the used wifi channels. Choose a free or less crowded channel for your Anafi.

If all that doesn't help: do what Vegasrobbi said.

Thanks guys. I'll try these 2 suggestions first and hope for the best! But in case I can't resolve it, has anyone dealt with Anafi support? how good are they?
 
Most reports I have seen they are very good. Might be a little slow to return emails but I would call them so you talk to a actual person. Some are better then others so if you are not happy with what you are hearing ask to talk to a tech guy.
 
The controller GPS indicator is GREEN on my ANAFI 6.x app display, but the drone GPS indicator is red. Should both be green? I did a hard reset, keeping the power button pressed down for over 10-15 seconds, let go and I saw flash of red go up each LED briefly, so I take it I was able to do a hard reset successfully? I then re-calibrated the drone and controller.. the video was looking clean with the ANAFI on and ready to fly but on my kitchen counter.. it lasted like that for a minute or so.. then I started to see the flashes of corruption.. mostly a pink color but really multiple colors sprinkled on various parts of screen. Then it goes away and comes back. I'm standing like 2-3 feet from the drone with the controller in hand. The controller is connected to phone by USB cable and the controller to the drone by WiFi.
 
If I am understanding your post you need to be outside to get a green GPS indicator and not in your kitchen. Perhaps I am not understanding how you are testing your Anafi but you cannot get a good read inside.
 
The controller GPS indicator is GREEN on my ANAFI 6.x app display, but the drone GPS indicator is red. Should both be green? I did a hard reset, keeping the power button pressed down for over 10-15 seconds, let go and I saw flash of red go up each LED briefly, so I take it I was able to do a hard reset successfully? I then re-calibrated the drone and controller.. the video was looking clean with the ANAFI on and ready to fly but on my kitchen counter.. it lasted like that for a minute or so.. then I started to see the flashes of corruption.. mostly a pink color but really multiple colors sprinkled on various parts of screen. Then it goes away and comes back. I'm standing like 2-3 feet from the drone with the controller in hand. The controller is connected to phone by USB cable and the controller to the drone by WiFi.
Hi....take Anafi outside ,do the hard reset than soft reset,after you do soft reset you will be prompt to calibrate Anafi.....do not take off if your drone GPS is Red,you need green GPS for your RTH to work...
Problems with video stream when flying can be caused by wifi interferance,being out of range or your phone being old/slow.....
It is normal to see pixels and what you call flashes of coruption if you r anafi is grounded and you are moving camera...mostly inside the house is more obvious than when you do same thing outside...Once you take off(outside) you shouldnt see any problems
 
Thanks. I will do another hard reset outside as well as recalibration outside. And I will make sure both GPS indicators are green. As for the interference/corruption on both my phone display and in the video clip playback, I did switch to 5Ghz and it showed 1 available (one band or whatever was highlighted in app). But I will try it again outside.

Also, my phone is a Motorola E4 Plus.. it's an older phone but not sure why older phones would experience that.

I will re-try tomorrow outside.
 
If your recorded video files on the SD card from the Anafi are showing artefacts then you must have a hardware fault of some kind. Your phone and frequency selection should have no bearing on the video being captured and recorded directly to the SD card, if you have one try a different SD card to rule out a defective one.

As for the drifting, could be hardware/software issue. I know the Anafi tends to drift a little more than say DJI/Yuneec but having to input full stick to counter it is not a good sign. Have you recalibrated the accelerometer correctly, presuming there is an option to do so?
 
If your recorded video files on the SD card from the Anafi are showing artefacts then you must have a hardware fault of some kind. Your phone and frequency selection should have no bearing on the video being captured and recorded directly to the SD card, if you have one try a different SD card to rule out a defective one.

As for the drifting, could be hardware/software issue. I know the Anafi tends to drift a little more than say DJI/Yuneec but having to input full stick to counter it is not a good sign. Have you recalibrated the accelerometer correctly, presuming there is an option to do so?

I see the same artifacts on my phone's display during flight, connected to controller via USB cable to Micro-USB. So it seems to be capturing the same thing output to my phone screen onto SD card.

As for calibrations.. I did one for the controller, one for drone camera, and one for the drone (turning/flipping/rotating it). Not sure if there's a separate one for accelerometer?
 
I see the same artifacts on my phone's display during flight, connected to controller via USB cable to Micro-USB. So it seems to be capturing the same thing output to my phone screen onto SD card.

As for calibrations.. I did one for the controller, one for drone camera, and one for the drone (turning/flipping/rotating it). Not sure if there's a separate one for accelerometer?
The drone will drift if the two GPS are not in green mode . Top of phone screen both must be green . I tried my first flight in my house and it went left towards the wall had to run and catch it . The controller is always fastest to get green GPS . The drone takes usually another minute or so for me .
As for the screen I have artifacts as well most people will as it's sending the video source over WiFi . That's not how it will look once taken off the SD card . When I get the drone up in the air and far away the screen starts getting really messed up . This won't affect the final image just live view . It's annoying but all WiFi drones do it . On my 16gb card that came with it the first 2 or 4 seconds of the clips were showing a blurred mess then it would normalise . Lots of people experience this ! I put in a SanDisk Extreme u card and never done it again . This drone only works with SanDisk at the minute . Parrot should make that clear .
Hope some of this helps
 
Oh
The drone will drift if the two GPS are not in green mode . Top of phone screen both must be green . I tried my first flight in my house and it went left towards the wall had to run and catch it . The controller is always fastest to get green GPS . The drone takes usually another minute or so for me .
As for the screen I have artifacts as well most people will as it's sending the video source over WiFi . That's not how it will look once taken off the SD card . When I get the drone up in the air and far away the screen starts getting really messed up . This won't affect the final image just live view . It's annoying but all WiFi drones do it . On my 16gb card that came with it the first 2 or 4 seconds of the clips were showing a blurred mess then it would normalise . Lots of people experience this ! I put in a SanDisk Extreme u card and never done it again . This drone only works with SanDisk at the minute . Parrot should make that clear .
Hope some of this helps
Oh and don't try for gps indoors !
 
I confirmed both GPS indicators were green before my last takeoff.. it still drifted left.. I had to keep the direction joystick hard right to compensate for it.

In my case, the artifacts, pink and other colors that came and went from my phone display during flight, appeared on the final video output. The good news is that on my last flight out in the fields, I saw artifacts for 1-2 seconds and then video was just fine for the rest of the flight, for the first time. Maybe I was in an area with less interference on that flight.
 
I confirmed both GPS indicators were green before my last takeoff.. it still drifted left.. I had to keep the direction joystick hard right to compensate for it.

In my case, the artifacts, pink and other colors that came and went from my phone display during flight, appeared on the final video output. The good news is that on my last flight out in the fields, I saw artifacts for 1-2 seconds and then video was just fine for the rest of the flight, for the first time. Maybe I was in an area with less interference on that flight.

You get artifacts on the screen because your phone is too slow. It contains a quad core processor running on a clock freq. at 1.3 gHz.

Motorola Moto E4 Plus - Full phone specifications

Today you need an 8 core processor with a clock freq of at least 1.5 gHz to get FreeFlight 6 to run without lag or getting artifacts on the screen.

However, it is not your phone is to blame for that Anafi can't hover stable or will pull to the left, it is due some software or hardware failure in Anafi or its controller. Furthermore, should the video and images you see on your SD card be ok because the quality is not affected of your phone has trouble running FreeFlight 6.

Regards Leif.
 
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You get artifacts on the screen because your phone is too slow. It contains a quad core processor running on a clock freq. at 1.3 gHz.

Motorola Moto E4 Plus - Full phone specifications

Today you need an 8 core processor with a clock freq of at least 1.5 gHz to get FreeFlight 6 to run without lag or getting artifacts on the screen.

However, it is not your phone is to blame for that Anafi can't hover stable or will pull to the left, it is due some software or hardware failure in Anafi or its controller. Furthermore, should the video and images you see on your SD card be ok because the quality is not affected of your phone has trouble running FreeFlight 6.

Regards Leif.

he has stated he gets artifacts on the SD card footage which has nothing to do with the phone, in theory.

"In my case, the artifacts, pink and other colors that came and went from my phone display during flight, appeared on the final video output. The good news is that on my last flight out in the fields, I saw artifacts for 1-2 seconds and then video was just fine for the rest of the flight, for the first time."
 
he has stated he gets artifacts on the SD card footage which has nothing to do with the phone, in theory.

"In my case, the artifacts, pink and other colors that came and went from my phone display during flight, appeared on the final video output. The good news is that on my last flight out in the fields, I saw artifacts for 1-2 seconds and then video was just fine for the rest of the flight, for the first time."

Yes, you are right, I overlook that it in the heat of battle. The poor man is lying right now and looking for/after his Anafi somewhere in a field and that's why I wrote in here also. I do not understand he does not send his defective Anafi to repair the warranty, instead of trying to fly around.

It is a well-known problem that Anafi will make artifact the first 2-3 seconds of a 4k video clip if the SD card is barely as fast as it should be. That's why it's a bit hard and keep up with all the defects that man's Anafi has.

Regards Leif.
 
Yes, you are right, I overlook that it in the heat of battle. The poor man is lying right now and looking for/after his Anafi somewhere in a field and that's why I wrote in here also. I do not understand he does not send his defective Anafi to repair the warranty, instead of trying to fly around.

It is a well-known problem that Anafi will make artifact the first 2-3 seconds of a 4k video clip if the SD card is barely as fast as it should be. That's why it's a bit hard and keep up with all the defects that man's Anafi has.

Regards Leif.

I agree with you that the Anafi appears to be defective and probably shouldn't have continued to try and fly and perhaps contact Parrot!
 
S
I confirmed both GPS indicators were green before my last takeoff.. it still drifted left.. I had to keep the direction joystick hard right to compensate for it.

In my case, the artifacts, pink and other colors that came and went from my phone display during flight, appeared on the final video output. The good news is that on my last flight out in the fields, I saw artifacts for 1-2 seconds and then video was just fine for the rest of the flight, for the first time. Maybe I was in an area with less interference on that flight.
Well I hope you have sent it back it's clearly faulty . Good luck
 
You get artifacts on the screen because your phone is too slow. It contains a quad core processor running on a clock freq. at 1.3 gHz.

Motorola Moto E4 Plus - Full phone specifications

Today you need an 8 core processor with a clock freq of at least 1.5 gHz to get FreeFlight 6 to run without lag or getting artifacts on the screen.

However, it is not your phone is to blame for that Anafi can't hover stable or will pull to the left, it is due some software or hardware failure in Anafi or its controller. Furthermore, should the video and images you see on your SD card be ok because the quality is not affected of your phone has trouble running FreeFlight 6.

Regards Leif.
Yes it hovers left and right when near ground. This is because it uses optical flow GPS and also the phone and controller . However when in the sky and just using the control and phone it doesn't . Hopefully they work on this in future updates . Mine isn't so bad .
Captain drone on YouTube demonstrates this on a video he climbs a hill with follow me and it rises when he has the controller connected . When he does the same test with just his phone it follows him but doesn't rise with him .
On the plus side when using phone and controller at the same time this is why the anafi follow is fantastic and accurate .
When I was on a speed boat the two DJI users could not keep up with the boat . Footage was awful . Mine was locked on and perfect with no props in the shot also.
 

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