DroneDeploy Pre-v4.2 Lag/Freeze/Crash (Latest Interface)

iPad 5th generation
iOS 13.3

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I have closed the other threads related to this topic and consolidated some of the most relevant content to this thread. Please let me know if you see other threads dealing with this issue that are still open.

Any team updates? @Andrew_Fraser @Jamespipe @GregO @Dave @Kaitlin @Erika_Houseman

Thanks @MichaelL. We’re actively exploring performance improvements to help all devices (even the older ones). Definitely want the app to be super quick for everyone.

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Thanks @Andrew_Fraser. Please let us know what you need to move forward.

I am also having the same issues as everyone is describing here on the latest flight app version. Slow startup time, several minutes to load projects, unresponsive while trying to set up project, lagging behind while in flight. Was able to complete two small projects but the app is almost unusable right now.

DJI inspire 2, ipad mini, ios 11

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Couldn’t get my iPad to screen record with DD open so I used my phone.

DD Lag Video 1

DD Lag Video 2

@MichaelL Super helpful thanks

I’ve tried using DD on my Phantom 4 V2 on my I-phone and Android phone, mobile version 4.1.1.
Both systems lag at start up and I can’t get access to all my projects. Once I select a project the system freezes. Any tips?

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If you are in the field try turning of the WiFi. I have seen this sometimes where the interface will not load properly with WiFi and Mobile Data on. This doesn’t really relate to the lagging, but moreso the refreshing and updating of the interface.

Thanks the information. What you described sounds like what the problem Maybe. I’ll give it a try.

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Hello all. I fly DJI P4P’s with remote controller GL300F’s and iPad mini 4’s with iPADOS v13.3 and 85%+ free of 128GB memory capacity. No other apps running, sometimes WIFI function is “on” though in virtually all flown locations there is no connection to be had or allowed.

Only recently following DD updates have I HAD to close out DJI GO4 in the background, but that still doesn’t result in DD providing useful updated telemetry, reliable current session status, continue mission and mission complete capability, or AirData mission logging following flights. And the field delays at every step are debilitating. So, I’m predictably experiencing unpredictable combined variants on all of the issues written about by others to date, on every flight of the several I make in urban and rural settings weekly. The wish and prayer method of hoping actual flights follow thru as planned can’t be sustained, bordering on breach of Part 107 licensure standards and professional negligence. Thankfully to date no safety consequences or accidents but lack of real-time command and control via dependable telemetry to pilot is a major issue that can’t be sustained.

Multi-battery flights can’t even be gamed by re-flying a mission with an advanced starting point because accessing the mission in the field, let alone glacial lags in the pre-flight checklist process, if it ever does allow the flight to commence, add yet another factor to accelerated Winter condition battery draw down. Forget about completing the flight in the initial session, even after waiting 10+ minutes to sometimes get a “continue flight” prompt. Happened in front of a site safety foreman just this past week. DD used to be reliable and instill confidence.

Sorry, but after decades of software and hardware experience in technical fields, the lack of meaningful response and clean resolution from DD to date is at best weak, if not truly amateur hour. C’mon folks, let’s support and promote the dependence, loyalty and commitments us frontline mappers in the field have made to this profession, small operator and enterprise level alike. I pay monthly fees for this service and it’s fair to expect a better professional solution. Really don’t enjoy venting aloud but from this strand alone there is a real stagnating problem that needs to be fixed.

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Looks like you have two issues going on. The first being the common problem that we (users) are having with lag on the system.

The second being the fact that you have Wi-Fi on. Having Wi-Fi on and no sources is even worse than being connected. This is because your adapter will be searching continuously for signals. I would suggest like before turning Wi-Fi off before you open DroneDeploy.

While DroneDeploy has not responded as quickly as we would like, I think that stems from the fact that they are unable to reproduce the problem. Whether that is true or not I do not know. We need more users to screenshot and record their screens as this is happening so that they can get a better idea of where to approach the problem.

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@DaveMc sorry to hear you’re frustrated. We’re actively engaged here and I do read all of these messages. @MichaelL is correct that slowness issues are difficult to reproduce despite us flying hundreds of test flights for new app releases. Of the available flight apps I am confident we have the most mature QA processes in the industry.

We have reporting tools to summarize performance across all users, and this described issue is simply not widespread - the app is still highly performant / crash free for 99% of users. This said, we’re spending a lot of time looking for performance improvements to help the 1% of remaining issues and that will be reflected in a future release soon.

One of our current suspicions from testing is that iOS13 changed memory management, which is affecting older devices with low RAM most critically. We strongly recommend you try flying with DroneDeploy on a more current device than iPad Mini 4 (2015).

Reminder that as a valued subscriber of DroneDeploy you have access to our support team to help you succeed. Happy Flying!

Thanks Andrew. I purchased and will try a new 2019 iPad mini 5, has vastly improved processor. Has that been tested by DD, any known setting recommendations? Will also ensure WiFi is switched off. Knowing about the processing issues at update release would have been helpful for those of us that rely on legacy surfaces.

To the extent I can record screen anomilies, will send those off to you to research. Fingers crossed as an associate and I prepare community college presentations on sUAS mapping capture and processing alternatives. Our hope was that DD’s kml file import and app alternatives would raise it to the top of the list, though resolution of the noted glitches is key.

  • Dave
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Due to seasonal UK weather, I’ve only been able to venture out once in the past couple of months to use DD. Mid December I think it was.

The only thing I recall from the new interface at the time, was that the fully charged battery of my IPad Pro was zapped to nothing in about 45 minutes of DD mission. Usually I can get through eight batteries on a fully charged Pad whereas I barely got through two on the day.

I put it down to a funky one-off, as the battery hasn’t behaved badly since, whether it be every day use of drone flying with Go4, but the more I read about the issues here, I do wonder if it was poor power management through DD that caused it. I don’t recall lag or crashing though. I wonder if being a Pro, the iPad coped with it, but at the cost of the battery consumption.

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Today’s issues with 7th Gen 10.2 iPad on latest iOS 13.3 and DD 4.1.1,

  • Very slow startup regardless whether WiFi was on or off.
  • Approximately 10 seconds for the UI to fully populate and gain the ability to search.
  • Sometimes the Project icons underneath my section of folders still wasn’t populated.
  • I got out of the new Dashboard after restarting DD and it worked much better. Not as good as would be expected, but better than the new UI.
  • Restarted again, selected new UI, restarted again and the UI took forever to load again.
  • Another issue all together is the new Flight UI. I have had 2 missions in two days fail to launch. Even after rebooting all systems and recreating the missions. One of them failed to upload waypoints. The UI just sits there with no actions.
  • Last mission of today and everything went as expected, but the drone took off and the icon for it on the flight screen never moved. It had gotten to the first waypoint and I could see that it was taking pictures before the drone icon ever started moving and it was an erratic catch up to its actual place.
  • The Image Capture Started message occurred about 5 seconds after image capture had actually started.

Fun, fun and more fun!

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Wow. It’s crap weather here (except for skiing !) I have an older 3.x version of DD on one of my pads and 4.x on the other. I would like to fly the same mission back to back with the different versions. Both on ios 12.x though.

What gets me is that Andrew says this is not affecting most operators. That’s just plain weird.

Not the weather, but good for you! The next time I see a stable version I am going to put it on a device and disable updates…

I might have missed something, but is there any reason why DD cannot publish a stable version for us to use whilst they fix whatever’s broke? We’re paying an awful lot of money for this subscription we can’t use.

I have a mission that must be done next week, and I am becoming incredibly fearful that I might not be able to fly it.

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We have very detailed information on flight success rates. Across all pilots success rates remain unchanged over the past few months. That said, we’ve recently identified some areas of performance improvement that should make things zippier for you all - but please know that the current version of the app is perfectly fine to fly with :slight_smile: