Hello GoPro Karma Pilot!
Join our Go Pro Karma community today!
Sign up

NO GPS

1400m thats a great effort, best I've done was 1200m and the signal was in the orange band so may have been able to push it. was your signal strength in the red or orange at that distance?
Oh it was definitely in the red. The video feed was a bit choppy, but I find that even with the video quaility is poor the control is always perfect. I personally think it RTH when video quality drops below a certain threshold but actual control is still fairly good.

I don't usually get that distance. Typically I only see around 500-600 metres, but in this particular spot I can always get a good distance.
 
Can anyone suggest the best way to contact GoPro over this ? Chat & Call are always busy .......
Unfortunately GoPro doesn't seem to be too helpful with these situations. Most people are reporting that GoPro states GPS loss is normal from time-to-time (they're right about that) and that the response after GPS loss is pilot error (jury is still out on that one).

You could try them...maybe they'll tell you something, but my bet is that they'll just say it was caused by interference in the general area (which doesn't make sense to me when it comes to GPS), and recommend that you don't fly in areas prone to interference.

The reality is that any drone can suffer what you have described, but I'm not sure if Karma seems more prone to it than others. Time will tell. If you aren't happy with it, I'd consider fixing and selling it, and putting your money into a Mavic Pro if it gives you the confidence to fly again. Just don't do it thinking that DJI drones are infalliable; a quick search of their forums shows that they're not.d
 
  • Like
Reactions: Dominic Liam
It just said Lost GPS connection... Immediately it shot off to my left up the beach (at least it didn't go out to sea) I seemed to have some control but it felt like what ever I did it was added to its left direction.... In other words I couldn't stop its left movement & it was fast. It happened so quickly, it was quite terrifying to be honest... I did not have video connection after the crash and to be honest it's hard to remember what was on the screen as I was quite shook up. I did have what looked like a (dare I say it) GPS locator & that narrowed it down. We were 8 people & it wasn't me who located it. I did use the bleeper but it's too quiet.... I've done a lot of research about Karma & I knew it's faults beforehand & I'm convinced with what I've seen that I'm not the only one to experience this behavior... I did not however know that you could fly without GPS before the incident & that had me wondering if it was my fault due to inexperience in this area... One thing I am sure of is that its left movement couldn't be stopped via the controls.... I'm fortunate that nobody was injured & the drone only needs new props..... Truth is, how can I ever fly it again unless I'm 5 miles from anyone else ? Seems pointless, I can't trust it now ..... Can anyone suggest the best way to contact GoPro over this ? Chat & Call are always busy .......

Wow Dominic, your uncontrollable fly-away is almost a mirror story of my fly-away when I was Maui back on August 2, 2017. Reading about your anxiety is exactly how I felt when I lost mine. It short, it was TRAMATIC!

As of this reply fucking GoPro has not resolved my case. Every week I email and call them and get the same old story..."out Karma team is still reviewing your flight logs...please pe patient while we continue our investigation...". Then a day or two after, I get an auto email stating, "we have not hear from you and will close your case if you don't contact us". This whole thing is totally fucked up. I did some serious research and found direct contact information to the CEO of GoPro, Nick Woodman. I'm composing an email to him first. Most likely will go unread / responded to, but I have no other means of getting this resolved...last step is flying up to their headquarters in San Mateo and paying the a visit face to face.

What's frustrating, is som people are getting replacements. What are they doing that I'm not to get this resolved? I've called, emailed, sent flight logs...several times by their request...patiently waited. It's now going on for six weeks.

And to your last point..."IF" I get a replacement, it will take a LOT of courage for me to fly around any homes, people, etc. I do agree this will be GoPro's death if they don't get this shit figured out SOON!
 
Wow Dominic, your uncontrollable fly-away is almost a mirror story of my fly-away when I was Maui back on August 2, 2017. Reading about your anxiety is exactly how I felt when I lost mine. It short, it was TRAMATIC!

As of this reply fucking GoPro has not resolved my case. Every week I email and call them and get the same old story..."out Karma team is still reviewing your flight logs...please pe patient while we continue our investigation...". Then a day or two after, I get an auto email stating, "we have not hear from you and will close your case if you don't contact us". This whole thing is totally fucked up. I did some serious research and found direct contact information to the CEO of GoPro, Nick Woodman. I'm composing an email to him first. Most likely will go unread / responded to, but I have no other means of getting this resolved...last step is flying up to their headquarters in San Mateo and paying the a visit face to face.

What's frustrating, is som people are getting replacements. What are they doing that I'm not to get this resolved? I've called, emailed, sent flight logs...several times by their request...patiently waited. It's now going on for six weeks.

And to your last point..."IF" I get a replacement, it will take a LOT of courage for me to fly around any homes, people, etc. I do agree this will be GoPro's death if they don't get this shit figured out SOON!

Wow, I read you story & cant believe it's still not resolved..... So sorry to hear that, Its a miracle mine survived.Had it gone out over the water I'd be in exactly the same position as you. I never checked the video until yesterday as I never had the chance to start recording before it shot off. Turns out I pressed the video after it crashed & it starts in the hedge just before being located.... The drone looks Good as new with 4 new props. It's a miracle, really, I won't even try to contact GoPro as they seem useless.... I've learnt since though that I need to learn to fly without GPS & I'm going to calibrate the compass before each flight.... I don't hold out much hope for a long life though, my next will be a DJI for sure... I did fly it today just to test if it's all working properly & it seemed good but it was a simple up down forward backwards left to right & land while holding my breath........ Really hope you get it sorted soon, keep us posted as to the outcome & good luck !!!
 
  • Like
Reactions: CRXPanda
Wow, I read you story & cant believe it's still not resolved..... So sorry to hear that, Its a miracle mine survived.Had it gone out over the water I'd be in exactly the same position as you. I never checked the video until yesterday as I never had the chance to start recording before it shot off. Turns out I pressed the video after it crashed & it starts in the hedge just before being located.... The drone looks Good as new with 4 new props. It's a miracle, really, I won't even try to contact GoPro as they seem useless.... I've learnt since though that I need to learn to fly without GPS & I'm going to calibrate the compass before each flight.... I don't hold out much hope for a long life though, my next will be a DJI for sure... I did fly it today just to test if it's all working properly & it seemed good but it was a simple up down forward backwards left to right & land while holding my breath........ Really hope you get it sorted soon, keep us posted as to the outcome & good luck !!!

So glad you're back "up" and flying! I agree that baby steps are in order after an event like yours...and mine! Funny thing is I always calibrated before each and every flight. The video that I shot in Hawaii is hard to look at knowing the final outcome. I put so much faith in the Karma and GoPro as a new beginner to drowns. I think that is why I'm so bummed out about this whole thing.

To add insult to injury, yesterday I received a "Customer Service Satisfication" survey from GoPro stating they hope the outcome of my case was a good one! SERIOUSLY! My fucking case was never resolved. No contact from them about any resolution. All I ever get are auto canned emails and after considerable emails I finally get an email from CS that says to be patient while their Karma team investigates. I've just about lost all the patiences I can muster! Getting up early tomorrow to make another call right at 6:00AM. Will keep you posted......
 
So glad you're back "up" and flying! I agree that baby steps are in order after an event like yours...and mine! Funny thing is I always calibrated before each and every flight. The video that I shot in Hawaii is hard to look at knowing the final outcome. I put so much faith in the Karma and GoPro as a new beginner to drowns. I think that is why I'm so bummed out about this whole thing.

To add insult to injury, yesterday I received a "Customer Service Satisfication" survey from GoPro stating they hope the outcome of my case was a good one! SERIOUSLY! My fucking case was never resolved. No contact from them about any resolution. All I ever get are auto canned emails and after considerable emails I finally get an email from CS that says to be patient while their Karma team investigates. I've just about lost all the patiences I can muster! Getting up early tomorrow to make another call right at 6:00AM. Will keep you posted......

So I think I just experienced the same thing. Was flying up doing an aerial of the neighborhood. 5th flight and never had issues before even when pushing it. I started losing control and kept fighting to gain control. It wouldn't respond to all of my controls. Then it flew out of sight on its own wasn't even touching the controller. Then it flew back towards me saying go pro is attempting to land because it lost gps signal. Then flew straight into the ground full speed. Hiked an hour to find it. Very disappointed to read that this is happening to others. I was really hoping it was the air port jamming my signal even though they are like 4 miles away. Go pro is supposed to land on its own when it looses gps. It didn't land it FLEW into the ground. I use the auto landing and it LANDS what it did tonight was not a landing.
 
Go pro is supposed to land on its own when it looses gps. It didn't land it FLEW into the ground. I use the auto landing and it LANDS what it did tonight was not a landing.

With all due respect, I completely disagree with this statement, and I think this contributes to the issues that occur when GPS is lost.

Auto-landing is a GPS-based feature - it returns either to the launch or to the controller (your choice), but in either case it has to know where it currently is before it can decide where it needs to go. It can't do this without GPS.

The end result is that if you lose GPS in flight, all navigation capabilities are unavailable, including auto-land and hovering. It's an entirely manual bird at that time, which is why you must always keep it in VLOS so you can fly it where you need it to be.

Please note, I'm not criticizing your piloting abilities as I've not experienced what you've described, so I don't know what it's like (maybe the same will happen to me one day and I'll find out). What I want to do is ensure that people understand the ramifications of losing GPS, and not relying on GPS-based features to save them when it happens. I am guessing that when people are experiencing GPS loss, they're panicking and hitting the RTH button and that's causing these issues (emphasis: guessing).
 
  • Like
Reactions: CRXPanda
Bought a new Karma on 9/3/17. First drone. Flew pretty good, all things considered until I ran the update a couple of days ago. Finally got a chance to go out yesterday. Got the Karma about 2 feet off the ground, lost GPS, shot to the right toward a tree. Fortunately, I was able to get some control and with the joystick full left, was able to keep from the tree. Releasing the joystick, it kept trying to go right. holding the stick to the right and full down, I was able to get it back on the ground and held it until the rotors shut down. In the air maybe 4 minutes total. Think I am heading out to buy a Mavic Pro and let the Karma sit until Go Pro does something to make the drone more reliable. Being new to this hobby, I have no trust in the Karma and am very hesitant in trying this thing again.

Jim
 
  • Like
Reactions: Dominic Liam
With all due respect, I completely disagree with this statement, and I think this contributes to the issues that occur when GPS is lost.

Auto-landing is a GPS-based feature - it returns either to the launch or to the controller (your choice), but in either case it has to know where it currently is before it can decide where it needs to go. It can't do this without GPS.

The end result is that if you lose GPS in flight, all navigation capabilities are unavailable, including auto-land and hovering. It's an entirely manual bird at that time, which is why you must always keep it in VLOS so you can fly it where you need it to be.

Please note, I'm not criticizing your piloting abilities as I've not experienced what you've described, so I don't know what it's like (maybe the same will happen to me one day and I'll find out). What I want to do is ensure that people understand the ramifications of losing GPS, and not relying on GPS-based features to save them when it happens. I am guessing that when people are experiencing GPS loss, they're panicking and hitting the RTH button and that's causing these issues (emphasis: guessing).

I appreciate the input. Believe me, I want to believe it was pilot error. At least if I know the pilot error was the cause I can learn to avoid it in the future. That being said I really feel drones having GPS turned on by default is a mistake. I would much rather have learned to fly without GPS then turn on GPS. Kind of like teaching a 16-year-old to drive in an autonomous car then giving them a relic from the 60's for their first car. All I know is that the screen was responding, it flew out of line of sight (seemed like it did it on its own) I knew I needed to go UP and LEFT to avoid houses, people etc so I pulled hard and fast in the general direction I wanted to go, which seemed it may have worked then it said it was landing it self. I think at that point I may have been caught up in the moment and figured it would "land itself" as indicated or something.

I think this was a great learning experience however GoPro needs to learn from this. There needs to be far more warning and general overview/training built into the drone regarding GPS loss. It only ever prompted me saying GPS loss would be difficult to fly once it lost it while mid air, so useful at that point.

Final question for you my friend, do you know how to turn off the GPS on Go-Pro Karma? I am sure I can find it but I am away from the drone atm. I am going to take the training wheels off so to speak and take it somewhere safe and keep it low while i learn to rely on VLOS and no GPS. I will use GPS as a "bonus" feature rather than the primary mode of flight. It is concerning though that most people are having GPS issues after the most recent firmware update.

For anyone else reading this, the lesson I learned that I want to share.

1. Take the training wheels off and fly in no GPS mode first and keep it low and slow until you're used to flying without GPS.
2. Scout the zone before flying and then scout the zone from the sky but keep it low, close and slow as you walk the zone making sure it continues to hold GPS. Last thing you want is to punch it to 3000 feet distance and loose GPS.
3. If this is a big purchase for you, plan on keeping it within 1000 feet distance and 200 feet high to stay safe.
4. Don't rely on the camera as your window for driving, it will cut out and if your out of VLOS (visual line of sight) your pretty screwed.
5. GET INSURANCE. GoPro offers a coverage program for their drone. Get it get it get it get it......
6. Remember that it is technology and then remember the last time your computer or cell phone crapped out on you. Yeah, scary.....
7. Bring someone with you if you can, its hard to line up the perfect shot while trying to keep the drone in view.
8. A high caliber drone like a mavic, phantom or karma are TOOLS not TOYS. If you spend this much on a drone rememeber this concept and use it as such. If you want to simply fly and see from the sky there are cheaper drone options which means less loss if it dies.
 
I really feel drones having GPS turned on by default is a mistake. I would much rather have learned to fly without GPS then turn on GPS.

I absolutely agree with you.

...do you know how to turn off the GPS on Go-Pro Karma?

Unfortunately, no. I have also asked this question for the same reasons as you, but it appears that there is no way to disable GPS. I really want to be able to turn it off at a time and place of my choosing so I can, as you say, master flying the drone without it. That would prepare me for when I inevitably have a GPS loss and have to fly manually. It would also allow me to take the drone places where I don't currently go (i.e. under bridges).
 
After loosing my Karma six weeks ago today, I once again called GoPro to remind them my case was NOT closed...yep, they closed it a third time without calling or emailing me with why the fly-away happened. By the way, this past Sunday I wrote several emails to GoPro customer service and Nick Woodman, CEO. Did not get a reply, but the emails did not get returned!. When talking with Ryan, (CSR) he looked at the call and email history and replied with apologies for the poor customer service and lack of follow through on my case. He reopened the case and assured me in 48 hours I would get a reply. To my surprise I received a call two hours later, however I missed answering, but did receive an email from Ryan confirming my address as they would be replacing my Karma and camera. No, explanation on if it was my fault or there's.

"Thank you for your patience. I rushed your case through our Karma Specialists and based on your flight logs and your overall experience I'm going to go ahead and replace your Karma for you..."

As you can imagine, I'm elated this nightmare is almost over. And like many others have said, I will stay "grounded" until GoPro figures out what's going on!
 
After loosing my Karma six weeks ago today, I once again called GoPro to remind them my case was NOT closed...yep, they closed it a third time without calling or emailing me with why the fly-away happened. By the way, this past Sunday I wrote several emails to GoPro customer service and Nick Woodman, CEO. Did not get a reply, but the emails did not get returned!. When talking with Ryan, (CSR) he looked at the call and email history and replied with apologies for the poor customer service and lack of follow through on my case. He reopened the case and assured me in 48 hours I would get a reply. To my surprise I received a call two hours later, however I missed answering, but did receive an email from Ryan confirming my address as they would be replacing my Karma and camera. No, explanation on if it was my fault or there's.

"Thank you for your patience. I rushed your case through our Karma Specialists and based on your flight logs and your overall experience I'm going to go ahead and replace your Karma for you..."

Hello,
Just this past Saturday I watched my Karma fly off into the great beyond as well. I was demonstrating it for some friends so all I did was lift the drone of about 15 ft. and within a seconds I received the " lost GPS" message. and with a a few seconds of that a "lost connection" message. The thing is, not a few minutes prior to this we launched and recovered my friends DJI Mavic. It was clear skies and he had excellent GPS with 9 satellites feeding his drone. However, The drone flew off immediately and even out of sight over the Bay of Cadiz, and I assume into the Atlantic Ocean. I just last night uploaded the flight logs and contacted CS. I have an email to send them with all the questions they are asking of my case. But I would like any advice you may have in dealing with them, as you have been successful. It made me sick to stomach to watch $1100 literally fly away. Thank you
 
Hello,
Just this past Saturday I watched my Karma fly off into the great beyond as well. I was demonstrating it for some friends so all I did was lift the drone of about 15 ft. and within a seconds I received the " lost GPS" message. and with a a few seconds of that a "lost connection" message. The thing is, not a few minutes prior to this we launched and recovered my friends DJI Mavic. It was clear skies and he had excellent GPS with 9 satellites feeding his drone. However, The drone flew off immediately and even out of sight over the Bay of Cadiz, and I assume into the Atlantic Ocean. I just last night uploaded the flight logs and contacted CS. I have an email to send them with all the questions they are asking of my case. But I would like any advice you may have in dealing with them, as you have been successful. It made me sick to stomach to watch $1100 literally fly away. Thank you
 
After loosing my Karma six weeks ago today, I once again called GoPro to remind them my case was NOT closed...yep, they closed it a third time without calling or emailing me with why the fly-away happened. By the way, this past Sunday I wrote several emails to GoPro customer service and Nick Woodman, CEO. Did not get a reply, but the emails did not get returned!. When talking with Ryan, (CSR) he looked at the call and email history and replied with apologies for the poor customer service and lack of follow through on my case. He reopened the case and assured me in 48 hours I would get a reply. To my surprise I received a call two hours later, however I missed answering, but did receive an email from Ryan confirming my address as they would be replacing my Karma and camera. No, explanation on if it was my fault or there's.

"Thank you for your patience. I rushed your case through our Karma Specialists and based on your flight logs and your overall experience I'm going to go ahead and replace your Karma for you..."

As you can imagine, I'm elated this nightmare is almost over. And like many others have said, I will stay "grounded" until GoPro figures out what's going on!

I wouldn't give up on flying. Just like my experience (albeit it wasn't as tragic) we just need to learn from our mistakes as well as understand that problems Karma has and learn to be proactive about avoiding them. As I said in my previous post I want to believe it was pilot error. In the heat of the moment, it is hard to say for sure if I was out of control or if the drone simply didn't respond. I just don't want anyone to feel discouraged. I think if anything we need to press GoPro to develop a "GPS off" mode for the drone and prompt and encourage new flyers like myself to use this "restricted" safe flight without GPS mode.
 
Hello,
Just this past Saturday I watched my Karma fly off into the great beyond as well. I was demonstrating it for some friends so all I did was lift the drone of about 15 ft. and within a seconds I received the " lost GPS" message. and with a a few seconds of that a "lost connection" message. The thing is, not a few minutes prior to this we launched and recovered my friends DJI Mavic. It was clear skies and he had excellent GPS with 9 satellites feeding his drone. However, The drone flew off immediately and even out of sight over the Bay of Cadiz, and I assume into the Atlantic Ocean. I just last night uploaded the flight logs and contacted CS. I have an email to send them with all the questions they are asking of my case. But I would like any advice you may have in dealing with them, as you have been successful. It made me sick to stomach to watch $1100 literally fly away. Thank you

Dennis, so the DJI Mavic had no issues during flight in the same location and environment as the Karma?
 
I wouldn't give up on flying. Just like my experience (albeit it wasn't as tragic) we just need to learn from our mistakes as well as understand that problems Karma has and learn to be proactive about avoiding them. As I said in my previous post I want to believe it was pilot error. In the heat of the moment, it is hard to say for sure if I was out of control or if the drone simply didn't respond. I just don't want anyone to feel discouraged. I think if anything we need to press GoPro to develop a "GPS off" mode for the drone and prompt and encourage new flyers like myself to use this "restricted" safe flight without GPS mode.

Jake, I can appreciate your positive attitude, but what bothers me is your point about needing to learn from our mistakes. How can we learn and understand if GoPro does not share with any of us what they say we're doing wrong? IF WE'RE DOING ANYTHING WRONG TO BEGIN WITH! Almost everyday I read a new story that mirrors each other's. If we all seem to be experiencing the same, how is that pilot error? Let's just say, it is...then why wouldn't GoPro release some training videos and documentation to help us all overcome these so called pilot errors? It would save us all a lot of time and money from both sides of the table! I truly believe there is something much bigger behind all of this and time will reveal what that is.
 
  • Like
Reactions: Dominic Liam
I absolutely agree with you.



Unfortunately, no. I have also asked this question for the same reasons as you, but it appears that there is no way to disable GPS. I really want to be able to turn it off at a time and place of my choosing so I can, as you say, master flying the drone without it. That would prepare me for when I inevitably have a GPS loss and have to fly manually. It would also allow me to take the drone places where I don't currently go (i.e. under bridges).

If I was to fly in advanced pilot mode, am I still slaved to GPS?
 
Dennis, so the DJI Mavic had no issues during flight in the same location and environment as the Karma?
negative.. so I think gopro's answer of signal interference from surrounding devices is null and void. Or that the xmitter/recievers on the karma are far inferior.
 
"We can confirm that it's not a manufacturing defect and won't be covered under warranty." Says GoPro.

Two weeks ago, like any usual sunny day, my Karma took off in a wide open space. When I saw the low battery signal I immediately press the return button. I saw my drone coming back at a fairly high alititude so I tried to descend it but it wouldn't respond. Instead, it just went straight ahead into a branch and got stuck. Few seconds later it smashed to the ground. The Karma, stabilizer, and even the camera were all total loss.

I emailed GoPro with all the information I could provide including flight logs and pictures. And all I get is "Not a manufacturing defect and won't be covered?" Like everyone else here, I'm definitely fighting for my replacement, fingers crossed.
 
If I was to fly in advanced pilot mode, am I still slaved to GPS?

You would not be a slave to GPS mode if you fly in advanced pilot mode. To my understanding though you can not turn off the GPS on the Karma. Therefor GoPro must want to replace every drone I crash free of charge as they are not providing me with the ability to learn their product the right way.
 

New Posts

Members online

No members online now.

Forum statistics

Threads
1,039
Messages
7,641
Members
2,566
Latest member
BTFLYS