Aerial Media Pros
Member
Hi Guys,
I must say that I am a little hesitant to post anything, because you may think this is simply because I am one of DJI's main Dealers. I know there are a few on the forums that absolutely hate DJI Products, and I am certain that there will be some negative comments on here. Anyway, I am simply posting this to give my view and opinion on the S800, and some of my thoughts towards some of the other concerns posted by members.
Having Sold over 100 S800's and (10) RTF EVO's already, I can certainly say they are 100% up to their designed task. I am not just some online hobby shop or some guy selling product on a website out of his bedroom. I actually use these products weekly for professional filming. Anything from music videos and commercials to Full on Feature Films. If I wouldn't use something myself, I certainly wouldn't recommend it to you. I am in the trenches weekly on Set Flying these things, so I know what its like to have a failure, or problem with the aircraft. I cant say that you will never have a problem with your S800, but I can say it has proven itself over and over again.
One of our clients works full time Filming the Discovery Channel show GOLD RUSH. No BS, they fly that S800 for the past 5 months 10 hours a day in the Jungle, and up in Alaska. They beat the hell out of it, and it hasn't failed them once. Just wait to see the show next season. I have seen some footage and its amazing.
I will mention something regarding the wookong reliability. For feature films, I mainly fly one of my RED EPIC's using a wookong system. The owner of RED (Jim Jannard) Purchased a full on RTF to fly EPIC's with and absolutely loves it. He showcased the copter in the RED booth at NAB. They have since purchased over 10 copters from us, All flying the wookong. I will add, that we have sent a couple of these copters over 15 miles using the wookong and Data link. Currently we have logged 68 long range waypoint missions without a single failure. I can say without a doubt, that the Wookongs are reliable.
Now, for filming Music videos, and Commercials, Its hard to beat the S800.
The S800 isn't for everyone. If your looking for a super heavy lifter or something to Fly an EPIC with, I am going to recommend something else.
If your into the DIY type of things, then your probably better off buying a Frame, and building everything yourself. You will have to assemble frame, power distribution, Program ESC's, throttle calibration, install motors, prop adapters, gimbal, etc etc etc. Then hope you got it all correct and hope it doesn't flip over when you fire it up.
The S800's take most of that out of the equation. Arms are plug and play. Pretty easy not to screw that install up. X goes to X, and O goes to O. If you crash on set, simply grab a replacement arm that is ready to go with Motor, ESC, and prop mounted, Slap it on, and finish the Shoot. Yea the ARM cost $260 for the entire thing ready to go, but that's peanuts when your making $1000-$3000 a day with this rig.
Now if your looking for a turn key system that will deliver USABLE / STABLE footage right out of the gate. Or if your looking for a system that you can easily go out and make $1000-3000 a day. Then the S800 might be for you. You may also want to consider getting one that is completely built and test flown by a reputable dealer, that can also offer AFTER SALE support. Yea it might cost a bit more, but it could save you thousands in the near future.
Straight up, It is Freakin hard to beat the footage coming from the Zenmuse. I have seen pilots out there that have the copter bobbin around like windshield wipers. But we look at the footage and are like Damnnnnn. Its so stable. The S800 with Zenmuse makes rookies look like Pros. Seriously, I wish I had this 3 years ago when I started Aerial Filming. I would have been stoked If I could have gotten a turn Key system like an S800 for $7k back then.
OK, now lets talk about some of the problems. Yes the S800 and wookong went through some growing pains, and I imagine there will be problems in the future with new products. I remember when I was the First to get the 2006 Z06 Corvette. I blew through 3 rear diffs in a matter of months. Granted I drove it like I stole it. Cool thing was Chevy replaced everything for free. Even hooked me up with a free rental while it was in the shop. I wasn't too upset cause I knew it was a new product and one of the first production cars pumping out 500HP. Now if Chevy would have told me to kick rocks and would have not repaired or replaced it, I would have been extremely upset, especially after spend $100K on it. This experiance seems to be similar to some of you that have spent close to $10k on your S800 and need support. I share this example because this is how your DJI Support is going to be.
The support and warranty you receive is going to depend a lot on your Dealer. I know personally we had 2 S800 do the Flip thing and crash hard. My customer contacted me, I contacted DJI Direct, and had their S800 and Zenmuse completely replaced at no charge. I have (5) H3-2D gimbals being sent back to China right now. I warrantied these in house for the customer. I took gimbals off my shelf to give to the customer so they can be back up in the air, rather than having them to wait for the gimbal to be fixed or replaced in China. Got a Phantom with a motor that wont start, bring it in and we replace Free of Charge. Sometimes while you wait.
Some of you that already kow us, know that we offer a lot of phone support too. Sometimes the problem is something simple. Yesterday customer had Flashing Yellow/RED on his 450 Extreme with H3-2D. He was stressed cause he was going on a road trip to Utah to film, and the copter wouldn't even start up. I walked him through the calibration and he was on his way a happy customer.
We pride ourselves on our customer service and feel we are the leaders of the industry in that aspect. However I know we miss some customers needing help from time to time. With approx. 100-200 emails a day, and 150 phone calls a day, its hard to catch them all. I ask those that we miss to please don't be embarrassed to call again 10-20 min later. Chances are we will catch you the second time around. In order to better combat the growing need of support for our ever growing amount of customers. I have personally invested heavily into a new 6000 Sq foot building. We have outgrown our current building, so its time to go big. I am remodeling the place right now to have Build rooms, Training areas, Relaxation room (Man Cave), and much more. It will be the ultimate Multirotor Club House
With Four full time Employees right now, we are looking to expand that to 10 by the end of first quarter. This is all to better support you guys out there in the field.
Sorry to ramble on. I am just trying to emphasize that Customer service is probably what's going to make or break your DJI experience.
One thing I do not understand is how many have problems with S800's here on the forums. Is it because people mainly come to the forums because they have problems. Or is it because a lot of people are buying from Amazon, or some 3rd tier or 2nd tier dealer that is only around to make a quick buck, and they cant seem to get any good support. Chances are if you got in on ebay or amazon, your might run into some customer service problems.
It just seems like those that are doing awesome with their gear are to busy out there making money, or don't have time or need to come post on forums.
I'm not here to sale or push anything. I just want people to know that there are an extremely large amount of Happy customers with the current S800's , and that there are Dealers like myself that offer great support before, and AFTER the sale. Don't take my word for it though, do your own searching to draw your conclusion.
Too better serve and limit those that could have problems in the future, I would recommend anyone that is thinking of purchasing any such products to carefully consider who they buy from. Make sure they are a reputable dealer. It may be good to see if they actually use these copters for what they advertise. Check on their customer service, and see if you can get them on the phone.
As for us, I know our prices are not the Internet Blow out Low ball specials, But neither is our customer service.
If your having problems with your current dealer, and need some warranty or support. Feel free to contact us Directly, and we will try our best to get you taken care of.
On to some examples of current S800 and EVO customers.
We just had a Client fly in from Costa Rica to pick up his RTF S800 EVO yesterday. Here is a quick clip we put together for him. Seems to be working pretty damn good
Here are a couple videos from some of our other RTF Customers.
This Customer here won the Grand Prize, and just received a brand new S800 EVO, Z15, Wookong, OSD, and 5.8 TX/RX
Lastly, If you want to see a big list of Happy S800 customers, Check out the Showcase videos found here. I imagine each one of those videos are from customers that are pretty happy with their products.
http://www.dji.com/equipment/eq-s800-wkm-z15/?per_page=79#a59
Sorry for the long post. I don't get on the forum a whole lot. But wanted to chime in and share an insiders perspective. I know and understand that a lot of you have had problems and are upset with DJI Products. I can truly say that DJI is aware and is trying their best to take support to the next level. I promise you that you will see changes happening in the months to come.
I myself am just as committed (If not more), to support my customers in the absolute best way possible. For any of you that are local SoCal, come on by the new place next month and have a Beer (oops, I mean coca cola) Feel free to contact me directly if you feel there is something I can help with.
Take care,
Patrick
Aerial Media Pros
I must say that I am a little hesitant to post anything, because you may think this is simply because I am one of DJI's main Dealers. I know there are a few on the forums that absolutely hate DJI Products, and I am certain that there will be some negative comments on here. Anyway, I am simply posting this to give my view and opinion on the S800, and some of my thoughts towards some of the other concerns posted by members.
Having Sold over 100 S800's and (10) RTF EVO's already, I can certainly say they are 100% up to their designed task. I am not just some online hobby shop or some guy selling product on a website out of his bedroom. I actually use these products weekly for professional filming. Anything from music videos and commercials to Full on Feature Films. If I wouldn't use something myself, I certainly wouldn't recommend it to you. I am in the trenches weekly on Set Flying these things, so I know what its like to have a failure, or problem with the aircraft. I cant say that you will never have a problem with your S800, but I can say it has proven itself over and over again.
One of our clients works full time Filming the Discovery Channel show GOLD RUSH. No BS, they fly that S800 for the past 5 months 10 hours a day in the Jungle, and up in Alaska. They beat the hell out of it, and it hasn't failed them once. Just wait to see the show next season. I have seen some footage and its amazing.
I will mention something regarding the wookong reliability. For feature films, I mainly fly one of my RED EPIC's using a wookong system. The owner of RED (Jim Jannard) Purchased a full on RTF to fly EPIC's with and absolutely loves it. He showcased the copter in the RED booth at NAB. They have since purchased over 10 copters from us, All flying the wookong. I will add, that we have sent a couple of these copters over 15 miles using the wookong and Data link. Currently we have logged 68 long range waypoint missions without a single failure. I can say without a doubt, that the Wookongs are reliable.
Now, for filming Music videos, and Commercials, Its hard to beat the S800.
The S800 isn't for everyone. If your looking for a super heavy lifter or something to Fly an EPIC with, I am going to recommend something else.
If your into the DIY type of things, then your probably better off buying a Frame, and building everything yourself. You will have to assemble frame, power distribution, Program ESC's, throttle calibration, install motors, prop adapters, gimbal, etc etc etc. Then hope you got it all correct and hope it doesn't flip over when you fire it up.
The S800's take most of that out of the equation. Arms are plug and play. Pretty easy not to screw that install up. X goes to X, and O goes to O. If you crash on set, simply grab a replacement arm that is ready to go with Motor, ESC, and prop mounted, Slap it on, and finish the Shoot. Yea the ARM cost $260 for the entire thing ready to go, but that's peanuts when your making $1000-$3000 a day with this rig.
Now if your looking for a turn key system that will deliver USABLE / STABLE footage right out of the gate. Or if your looking for a system that you can easily go out and make $1000-3000 a day. Then the S800 might be for you. You may also want to consider getting one that is completely built and test flown by a reputable dealer, that can also offer AFTER SALE support. Yea it might cost a bit more, but it could save you thousands in the near future.
Straight up, It is Freakin hard to beat the footage coming from the Zenmuse. I have seen pilots out there that have the copter bobbin around like windshield wipers. But we look at the footage and are like Damnnnnn. Its so stable. The S800 with Zenmuse makes rookies look like Pros. Seriously, I wish I had this 3 years ago when I started Aerial Filming. I would have been stoked If I could have gotten a turn Key system like an S800 for $7k back then.
OK, now lets talk about some of the problems. Yes the S800 and wookong went through some growing pains, and I imagine there will be problems in the future with new products. I remember when I was the First to get the 2006 Z06 Corvette. I blew through 3 rear diffs in a matter of months. Granted I drove it like I stole it. Cool thing was Chevy replaced everything for free. Even hooked me up with a free rental while it was in the shop. I wasn't too upset cause I knew it was a new product and one of the first production cars pumping out 500HP. Now if Chevy would have told me to kick rocks and would have not repaired or replaced it, I would have been extremely upset, especially after spend $100K on it. This experiance seems to be similar to some of you that have spent close to $10k on your S800 and need support. I share this example because this is how your DJI Support is going to be.
The support and warranty you receive is going to depend a lot on your Dealer. I know personally we had 2 S800 do the Flip thing and crash hard. My customer contacted me, I contacted DJI Direct, and had their S800 and Zenmuse completely replaced at no charge. I have (5) H3-2D gimbals being sent back to China right now. I warrantied these in house for the customer. I took gimbals off my shelf to give to the customer so they can be back up in the air, rather than having them to wait for the gimbal to be fixed or replaced in China. Got a Phantom with a motor that wont start, bring it in and we replace Free of Charge. Sometimes while you wait.
Some of you that already kow us, know that we offer a lot of phone support too. Sometimes the problem is something simple. Yesterday customer had Flashing Yellow/RED on his 450 Extreme with H3-2D. He was stressed cause he was going on a road trip to Utah to film, and the copter wouldn't even start up. I walked him through the calibration and he was on his way a happy customer.
We pride ourselves on our customer service and feel we are the leaders of the industry in that aspect. However I know we miss some customers needing help from time to time. With approx. 100-200 emails a day, and 150 phone calls a day, its hard to catch them all. I ask those that we miss to please don't be embarrassed to call again 10-20 min later. Chances are we will catch you the second time around. In order to better combat the growing need of support for our ever growing amount of customers. I have personally invested heavily into a new 6000 Sq foot building. We have outgrown our current building, so its time to go big. I am remodeling the place right now to have Build rooms, Training areas, Relaxation room (Man Cave), and much more. It will be the ultimate Multirotor Club House
Sorry to ramble on. I am just trying to emphasize that Customer service is probably what's going to make or break your DJI experience.
One thing I do not understand is how many have problems with S800's here on the forums. Is it because people mainly come to the forums because they have problems. Or is it because a lot of people are buying from Amazon, or some 3rd tier or 2nd tier dealer that is only around to make a quick buck, and they cant seem to get any good support. Chances are if you got in on ebay or amazon, your might run into some customer service problems.
It just seems like those that are doing awesome with their gear are to busy out there making money, or don't have time or need to come post on forums.
I'm not here to sale or push anything. I just want people to know that there are an extremely large amount of Happy customers with the current S800's , and that there are Dealers like myself that offer great support before, and AFTER the sale. Don't take my word for it though, do your own searching to draw your conclusion.
Too better serve and limit those that could have problems in the future, I would recommend anyone that is thinking of purchasing any such products to carefully consider who they buy from. Make sure they are a reputable dealer. It may be good to see if they actually use these copters for what they advertise. Check on their customer service, and see if you can get them on the phone.
As for us, I know our prices are not the Internet Blow out Low ball specials, But neither is our customer service.
If your having problems with your current dealer, and need some warranty or support. Feel free to contact us Directly, and we will try our best to get you taken care of.
On to some examples of current S800 and EVO customers.
We just had a Client fly in from Costa Rica to pick up his RTF S800 EVO yesterday. Here is a quick clip we put together for him. Seems to be working pretty damn good
Here are a couple videos from some of our other RTF Customers.
This Customer here won the Grand Prize, and just received a brand new S800 EVO, Z15, Wookong, OSD, and 5.8 TX/RX
Lastly, If you want to see a big list of Happy S800 customers, Check out the Showcase videos found here. I imagine each one of those videos are from customers that are pretty happy with their products.
http://www.dji.com/equipment/eq-s800-wkm-z15/?per_page=79#a59
Sorry for the long post. I don't get on the forum a whole lot. But wanted to chime in and share an insiders perspective. I know and understand that a lot of you have had problems and are upset with DJI Products. I can truly say that DJI is aware and is trying their best to take support to the next level. I promise you that you will see changes happening in the months to come.
I myself am just as committed (If not more), to support my customers in the absolute best way possible. For any of you that are local SoCal, come on by the new place next month and have a Beer (oops, I mean coca cola)
Feel free to contact me directly if you feel there is something I can help with. Take care,
Patrick
Aerial Media Pros
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