Thanks for testing and sharing the findings. I have also been numbering the batteries for all my batteries for all my cameras for many years. It provides insight into the functioning of a particular battery. Most batteries lose their performance over time with intensive use. And that's why I always have spare batteries with me when I go out. Because there is nothing more frustrating than you want to capture something and you no longer have full batteries for your camera. 🙏👍
Thanks for watching and taking the time to leave a comment! I was quite surprised reading the comments how many people number their batteries. I have been doing it for years too, it's a good habit. Cheers!
You should have more subscribers. When I have questions or issues with the same drones you talk about on your channel, I always find the answers here. I share your content with everyone I know who also uses the mini and mini 2. For what it’s worth, I consider your content to be of very good quality! This battery thing was worrying me , I just got a mini 2 fly more bundle. I knew there was an issue, many channels mentioned the problem , but never updated to say if it was fixed, I found the answer from a RU-vid search in this short , to the point video. Awesome job!
@Steve Coutts Nobody really knows how long LiPo's will last. I know guys who have 15-16 year old batteries that still work great...only time will tell...
Hi, love your video! I notice you posted this years ago, but I recently purchase a Mini 2 SE and I have a few question if you would help me. 1. There's a piece of information that the battery should be auto-discharge to 96% capacity after idle for 1 day. But I don't see it happening even after a couple of days, does it has to do with me pushing the power button and the charging hub reset it's timer? 2. Must I left it alone for two weeks to see result (if I want to check if the feature is working)? 3. Does the auto discharge included in Mini 2 SE as well or is it just for the Mini 2? Because it has the same firmware as the one you mentioned in your video. Thanks!
Thanks! 1. Yes, correct. You have to leave the battery completely undisturbed for it to start (and continue) auto discharging. If you do anything to interrupt the cycle (press the button, remove the battery from the hub, etc) the cycle will reset. 2. Again, correct. Just leave them alone. :-) 3. All the Mini drones have "intelligent' batteries and have the built-in auto-discharge and hibernate functions. As long as your firmware is up to date, you should be good. Cheers!
I also updated everything but for precaution I continued to leave all the batteries out of the charger. :))) Thanks for sharing that info. I also number my batteries and for the same reasons as you. An old practice I've been doing with my DSLRs for a long time.
Thank you. Sorry to hear you lost a battery. Depending on the age of the battery it doesn't hurt to check in with DJI Support to see if they can do anything for you. Cheers!
I just got mine a day ago, serial number results say it was created Jan 2022. is it possible that it came to me with an updated firmware? nice videos btw, very informative!
Yeah, it’s likely that your batteries have up to date firmware but it’s still not a bad idea to cycle through them and see if you get prompted to update. Thanks for watching, cheers!
Great (and/or suspicious) minds think alike, Steve! This fix looked phoney, but it looks OK. I noticed the discharge days went from 5 to 9 days with the fix.
Haha! Your video popped up on my suggested feed last night but by that time I was deep in it. I haven't watched it yet. I needed to be sure because I do rely on it. Looks to me like it's working but I'll have to watch your vid to see what you say about it. Cheers Don!
Hello Steve, it is the 1st of your videos, that i see. I don't have a drone for the moment but, i am targeting to buy DJI mini 2 se. I have a question. What will happen to the battery's health (long term), if you fly the drone and then put out the battery (from the device) and put it to the charge hub reversed?? Ofcourse i will always charge before the flight. Just to avoid putting it to the hub (properly), or to the device, or to an unsafe place?? I'm doing my research before purchace, so i would be glad if you answer me! Thank you!
Hi George! A Mini 2 SE would be a great drone to get started with. Honestly, battery maintenance is pretty simple and typically most of the work is done by the "intelligent" batteries themselves. Do NOT store the batteries long term at 100% or 0%. Keep them in the 60-80% range if you're storing for long term. Day to day don't worry about it too much. DJI fixed the discharge issue long ago, so you're good to store them in the charging hub, drone or just by themselves. Always keep the batteries in a cool, dry place with good ventilation, again, if storing for an extended period. Cheers!
Yes, finally! Thank you so much for sharing the videos. To make it idle for 2 weeks time kinda hard for me. 😅Again, thanks to u. Now, everythings completely fixed! Have a great day and cheers from Malaysia buddy. 🙂🙏👍
Thanks for watching and cheers from British Columbia, Canada where the temperatures for the last week (38-44ºC) have it feeling like Malaysia. Too hot for me haha! PS It was tough not touching the drone for two weeks. 😀
Hi thanks for video. Just seen it. Was still taking batts out. Question: to fix problem does each battery need to be used in drone to effect update for its auto discharge program? Just been back and watched again. Paid more attention! Yes, you say cycle batteries through drone to update. Tnx. lol
Hello Steve, i have one doubt once I get fully charged my three batteries. shall I put in away (Is tha save battery life?) or should I insert in the battery hub. Kindly advise me...
It's ok to leave them in the charging hub for storage. That's what I do and I have never had an issue. I would check them after a couple of days to make sure they are discharging properly and you should be ok. If you don't plan to be flying for a long period of time, I would discharge them a bit first before storing. Just make sure they are stored in a cool, well ventilated space. Some people will even go as far as to store them in a fire proof bag. I don't go that far. Cheers!
Great review Steve! Question let say after flying the mini 2 and the battery percentage left is about 30% is it ok to store the battery inside the hub cause I'll be away for a couple of weeks again it will not damage the battery?
Thanks Mike. I couldn’t find any specific information from DJI but I feel like you will be ok. The Mini 2’s batteries have over discharge protection and they will go in to hibernation mode with about 10% charge remaining to protect the cells. For me personally, I have always charged my batteries back to 100% after use and then relied on the auto discharge function to maintain them. Usually that means a quick charge before flying again if I haven’t flown in a while. That is something I have done since my DJI Spark days, which also uses LiPo batteries and those batteries are still working fine 4 years later. Hope this helps, cheers!
@@sccrdfi I don't know if I would call it the "best way", it's just what I have done and always had success. As long as the "smart" features are working on the batteries, which they are now, charging to 100% and letting the batteries manage themselves should be a perfectly fine strategy. I am sure you will get plenty of opinions on the best method though - haha! Cheers!
@@SteveCouttswell actually Steve my batteries are stored in the hub for 8 days now..I tried to do the test that you performed..so I think I'm planning to check it out tomorrow if the auto discharge batteries works.
Thanks for posting Steve! I've noticed that if you leave the battery out of the drone or the two way charging hub, it won't auto discharge as fast.... Did you noticed that too? Or is it just me?
You bet. I didn't specifically test the discharge time of the batteries outside of the hub or drone. I only observed that they were discharging and didn't bother to look at it further. I am just happy that it's working in the hub/drone as that's where my batteries typically are between flights. Cheers!
Steve, I just purchased the Mini 2 and hovered it for a short while as I got familiar with the DJI Fly app. I noticed that the battery in the aircraft was really warm. Is this normal for the DJI Mini 2? Thanks for your comments.
Hi Dan. The Mini 2 does not have a cooling fan and it requires movement through the air to keep it cool. Hovering in place does not create enough air flow. It will give you a heat warning if things get too toasty. Cheers!
I didn't specifically test for that and I couldn't find any official word from DJI. I suspect that it may pause the discharge but then it starts again on its normal cycle. If I do test it, I will probably just post the results to my community page rather than make another video, so keep a look out. Cheers!
Thanks for watching. No, it should not damage the battery if the discharge function is working as it should. Just power up your drone with each battery to make sure that all the firmware is up to date first before storing, especially if you haven't done that recently. I would further recommend storing them in a cool, well ventilated location - don't stuff them in a box and tuck them away in a closet. Some folks will take it even further and discharge them to about 70% by hovering and then store them outside of the hub in a fire proof bag. Personally, I don't go that far. According to DJI, you should give them a full charge every 3 months to maintain good battery health. Cheers!
Thanks for following this up Steve! Maybe you already covered this in your videos, but Today I discovered something by accident. While playing back a video recording of my Mini2 with VLC, I turned on subtitles by accident: the video contains subtitles with telemetey data :-)
You bet! 😀It's a cool feature for sure! 👍 I did a video on it in May 2020 for the Mini 1 (ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-Lf9ZikB8aJ4.html). Cheers!
Hello Steve, I often store my DJI MINI 2 for more than 2 months. What is the best way to store my batteries? Just 100% and let the battery control it or should I store is at like 60%? And how does long storage of battery affect the battery health? Is it maybe better to fly every two weeks or is long storage better? I hope you could answer my questions!
Before longer term storage DJI recommends charging to approximately 72% even though the battery will self-discharge to that level after about 5 days. DJI also recommends charging/discharging the batteries every three months for optimal health. Cheers!
When you boot up your M2 and connect to the app, it automatically checks the device and battery firmware. If I notice a firmware update for the battery, I will reboot the drone with each of my batteries to make sure they all get the firmware update. Typically, you cannot fly with a battery that doesn't have the latest update so it's best to get them all at once. Cheers!
I have two batteries and no charging hub. If I charge both my batts, the one left in the drone will discharge according to your video, but what about the naked one? Is it the hub that forces the discharge or the electronic board on the batt pack that takes care of that?
The batteries have the built in "smarts" to do the auto discharge. The problem was that if batteries were left in the drone or the hub, the auto discharge process was interrupted. That was corrected in the firmware release so the batteries will safely discharge left alone, in the drone or in the hub. Cheers!
I bought a Mini 2 in late May and charged up the two batteries I got with it and intended to give it a spin that weekend, but life got in that way and I just recently got back to it, but I was surprised to see the batteries at around 25%! I wasn't aware of the auto-discharge, but it seems to me that the circuitry could be drawing a small amount over the long-term and if there's no lower-limit, it could easily destroy the batteries in long-term (6 months?)of storage! Have you read any reports of batteries being drawn-down past 60-70%? Also, Li-Po self-discharge is nowhere near that fast, so that can't be the cause...
The Mini 2's batteries are "smart". They have built in over charge and over dis-charge protection. My batteries will drop below 70% if left unused for an extended period. I don't do that too often though because I usually fly a lot. When the battery charge level drops below 10% it will go in to hibernation mode. I own a Spark, Mini and Mini 2 and (knock on wood) the "smart" batteries have never let me down. Cheers!
I just got my Mini SE a week ago and my extra batteries and charging hub yesterday. While this is my first drone, I can confirm that I have always numbered my rechargeable lion/lipo batteries for other devices so that I can monitor battery age and health too lol. Maybe we are all just really OCD 😂
My mini 2 combo purchase is recent and my batteries have production date 2021-2. when the firmware update came out for the drone I didn't see the battery update message lots of people posting on RU-vid saw. A few days later I got the battery update message for one battery .. and a day later for the other battery. That's it however. Two of my three batteries got a firmware update and the other did not. I think the are auto discharging anyway (I can't leave them alone for more than a few days -- I enjoy flying)... however I think that my batteries may have had the auto discharge fix in from the factory... or at least one of them.
It would be nice it if you could see the battery firmware version in the DJI Fly app. It would take the guess work out of trying to determine if they were up to date. Cheers!
Hi, I have a question about the charging hub （mini2). When I inserted the batteries into the hub, the lights blinks fine, but when I connected the hun to charger that I always use, all the lights are gone and I can feet the hub heating up around charging port. All the batteries are good, so I really dont know the reason. Thanks!
My first instinct is there is something wrong with the charger you are using. If you have another charger, I would try that or just plug the hub in to a USB port on your computer to see if that makes it work. DJI recommends using their 18W charger but most modern chargers will work as long as the adjust the wattage for the hub. I have a DJI 18W charger from an older drone, which I typically use but when I'm not in a rush I just plug it in to a USB port on my power bar and let the batteries charge over night. A slower charge is typically better for long term battery health. Good luck!
I almost always have one in the drone and the other two in the charging hub. I usually fly often and rotate through batteries so I don't often leave them stored for long periods of time. When I do however, I typically will take them out of the drone and the charging hub and make sure the are in a space where they can breath. Like, not a box stuffed in a closet or something. Some folks recommend taking it a step further and store them in a fireproof container when not in use. I have never done that personally, it's just an extra precaution. Cheers!
Thanks for this - keep up the good work. I too number my batteries, but still cannot find a way of actually checking the battery life on any of the DJI apps? I do also use AirData UAV but also can't find in there. Thanks again.
If you tap on the battery/flight time icon on the flight screen in the DJI Fly app it will give you additional information including time until RTH, time until forced landing and time until battery depleted. If that's not what you're looking for, going in to Settings > Control > Battery Info will show you number of times charged, serial number as well as general cell status. Of course you can also see approximate percentage remaining of the battery in the drone by quick pressing the power or quick transfer button and in the hub by pressing the power button. That's pretty much all the battery info you can get. Cheers!
I have latest 1.03 update and my batteries still don't discharge after a week. I tried updating with each battery in the drone. I left them out of the charger and drone to see if that works. Still waiting on that result.
It would be nice if you could actually see the firmware version to know for sure if they were updated. You could also try downloading the DJI Assistant 2 (get it from the download page for the Mini 2) to see if that helps. If you're still having trouble with discharging, I would contact DJI Support. Good luck!
Yeah, for sure. I leave my batteries in my drones and/or charging case all the time. I only remove them if I am not going to be using them for a longer period of time.
The battery firmware will automatically update as required each time you boot up the drone and connect to the DJI Fly app. Just be sure to power off your drone and cycle through all batteries with a power-up cycle. Cheers!
They *may* but the best way to be sure is to cycle through them and the drone will automatically prompt you if they need to be updated. Sadly you cannot see the firmware of the batteries on the Mini 2 like you could with some other DJI drones. Best of luck with your Mini 2 - cheers!
It's better to have a bit more charge in them for longer storage so if you're not planning on flying for a while, charge them up to 3 solid lights, ~75% and you're good. With the auto-discharge function you don't have to worry about it too much though really. Even if you charged to 100%, it starts auto-discharging after 24 hours. The smart batteries will also hibernate when the charge gets to low, less than 10%. Cheers!
It didn’t work for me. I left them in the hub for one week and still at 4 lights. I have the newest firmware installed. The batteries went from 100% last Sunday to 94 now in the hub. Is this normal?
The batteries should drop to 96% after one day and about 72% after five days. You can't interrupt the process though. I don't think you can even hit the button on the hub to check the power level or it will reset the counter. If you want to be sure, charge them up full and leave them completely undisturbed in the hub for a week. After one week, press the button the hub to check the power level. You should have only three lights. If you don't, they are probably not auto discharging and you should contact DJI Support. Good luck!
@@SteveCoutts thank you. Last Sunday I charged them to 100 and left them in the hub and this Sunday all 4 were lightning and the app says 92%. So may contact support.
I recently bought new Mini2 and all my battery is charged fully properly but in my charging hub 3rd/last slot is not blinking any light even while charging also while m pressing the side power button..what would be the issue...is that faulty charger hub I got ...do I need to raise ticket for replacement...please suggest me ..on this . And also please let me know if I need to remove batteries from the charger hub when not in use...is this mandatory for protection....doest it harm the battery if we keep the batteries in aircraft or inside the charger hub ...please respond...m new in this
It sounds like you may have a defective charging hub. I would definitely open a support ticket with DJI. As for storing the batteries in the hub and/or drone, as long as your firmware is up to date, you can safely store batteries in either. Just as a precaution though, I would check after a week of storage to make sure they are discharging properly. Cheers!
@@SteveCoutts thanks for your response..I am connecting with the DJI support but they are not understanding the issue...hope I will get some solution by DJI..
There is just a simple resistor in the battery. When they are not connected to any device the resistor is simply draining the battery. It's even fully discharging it to 0%.
When idle, the batteries are supposed to be "intelligent" enough to stop discharging and enter a "hibernation" mode when the voltage drops below 3V or the remaining level is less than 10%. Cheers!
The battery has probably failed and likely it's not end-user serviceable. You could try posting a query in the DJI Forum (forum.dji.com) to see if folks have other things to try. Alternatively, I would also suggest contacting DJI Support. It's likely out of warranty but they should be able to confirm the issue and advise. Cheers!
I have a battery that got fat and its are to pull out of the charger. What caused it to get fat and is there any way to get it back to the original size?
Any Lithium Polymer (LiPo) batteries, such as the ones on the Mini 2, can swell for various reasons such as excessive heat, over charging, over discharge, damage or even just naturally decomposing as they age. If the battery swells up but after a period of time returns to its normal size and shape, it may be a one off incident. If the battery remains swollen, it is likely damaged and should be disposed of properly as it could be an explosion or fire risk. I am not a LiPo battery expert so I would suggest checking the user manual for further detail and/or contacting DJI Support for advice. Cheers!
I have one that blinks all 4 lights I’ve left it uncharged for 5+ and still doesn’t charge, i tried to charge it from the drone and still nothing , i am lost what to do next , it reads dead when on the drone , is it dead or in hibernation mode ?
Typically putting the battery on the charger will bring it out of hibernation mode so it sounds like you may have a dead battery. I would contact DJI Support to see if the can diagnose it further for you. You could also try posting a question in the DJI Forum (forum.dji.com) to see if someone else has had some experience with it. Good luck!
I just use the Battery charger as a powerbank to charge my phone until all 3 batteries are around storage voltage (3rd light flicker) if I need to discharge the batteries when I had not flown, Am so used to my Lipo's as a fpv pilot. Good to know this though.
Hi, i have a little problem, maybe you can answer me. I left all my batteries fully charged in the HUB for about 1 month. And today when i checked the battery all of them are about 45-47% charge. Anyone have the same thing? I'm sure i charged them fully before placing in the HUB.
I think thats normal because its doing the auto discharging thing themselves so nothing to worry about. If you stored them at 100% and now theyre at 40/45% it means that everything is working as it supposed to be. Cheers
Martin B already provided the correct answer so I will just add on to that. The Mini 2's batteries are "smart" and auto discharge is a normal function to protect the batteries from damage. Lithium Polymer (LiPo), like those in the Mini 2, do not like being stored at 100% charge. Similarly, if the batteries are left untouched with too little a charge they will enter a hibernation state at about 10% remaining, again, to protect them from damage. Cheers!
15 days since 2 x batteries were recharged using the hub (@ 92%) and one in the drone, which had a short flight (@ 84%). with all updates carried out, I think the discharge thing is a myth and will now revert back to removing batteries from hub and drone when not in use. (by the way, I also number the batteries). cheers
Interesting. Although I never said it specifically in the video the two batteries I had in the hub were both at 72%. I checked them later that day. After I posted the video I didn’t touch the batteries in the hub for a few more days. When I checked them they were both at 64% I believe. I rely on it and I am condiment it is working. If you disturb them however, they kind of stop for a bit before continuing to discharge - it slows the process down. I was unaware of how many folks numbers their batteries. It’s a good habit. Cheers and happy flying!
Mine are still behaving as they should. Sadly, DJI doesn't make troubleshooting this issue easy as there is no way to check the battery firmware to confirm you have the update. You could try downloading the DJI Assistant software, which you can get it from the download page for the DJI Mini 2. I will caution you though that the software is not the best and lots of folks complain about it, however it has helped me in the past when I needed to get a firmware update done that wouldn't work otherwise. If you don't want to go down that road I would contact DJI Support and see if they can help you. Good luck!
dij are dumb for this, maybe they knew this while selling the drone, I really hate them for this!! I just wonder I only used the mini 1 time and I fully charged everything only once! is there a risk or is it only in long term? cuz if its the case I can go back and get a new one!
The problem only impacted the Mini 2 and it was fixed reasonably quickly. Unless your batteries experienced physical damage, like swelling, you likely have nothing to worry about. Cheers!
How do I charge/discharge my mini 2 batteries to storage level? Immidiately. I know impossible. I am creating an adapter so i can charge/discharge/storage charge these on my rc chargers. It will have a xt30 for full battery voltage and a 3 pin/2 cell balance plug. I bet yall will buy one too. Dji will sue me.
So anoying how they discharge when not using the drone. If you ask me this is just a money making venture on DJI's part, as you know they have a recarge amount limit on the batterties, so DJI adding auto discharge means you have to charge the battery more, meening the battery charging limit is going down everytime you charge it, meening more money for them when you have to buy a new battery because the battery charge limit has ran out.
If you're flying all the time the tiny bit of charge you lose after 24 hours, I think, is inconsequential. Lithium polymer batteries do not like to be stored with a full charge. It can lead to swelling and a destroyed battery. Same goes for depleted cells. Having an intelligent system that auto discharges or hibernates the battery depending on its charge level prolongs battery life without you having to manually maintain them. My Spark batteries, which I bought in 2017, still work fine today. Considering how much I used them for about 2 years and intermittently since, it's kind of surprising that they are still performing well. I've probably used those batteries less than 10 times per year since 2019. I for one am happy that I don't have to perform regular maintenance on them. Cheers!
