Video Record Problems

Dave Stanton · Sep 21, 2015

Hello fellow pilots and cinematographers. I seem to be having an odd problem when trying to record video with our I1 and I'm wondering if any of you have experienced this and have a solution. On just about every flight (in the last two months), at least every "first" flight I do, I touch the record button on the controller, record some video footage but then when I go to stop the recording, nothing happens. On occasion I have landed, restarted the I1, app and controller and the problem goes away but that first recording is corrupted and I've discovered I need another software to fix it. The other day, I recorded three clips just fine, each time the recording started and stopped per button push. The 4th time, however, it would not stop recording and when I landed it said "SD Card Error". I brought the card back to my Mac and it could not open it, in fact the computer wouldn't even recognize it. I put it in my GoPro and got the SD Card Error but at least the GoPro let me reformat it. The card works fine in the GoPro, so I'm going to test it again in the Inspire 1. Usually, when I fly a second or third battery, I don't have any problems. Yes, I always fly with FULL batteries. No, I don't let the card get really full. Out of 64GB I never have less than 25GB available space. Yes, I format the card in the I1 X3 camera. Yes, I've tried pushing the record button on the app with no effect if the recording locks up. I have the latest firmware in the I1. Your thoughts?

Aviator · Sep 21, 2015

Possibly the SD card is overheating with the camera getting very hot (as they tend to).

Dave Stanton · Sep 21, 2015

Good thought Aviator. I am in Texas and it has been hot here since May!

Aviator · Sep 21, 2015

Dave Stanton said:
Good thought Aviator. I am in Texas and it has been hot here since May!

You lucky man, I am in the UK and it's been cold here since the start of the last ice-age!

Dave Stanton · Sep 21, 2015

HA Aviator! We also are in a drought which means a lot of intense sun which, or course, only adds to the heat.

jasonthomson · Sep 21, 2015

My problem is a little different. The X3 will start to record then stop at random times. The button on the app will gray out. Rebooting solves my problem. I think the card can not handle the information. Even though its rated to 50mb/s wright speed.The card is a Sandisk Extreme Plus 64gb. Just bought 2 Sandisk Extreme Pros to see if this stops.Does the X3 not like large capacity micro cards larger than 32gb?

Dave Stanton · Sep 21, 2015

Good question Jason. Now that you mentioned it, I don't recall having a problems with our SanDisk Extreme 32GB HC I card, only our SanDisk Extreme Plus 64GB XC I card. Hmmm. Perhaps you're correct and the Pro would be better.

SultanGris · Sep 23, 2015

never had either of those issues, however ive noticed that when both recording and taking stills there is a delay when switching from one to the other, specifically from a still to record and if you hit record immediately after taking a still it will in fact not initiate recording. there is a little blue ring that slowly goes around the button on the app when taking a still and video wont start and another picture cant be taken until this blue ring completes the circle. this has caused me many times before i noticed to actually start recording when i was attempting to stop. Doesnt seem to be such an issue when stopping a recording to take a picture immediately however. may or may not be part of your issue, but i thought id mention it just in case.

As to sd cards the name on them such as pro and extreme or whatever is often meaningless, different manufacturers use these titles for different speed capable cards, there is no industry standard that says a "pro" card must be at least whatever read/write speeds to bear the pro name so its best to look at the read/write speeds and get the fastest one you can find.

sirnikolas · Sep 23, 2015

Corrupted files can be easily repaired by playing the file through the go app.
As for why you're having this problem, I'd say it's due to a bad sd card.

Dave Stanton · Sep 24, 2015

sirnikolas said:
Corrupted files can be easily repaired by playing the file through the go app.
As for why you're having this problem, I'd say it's due to a bad sd card.

Not sure what you mean by playing through the go app. The corrupted files I've had won't play from the SD card through the Go app, unless you mean the video clips recorded to my iPhone (when I have that featured enabled). Those clips are not 4K are they? We do all our video production in 4K (or UHD).

Dave Stanton · Sep 24, 2015

To all who responded to my post, thanks so much. Many good ideas for me to ponder. Here's an update. I mentioned earlier that I had reformatted my 64GB card via a GoPro 4 Black. Today before flying I formatted it again in the I1 X3 camera, then I flew. It worked great, recorded all my video with no errors. I should mention, (Aviator) it was much cooler here in Texas flying in the morning, only in the 80's (F) and there were many high, thin clouds filtering the direct sunlight. Nonetheless, I'm happy. Thanks again everyone. Safe flying y'all!

Btdross · Oct 10, 2015

Hi Dave, I'm having very similar issues to you; SanDisk Extreme Pro 64GB (90mb/s read/write speeds), occasionally and without warning stopping the recording mid flight, record button greyed out, recording 4k 24p. I believe I've only formatted in the I1 since getting the card. I'm in southern California, but I don't recall it being particularly hot during any of my flights (around sunset, mostly). In case it's relevant, I'm using an iPad Mini 2 (though about to start testing with my new Mini 4).

I hadn't thought about the camera heat being the issue, though that might make sense.

Is your card still working ok with your plan of reformatting each time in the X3? Have you tried another card manufacturer and had the same issue, or only on the SanDisk?

Also, how were you able to fix the corrupted files? I've tried all the things I've read about: reinserting the card and restarting the Inspire, DJIFIX, and a few other programs with no luck (I'm on a Mac, so not all solutions are available for testing).

jasonthomson · Oct 10, 2015

Update on the 32gb extreme pro. cards.
They work like they are suppose to with 4k shooting. Even had my first disconnect black screen today. The video was not corrupted.
When it came back before 10 seconds I could still record. No greyed out button.

jasonthomson · Oct 10, 2015

I live near Savannah Ga.
Not really hot right now but can be 80-100% humidity. Temperatures lately in the Mid 80's.

Btdross · Oct 10, 2015

Thanks for the update, Jason.

I wonder if it is something about the 64GB version of the card. Someone else in another thread said they had an issue with the 64GB Pro, but not with the 32GB Pro's they replaced it with. Out of curiosity, have you retried the 64GB card again to see if the issue continues happening?

Also, did you have luck fixing older corrupt files?

jasonthomson · Oct 10, 2015

Yes retired from the x3.
I haven't used the 64gb card to shoot anymore.

jasonthomson · Oct 10, 2015

Just been using it to move files and as an extra ssd drive for Vegas Pro 13 Editing. Seems to work good for that.

jasonthomson · Oct 10, 2015

As far as corrupted files. I saw a post here about a couple of options. One was putting the card back into the inspire 1 and powering it on. The other is a dos script that can repair the file but takes a little work.

Dave Stanton · Oct 13, 2015

So, I'm going to stick with a 64GB card but I'm switching from SanDisk to Samsung. Found it on B&H and it seems like it will work. At least it will be different. I'll report on how well (or not) it works as soon as I get it and test it in our I1. Thanks for all the input pilots!

Samsung 64GB PRO+ UHS-I microSDXC U3 Memory Card MB-MD64DA/AM

Dave Stanton · Oct 20, 2015

So, I promised an update when I got a new card. I ended up purchasing a PNY 64GB XC I. I finally got to use it yesterday and I had NO problems. None of the stopped recording problems or a clip locking up and not finalizing. It worked every time and I recorded 11 clips, some very long, some shorter. The PNY micro card replaces my SanDisk 64GB. Both are equally fast cards.

In fact, I seem to have a new problem...right in the middle of flying and recording video, twice I got a "Disconnected" warning from the GoApp. It just stopped working and went gray. Once, it was while I was landing and I could not stop the recording. The clip did not finalize until I landed, powered everything down, changed batteries and restarted everything. The clip then appeared to repair itself. But I supose this is a problem for another thread.