eevBLAB #83 - DJI Pocket 2 Camera Registration BULLSHIT

[EEVblog]

WTF, you have to register the new DJI Pocket 2 camera with their Mimo app in order to use it or it stops working after five power-ups?!
World Economic Forum - The Great Reset: "You'll own nothing, and you'll be happy"

[ultranalog]

The 5 times trial is the worst, showing that it's perfectly possible to play without signing over your kidney.
This is just screaming for a timer hack.

[Simon]

Right, can we reboot this thread and stop the politics or I will relish banning some people!

[SilverSolder]

So once it has talked with the app...  does it keep working after that (without further app contact), or will it expect to remain connected to the mother ship forever afterwards?

[EEVblog]

So once it has talked with the app...  does it keep working after that (without further app contact), or will it expect to remain connected to the mother ship forever afterwards?

Haven't heard yet. I'm not going to do it to find out.

[schmitt trigger]

Oh, the humanity!!

[Ed.Kloonk]

Did it at any stage use the phone to pull down a firmware update?

[EEVblog]

Did it at any stage use the phone to pull down a firmware update?

I refused to plug it into the phone.

[tszaboo]

I think the EU should step in, and create a label for products. They are getting really good at this, kicking corporations in the teeth for their anti-consumer business practices.

Products that need constant internet connection, even though it is not obvious.
Products that need registration for full functionality.
That have a closed ecosystem, and no third party integration.

I can already see the coffee machine, that refuses to give coffee in the morning without internet and registration.

[Simon]

There should indeed be regulations about exploitative practices, if it's not strictly necessary for the product to function it should not be allowed or should not be made a condition of using the product.

[Retep]

One of the issues I have with "connected" devices I have is that the manufacturer can terminate the service at any time rendering the product useless or only partially functional. There are already quite a few cases where that has happened. If a product requires an external service for the product to be fully functional (for good reason or not), it should be made very clear in advance how long that service is going to be provided.

[Simon]

The problem is that they will always reserve the right to terminate the service when they see fit and put that in the service agreement contract. That is why it needs regulations around it. Goods have to be made to a reasonable standard and have mandated warranties but that is not the same as guaranteeing that they won't shut off whatever lifeline service that product depends on and they still may not have broken any existing laws.

[SilverSolder]

Lawmakers are definitely behind the curve - obviously you would expect them to be followers rather than leaders, but...

[Simon]

Lawmakers are definitely behind the curve - obviously you would expect them to be followers rather than leaders, but...

that is always the case which is why UK firework laws tell you all about the size of the rocket but not the stick that will fall back to the ground meaning that you can legally buy a firework with a 1.2m stick on it weighing 85g that will plumet back to earth.

[Retep]

IANAL, but I guess if a manufacturer decides to terminate a required service rendering a product partially or fully inoperable within the warranty period or within the lifetime of the product one could reasonably assume, the manufacturer would have a problem from the legal point of view in many countries.

What I would like is more awareness & openness about the dependency of external services required for the (full) functionality of the product. If manufacturers are forced to clearly state in the open "this product will cease to function after 2020" in their advertisements, product specifications...etc (not just somewhere hidden in a service agreement), I think fewer people would be encouraged to buy that product today. This leaves the manufacturer with the choice of a long term commitment to provide the required service or design the product in such a way it doesn't require an external service.

[Simon]

i think the problem is that the customer is working under two different agreements. One is that they bought a product that as a physical item should work for some time with warranty and the other is the provision of service agreement that they will say is separate from the product if they possibly can. The law needs to be clear that the two cannot be separated.

[DEV001]

This review on Amazon really goes into detail about some of the negatives with the product and it mentions the activation issue. DJI's response is quite interesting, they act like it is a tamper indicator for a 'new' vs. used unit. 

https://www.amazon.com/gp/customer-reviews/R1RB40E5XU8UL5/ref=cm_cr_arp_d_viewpnt?ie=UTF8&ASIN=B08J7FL57P#R1RB40E5XU8UL5

DJI Support MANUFACTURER Response:

The zoom is digital on DJI Pocket 2. And Pocket 2 needs to be activated, and you can verify if it is a new product by whether activation is needed or not. When connecting Pocket 2 with the mobile device via the Do-It-All handle, you can connect it within the DJI Mimo app, then the password is not needed. If there are any issues with the audio or using Pocket 2, please feel free to contact our support by clicking my profile, we will do our best to help.

[EEVblog]

I tried to return it as faulty and got this response:

We would like to try and help you solve your problem before returning the item back to us.
Here is what you can do:

- Please back up all your DATA and try to do a HARD(FACTORY) RESET on the item to see if it can help to solve the problem(s).

- Look for updated software/firmware on manufacturer’s website.

In order to expedite your claim, please provide VIDEO LINK (you may upload and provide us the link, e.g. Dropbox / Google drive) of the issue for our technician to see.
Please get back to us within warranty period if your problems still exist.

Should you have further questions, please feel free to let us know.
Thank you for your understanding and cooperation.

Should have chosen the 14 day money back guarantee option instead of "faulty". Trying to be clever making a statement doesn't work it seems...

[Ed.Kloonk]

I tried to return it as faulty and got this response:

We would like to try and help you solve your problem before returning the item back to us.
Here is what you can do:

- Please back up all your DATA and try to do a HARD(FACTORY) RESET on the item to see if it can help to solve the problem(s).

- Look for updated software/firmware on manufacturer’s website.

In order to expedite your claim, please provide VIDEO LINK (you may upload and provide us the link, e.g. Dropbox / Google drive) of the issue for our technician to see.
Please get back to us within warranty period if your problems still exist.

Should you have further questions, please feel free to let us know.
Thank you for your understanding and cooperation.

Should have chosen the 14 day money back guarantee option instead of "faulty". Trying to be clever making a statement doesn't work it seems...

Mate, I'd be exploring the fit for purpose route.

[Habropoda]

Their next step is to stream mandatory ads onto your fancy camera.

[EEVblog]

I tried to return it as faulty and got this response:

We would like to try and help you solve your problem before returning the item back to us.
Here is what you can do:

- Please back up all your DATA and try to do a HARD(FACTORY) RESET on the item to see if it can help to solve the problem(s).

- Look for updated software/firmware on manufacturer’s website.

In order to expedite your claim, please provide VIDEO LINK (you may upload and provide us the link, e.g. Dropbox / Google drive) of the issue for our technician to see.
Please get back to us within warranty period if your problems still exist.

Should you have further questions, please feel free to let us know.
Thank you for your understanding and cooperation.

Should have chosen the 14 day money back guarantee option instead of "faulty". Trying to be clever making a statement doesn't work it seems...

Mate, I'd be exploring the fit for purpose route.

I explained that too them in the first request. Have now repeated that.
My mistake was that now it's in the return pipeline for "faulty" products. They have a very rigid return process with multiple paths.
Will see what happens.

[Ed.Kloonk]

I tried to return it as faulty and got this response:

We would like to try and help you solve your problem before returning the item back to us.
Here is what you can do:

- Please back up all your DATA and try to do a HARD(FACTORY) RESET on the item to see if it can help to solve the problem(s).

- Look for updated software/firmware on manufacturer’s website.

In order to expedite your claim, please provide VIDEO LINK (you may upload and provide us the link, e.g. Dropbox / Google drive) of the issue for our technician to see.
Please get back to us within warranty period if your problems still exist.

Should you have further questions, please feel free to let us know.
Thank you for your understanding and cooperation.

Should have chosen the 14 day money back guarantee option instead of "faulty". Trying to be clever making a statement doesn't work it seems...

Mate, I'd be exploring the fit for purpose route.

I explained that too them in the first request. Have now repeated that.
My mistake was that now it's in the return pipeline for "faulty" products. They have a very rigid return process with multiple paths.
Will see what happens.

I'm more surprised that nobody from the company has bothered to reach out. Whilst I realise it's 2nd channel, the chap that runs purism was prepared to hop on a jet and appease a youtuber at his home who had a gripe and that was for a non-existent (pre-prod) product.

Companies such as these who think Aust consumer law is optional don't deserve to be granted permission to participate in the Aust marketplace.

[Fungus]

Send it back. Buy a GoPro. Job done.

GoPros don't need all that mechanical gimbal rubbish to keep things steady.

Or option 2: Get an old phone, do a factory reset, register it on there over WiFi. It's unlikely to work out though because it'll keep nagging you to connect that phone and you don't want to carry a second phone around just to use your camera.

[thm_w]

Send it back. Buy a GoPro. Job done.

GoPros don't need all that mechanical gimbal rubbish to keep things steady.

Or option 2: Get an old phone, do a factory reset, register it on there over WiFi. It's unlikely to work out though because it'll keep nagging you to connect that phone and you don't want to carry a second phone around just to use your camera.

Have you ever seen DJI videos? Maybe there is some way to do this in software, but with the DJI the "untouched" footage is great. You get much smoother transitions/rotations.

[SilverSolder]

Wait for GoPro to copy the design, and hopefully not make the same mistake?