The Ultimate DJI Phantom 4 Pro Battery Guide

Designed specifically for the DJI Phantom 4 and Phantom 4 Pro, the ‘Intelligent Flight Battery’ is a Lithium Polymer (LiPo 4S) type weighing 468 grams, with a voltage of 15.2v, providing 89.2 Wh of energy and a capacity of 5870mAh. It can tolerate a maximum of 160 Watts at 17.4V of charging power.  Charge time is usually no more than 70 minutes to achieve a full charge, and will be shorter if the battery is only partially depleted.  Flight time at 100% charge is approximately 30 minutes.

WARNING: To avoid warranty problems, limit your use of non-DJI, aftermarket batteries to the activities defined at the bottom of this page. See the section titled What About Non-DJI, Aftermarket Batteries?

Additional Resources:

DJI Intelligent Flight Battery Safety Guidelines

DJI Phantom 4 Charging Hub User Manual

DJI Assistant 2 for Phantom Series Software

Battery Care Is More Important Than You Think

Battery Warranty

Your battery is warranted for six months from date of purchase, and a dated invoice is required as proof of purchase to submit a claim, PLUS the total battery charge cycles must be lower than 200 charges.  There are other limitations and exclusions to the warranty, including no warranty coverage if the battery is charged using anything other than a DJI authorized charger, so refer to the DJI warranty coverage for more information.

Battery Lifespan

In general, with proper battery care and following recommended storage and charging procedures, you can expect that a single Phantom 4 Pro battery will last approximately 300-400 charge cycles, or approximately two years on average.  Of course, the more you fly and recharge, the sooner you will need to replace your battery.  Likewise, the longer you store your battery, the more likely it is to have a shorter lifespan.  General warning signs of reduced battery life are indicated by faster than normal discharging during use (shorter flight times), or repeated occurences of battery protection LED indicators as described below.  We recommend discarding and recycling all batteries after three years of life, regardless of performance or usage.

Things to Remember

1. Never insert a battery into or remove the battery from the aircraft when the battery is turned on.
2. Always fully charge a new battery before using it for the first time.
3. Ensure the battery is firmly mounted into the Phantom 4.  Both the top and bottom clips must be fully engaged.  The aircraft will not take off if the battery is mounted incorrectly and this condition is detected, or if mounted loose but connected at the pins it may simply disengage during flight resulting in power loss and aircraft damage or loss.
4. In cold conditions, insert the battery into the Phantom 4 and turn on the aircraft for approximately 1-2 minutes to warm up the battery before taking off.
5. Battery power is significantly reduced, and flight times are significantly shorter when flying in cold temperatures, especially below 32ºF or 0ºC.  Flights should be ended as soon as a "Low Battery Level" warning is displayed, especially when flying in colder temperatures.  
6. Batteries will not charge if too cold (below 32ºF or 0ºC) or too hot (above 104ºF or 40ºC).
7. Allow batteries to cool before storing for an extended period, and avoid exposing them to heat above 104ºF or 40ºC.
8. Never use a battery that has been dropped or been involved in a crash, and never use a swollen, punctured or damaged battery.  Discard and recycle it.
9. Never run down a battery to below 5% power.

Battery Features

1. Onboard Battery Power Level Indicators: The battery LED indicators display the current battery level.  Refer to the chart below to view indicator levels.
2. Auto-Discharge Function:  To prevent battery damage and swelling, the battery automatically discharges to below 65% of total power when idle for more than ten days, or the number of days specififed in the DJI Go 4 app.  It takes about two to three days to discharge the battery to 65%, and it is normal to feel moderate heat being emitted from the battery during the discharge process.
3. Balanced Charging:  The battery automatically balances the voltage of each cell when charging.
4. Overcharge Protection:  The battery automatically stops charging when the battery is fully charged.  Generally, charging can only begin when the battery charge drops below 90% power.  LED3 blinks twice per second when on the charger and an overcharge condition is detected.
5. Temperature Protection: The battery will only charge when the temperature is between 5ºC (41ºF) and 40ºC (104ºF).  LED4 blinks twice per second when the internal battery temperature is too low, and LED4 blinks three times per second when the internal battery temperature is too high.
6. Over Current Protection: The battery stops charging or will refuse to charge when a high amperage of more than 8 amps is detected.  LED2 blinks twice per second when on the charger and an over current condition is detected.
7. Over Discharge Protection: Always stop using your Phantom 4 Pro battery when there is only one flashing light displayed. You should fully recharge the battery before using again. Never discharge your Phantom 4 Pro battery below 3% power, and generally avoid below 8% power. Repeated discharges below 10% weakens and can damage your costly battery.  As a rule, LiPo batteries should never be discharged below 3.0V/cell, or or they may be permanently damaged.  The Phantom 4 Pro battery contains four cells, so 12.0V (3.0V x 4 cells) is the minimum recommended discharge voltage level.
8. Short Circuit Protection: The battery will automatically cut the power supply when a short circuit is detected.  LED2 blinks three times per second when a short circuit condition is detected. If you receive a short circuit battery warning during flight or prior to takeoff, you should land as quickly as possible and exchange the battery.  A short circuit warning can be triggered by bent prongs on the battery connection, or by frayed wires in the charger if charging, but it may also indicate a serious internal problem with the battery.  If encountered during charging, try a different charger. Generally, unless covered under warranty, you should discard and recycle the affected battery if a short circuit warning is indicated.
9. Battery Cell Damage Protection:  The DJI Go 4 app will display a warning message when a damaged battery cell is detected.  Generally, this condition is triggered if there is a difference of .1 volts (that's only 1/10th of a Volt) between any of the four cells in the battery.  Differences in thousandths of Volts between cells is normal. Generally, unless covered under warranty, you should discard and recycle the affected battery if a battery cell damage warning is indicated.
10. Sleep Mode: To conserve power, the battery will enter sleep mode after 20 minutes of inactivity.  To turn off sleep mode, simply begin using the battery.
11. Battery Metrics Communication: Information pertaining to the battery's voltage, capacity, current, total number of times charged, etc. is transmitted to the aircraft's main controller and i viewable in the DJI Go 4 app.

 

Understanding the Battery LEDs

 

Turning the Battery On & Off

Turning On:  Press the power button once, then press again and hold for two seconds to turn on.  The battery's Power Button LED will turn green and the battery power level LEDs will display the current battery power level.

Turning Off: Press the power button once, then press again and hold for two seconds to turn off.  The battery power level LEDs will flash during the power off cycle to allow the Phantom to stop any recording that may be in progress.  The battery LEDs will not display any lights when the battery is off.

Checking Battery Power Level

If not in use, simply press the battery power button once to view the current battery power level.  If already on, the battery power level will be constantly displayed.  Refer to the chart below to understand what the LED's mean.

Charging the Intelligent Flight Battery

1. Connect the Battery Charger to a power source (100-240V 50/60Hz).
2. Connect the Intelligent Flight Battery to the Battery Charger to start charging.  If the battery level is above 95%, turn on the battery before charging.
3. The Battery Level Indicator will display the current battery level as it is charging. See the chart below for guidance.
4. The Intelligent Flight Battery is fully charged when the Battery Level Indicators are all off.

Battery Power Level While Charging

The Battery Level Indicator will display the current battery charging level as it is charging.  Refer to the chart below to understand what the LED's mean.

 

Battery Fault Indicators - Battery Protection LED Display

The table below shows the battery protection indicators and corresponding LED patterns that may occur during charging.  If these occur during charging, a fault is indicated.  To attempt to resolve view the Battery Troubleshooting section below.

 

How to Discharge Your Intelligent Flight Battery

Slow Method:  Place the Intelligent Flight Battery into the aircraft battery compartment and turn it on.  Turn on the DJI Go 4 app and monitor battery level on the main page. Leave the aircraft on until there is less than 8% power left, or until the battery can no longer be turned on.

Rapid Method: This is the riskier method since it involves pushing your battery power to levels below the minimum for safe flight. To use power more rapidly, fly your Phantom 4 until there is less than 8% of power left, or until the battery can no longer be turned on after landing.

DJI Intelligent Flight Battery Charging Hub Method: Switch on the Storage Mode for this charger and plug in your battery.  The DJI Charging Hub will discharge batteries with more than 50% power to reduce the charge to 50%, and it will charge batteries with less than a 50% charge up to 50%.

Battery Storage

The Intelligent Flight Battery is programmed to automatically discharge down to the optimum storage level (about 60% power) after being left unused based on the number of days specified in the "Time to Discharge" setting in the DJI Go 4 app.  The default setting is 10 days.  Please be aware that this value reverts back to 10 days after firmware updates.  This discharge countdown timer also resets every time you press the battery power button.  During the discharge cycle, a battery will feel moderately warm to the touch.  This is normal.  Remember that pressing the battery power button at any time during the discharge process will cancel the auto discharge process and make your batteries wait the defined number of days before attempting to discharge again.

Batteries should never be stored for an extended period of time while mounted in the aircraft.  Batteries that will be stored for an extended period of time should be monitored monthly to manage proper charge levels for storage.  When you press the battery power button, the 2nd or 3rd battery light (LED2 or LED3 as shown above) should either be solid or blinking.  If LED1 is blinking or solid, the battery should be charged back up to the optimum storage level. Simply charge it until the 3rd battery light (LED3) starts blinking then store the battery. Charging beyond 60% will result in the automatic discharge process being triggered again while in storage, so there is no need to fully charge the battery.  It is best to store batteries at room temperature, rather than in an attic, garage, or vehicle where temperature extremes may be encountered.

Battery Hibernation Mode

The Intelligent Flight Battery will enter hibernation mode if power falls below 5% and if stored for an extended period of time.  This is designed to try and prevent full depletion of the battery which can damage the battery cells.  When in hibernation mode, if you try and power on the battery, the power LED will show a solid red light and the power level LEDs will remain off.  The red power LED will remain lit and cannot be manually turned off by pressing the power button.  Simply leave the battery alone and disconnected from any charger for five minutes, until the red light turns off.  Once the battery light is off, do not touch the power button, connect to a charger and recharge the battery to bring it out of hibernation mode.  This recharge process may take much longer than normal, so be patient.  If the fault continues after these measures, you will need to submit a repair order to DJI if under warranty, or discard by recycling it and replace it with a new battery.

Battery Troubleshooting

Inconsistent Firmware Message in DJI Go 4 App

If you receive a notification in the DJI Go 4 app that you have inconsistent firmware, you will need to update the aircraft firmware from within the DJI Go 4 app, or use the DJI Assistant 2 for Phantom Series software application to update the firmware.  The battery does contain firmware, but there is no direct means to update its firmware other than updating the aircraft firmware.  While you may be able to fly in spite of receiving this message, please be aware that flight times may be significantly decreased until resolved.  Additionally, if you own two different models from the Phantom 4 series and you use their batteries interchangeably, you will likely get an inconsistent firmware notification each time you switch a battery from the one drone to the other.  To avoid this, dedicate batteries to each aircraft model, if possible.

Battery Overcurrent During Discharge Warning in DJI Go 4 App

This condition is most often triggered when flying in Sport mode while being aggressive with your throttle and stick movements. This can also occur during flights in high winds where high throttle and excessive pitch are often required to maintain a heading, especially into the wind or crosswind.  Repeated error notifications of this type should not be ignored.  It is recommended to alter your flight behavior to reduce excessive stick and throttle movements.  If the notifications continue during your flight you should land as soon as possible.  Usually, a firmware update or a firmware refresh will fix this issue if recurring without excessive stick movements.  If an update is available in the DJI Go 4 app, you can land and install the update.  If a refresh is needed, use the DJI Assistant 2 for Phantom Series software application to refresh the firmware

Battery In Hibernation Mode - No Lights On Battery When Connected To Charger - Red Power Light When Power Button Pressed

Intelligent Flight Batteries retain some charge which helps avoid irreversible errors when discharging a battery. If a battery is depleted below 5% and stored for a long period, the battery will enter Hibernation Mode to protect the battery.  Batteries are often shipped from DJI in Hibernation Mode, and generally all you have to do is connect them to the DJI charger to emerge from Hibernation Mode.  If connecting the battery to your DJI charger does not resolve the issue of no lights, here is another possible solution:

It is important NOT to alter this sequence of steps, and you must use your DJI charger, not a third-party charger:

1. Switch on battery by pressing the power button for 2 seconds. Ignore what happens with lights.
2. DO NOT MOVE THE BATTERY FOR AT LEAST 5 MINUTES.
3. Do NOT touch the power button again, but do plug the battery into the DJI Charger.
4. LEAVE IT ALONE...it may be hours before it wakes up...DO NOT TOUCH THE BATTERY!

If the fault continues after these measures, you will need to submit a repair order to DJI if under warranty, or discard and recycle it and replace it with a new battery.

Battery In Low Charge Mode - LED1 Blinks Rapidly When On Charger

Intelligent Flight Batteries retain some charge which helps avoid irreversible errors when discharging a battery. When a battery is in a low charge mode, it is normal for LED1 to blink rapidly when placed on the charger.  Once the charge exceeds 25% and LED2 starts to blink, the blink rate of LED1 will slow.  

Battery Cell Damage Detected - Mission Critical Error

The DJI Go 4 app will display a warning message when a damaged battery cell is detected.  No cell damage is detected while the battery is charging. Generally, this condition is triggered if there is a difference of .1 volts (that's only 1/10th of a Volt) between any of the four cells in the battery.  Differences in thousandths of Volts between cells is normal. To check the battery cell health on your Intelligent Flight Battery, plug the battery into your aircraft, power on the aircraft controller, then power on the aircraft, then open up the DJI GO 4 app and go to Settings > Battery Settings to view the aircraft battery information. The battery voltage for each cell should be almost identical across all four cells.  For instance, Cell1=4.25V, Cell2 = 4.25V, Cell3=4.26V, Cell4=4.26V indicates good battery health, even though Cell3 and Cell4 show voltage .01 higher than the other two cells. Conversely, Cell1=4.15V, Cell2 = 4.25V, Cell3=4.26V, Cell4=4.26V indicates a damaged cell in Cell1, since it's voltage is at least .1V different than the other cells.  Generally, a damaged cell is a condition that cannot be remedied by any end-user. Unless covered under warranty, you should discard and recycle the affected battery if a battery cell damage warning is indicated.  If the fault continues after these measures, you will need to submit a repair order to DJI if under warranty, or discard by recycling it and replace it with a new battery.  Never fly your aircraft using a battery that has displayed a battery cell damage error, even if fully charged.

Short Circuit Detected - Mission Critical Error - LED2 Blinks Three Times Per Second When On Charger

The battery stops charging or will refuse to charge when a short circuit fault is detected.  LED2 blinks three times per second when a short circuit condition is detected. If you receive a short circuit battery warning during flight or prior to takeoff, you should land as quickly as possible and exchange the battery.  A short circuit warning can be triggered by bent prongs on the battery connection, or by frayed wires in the charger if charging, but it may also indicate a serious internal problem.  Before attempting to charge a battery with a short circuit detected, first inspect your unplugged charger and charging cord for any frayed, damaged or exposed wires or cracks in the charger body.  If any such damage is found, use a different charger.  If the charger is in good working order, unplug the battery from the charger and plug it back in to see if the condition resolves.  If the fault continues after these measures, you will need to submit a repair order to DJI if under warranty, or discard and recycle it and replace it with a new battery.  Never fly your aircraft using a battery that has displayed a short circuit error that cannot be resolved, even if fully charged.

Over Current Detected - High Amperage Fault - LED2 Blinks Twice Per Second When On Charger

The battery stops charging or will refuse to charge when a high amperage of more than 8 amps is detected.  LED2 blinks twice per seconds when an over current condition is detected.  To attempt to resolve, unplug the battery from the charger and plug it back in to see if the condition resolves.  If the fault continues, try a different charger and outlet.  If the fault continues after these measures, you will need to submit a repair order to DJI if under warranty, or discard and recycle it and replace it with a new battery.

Over Charge Detected - LED3 Blinks Twice Per Second When On Charger

The battery automatically stops charging when the battery is fully charged.  Generally, charging can only begin when the battery charge drops below 90% power.  LED3 blinks twice per second when on the charger and an overcharge condition is detected.  To attempt to resolve, unplug the battery from the charger and plug it back in to see if the condition resolves.  As a next step, discharge the battery to below 50% and then recharge. If the fault continues, try a different charger and outlet.  If the fault continues after these measures, you will need to submit a repair order to DJI if under warranty, or discard and recycle it and replace it with a new battery.

Over Voltage Charger Detected - LED3 Blinks Three Times Per Second When On Charger

This error is best expressed as an "Over Voltage Charge Detected".  The battery automatically stops charging when the battery is fully charged.  The DJI chargers prevent over-voltage conditions, as do most third party chargers.  If during the charging cycle your battery stops charging and the LED3 blinks three times per second, your battery likely experienced an over voltage charge in one or more cells of the battery.  It is advised to plug the battery into your Phantom, then turn on the controller, your mobile display or tablet, then the aircraft and open the DJI Go 4 app and navigate to the Settings panel, select the Aircraft Battery tab and review the battery voltage readings.  You will likely see one or more cells reading slightly higher than the others.  If the readings are different by .01-.07 Volts then the condition will likey be corrected by discharging and re-charging the battery.  Higher differences likely indicate a bad cell condition is about to occur.  To attempt to resolve, unplug the battery from the charger and plug it back in to see if the condition resolves.  As a next step, discharge the battery to below 80% and then recharge. If the fault continues, try a deeper discharge to below 50%, and then recharge.  If the fault continues, try a different charger and outlet.  If the fault continues after these measures, you will need to submit a repair order to DJI if under warranty, or discard and recycle it and replace it with a new battery.

Battery Will Not Charge - Battery Temperature Fault - LED4 Blinks When On Charger

The Intelligent Flight Battery will only charge if the temperature of the battery itself is between 5ºC (41ºF) and 40ºC (104ºF), and the DJI Charger will only function if its temperature is within 0ºC (32ºF) and 40ºC (104ºF).  LED4 blinks twice per second when the internal battery temperature is too low, and LED4 blinks three times per second when the internal battery temperature is too high.  Either warm the battery or charger, or cool the battery or charger, as needed to enable charging.  Allowing a battery to return to room temperature will generally fix this issue.  If the fault continues after these measures, you will need to submit a repair order to DJI if under warranty, or discard and recycle it and replace it with a new battery.

Final Thoughts...

Faulty or damaged charger. Check for a burnt smell coming from the charger, which may indicate a short circuit or burnt component.  Try a different charger.

Damaged or bent pins on the charger cable or in the aircraft battery chamber.  Pins that are damaged, bent, or corroded will prevent charging or power from flowing.  Make certain the female pin elements are clean, not bent or filled with debris.  Never carry a battery in your pocket or in a container where pins could become shorted out.

Loose connections could also be to blame for your battery problem.  Make certain that connections are solid and the battery is fully secure in the battery compartment.

Damaged battery.  The shell of the battery must be intact for safe battery use.  Never use a battery that has been dropped or been involved in a crash, and never use a swollen battery.  Damaged batteries are generally not covered by the DJI warranty, unless they arrive that way in your original shipment.  Damaged batteries should be discarded, recycled, and replaced with a new battery.

What About Non-DJI, Aftermarket Batteries?

Never use a non-DJI battery for drone flights.  They are fine for ground activities such as gimbal calibrations, IMU calibrations, unlocking license activities, firmware updates, or powering ancillary devices or charging your controller in the field when using a special cable designed for this purpose.  For flights, only use an original equipment, DJI manufactured DJI P4 PART 64 Intelligent Flight Battery, part number CP.PT.000601.  Flights made with a non-DJI battery that result in a crash will void the aircraft warranty, including coverage under DJI Care Refresh.

Fly safe!