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I am new and need some startup help.

Joined
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Hi, good evening and cheers to all.

I purchased the Yuneec Q500 4K a few years ago. Due to severe health issues, it sat in my closet for the last 2 years, only getting to fly it twice before having to park it and the hobby entirely. Anyway, I am getting ready to fly it again finally and I am trying to update all of the firmware for the craft, controller, ect.. And to register with the FAA.

I do not know the current firmware version. However, I did discover, like many others, the firmware is gone from the Yuneec website. So, can someone please steer me in the correct direction to A) Download the most current firmware and software (For Mac)? And B) Steer me towards a good "How To" video or guide for the firmware upgrade process?

I realize this is a pretty old drone now. And I am a newbie. But we all have to start somewhere, right? Thanks in advance for any help. I have wanted to fly my drone for years. And now I find out that getting my hands on the most current firmware is not very easy.... Frustrating.

Also, can anyone please let me know what I need to update? For example, is there a separate update for the: Drone, Camera, Gimbal and/or Controller? And does the process require updating in a specific order?
 
Last edited:
Hi, good evening and cheers to all.

I purchased the Yuneec Q500 4K a few years ago. Due to severe health issues, it sat in my closet for the last 2 years, only getting to fly it twice before having to park it and the hobby entirely. Anyway, I am getting ready to fly it again finally and I am trying to update all of the firmware for the craft, controller, ect.. And to register with the FAA.

I do not know the current firmware version. However, I did discover, like many others, the firmware is gone from the Yuneec website. So, can someone please steer me in the correct direction to A) Download the most current firmware and software (For Mac)? And B) Steer me towards a good "How To" video or guide for the firmware upgrade process?

I realize this is a pretty old drone now. And I am a newbie. But we all have to start somewhere, right? Thanks in advance for any help. I have wanted to fly my drone for years. And now I find out that getting my hands on the most current firmware is not very easy.... Frustrating.

Also, can anyone please let me know what I need to update? For example, is there a separate update for the: Drone, Camera, Gimbal and/or Controller? And does the process require updating in a specific order?
This link leads to the latest Q500 firmware update. It was issued in 2015. There have been no Q500 updates since.
I don't know a link for a GUI that will work on a MAC. The Windows GUI is in this same link.


Please be certain which model drone and controller you have. It's not such a big deal for the drone. But there is a lot of bad history of folks trying to update an ST10 controller with ST10+ firmware. You get a brick. Guaranteed. Every time. And even if you do have an ST10+, the odds were pretty good you would get a brick anyway. Updates can always go wrong.
If the drone is flying normally and does everything you want it to do, you may want to consider whether you even want to do an update.

These are a bunch of YouTube videos for doing the update. I just grabbed the link. I haven't reviewed any of the videos.
 
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This link leads to the latest Q500 firmware update. It was issued in 2015. There have been no Q500 updates since.
I don't know a link for a GUI that will work on a MAC. The Windows GUI is in this same link.


Please be certain which model drone and controller you have. It's not such a big deal for the drone. But there is a lot of bad history of folks trying to update an ST10 controller with ST10+ firmware. You get a brick. Guaranteed. Every time. And even if you do have an ST10+, the odds were pretty good you would get a brick anyway. Updates can always go wrong.
If the drone is flying normally and does everything you want it to do, you may want to consider whether you even want to do an update.

These are a bunch of YouTube videos for doing the update. I just grabbed the link. I haven't reviewed any of the videos.
This link leads to the latest Q500 firmware update. It was issued in 2015. There have been no Q500 updates since.
I don't know a link for a GUI that will work on a MAC. The Windows GUI is in this same link.


Please be certain which model drone and controller you have. It's not such a big deal for the drone. But there is a lot of bad history of folks trying to update an ST10 controller with ST10+ firmware. You get a brick. Guaranteed. Every time. And even if you do have an ST10+, the odds were pretty good you would get a brick anyway. Updates can always go wrong.
If the drone is flying normally and does everything you want it to do, you may want to consider whether you even want to do an update.

These are a bunch of YouTube videos for doing the update. I just grabbed the link. I haven't reviewed any of the videos.
I truly appreciate the heads up about bricking my controller. Last time I flew it, it seemed to fly ok. But then again, I only have two flights with it. Still, I think I will error on the side of caution as you said. The only reason I even considered updating the firmware, was because the FAA website is asking for info I don't even understand. Like a UAS info. I have no idea what that even is. Or how to find it to be honest. I am just trying to navigate this and register it and fly it properly. Especially since I am only a handful of miles from a major airport. I want to follow all the rules and stay out trouble.
 
This link leads to the latest Q500 firmware update. It was issued in 2015. There have been no Q500 updates since.
I don't know a link for a GUI that will work on a MAC. The Windows GUI is in this same link.


Please be certain which model drone and controller you have. It's not such a big deal for the drone. But there is a lot of bad history of folks trying to update an ST10 controller with ST10+ firmware. You get a brick. Guaranteed. Every time. And even if you do have an ST10+, the odds were pretty good you would get a brick anyway. Updates can always go wrong.
If the drone is flying normally and does everything you want it to do, you may want to consider whether you even want to do an update.

These are a bunch of YouTube videos for doing the update. I just grabbed the link. I haven't reviewed any of the videos.
Also, my controller says in the bottom right corner ST12. I triple checked with my glasses on. I don't need a useless brick! lol
 
If you need it, I found a reference to the MAC GUI at the Yuneec Skins website.

It's been a long while since I registered with the FAA. Someone else will be more up to date on that stuff.
 
Also, my controller says in the bottom right corner ST12. I triple checked with my glasses on. I don't need a useless brick! lol
That's one of the rare ones. Only a few were issued with the ST12. There are no updates available for the ST12. It came with the equivalent of the latest ST10+ update.
 
If you need it, I found a reference to the MAC GUI at the Yuneec Skins website.

It's been a long while since I registered with the FAA. Someone else will be more up to date on that stuff.
Ok. Where I am in a big city with a major airport, I feel like I better play it safe and proper. To keep myself out of trouble and not ending up with a giant fine or worse. I will hold off on the firmware update. I watched another video where he said in order to make sure your drone was UAS compliant, have the latest firmware. But I am going to hit the breaks on an update, because maybe my drone is already UAS compliant as it sits. So best for me to check that first, before doing anything else. I appreciate your help!
 
Ok. Where I am in a big city with a major airport, I feel like I better play it safe and proper. To keep myself out of trouble and not ending up with a giant fine or worse. I will hold off on the firmware update. I watched another video where he said in order to make sure your drone was UAS compliant, have the latest firmware. But I am going to hit the breaks on an update, because maybe my drone is already UAS compliant as it sits. So best for me to check that first, before doing anything else. I appreciate your help!
I think I found it as well. I have downloaded the packages, to keep on my hard drive. Just in case something happens to these files posted on Dropbox. Better to have them and not need them. To not be able to find them anywhere. Thank you for your help WTFDproject!
 
Greetings from Birmingham Alabama USA, welcome to the forum! We look forward to hearing from you!
 
Hope you find all you need here. Wtfd is awesome and knows the q500 backwards, forwards and inside. It's easy to fly and great for slow videos. You will love it!!! Still a newbie after 5 years.
Looking forward to using this drone to it's full potential! I plan to use it for my own music projects. And to record nature near where I live.
 
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