It would seem that DJI forgot something important on my Tello...

[Goldfire]

I found that it's missing thermal paste after trying to work out why my Tello was overheating like crazy, even when flying in the air:

https://imgur.com/gbij7zz

Missing thermal paste on the left chip (Intel Movidius VPU) and the right chip (Power Management Unit) never made contact with its shielding to passthrough the heat to the heatsink. The top chip (WiFi module) was making contact to the shielding.

Looks like my next stop is to get some good thermal pads.

-_-

 

[georgi UK]

Looks like it was applied, at some point?

 

[Goldfire]

Looks like it was applied, at some point?

At some point... I'm curious why it was removed though. This Tello overheated within 30secs of sitting there and would shut down - so I had to quickly turn it on, connect and then take off straight away. I originally thought that's just "how it was" with a drone of this size, but after watching some YouTube videos on the drone and what they were doing (overheating after 5mins+), I figured something was really wrong with mine.

 

[georgi UK]

Purchased from new?

 

[Goldfire]

Purchased from new?

Yep, brand new in the box, sealed. Weird, eh?

 

[xcrost]

mmm...I have a Tello that the VPS starts malfunctioning ~70% of first flight and earlier for subsequent flights. I thought it may be caused by a bad crash when it was new but now you got me thinking. Did you have any issues removing the heatsink etc? Just the 2 screws I assume? I happen to have some paste handy
Thanks!

 

[Goldfire]

mmm...I have a Tello that the VPS starts malfunctioning ~70% of first flight and earlier for subsequent flights. I thought it may be caused by a bad crash when it was new but now you got me thinking. Did you have any issues removing the heatsink etc? Just the 2 screws I assume? I happen to have some paste handy
Thanks!

No issues, there are three screws though. You'll need to remove the sticker on the inside of the Tello, the one with the serial number. Get a small flathead screwdriver and lift the sticker, it has a small shield attached to it, so it might feel like it is a bit stuck to the main PCB - then remove the three screws with a #0 philips screwdriver to release the heatsink on the other side.

Here are the three screws:

https://imgur.com/F8x3MUE

I couldn't really find a proper tear down of the Tello after a quick YouTube search, but if you get stuck, let us know.

 

[xcrost]

Thanks for the tips! It will be a few days before I can tear it down but will report my findings.
The image I have just showed the 2 screws. I did not know about the third so would have struggled awhile! Thanks!
.

 

[Goldfire]

Thanks for the tips! It will be a few days before I can tear it down but will report my findings.
The image I have just showed the 2 screws. I did not know about the third so would have struggled awhile! Thanks!
.View attachment 5783

Hm, I wonder if I have a different revision? Either way, the third screw is here:

https://imgur.com/sUMzKda

The tip of the screw lines up flush with the heatsink, so it might actually be on that image you have there but it's difficult to see. Let us know.

 

[xcrost]

That image is one I found a long time ago on this forum. Likely rev.1. Who knows which I have as it's not w/ me. I'll let ya know! Thanks again!