Make sure your firmware is up to date! We’ve made significant changes, improvements and bug fixes for most radio issues for capsule 2.0 & vision props. All your vision and capsule 2.0 props need to have the same firmware version to connect to each other, have the same modes, brightness and runtime, so make sure to update the firmware on all your props!
Click here to download and install the new firmware update
If your lights don’t run as long as expected, or appear to have very different runtimes, there are a few different possible causes:
They are getting old - you can email us for upgrade/replacement instructions.
They are not all getting charged fully.
Your lights have different firmware or brightness settings.
Your lights are in different modes (some modes use more power than others).
The battery capacity is reduced.
The battery is draining when not in use.
The best way to save power is to choose a lower brightness level, it can more than double your runtime. Setting the "auto sleep" function can also save a lot of battery life by dimming or turning off your light when it's not in motion. Brighter modes will drain your battery more quickly.
First, mark any light you suspect might be faulty to keep track of it.
Check your USB jack, cable and charger - click here for how
Make sure your lights all have the same updated firmware version, same brightness level, and are all in the same mode when testing.
If the charge levels differ significantly, there may be a fault, but the charge level detection is not precise, and your actual runtime might still be ok.
Reduced runtime - how to check if the battery is still good:
- Firmware must be flowOS 2.0 or later
- Brightness level must be default: level 4
- Updating the firmware does not change any settings, so you may need to set all the lights to the default brightness level by deleting the brightness level setting (hold past 5 red blinks, about 17 seconds)
- Go to "bolder" mode (page3 mode 8)
- Set a timer for 2 hours.
- The lights should still be on after 2 hours. If any go out before 2 hours, the battery is either faulty, or if it's over 2 years old its capacity has reduced normally with age.
- If the battery is new and good, the runtime in bolder at default brightness will 3+ hours
- It is expected for a capsule battery to lose about 15% and vision battery to lose ~30% in 1 week, while in standby as the light listens to the radio for button presses. After one week of standby, it will turn fully “off”, no longer respond to the 'group on' signals. Once the button has been pressed, it will start responding to group signals again. Since flowOS 2.6, we have introduced a "standby" setting on p5m6, where you can choose how long your prop will continue to respond to group on and auto-wake after you've turned it off. Here's more info on changing your standby period.
Battery drains when not in use - how check for battery drain issue:
It is normal for the battery to lose a significant amount of its charge in 1-2 weeks depending on settings and firmware version, but it should hold at least 50% over many months if left off the whole time.
If comparing 1 light to others, make sure you can identify it clearly, and that they are all using the same modes and settings, especially global brightness [Check out resource on global brightness].
Charge and remove from charger, then check charge level, should be green [From OFF, hold button down until light flashes its battery level.]
Let sit for 24-48 hours, then check charge level, should still be green
- If none of the above work, the board needs replacement. Please email us at support@flowtoys.com, and we can send you a replacement board. Here's a video on how to replace your PCB.
- If you do not wish to replace the board yourself, you may ship in your light and we will update your board for you, but you will have to pay to ship it in. Please email us at support@flowtoys.com for instructions.