Six dollar video cam.

[ttrigg]

Six dollar video cam. OK it is $6.49 (plus $5.99 S+H) over on "evilbay". Then you need to get a mini-SD card. I heard about this on the radio, Leo Laporte has a weekend electronics show and talked about it. He said that compared to the price it gives a very good picture. He called it a "spy cam" because it is so small. I’m thinking about putting it inside the car or engine.  Here's a pic (hint it looks like a car key remote.)

I’ve got one on order, and will post a sample of how well it works. I’m thinking it might make for interesting point of view shots as the train passes by, like inside the house looking out the window, inside the cab of the delivery van, inside whatever.

See for yourself.

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=250590754453&ssPageName=STRK:MEWAX:IT

It is rechargeable, via the USB cable.

 

Revised edit 28 May 2010:

OK folks, skip past all the disparaging remarks on this and the next page. Go to page three of this thread, Jerry Barnes has posted a very good instruction sheet for this camera. It was a battle understanding the "ChinEngrissh" but someone was able to produce a very clear instruction set. It works very well.

The new e-bay link

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=250609856177

[Ray Dunakin]

Wow, that's cool! Definitely would be good for POV shot, either onboard or trackside. Is it standard video resolution?

[ttrigg]

Here are the "Tech Spec's" as posted on the site.    Parameters:

Pixel :2000000 color CMOS High resolution image with 2000k pixels Min. illumination:1 Lux (min) Support USB1.1 and USB2.0 Support AVI video format Video decode use motion JPEG, recording for AVI format VGA (720 x 480 @ 30fps) Recording can be sound or manually activated Working time: 2 hours Standby time: 250 hours Store consumption:1GB per 40 min Support 30 fps for 720x480  With LED indicator Support Micro SD (TF) card: 1GB/2GB/4GB/8GB/16GB(max.) Support Windows 98/2000/ME/XP/Vista/WIN 7

How to charge:

Please charge the mini DV before using for the first time. 1. Can be charged by connecting to PC USB port; 2. Can be charged by connecting to adapter with USB cable.

[Ray Dunakin]

No Mac support -- bummer.

[Phoebe Vet]

Ray Dunakin

No Mac support -- bummer.

Funny how they never mention that in those sarcastic Apple adds where they denigrate PCs.

[cudaken]

ttigg have you received the camera yet?

           Cuda Ken

[Jerry Barnes]

 Luckily, my sweet wife has a PC!

[ttrigg]

Ken:

Short story = No.

Long story: I ordered it on Saturday, put this post here on Sunday. On Monday evening I got an e-mail dated Tuesday stating that my package had been delivered to Hong Kong Post! With the following "The estimated arrival time of your item is from 2010-03-24 to 2010-04-02." Guess I should have done a bit more reading before I paid for it.

[ttrigg]

This is one time where the phrase "it took a slow boat from China" is a correct statement. As you can clearly see, there is no screen on this thing, so aiming it is a "by gosh by golly" hope it is pointed in the right direction. You can look forward to seeing a sample of the video quality around mid April.

[cudaken]

 Tom, thanks for the up date and you took the words right out of my mouth. I bought some tress from a company in China and it took the same time frame. By the time I got them I as done with that section.

              Cuda Ken

[ttrigg]

OK: It arrived in the mail today.  Probably too dark outside for a true test, Plus I need to go get an Micro SD card.  Here is a pic of the true size, it is inbetween my cell phone and wireless mouse for the laptop.  I get home around 12:30 tommorrow afternoon and will try my first vid then.

[cudaken]

 Have you gave it a try yet?

                   Ken

[ttrigg]

cudaken

  Have you gave it a try yet? Ken

Yes, I have tried it.  Trying to understand the "Chinglish" (Chinese-English) is a bit rough.  I have tried it about six time on the RR and all I get is about 4~6 seconds of video.  I have a 5 minute segment where it recorded while I was walking around the yard.  It is just that I need to figure out what buttons I pushed then.  It will take a bunch more experimenting to get a video of decent lenght.  As for the quality of the video, it is great.

Example of the instructions, (exact reproduction)

1. Enter the video mode in turn off status, long time press OFF / ON button till yellow light on, long time press (video camera button) tillyellow light flash three time, light off enter into video mode, then click (video / camera button) yellow light on for stop and saved ,long time press OFF /. ON switch off.

There is no paragraph 2.  Once I figure out how to use it I will be posting a vid.

 

[Jerry Barnes]

Also post your instructions, I have one on order.

 

jb

[dwbeckett]

So It's push button many time's and hope it workee

Dave

[ttrigg]

dwbeckett

So It's push button many time's and hope it workee

Dave

That be a most positive YES SIR!!!!

Every time I think I got it figured out and put it in a streetcar I get about 10~15 seconds of video. I know it will do more because I was just putzing around with it hanging out of my pocket while cleaning the chicken coop and got almost 20 minutes worth of video of my feet. Now I just got to try to figure out what the devil I did! The picture quality is a hundred times better than I was expecting from a $6 camera.

[cudaken]

ttrigg

I know it will do more because I was just putzing around with it hanging out of my pocket while cleaning the chicken coop and got almost 20 minutes worth of video of my feet.

 

  Don't know which is funner, 20 minutes of your feet or the fact you have a chicken coop.

 You might try this link. 

http://cs.trains.com/trccs/forums/t/171459.aspx

 Sorry it not it is not a live link, still trying to figure the ins and outs of Fire Fox.

 Santa Fee All The Way may very well have the same camera, posted he paid around $12.00 for his.

        Thanks for the effort.

              Cuda Ken

[ttrigg]

Seems as though the small scalers are having fun with this thing as well. 

So, what's the big deal about having a chicken coop?  Advantages to having chickens, 1. They clip the lawn so lawn mowing is reduced by 50%, 2. Natural weed control, 3. Natural insect control, 4. Sweetest eggs you ever had, the yoke is more orange that the friut we call orange, more nutricious than store bought. Major disadvantage: since they like to scratch around they have a tendancy to bury the tracks and under-dig structures out in Vine Arbor and Rosebud Flats.  Plus it is just plain fun to watch them gang up on the dogs and chase them around the yard.

[ttrigg]

As requested I scanned the entire owner’s manual>

Here is the front.

Here is the back.

[ttrigg]

Think I figured out what I was doing wrong.  I should say "a friend showed me what I was doing wrong."  He sent me a forum link about this thing and it said that charging time was 5~8 hours.  I have been charging it from my web book for only an hour or two, so it was not getting fully charged.  I took the charger for an "enVue" (electronic pocket picuter frame 2 1/2 x 3 1/2 inch screen) and am going to let it set until the little yellow light goes out.

 

I got 2 PM's tday from you guys aksing what are the two "buttons" nearest the key chain.  Well, them ain't buttons. They are a molded part of the case, just dummies to make it look like a car remote.

[cudaken]

  Far as the chicken coop Tom, well guess I am a city boy. Besides, to me coop just sounds funny. Any look with your camera? I will add I would love to have a garden railroad. But I need three things to happen, extra money, job where I have time and money to work on it and find a kid that likes to dig trenches!

           Cuda Ken

[cudaken]

  Got it working yet?

[ttrigg]

Deliberate attempts to "film" a vid produce 6~15 seconds worth of video. Accidental vids (when I think I turned it off and set it down) give 2~6+ minute vids.

[cacole]

I really love those Chinglish instructions.  Micro-Mark has a product called the "push hammer."  The instructions say, "Just hold push hammer and power it."

 

[mgilger]

I agree with the others. When you get it figured out, please post the instructions so we all don't have to reinvent the wheel here.

I also ordered one. I'm not sure if I have the required card around here or not. I have about 10 camera's, so maybe.

Mark

[ttrigg]

I am sorely tempted to apply maximum vertical impact with an eight-pound sledge hammer. Da Boss (wife) has advised me to set it aside for at least a month before trying one more time before checking its impact resistance.

[ttrigg]

Check back next month for the anticipated video, either passenger view, or impact resistance.

[LUMPY G]

 OK !!

Guys I have been laughing at this topic for weeks the price should have given the
product quality away.

But if you look at the bottom of the instructions at the chicken scratch or ( fine print )
it will probably say WE-FO-KING-U- distributing co. 

 

[ttrigg]

LUMPY G

OK !! Guys I have been laughing at this topic for weeks the price should have given the
product quality away.

Lumpy: Even through the aggravation of not getting it to work correctly (at least on purpose, as I did get a good 20 min of my feet by accident) I’ve been having fun with it. Truth be known, I probably will not smash it as it takes very nice 90-second vids. The display quality of these short vids is just as good as my big camera.

[Mt Beenak]

Gents,

To change the topic ever so slightly, I purchased a 2GB spy camera pen from CrazySales.com.au. It cost a little more than your $6.00 special, but it is a spy camera and a pen and a USB storage device. I shot a series of videos using it inside and outside a train, uploaded them and edited them and posted it on you-tube. The link is below, if you are interested. 

The pen/camera comes in 2GB, 4GB and 8GB, and I guess you get better video as you pay more, but to my mind the video quality of the 2GB I bought is fine. And I find it easy to operate. If the yellow light is on, it is on, and if the blue light is on, it is recording. And there is only one button to press, on the top where most pens have a button.

 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yFp06fj16D0