Showing posts with label small digital voice recorder. Show all posts
Showing posts with label small digital voice recorder. Show all posts

Tuesday, September 30, 2014

O-SKY (TM) Full HD 1080P Car DVR Camera Dash Cam Video Recorder G-Sensor IR Night Vision HDMI

O-SKY Full HD 1080P Car DVR Camera Dash Cam Video Recorder G-Sensor IR Night Vision HDMI
  • 1920x1080 Full HD video recording
  • Built-in G-Sensor: to mark the emergency accident and keep the video files from being overwritten
  • 2560x1920 (5MP) high resolution pictures
  • Supports up to 32GB TF card
  • HDMI/AV/USB output

One 8 GIG SD card at Full HD = 52 min; not good at all. The video is choppy. my camera came with the front scratched showing heavy usage and the seller should have said that the camera was used. but at this price.......... my loss.

Pro: It can be used as Web Cam on the computer.

Saturday, September 27, 2014

Sony Walkman Digital Tuning Weather FM/AM Stereo Cassette Player (Silver)

Sony Walkman Digital Tuning Weather FM/AM Stereo Cassette PlayerMy first prerecorded cassette was ELO's first album--that's how long I've been listening to them! We all know the day of cassette recording or playing is long gone; even CD's are considered done in this day of MP3's. However, that doesn't negate the millions, maybe billions, of cassettes that have been sold over the past 30+ years. Cassettes have their faults, but there are so many productions out there that aren't available on any other medium.

I've owned cassette players running $300 'way back in the 80's; these are gone also. The challenge now is to find a portable Walkman-type player that doesn't sound like crap, and that's last longer than a week or so. I came across a number of books on audio cassette at home and wanted to do a re-listen. Only a couple have been converted to CD.

I initially purchased a 'Craig' model for less than $20; it's also sold as a Jensen, a Coby, and various other names on Amazon. It was a piece of crap; see my review under the Coby name. Virtually useless radio because of tuner problems, and a cassette function that ran at whatever speed it felt like. Needless to say, an adventure for the book listener and worthless for music listening.

I came across this very inexpensive Walkman and didn't expect much for the $30 price. Have I been surprised! Now, the photo shown at the top isn't my model, as it has a TV band on it that mine doesn't have. Mine has AM/FM/Weather/cassette. It appears identical to the one shown.

Unlike virtually ever other cassette player I've owned, this one only uses 1 'AA' battery--not 'AAA' as other reviewers have stated. The great thing about this is that not only are 'AA' batteries ordinarily cheaper, but they last longer, too. I expected the battery life to be shorter as the result of only one battery, but I was wrong. Sony states they are using some new technology to extend battery life, and it's true. A decent 'AA' will last around 35-40 hours, and when running on cassette, around 30 hours. This will vary, of course, according to the quality of battery purchased.

Unlike the Coby/Jensen/Craig derivative, this machine uses digital tuning with an LCD readout. The tuner has functioned with complete band accuracy; none of that playing with a stiff little wheel trying to find the best signal. As stated in the item description, there are 33 presets for the radio. I live outside Houston and can't imagine needing 33 stations to store, but I guess it's good for someone. Additionally, the procedure for storing and revising stored stations seems unnecessarily complicated. Probably not for the younger, computer generation, but it does require a lot of steps. I will certainly be retaining the instructions! Actually, it seems equally easy just to set the thing on 'manual' and use the rocker switch to find stations. Regardless, through the included headsets, the sound is equal to those players I've had in the past costing 10 times as much.

The tape loads through the back, not visible on the photo above. It is a dark smoked plastic cover that flips open with a fingernail. The cover contains two little tabs that hold the cassette, then the cover and cassette flip closed to contact the tape heads. Again, much, much less fiddly than the Coby version.

Another advantage for this Walkman over some competitors is that it contains a 'rewind' button. Many players, compact and otherwise, have deleted it over the years. If one is listening to a book or music and needs to re-listen, those units require taking the tape out, flipping it, using the 'fast-forward' button, then reversing the procedure. The convenience of a 'rewind' button can't be overestimated.

I don't think there's any Dolby noise reduction on this machine, but I never liked using it anyway. I prefer a little hiss to the muddy sound of Dolby-B.

The tape mechanism has worked perfectly for me on a bunch of different cassettes, both well-used and new. Some players get touchy with used cassettes, and are weak with the power required. I have no doubt this Sony will weaken with age, but for now works great.

Headsets are an individual choice; I prefer earbuds. However, the included headsets give a fine sound, especially for their price.

One practical benefit of this machine is that there is an LCD battery life indicator included. For those of us who do a lot of listening it saves being stranded.

No doubt the market for these players will continue to contract. I'm thinking of buying another example of this little Walkman because I do have thousands of cassettes I still enjoy. Highly recommended for those shopping.

This is the same item as the FX-290, now with a W added. Only difference is the absence of the TV audio band, which will be irrelevent next February. I ve had three of these walkmans in the past couple of years. One shattered upon impact to the ground. I didn't have the case on it, and with the other two the fast forward button, which I use quite a bit fell off.

That being said, this is probably the greatest walkman I ve owned. The radio cassette player is a dying breed and I m glad to see Sony put out a new version of an old favorite. With 35 hours on one AA battery, this is one of the great values. I still have hundreds of cassette tapes that I have taped from XM the last couple of years, and I still take my walks listening to those. Transferring to a CD is an option,but its too much of a bother. With the belt clip its so easy to just walk listening to a cassette, even though the sound quality is not as good as a CD,but it fits my purposes fine.

With AM and FM and all the presets, and a weather band this is a nice value for $30 and free shipping. I m glad I still have my other two units without the fast forward button. This is becoming a relic, and I want to make sure I have this walkman for some time to come. No MP3 for me. I m satisfied with this unit.

Buy Sony Walkman Digital Tuning Weather FM/AM Stereo Cassette Player (Silver) Now

for all of us who insist on using cassette tapes, this is the only one to have. unlike the cheaper models, this one works and it works well and it takes only one AA battery, which for lasts 30+ hours. why I didn't purchase one of these sooner I have no idea. kudos to Sony for keeping them available.

Sony Walkman Digital Tuning Weather FM/AM Stereo Cassette Player (Silver)

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I bought this primarily to listen to language tapes and the unit is more than adequate for that. I was only able to get 2 and 1/2 FM stations--2 clearly, one with interference. The weather stations come in rather weakly. AM didn't come in at all. So if you're looking for a good AM/FM tuner, this isn't it. But if you just want a decent cassette player at a reasonable price this unit is for you.

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Thanks for offering this item. They are really hard to find. It is compact and light-weight and requires only one battery. Very satisfied.

Friday, September 5, 2014

Swann Alpha D02C5 SWA43-D2C5 4 Channel H.264 DVR and 4 CCD Weather Resistant Cameras

Swann Alpha D02C5 SWA43-D2C5 4 Channel H.264 DVR and 4 CCD Weather Resistant CamerasMy husband and I got this security system to protect our home, workshop and barn. Packaging was good, instruction manual and quick start guide were easy to use. Everything we needed to install was in the box including mounting brackets, screws, mouse, remote control, etc.which I appreciate. We had no problem getting the cameras up and running and viewing them on my computer. Picture is really clear-color by day and black and white on the night vision mode. It works by motion detection so hard drive space lasts a long time and it automatically records over when full-30 days and counting of space so far. I had some questions about viewing it on my iPhone so I called Swann Customer service (1-800-627-2799) and I gave her permission to use logmein and take over my desktop and she set up the whole thing remotely while I sat back and watched-cool! Really nice people at Swann California office. I called once after hours to ask about viewing my security system with a Blackberry (yes you can)-and I got to speak with someone at their home office in Australia-they were very cool. Overall very good product and great customer service. I'm ordering another one to put up at my mother's house to help her feel more secure in her home. We saved more than enough installing our own system myself to pay for hers.

These have given us new piece of mind with our security at our business. It was easy to set these units up, and they were operational right out of the box. Quality construction and visibility even at night is very good. We are able to easily view over the internet, and keep recordings on the DVR.

Buy Swann Alpha D02C5 SWA43-D2C5 4 Channel H.264 DVR and 4 CCD Weather Resistant Cameras Now

RESEARCHED MANY SYSTEMS BEFORE BUYING. THIS UNIT OFFERS FULL FLEXIBILITY. AND I WOULD BUY IT AGAIN, SET IT AND FORGET IT. EXTREMELY EASY TO SET UP AND USE. VERY GOOD DEAL. HIGHLY RECOMMENDED.

Read Best Reviews of Swann Alpha D02C5 SWA43-D2C5 4 Channel H.264 DVR and 4 CCD Weather Resistant Cameras Here

before purchasing this product, I did a LOT of research. the resolution on these cameras is not as good as I was expecting, but then again, it was $500 (or thereabouts) and you get 4 cameras, the DVR and the cables, so it's a pretty good deal. this system is pretty easy to hook up and get running. getting the system hooked up to my home network and available to watch cameras over the network was a little more of a task. I probably couldve called tech support and got it really quick, but I like to figure it out myself, and I did.

the app. in the itunes store that they recommend did not work however, but not a big deal, I eventually found an app from another company that works great with the system. I can't watch the cameras from my phone unless i'm connected to my home network, but I think I just need to spend some more time figuring it out.

also, it's a nice feature to be able to set the motion detection so that a moving tree branch won't set off the record feature, but it's really touchy, even on the lowest setting, and the system ends up recording even the most minor of movements, but again, probably some tweaking needed on my part.

overall, pretty good system.

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The purpose to having one of these is having the ability to play a recording back. Good luck with that. If that's not enough, maby all the freezups will change your mind. What a piece of crap.

Wednesday, September 3, 2014

Sprint Katana SCP-6600 (Pink)

Sprint Katana SCP-6600I really like this phone.. its cute, its little, its perfect for a young woman. I had a pocket pc prior to this and it was so complicated just making a call. I wanted something simple, that wasn't an mp3 player (i have an ipod), that wasn't a professional camera (i have a nice digital cam), or a pda (i have a palm tx)... its just simple and cute.

its bluetooth compatible... although doesnt work that great with my bluetooth, but i'm not sure if its the headset or the phone..

**the ringer on it is SUPER quiet... almost to the point you can barely hear it in your purse. i'm grown accustomed to "listening" for the vibrate feature instead.

i like how you can put a person's picture next to their name in your contact list.

i can wear it in the back pocket of my jeans and its comfortable.

sound quality is good, on both ends

i dig it. im sure you will too.

I've been a sprint customer for over three years and have owned three sanyo phones; Sanyo 8100, Sanyo 8300, and the Kantana. If you're coming from a mulitimedia phone like the Sanyo 8300, the SCP-6600 Katana may be a bit of a disappointment to you. The Katana just doesn't have all of the bells and whistles as a multimedia phone. The Katana has no built in flash which is needed for taking half decent pictures with a camera phone. It also has no camcorder or media player. But then again its not suppose to. It's basically an attempt by sprint and Sanyo to satisfy the consumer cravings for the popular RAZR phones that are available through wireless carriers like Cingular, Verizon Wireless, T-Mobile, Cricket and a few others. It's obvious by looking at the Katana that it was inspire by the Razr, which does not have MM functions either. On a feature note I would have to give the Katana a one besides doing the simple things like making phone calls and downloading ringers and screen savers there's just not much more you can do on it. Aesthetically the Katana is not that much of a beaut. However, it is for the time being a bit different looking so for (except when compared to the RAZR) that I'd give it a four. For the lack of a decent camera and camcorder I have to deduct two more points which brings rating down to three stars. Oh for those of you who are interested in bluetooth the phone is bluetooth capable.

Buy Sprint Katana SCP-6600 (Pink) Now

I WANTED A PHONE IN PINK TO REPLACE MY OLD CLUNKY OUT OF DATE PHONE. THIS PHONE IS A LOVELY CHERRY BLOSSOM PINK AND JUST SO FEMININE TO CARRY. A MUST HAVE FOR EVERY FASHIONISTA WHO LOVES PINK

Read Best Reviews of Sprint Katana SCP-6600 (Pink) Here

I absolutely love my Katana! Let me tell you, this phone has been dropped, been in ice cold water, the toilet(unused), extreme hot and cold climate and everytime I turn it on...it makes me smile. I never had to change the battery, charger...anything. I really don't want to part with, but it's 2012 and time for an upgrade. I'm sad that I can't seem to find anything but used one as it was discontinued :( So, I'm forced to look for an entirely new phone. But, I still have my OG faithful until then. It's simply the best cellphone ever made(IMO).

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If you are looking for a PHONE, not a camera or an ipod then this is it! I had an older flip phone from Sprint for years and loved it, then it finally broke! We ended up getting the fancy Samsung M620 Upstage Black Phone. Really neat fancy phone. It has all the bells and whistles and very pretty, but NOT user friendly!! I have an ipod already and just wanted a simple to use phone. This is VERY user friendly. The camera doesn't take high quality pix but it shouldn't because it is a phone.... I have a good camera and an ipod so this is perfect for me. It has voice recognition & I can answer the phone or make phone calls without opening up the phone. You can control the type of rings or how loud you want them for different callers. VERY USER FRIENDLY and sounds great!

Wednesday, August 20, 2014

Zoom H4n Handy Portable Digital Recorder 6-Piece Bundle

Zoom H4n Handy Portable Digital Recorder 6-Piece BundleIt takes a little getting use to. But it does everything the manufacturer says.

I superb multi-track recording device. It's a little bulky, but still portable.

I am glad it uses regular batteries and not some proprietary mess.

And there are a multitude of videos on YouTube show how to use it.

Communication was very good with the seller, who shipped the product promptly.

A lot of nice accessories bundled, just as described.

Very good recorder for the money, like especially the 4 channel recording feature and the phantom line-in feature.

Buy Zoom H4n Handy Portable Digital Recorder 6-Piece Bundle Now

After a few years later I still amaze clients with the clarity of my audio. I boom it. I sit it on tables...it's been in pyramids, jungles, and beaches and I dropped it a few times....like new still works like a charm.

Read Best Reviews of Zoom H4n Handy Portable Digital Recorder 6-Piece Bundle Here

I like this product, and I would recommend it to a friend although I had some issue with it which are:

1. the Remote is not really helping, it's not of a good quality I guess.

2. the buttons started to fade out although I am using this product for few times only. I can't think that I used it for more than 30-40 times with care, yet the buttons lables started to fade.

It's great for me as a portable recorder for my 7D, sound is very very clear from the bulit-in mics.

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I did not recieve the remote controller and only a 1GB SD card was included in the pack.

The recorder is a first class product, I recommend it to everyone who would ilke to buy a hand-recorder.

Sunday, August 10, 2014

GoPro Head Strap Mount for HERO Cameras

GoPro Head Strap Mount for HERO CamerasI purchased this mount with the intention of using it this coming winter while skiing. However I had the chance to use it during a recent river rafting trip. Over the course of the 4 hours I had it on my head, not once did it bother me. By the end of the trip I forgot I was wearing it (maybe that's partially due to having had a few beers that day too). The strap is comfortable and the fact that its so wide prevents that feeling that plastic grocery bags give to your fingers when you are carrying something heavy.

One tip: Practice with the strap on your head before using it the first time. The camera needs to be pointed down at a greater angle than you would initially suspect. Its not a flaw of the product, just my perception. After one adjustment I was able to easily simulate a first-person view instead of having 80% sky in every picture. Total adjustment and testing time was less than 5 minutes but required a computer or TV to verify recordings so do this at home before starting your activity.

Review updated 2011 Aug 10:

Vs. Helmet mount for mtn biking:

Pros:

Better PoV perspective which captures more movement of your arms and your gear in action

Better ground detail

Better clearance from branches

Cons:

Can't easily aim it behind you while on the bike and looking back at friends riding a section you just rode

More wind noise, due to it capturing the sound of wind deflecting off your chest

Footage from my GoPro on my helmet mount wasn't very spectacular. It seemed a bit slower than in real life and made everything look flat, from making obstacles look insignificant to making pitches look level. Moving the camera to the chest mount gave my footage better ground detail to help with depth perception and since it captured my position, arm movement, and gear's movement, it gave a sense of the technique I was using to handle the steep pitches. The ground and foliage seemed to zoom by faster too, which seemed to give a better sense of speed. It made my PoV footage seem a lot more interesting to watch. I still have a helmet mount for certain situations, but this is now my preferred location/way to mount/wear a camera on my body.

Both are kind of finicky to aim. I find the best way is to not use leg attachments if at all possible. The chest mount requires the camera to be tilted up, since your chest will be at an angle to the ground, else you will be filming your bikes top tube and your knees. I found that mounting the camera upside down with it tilting upwards just enough that it allows the camera to be coerced out if you open the rear hatch is just about perfect and is how I realign it each time if I happen to move the camera from mount to mount. I then use the UPd mode (available after a firmware upgrade for the regular HeroHD 1080) or just rotate it 180 in editing software (don't flip, as that reverses the left and right orientation). Using leg attachments will make it prone to shaky video and risk being jarred loose out of position (kills the flow looking down and seeing you need to fix the aim).

The GoPro tends to have rattling/clacking sounds which can be minimized by padding the clip interface with some tape to tighten it up and maybe padding the case with tape to dull the sound of dirt bouncing off the case.

If I were to ride solo (time trial style) or behind a better rider on a generally non-stop fast and flowy ride, I'd definitely opt for the chest mount. If I were to ride with buddies who were slower, I'd opt for a helmet mount, just so I could just pullover my bike, put a foot down, and turn my head and film them attempting a section I just rode. If the view was great and I'd want to get some riding by footage of scenery off to the side, I'd use a helmet mount too. If I wanted to ride stylish, I'd just opt for a non PoV view or give the camera to someone else who would act as a chaser.

IMO, this is one of the big reasons to get the GoPro over other PoV cams. Get it, use it, and learn to love it.

Buy GoPro Head Strap Mount for HERO Cameras Now

I love this head strap and the videos you get to record with it. I'm a student pilot and I use it for recording my flights. It's very comfortable and I get to use it without any problem along with my headsets and sunglasses. The first times you feel your head a little bit heavy (because of the camera weight) but then you get used.

Read Best Reviews of GoPro Head Strap Mount for HERO Cameras Here

I recently purchased an GoPro HD helmet-cam and this mount has made my skiing video's look stable as compared to using the helmet or head band mount that's included in the package. I guess its skiing style but I tend to move my head around more often then my chest. My chest is typically looking downhill in the direction of the fall line making for a stable platform keeping my viewers from getting sick. This is an accessory item that you should consider purchasing if you like making skiing or biking video's. I'm a big guy (6ft 225lbs)so I was concerned about this thing fitting me but to my pleasure I found that the straps are adjustable, stretch & a buckle next to the camera mount makes for quick removal. Also, it's easy to turn the camera on and start a video shoot with the camera being so close to your chest. I highly recommend using one of these if you want stable looking video's. I give it a thumbs up!

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The GoPro HD Hero I have is a lot of fun to use and record my activities from cross-country skiing to riding ATVs and boating. The head strap mount for the camera is a necessity for mounting the camera on your head when you won't be wearing a helmet of any kind that you can stick other styles of mounts to. If you have very short hair this head band will hold fairly well unless you are doing a lot of bouncing around and shaking. If you have longer hair as I do its almost impossible to get this band to grip well. The loose hair makes the band slip. I've solved this problem by attaching a light cord from each side and tie them together in a bow knot under my chin. This chin strap prevents the head band from wanting to slide up on your hair. It also adds 100% safety insurance that it won't come off and smack the ground by accident if you are moving your head around quite a bit or very quickly.

I did see a different brand POV camera unit actually mounted on the top of the bill of a baseball cap. I think the GoPro camera might be adaptable to mounting on the hat brim using one of the sticky plate mounts and perhaps two tiny screws and nuts through the brim to keep it there. Worth a try especially if you wear baseball caps.

Thursday, August 7, 2014

Sony DCR-DVD650 DVD Camcorder

Sony DCR-DVD650 DVD CamcorderPurchased this camera for my wife last month, and have since taken a vacation, and recorded several family gatherings. The video quality this camera gives is wonderful, and creates a steady image, even with my shaky hands. The zoom range is impressive as well. Still images were great during the day, and the camera is FAST. It captures the image almost immediately, better than our stand alone digital camera. The focus isn't always dead on when you move the camera around quickly, but it recovers well enough. The reason for the 4-star rating is that this camera didn't offer a lot in the area of night time picture taking and video capture. The video leaves less to be desired, as the lenses capture enough light to make sense of what is going on, but the camera is not usable at night. Now that may have more to do with the fact that I haven't figured out better settings, or am just completely missing a flash feature I haven't seen, but in either case, I still need to carry around my digital camera for night shots. As a video camera, this product blows everything out of the water that I have ever used in the video quality department. All in all, I am happy with my purchase, and will maybe find that the one shortfall with the product is in fact a problem with the user (me) and not the product.

I've had this item for approximately 6 months and am just now getting into doing reviews. Below are my thoughts on the Sony DCR-DVD650 Handycam Camcorder:

Pros:

Nice design

easy to use

great viewfinder

able to take still pictures in addition to the video

option to use DVD or Memory Stick for recording/photos

Cons:

DVD's on standard quality will only record for 30 minutes-this is not ideal for those wanting to record their childs play, or a graduation or anything that may last longer than 30 minutes. For this you would need a large memory stick to accomodate then you can use your home PC to put the recording from the memory stick to a standard sized DVD.

As expected the digital zoom gets "grainy" in appearance when you zoom in close to the maximum allowed. This is tolerable, but just realize you aren't going to get as good a picture of something you are zooming in on as you would get if the image was actually closer.

All-in-all I am extremely happy with the purchase and think that it is possibly the best buy in its price range. I would purchase it again in a heartbeat. With that said, the day I win the lottery or have a lot of money to spend I'm sure I'd purchase a more expensive model with slightly better zoom and built in memory in addition to the DVD recording capabilities.

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I just bought this camera to replace my old Hitachi camcorder and this camera is awesome. The video quality is great the sound is excellent and it is Mac compatible for those who may be wondering it will work on imovie. But this camera is lightweight and the discs do not need to be finalized before you put them in a dvd player or import them to a computer, you just hook up the usb cord and import the video quick and easy. It does come with it's own software that is only compatible with windows which I dont have so I dont know if its any good.

But so far I am very pleased with this camera perfect for anyone who loves to film themselves and edit the footage. Really good buy for a great price.

Read Best Reviews of Sony DCR-DVD650 DVD Camcorder Here

If you have been confused by conflicting claims about whether or not Sony camcorders are compatible with the Mac OS, this is what our experience shows. We are MAC users and bought this, in part, based on reviews that while the included software by SONY does not support the MAC OS (nor does SONY claim that it does), that I-movie would recognize the camcorder and file format used by this recording device. Alas, when we first connected the camcorder to our MAC, it did recognize the camcorder but did not recognize the file format (MPG) as a movie format, hence we could not open our recordings and edit them. After some further research, we discovered that Leopard software works with this format while Tiger cannot. Moreover, freeware video conversion programs like Handbrake, are no longer being supported for Tiger OS.

I did not try, but suspect, that upgrading to Quicktime Pro or its MPEG add on may resolve the issue.

As for the camera, it is compact, the touchscreen is convenient and relatively user friendly but the menus are not completely intuitive. As I received the camera shortly before having to use it, I ran it on the easy mode automatic settings. Standard Play (SP) seemed to produce better quality than High Quality (HQ) settings, oddly enough, but that may have had to do with ambient lighting. The battery lasted a good two hours with the LCD screen active. A 4 GB memory stick holds a little over an hour of recording, as advertised. The quality of the image and sound seems very good for this price point.

Our first camcorder, also a Sony, did very well for us and still works, but it is over ten years old and we wanted something that would allow easy conversion to digital format for sharing on line or on DVD. I look forward to learning more about this camcorder.

That said, I now find myself being forced to upgrade to Leopard OS if I want to use this camcorder as I intended. This essentially adds . to the cost.

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This camcorder was a present for my husband. It was a second try--I had ordered another make camcorder for him previously. He is not the most technologically-savvy guy--and it was not the product for him. The Sony Handycam was a lifesaver! It's easy to understand and easy to use. He loves it and that's the most important thing to me.

Friday, July 18, 2014

Rode VideoMic Directional Video Condenser Microphone w/Mount

Rode VideoMic Directional Video Condenser Microphone w/Mount
  • Broadcast and studio sound quality condenser microphone with wind-shield
  • Rugged reinforced ABS construction
  • Two step high-pass filter - flat or 80 Hz; three step PAD - 0, -10, -20dB
  • Integrated cold shoe mount, 1/4" and 3/8" thread
  • 9 V battery operation

Here we test the RODE Videomic against the traditional "expensive" solution. A BeachTek XLR adapter with a Sennheiser XLR based shotgun mic. Learn more about achieving high quality sound from Guy Cochran at DVcreators.net.

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After spending many days combing the internet and reading review after review I decided to give the RODE VideoMic Directional Camcorder Microphone a try. I wanted something that was good, light, somewhat short and inexpensive. I have a small mini dv camcorder that is only about 5 inches long and didn't want a mic that would get in my viewfinder's shots. The mic sticks out about 5 inches in front of my lens, but manages to stay out of my shots.

First let me comment on the sound. This little bugger picks up sounds very well. In a quiet room I can be 40 yards away and still pick up the conversation. The quality is outstanding. The audio compared to the built-in mic in my camcorder is night and day. The Rode is so clear. The price is great. I'm guessing the quality would compare to other mics in the $300 range.

My Rode came with a Dead Cat wind screen which resembles a cat's tail. It really saved me some money! At first I didn't use the Dead Cat, but then I ran into a little wind which interfered with gathering good audio. After using the Dead Cat, I always keep the wind screen on the mic. It does not interfere with the clarity of the audio and works incredibly well in breezy conditions. I will mention that I had to trim the hair on my wind screen because I could see the hair in my videos. After trimming the hair a bit, the wind screen is still effective and no more hair dangling in the top of my video screen.

The shock vibration design is cool and they even gave me extra rubber band thingies. This mic sits high off the camera and stays out of my shots. Since the mic is somewhat far away from the camcorder, I don't pick up any camera humming noise that can happen with other mics that are too close to the camera. Even on my hotshoe, I don't get any humming.

I wish I could say that I have used $300 mics and above, but I haven't. I will say that you won't be disappointed with this microphone. I'm a photojournalist by trade and I have begun to shoot video for our newspaper's web publication. This mic is perfect for my needs.

If you buy it, don't forget to turn off the mic. I accidently left mine on. There is no auto shutoff.

Read Best Reviews of Rode VideoMic Directional Video Condenser Microphone w/Mount Here

The introduction in the owner's manual states it perfectly. Rode said that when looking for a good camcorder microphone, they were either horrible pieces of junk or super expensive professional models and so they decided to design a mic for this purpose. This model strikes a perfect balance. The quality of this mic is excellent. It is very sensitive and has good directional properties so it rejects noise to the side quite well. Although not meant for picking up sound from long distances it can do quite well from 20 feet away and maybe more.

The mount is attached to the mic so this is the only way you can use it and it is made to mount to the standard "shoe" that is on nearly all camcorders. It is a mono microphone but it has a stereo miniphone jack that plugs in the camcorder mic jack and feeds the audio into both channels. After trying several inferior microphones I was delighted to stumble upon this mic. It is a good value and an excellent microphone for camcorders.

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I bought this mic because I, probably like you, was planning to shoot a movie with a common hand-held HD camera and virtually no budget to splurge for the good stuff. Though the audio you get from this mic is top notch, the mic was all but destroyed on a four week trip that I filmed in hopes of making a documentary. Firstly, the rubber bands that suspend the mic began squeaking with every little movement of the camera, which spoiled hours of audio before I was able to find a fix (vaseline). The bands also constantly broke and had to be replaced, which is a waste of time out on the field when filming. It may help to double up on the rubber bands, or buy your own because the included ones don't tolerate rough wear. Honestly I'm not sure why the mic needs a shock mount at all. Many shotgun mics firmly attach to the hot shoe with no suspension and function equally well.

After more use, the plastic cold foot just wore down and began to slide out of the shoe, needing to be wrapped in duct tape to not fall off completely. A metal foot with a better locking mechanism would be appreciated.

Also as you're probably aware, you're going to need an adapter to use this with many of Canon's video cameras which use a small proprietary shoe system, and all the adapters I could find are cheap plastic crap which are sure to break as well.

Like I said, the audio is great, but I'm upset that I left for the trip with a brand new snazzy mic and came back with war-torn remains brutally duct taped to my camera. I think they should use more metal and redesign the shock mount to make this product durable enough for an extended shoot.

I like the sound I get from the mic and it is very good valuue for the money for prosumer cam owners, but consumer-level camera owners should beware.

I bought this mic and found that it was way too sensitive/hot for consumer cameras like a Panasonic gs200 which has no audio input level control. It picks up too much background noise and overwhelms the camera's automatic gain controller when things get loud. I'm not sure if the gs200 had a mic attenuation setting or if turning it on would have been a sufficient answer. I put a cheap radio shack in-line volume controller in between the mic and the camera (which can introduce crackle if you adjust it while recording).

On prosumer cams with input level control like the Canon GL2 it works fine, even without turning on mic attenuation. If you have a camcorder with input level controls I might get this.

Another important caveat: You cannot run this mic through a the 1/8" connection of a Beachtek mixer box. You'll hear nothing on the beachtek's output because of an impedance mismatch. I don't know if putting an XLR adapter on the mic cable would work.

Thursday, July 3, 2014

ZMODO 16CH H.264 Standalone DVR CCTV Surveillance System with 8 Bullet Sony CCD Outdoor Cameras & 8

ZMODO 16CH H.264 Standalone DVR CCTV Surveillance System with 8 Bullet Sony CCD Outdoor Cameras & 8 Dome Sony CCD Weatherproof Security Cameras-1TB HDExactly what i was looking for...very good price durable easy to install outdoor camera sizes are perfect...better connections= better picture quality..recommened BNC compression coax connectors.. more work but its worth it

I had a great experience with this security set... actually I got a few more. The price is very convenient as well.

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I orderd the item, it arrived on time and I am loving it. Looks and feels great. although I am yet to install I would certainly recommend

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Sunday, June 29, 2014

BestDealUSA Battery for Sony NP-730 NP-F750 NP-F730H Camcorder

BestDealUSA Battery for Sony NP-730 NP-F750 NP-F730H CamcorderThis is just a charger, not a spacecraft.

OMG, can you imagine it works and charges a battery? Yes, it does.

What you can't imagine that every time you take the batter off the charger, the part of the charger slides off the rest of the body and stays connected with battery. Every time you have to separate this part from the battery and place it back where it belongs: = back to the rest of the charger.

I'd recommend another seller, but I'm afraid all the chargers are the same : made cheap somewhere in China

Thursday, June 26, 2014

4GB PLANE HELICOPTER CAR KITE HOBBY CRAFT CAMERA AMSD12-4

4GB PLANE HELICOPTER CAR KITE HOBBY CRAFT CAMERA AMSD12-4Was exited because it look nice on paper got the camera and the outer shell was cracked open and does not close the lens is very hard do move and makes cracking noises when moved over all what real gave it a bad review is that i fells like a cheap $10 camera

Item came 1 day early well packaged and unbroken. Camera came as advertised. Sharp vid/pic within 5-10 feet, not as sharp at a long distance, but still a good picture. Mounts well to planes (30g cam & HWare) and still works after a few hard landings. I feel I got my monies worth for the price. If your looking for state of the art technology, this ain't it. I gave the seller a 5 because I got exactly what I ordered, and delivery was on time.

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Don't waste your money. It's junk. Thought it would be a good camera because its size. Go out and spend the money on a GoPro camera.

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i bought this for my husband for christmas and he couldnt even play with it. only came with one little simple sheet of instruction on how to work it but it DOES NOT tell you how to get your recordings to your computer. it did not come with software or a disk or anything. TOTALLY USELESS DONT WASTE YOUR MONEY

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This product did not work from the box! Had to send it back ill let you know how the reorder works.

Wednesday, May 7, 2014

Samsung USB 2.0 8xDVD Writer External Optical Drive for Mac and PC SE-S084C/RSBN (Gloss Black)

Samsung USB 2.0 8xDVD Writer External Optical Drive for Mac and PC SE-S084C/RSBNThis is a great high quality drive that is Windows 7 compliant.(although the instructions don't say so) It is a compact external so it is not super fast, but it is fast enough for all my needs. Watching dvds, burning cds/dvds etc. Now onto why this Drive has gotten bad reviews.

ComplaintThis drive does not come with a program to watch dvds, I had to pay extra just to do so.

AnswerThis just an external drive. It will work with your current media software. The DVD industry licenses the coding to read DVDs and so it is generally not given away free with products. It does come with Nero which is a great DVD/CD Burning program. The program has a trial for DVD watching with the option to buy. There are free codecs that you can download also to accomplish this. Head on over to

ComplaintThe drive only opens a 1/2 inch, there is something wrong with it.

AnswerActually this is a power saving feature and keeps it slim line. This Drive is powered completely by your computer, and is designed for netbook use. It slides open easily with your finger. When the drive is not being used, it shuts down and does not draw power.

ComplaintThe drive does not open when the power is off like the description says

AnswerActually it does. There is a small hole on the front of the drive where a paper clip can be inserted. This will pop the drive open and allow you to access your disc.

I hope this helps clear the water a bit. All in all I am much happier with the product that I thought I would be. In fact since getting it for my net book, the DVD drive on my home computer died and I have just been using this one instead.

I needed an external DVD reader/writer mainly to load software onto my Acer 1410 which does not have a drive, and this Samsung drive works perfectly for me. The drive comes with Nero 8 "Essentials", which is a basic OEM suite of utilities for use with the drive. I find it neither great nor bad. If you need any of the utilities, it does the job. The drive itself does not use external power. It uses 2 USB ports. Some people claim it also works with only 1 USB port, but I have not tried it. Installing the drive couldn't be easier. I took it out of the box, plugged it into my system, and was up and running in probably a minute. The Nero software installed without issue. I loaded several programs from DVD onto my system without problems. I tried burning a couple of DVD's, and they all completed successfully and faster than expected. Although I have no intention to watch movies on my my netbook, I did pop a movie into the DVD drive, and it played without issue using Windows Media Player. I'm happy with the drive and does exactly what I bought it for.

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I bought this drive to use with my new Acer 13" 3810T which doesn't have an optical drive. I rarely use one, but I needed to have one....just in case.

The drive itself is VERY small, and I don't see how they could make one any smaller. Aesthetically it looks great. It came with one cable, with an interesting design. It has two regular USB plugs, which BOTH connect to a single mini-usb plug. You plug in both USB plugs to your laptop, and plug the other end into your laptop, and you're good to go.

Obviously this would pose a problem if you only have 1 usb port on a side, because the cord is not long enough to reach around. In the manual they show a picture of using an extension usb cord to reach the other side. I haven't tried this using only one plug, because I knew ahead of time I had two side-by-side usb ports I could use. The cord itself is quite short also, so expect to have the dvd drive less than a foot away.

I used it to burn recovery disks for my Acer, but haven't done any "speed" tests, but I didn't buy it for that purpose.

It's small, light, looks nice, and doesn't need a separate power cord!

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MAC users ! Don't ever hesitate to buy this wonderful inexpensive little creature ! The CD involved is only for PC users, but you don't have to worry if you already have a software program to burn CDs/DVDs like Toast Titanium etc..

Installation wasn't an issue at all, why??? Because it is a MAC !!! ;) I've just plugged the USB cables (2 of them give a better performance, not a big deal for me to use 2 USB ports on my MacbookPro) and it started working in seconds !

I can read and write CDs and DVDs perfectly. (or copy stuff from internal drive to this external drive or vice-versa at the same time.) It automatically chooses to read DVDs by using DVD player software already installed in all MACs. Briefly you do not need any single thing to achieve what you want from an external CD/DVD drive. I didn't even have to show my Toast Titanium burner software that there's is a new external drive connected. It recognized it immediately !

My intention was to be able to use both Region 1 DVDs (for US) and Region 2 DVDs (for Europe) without worrying to change the region of my actual MAC's drive. Because it was only going to allow me 2 more times (out of 5) to change the drive's region. I'm a grad student in US, but my home country is in Europe, so this solution definitely worked for me perfect. The coolest thing is of course its price ! It is really an affordable piece of creature if we think about its abilities..

One more thing, it is really so small that you can put it in your laptop bag and enjoy it everywhere you go..

Thanks to Samsung & Amazon !

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I received my Samsung Super WriterMaster SE-S084C as scheduled but found it unable to install programs from DVD's I proceeded to have Amazon replace the defective unit, which only took a few days, and was happy to find the new unit worked perfectly. I understand that some problems will occur with any model, but based on what I have seen in these reviews this model has more problems that good QC should allow. Never the less, I have been please with the unit for its' small size and easy to use functionality. The same cannot be said for the included Nero 8 software. I got the unit to make installation of software easy and that is fine. When I installed the Nero* software to try to play back a DVD i got video but no sound. In researching the problem on the Nero site I found that the Nero 8 Essential OEM bundle will not play DVD sound, you only see the silent video. You need to buy their upgrade to the Nero 9 suite to get basic functionality. That is a crock. An "essential" software bundle implies basic functionality not this bait and switch "crud". The Amazon page states "Simply plug it into your USB port and you are ready to watch movies, install software, copy photos, play music, etc." That simply is not true. I decided the unit was worth keeping even without the software, so I avoided a second return to Amazon. I uninstalled the Nero 8 Suite and installed VLC open source free media player. It works just fine. The hard ware is fine and does a great job, however, I cannot recommend getting this product because of the deceptive software claims.

Saturday, May 3, 2014

ContourHD 720p HD Helmet Camera

ContourHD 720p HD Helmet CameraPros:

Comes with mounting options that can be customized to work for just about any application

Comes with 2 GB SD card

Very well build, doesn't feel cheap at all

Rotating lens to accommodated angles when mounted

No external recording device needed

Cons:

Near HD video, I wouldn't call it HD quality even though the video dimensions are HD, but outstanding for a small wearable camera

*Update: The sound is pretty bad if you are going very fast. The mic location could be better because there is an electronic sounds that dominates the audio at high speeds.

Review:

I bought this camera to help make videos of my dad's Camero and Ducati for his father's day present, mostly just to get another angle. The price was great on Amazon! With all the discounts I got it for $230 which is seventy dollars cheaper than anywhere else. The shipping was great, I ordered it on a Thursday and I arrived on a Monday day.

I just took the camera for a spin mounted on the rear foot peg on my Triumph street bike. I used the included goggle mount, a strap from an old headlamp and some zip ties to secure the camera. The goggle mount can be used to mount it pretty must anywhere that is vertical and has something you can run a zip tie around. The video looked pretty good but like I said earlier I wouldn't call it HD. On my 24 inch iMac it looks pretty blurry and graining even when I am not moving to be considered HD but for a small camera it looks great. It is also nice not to have to have an external recording device and all the wires required for connecting. In both settings, HD and SD the video looks great! Both are in widescreen with the HD at a little higher resolution.

The sound is also great. I was probably going 60 or 70 a few times and the wind was noticeable but not annoying. The sound quality when used in a still setting is amazing for such a small camera. I tested it around the house a few times and the sound was great.

Overall I would recommend this camera to anyone wanting to record Point of View sports action. The quality of the product and video are well worth the price. I would see what you can do with the included mounting options for you order the other mounts. Great product!

I own both the VIO POV.1 and the ContourHD. I must preface this by saying I use these cameras in a unique application, that being on a military helicopter. Both have their pro's and con's but since we are talking about the ContourHD, I will offer this:

Pro's:

Resolution, it is HD of course. It does fish eye a bit more than I would like.

All-in-one: No separate components..everything is literally right in your hand. (can be a draw back) No wires....

Laser for making sure the camera is mounted properly.

USB Chargeable battery with decent life.

30 minutes of HD per gig..comes with a 2 gig card. A larger card really is needed.

PRICE!! Excellent.

Cons:

Not anything close to Mil-Spec like the POV.1 (That thing was built for the military)

On/Off switch can slide back and you would never know it. Fixed in later serial numbers.

Mounting options are minimal.

No lens cover..really? Fix that.

Packaging looks pretty on a shelf but mine arrived bouncing around in the pretty plastic box.

No included case.

The all-in-one design offers limitations for remote operations. You have to be within arms reach to use this thing. Also, you have no ideal what you are shooting or what you shot until you get back to your computer. (The POV.1 has the handheld unit so you can see, and edit, what you are shooting...but comes at the expense of bulk and wires)

Depending on your application, this could be and is a great camera. For what I need it for, it is too limited...until I modify the mounts! Do your research and know your mission before you pull the trigger.

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I finally received the camera from VholdR. So far it's lived up to my expectations. The video that I saw coming from it was super clear and the color looks amazing. It came with its own software that also made everything easier. The 135 degree field of view is better than the fish eye look that you get with some other cameras. Good price for a compact HD camera.

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I have this as well as the VIO POV1. The video quality and especially the colors are much better on the ContourHD at 1/2 the price. With the external mic, the sound quality is better on the VIO (can put it inside your helmet to cut wind noise). Too bad they don't have an external mic option on the ContourHD. Unitl VIO comes out with HD, the ContourHD is the helmet cam to beat.

And the ContourHD video works great in a Mac with IMovie.

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I'm going to start with the negatives. Yes, the mic could be better. But when you're haulin', wind noise will almost always be a factor. Battery life? Eh, sure it's not fabulous... but once you pick this thing up, see and feel the size of it, realize that there are NO external parts, and then see the video it produces? You'll forgive the battery life. Buy another battery, which is easy to do when your entire helmet cam costs less than half of anything even remotely in the same league (although nothing actually IS in the same league).

Positives? Where do I begin? This thing is all-inclusive (did I mention NO external wires at ALL?), very lightweight (I hardly notice its presence on my bike helmet), super easy to use, and records unbelievably smooth (I found it almost too smooth, in fact... looks like a cable cam is flying through the trees as opposed to me rolling rocks on my mountain bike) HD video. Yes, the HD isn't as clear as it could be, but if you've read any of the other benefits of this cam, believe me you won't care. The video is still leagues (and I mean LEAGUES) ahead of anything that is out there for this amount of money (and most of the stuff that costs at least twice as much... I'm looking at you, VIO). I've been disappointed in the quality of video of every helmet cam I've used until now.

This device is worth every penny. Make sure your computer can edit HD video though, otherwise everything will look choppy.

Buy this camera as soon as you can. It's a blast.

Wednesday, April 16, 2014

Iview HD Player 1080P All Region DVD Media Player with HDMI Intrface

Iview HD Player 1080P All Region DVD Media Player with HDMI Intrface
  • High Definition HDMI interface 480i/480P/720P/1080P
  • Upconvert to 1080P for high resolution image
  • Connects to LCDTV and enjoy great quality picture and movies
  • HDMI interface offers digital sound
  • DVD format compatibility: DVD/VCD/CD/CD+G/JPEG

The only reason the Iview doesn't get a 5-star rating from me is that there no manual tray eject or retract on the unit. If you want to get a disk out to return to... say Netflix; you have to get your remote from wherever you last left it.

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I tried this because the dimensions claimed it was only 1.5 inches high, and I needed it to fit under one side of my LCD TV. The web site dimensions are simply wrong. I measured 2 inches high. I'm returning it and getting a Sony (after verifying its dimensions from the Sony manual).

As for its operation, I did plug it in and try it. It looked ok on my 1080p TV through the HDMI output, but I noticed a "glaring" problem: the disc drawer is illuminated with blindingly bright blue light. Searching through the set-up menus, I found no way to turn off the light. What were they thinking? You can't hide the front of the unit from your line of sight if you want the remote to work.

Oh yeah, speaking of the disc drawer, it is surprisingly flimsy.

This is not the DVD player you're looking for. Move along.

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It took me a few days too long to figure out how to get this thing hooked up and running, or I would return it.

It's nice and small, and seems to work fine, for what it is. I just wanted something that doesn't take up much room, that I could play karaoke CD+Gs on. It does that. The sound quality just is not good, to my sensitive ears. Most people probably wouldn't mind...

It seems to just not pick up very many of the sounds that are on the CD. Discs that sounded pretty darn good and rich on any freestanding karaoke machine (or in my stereo) sound loose and disjointed and spare and slightly out-of-time on this little machine.

Tuesday, April 8, 2014

Zmodo 8 Channel Security Surveillance CCTV H.264 DVR - Smart View No Hard Drive

Zmodo 8 Channel Security Surveillance CCTV H.264 DVR - Smart View No Hard Driveit looks pretty good so far. i have only had it hooked up for a day but if it keeps ticking like it is now i will be very very pleased with the product. i have had trouble in the past with similar products not lasting but mere months but hopefully this will do the job and work for at least 3 years for me. it has a lot of features i found surprising and at this time i am very happy with this product. as soon as i get my pan and tilt cameras in and hook them up i will know if that feature works correctly. looking forward to testing that out.

show the perfect clear picture the price was just right the remote could have been better but i can live with that.

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I ordered this unit to record and view my security cameras over my network. It looked like a good price and arrived quickly. After setting the unit up it rebooted over and over every 4 to 5 minutes. Even worse for me it's network access is through Microsoft Windows Internet Explorer only. No access from Linux or Mac.

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I have tried five time ,I have not been able to talk anyone yet ,as soon as I solve my problem i will let you .

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As soon as I go the system going, after installing the hard drive, I though the quality was excellent but after about an hour, the pictures started being blurry and became very static almost unrecognizable images and moving very fast. So, I decided to return the product. My suggestion, pay little extra for something like Lorex Edge or Samsung. My last Lorex lasted me more that 3 years with out any problem. SO, DON'T BUY. Sorry Zmodo..

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Friday, April 4, 2014

Cable, KP-18 USB for DS-2 & DS-20

Cable, KP-18 USB for DS-2 & DS-20I managed to lose my USB cable for my Olympus DS-2 and was shocked to pave to pay 21.99 for a replacement. (I only paid 70 for the recorder!)

While this price was competitive, I don't think it can be justified.

By the way, I found my missing USB cable 2 days after the new one arrived.

Thursday, March 27, 2014

8G HD 1080P Night Vision Waterproof Watch Camera 1920*1080 30FPS

8G HD 1080P Night Vision Waterproof Watch Camera 1920*1080 30FPSThe watch itself is built pretty well. Has a nice heavy and durable feel. I have no problems with the quality of the product.

The real problems begin when trying to use it. The 2 page folded piece of paper is comprised of broken English that will leave you guessing. But after a few attempts to record and watch the video I created, it became apparent that the instructions were just too long and too many steps. I rewrote my own instructions (see below).

The biggest problem, after figuring out which buttons to push to make it work, is hooking it up to your pc. The first time, it worked like a champ. Second time I plugged in, it did not recognize the watch's drive. The ONLY way I can now get this to pull up and work is to use the Devise Manager and delete the 'unknown device' that is listed and click on 'Scan for Hardware Changes'. Usually after doing this repeatedly, it seems to finally come around. I can work with that, although not ideal.

I have a college degree in Computer Information Systems and understand Windows 7 very well and am quite experienced. If I have trouble, I feel sorry for the folks who buy this and don't know much about USB Ports and Drivers or how to 'refresh' using Device Manager. You will be stopped in your tracks if you are a general computer user. But maybe my advise will help.

Now, here are my new instructions on how to get the watch to record video. (it does record audio as well by default).

Initialize Camera & Start Recording:

Press and Hold Reverse 2 Seconds

Red & Blue lights on simultaneously.

Red light will turn off. Blue light blinks 3 times and turns off.

Stop Recording:

Short Press Adjust Blue light blinks 3 times, and while blinking...

Press Twice Reverse Blue light stays on

Turn Off Camera & Save Recording:

Press and Hold Reverse 2 Seconds

Red light will flash 3 times.

Now Ready to plug into your PC.

PS. There is no brand or company listed on the packaging or instructions. How can it be UL listed without ownership info, etc..? I think this is a dark black market for these Chinese goods. It doesn't even say what country it was made in. It probably came right off the street in China and smuggled over here. Who knows.

And if you are wondering, the indicator lights are not on during video recording. They do go off, so you can be a real spy!

(+) Amonst secret cams, this product is one of the easiest to use and good quality. It has a USB cable to connect for charging and file transfer. Once started recording, all leds are dimmed. Night vision can be turned on and off seperately. Shooting quality is good, although not as clear as HD. Also the watch itself looks OK, except the GSHOOK brand. It has water proof caps to cover the mic and usb socket

(-) User manual has typos and terrible English, which would confuse you a lot. Night vision is very weak, it can max illumunate close objects around 50 cm (20"). It overheats when shooting, but also its a sign that it continues shooting. On top, i shot 3 videos, at the end only one was recorded, i dont know what happened to other 2.

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This is a nice looking watch. It does say gshook instead of gshock but you can't really notice it unless you pay attention. Some people might notice though. I bought this cause my friends and I surf so I thought a water proof cool looking watch might be nice to shoot some videos and also let me know how long I've been out in the water. I don't know how waterproof it is cause I never got far enough to try it out in the surf. The camera doesn't work well. The video quality is ok. Not what I would call HD. I tried it out a few times and it seemed to work well. After the first day it started to jam my computer up when I would delete the videos. Then I tried plugging it and my computer wouldn't recognize the device. I always use the safely disconnect option on the computer so it's not like I just unplug it. Sometimes I couldn't get it to unplug safely so I had to turn my computer off to unplug it. Anyways a headache of a product and doesn't work consistently. Next time I'm going with a real action camera.

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Firstly, it's not the same as the watch in the picture. Similar, but not the same. This doesn't detract from the product, though.

Secondly, the instructions are garbage. Accurate instructions are as follows:

Charging: Lights will blink until fully charged. Once charged, lights go solid.

-To turn on, hold reverse for 2 seconds. This places the watch in standby mode. Solid Blue light is on.

-To begin recording, press reverse once. Lights will blink and go off.

-Recording begins with IR on. To disable IR function, hold adjust while recording for 2 seconds. Red lights will blink and go off.

The reason I gave this 3 stars instead of 4 is because the recording gets very sluggish and jumpy after about the first 2 minutes of playback. This watch is great for extremely discreet recording. Turn it on and let it roll and no one will be the wiser.

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I was able to get all features to work once I figured out to plug the long USB pin all the way in. The video is not bad for a tiny cam, but has a purple haze.

Monday, March 10, 2014

SVAT CVP800 Mini Portable DVR Digital Video Recorder with MPEG4 Compression

SVAT CVP800 Mini Portable DVR Digital Video Recorder with MPEG4 CompressionI purchased the SVAT CVP800 with the CCDCO camera. After some minor initial bumps, I am very satisfied. When first received, the camera had a defective video cable. It took a while for me to figure out the problem, but once done, SVAT customer service was very responsive and sent a replacement cable immediately. The only significant negative comments that I have are that the CVP800 does not include or offer as an optional accessory a 12VDC plug-in car power supply; also the instruction manual is not very helpful in several areas. On the positive side, the CVP800 is extremely small (easily fits into a shirt pocket), light weight and consumes very little power (under 1.5 watt). It has a powerful feature not found on other similar mini-portable units that I evaluated, specifically, the ability to loop record, i.e., continuously record, writing over the oldest data when it reaches the capacity of the SD card. This allows the unit to record 24 hours a day forever without any attention whatsoever. If an event happens that you are aware of and want to review and save, simply stop the recorder and selectively play back the last minutes/hours recorded, and if you want to, download the data onto your computer to save it or simply pull the SD card with the recorded data, and insert a new one in the CVP800. Overall, I have found this unit to be well designed user friendly, easy to understand, and highly flexible in both recording and playing back. The only reason I gave the CVP800 a 4-star rating (rather than 5-stars) is the absence of an out-of-the-box way to power the unit in a car other than depending on the internal AA batteries.

There's no other DVR of it's type that I could find. I have it in my glove box wired to a forward seeing sony lipstick cam and microphone for insurance reasons. I set this thing to record at full frames full fps and to always record when powered. So it only records when I have the key in the ignition and save about 3 hours worth on a 2GB card. Hasn't failed me yet.

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Seems to work okay but it breaks up the video into ~10 second pieces when recording HQ (708X480?)@12 FPS. This is about an MByte. These files can be stitched together if you want to play them back with software, such as MS Movie Maker, but is a pretty big PIA.

It would be nice to find a file on your SD memory stick that started when you pushed the record button and ended when you pushed stop.

It would also be nice if it could use 12V.

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Once I figured out how to work it, it works well. The directions are really useless. I still haven't really got the motion detection thing figured out, but it does work. The pictures are not the best but they do serve there purpose. I think if I had looked around a little more I could have found something a little better, but all in all it does its job.

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I've owned two of these for 3 years one in each car. They loop-record anytime the car is in motion. I installed a GPS-overlay box between my forward-facing camera (mounted on my rear-view mirror) and the DVR. This imprints my speed on the video. The insurance this provides against he-said she-said accidents, inaccurate laser guns (check out my youtube video), or rogue police who say one thing on the side of the road, and another in court is priceless.

All co-workers have these installed after seeing how it reveals how 'unimpeachable, trustworthy, and honest' police officer testimony is anything but...

I don't go looking for trouble. It finds me. When it does, it's great to have an unbiased witness ready to come to my defense.

Note: If your state is a two-party consent state, you'll need to warn anyone within audio recording distance that they're being recorded. Otherwise, at best it's inadmissible, or at worst, you could be charged with felony wire-tap offenses. I solved this problem by applying small (3" x 1") red warning labels in the corner of all roll-down windows. They look like alarm stickers, but state "Notice: Any conversations inside and within 6' of this vehicle may be recorded".

I would have given it 5 stars, but I have two annoyances:

1) The A/V in/out jacks are nothing more than a 4-contact 3.5mm stereo jack. In humid environments the internal contacts become 'dirty' causing flicker in the video if the cables are bumped.

2) The video is actually split into multiple 1 1.5MB asf files. They can be spliced back together, but there is about a 2-4 frame loss at each seam. It's barely noticeable, but it is an annoyance. I imagine this has to be the case as the files must be completed and saved before power loss. If the power is turned off, whatever file is being written is corrupt. Each segment is about 4-6 seconds long. So you lose the last few seconds of record when you turn off the car.

Because of the age of mine, I do not have a firmware update option under the SD section of the menu. I have an email into svat to see if there is a work-around. For now, my max SD size is 4GB (non-SDHC).

If you want to see videos of how this works in a car, look up my username on utube.