Neuros 442 for Recreational video recording

[narius]

Hey there,

I am an avid paintballer, and I have been trying to come up with a solution for creating a "helmet cam" of sorts, without attaching a honking video recorder onto my helmet. Now, I've come across this PVR and it seems to be a really good solution to my problem, as there are several bullet sized cameras that can plug into this. However, I am concerned about a few things:

1) The battery life is stated as 5 hours for playing video. I would assume that recording video would take approximately the same amount of time?
2) I didn't notice any replacement battery for the 442 model? Are these batteries not replaceable?
3) How "rugged" would you suggest this PVR is? Obviously I won't be dropping it, or dropping onto it (it will be withint a pouch on my vest), but can it handle high amounts of vibrations, and the general forces you would expect from having it attached to someone who is running/jumping/crawling?

Also, by chance if any one has used this for the same purposes, I'd like to get your opinion on this.

Thanks for your time,

Narius

[JEFFH]

Forget it, the 442 will not record on battery power even with 3/4 of a full charge.
It shuts down claiming the battery is low on power.

[narius]

quote:Originally posted by JEFFH

Forget it, the 442 will not record on battery power even with 3/4 of a full charge.
It shuts down claiming the battery is low on power.

Oh, that's a real shame. Am I correct in assuming that this is true for The Recorder 2 also? I know this isn't the correct forum for that question, but hopefully someone might know that also.

[MattBetts]

Hi,

I'm interested in the same for paragliding and snowboarding.

Looks like Archos have some nice products, except as far as I can tell the av / dv in ports are on the docking station, so not much use for recording from a helmet cam when out and about.

The 442 sounds ideal except for the problem mentioned above. Anyone else with experience of using it (or anything else) this way? Would be great if someone could post some example videos.

Thanks & merry Christmas,

Matthew

[JEFFH]

[/quote]
Oh, that's a real shame. Am I correct in assuming that this is true for The Recorder 2 also? I know this isn't the correct forum for that question, but hopefully someone might know that also.
[/quote]

The battery problem with the 442 is a known bug that neuros said they were working on. It didn't however get fixed in the recent firmware update and Neuros has not said what the timetable is for when this will be fixed.
I don't have a Recorder 2

[JEFFH]

quote:Originally posted by MattBetts

Looks like Archos have some nice products, except as far as I can tell the av / dv in ports are on the docking station, so not much use for recording from a helmet cam when out and about.
Matthew

That is true for the Archos AV500 that I have my eye currently on.
The AV400 however has a cable set for recording on the move as well as the docking station.

[Gunderstorm]

A woman biker had a helmet cam on when she was cut off by a Civic.  Have you guys seen this?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0aIasXHYDAk

She walked away just a bit banged up and the video will be used to prove she was not at fault in the accident.  More details on this forum post:

http://socalsportbikes.info/xmb/viewthread.php?tid=34948

According to the forum, it was a Sony bullet camera.

[Derek]

wow, one heck of a camera...built well

When I was a kid my mom used to tell me that curiosity killed the cat...What she forgot to tell me was that it also discovered the cat, invented the lightbulb, and forged the Neuros

[game_writer]

Hey wait a minute! I have recorded on battery power for about an hour and a half before it shut down recording. I regularly recorded for an hour on a fully-charged battery with no problems. Are not other people able to do this?


Game_Writer

[Ex-Navy]

An External custom battery works well. Just replace the DC voltage from an AC charger.

Ex-Navy

[dzavelson]

I'm yet another person looking for a semi-rugged video recording solution to use with an external bullet cam.  In my case, I actually have access to a 12V power source.  The application is for an in-car video camera for recording auto racing.  Today, I've been using a bullet camera running to a Mustek PVR-A1 that records directly to SD.  The only issue with this solution is that the video quality is marginal.

Would either Neuros be a good solution as an in-car recorder?  
1)  Can the 442 and Recorder 2 be powered via 12V power source running through a 5V regulator or something like that?

2)  Is the 442 Hard Drive robust enough to handle the vibration and jolting of a race car?  If not, can the device record directly to the SD card instead of the HDD?  If so, if the HDD failed could the device still operate properly with the SD?

Thanks in advance.
Dave

Dave

[Ex-Navy]

Yes the 442 can run via a 5 volt regulator.
Make sure you put a capacitor across the input to filter any AC fluctuations on the DC input.
The recorder is a better option in my opinion, then the 442 as it will record directly to SD. It also runs 5Vdc (+ at center pin).
If you really want cool video, IPIX has developed a new 360 degree camera called Immerse Video (commandview) that records everything in 360 degrees. We are wondering if it runs off of 12Vdc. Mount this inside the top roof of the car and be able to pan the video 360 without moving parts.

http://www.ipix.com/products_commandview.html

 [8D][8D][8D]

Ex-Navy

[dzavelson]

Thanks Ex-Navy,
My only "issue" with the Recorder is that it doesn't have any screen.  Its not a a deal-breaker, but having a screen makes it easy to make sure the camera is clean, aimed in the right direction and recording correctly.  I may just have to try it out and see how it goes.
Dave

Dave

[Ex-Navy]

Dave,
Sorry but I always refer to the wrong Neuros products in the wrong forum. I can never remember which forum I am in. I referred to the recorder saving to SD which in fact is wrong. Either CF or Duo.

Screens for 12 volt systems are available here (You can use it for other applications too)

http://www.accele.com/accele2/Housed_LCDs.htm


Also, your question about power via 12 volt (car system). I have been working with an engineering company who has developed a cool voltage regulator system. About the size of a 25 cent piece, it will deliver 2  amps out (max) and you can dial up whatever voltage you want.
For example, imagine you have 4 old (AA batteries) at home, not enough juice to run the 442 or MPEG??? Now you can. Put the AA's in a holder, turn a dial until it reads 5 volts, connect the right power adaptor to the output (+ center) and you have an adjustable Neuros battery pack.
We are working on the casing so it is easy to put in your pocket.

Coming soon!

Ex-Navy