Oregon Scientific busts out head-mountable ATC-2000 webcam
By Darren Murph 
posted October 24th 2006 9:56AM
posted October 24th 2006 9:56AM
posted October 24th 2006 9:56AM
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the ski season is coming up... hummm...
I rented a helmet cam 10 years ago in Telluride and got some great skiing video, including one of a friend wiping out. Back then I had to strap on a VCR backpack. It's good to see a memory card solution that doesn't require a 20 pound monkey on my back. Can't wait to see the quality.
Using the Video Bandwidth Estimator it says that 640x480@30FPS means at least 1Mbps and with 32MB storage, my (poor) calculations says that you would only have about 4 minutes recording time. Perhaps my numbers are offbut if not that seems like not quite enough time for me to cyber while on my bike.
well 30 FPS would be pretty extensive for a webcam film - probably not a need to record that many fps
How much recording time will that give, can take up to 2GB SD??
Suggested Article Title Change:
"Oregon Scientific Develops Better Way To Make People Think Others Actually Care What They're Doing..."
As a small videocam for extreme sports and the like, this is great, but as a webcam... no thanks. I can't stand the plethora of videos on YouTube of people who think they can sing, or think they're funny, or think they can dance. This is just an evil weapon in the hands of today's teens. The world doesn't need to see your buddy wipe out... save it for your friends only.
call me crazy, but I've been waiting for this update. Their last camera only had 1GB SD capacity and 15fps, and this one takes a 2GB SD card and does 30fps at vga. Looks like you can already get this for ~$80.
It looks to me that the picture shows the camera is pointing to the bicycle rider's crotch.
At least the camera is smaller/shorter than the previous generation. I assume it also encodes to MPEG-4 like the previous gen.
According to this review:
http://travelsinparadise.com/gearreviews/technology/videocamera/ATC2000.html
It's 2 hours for 2GB
I wrote the review. The specs are straight from the folks at Oregon Scientific. I saw it at the summer Outdor Retailer show and was blown away. Imae quality isn't that of a 3-chip but for the pric, who cares.
Anyone know what format this records in? Specifically is it Mac-compatible?
Two hours is quite a bit of time if it encodes the file as an AVI. Perhaps that is at the 160x120 setting. This would probably adjust to 30 minutes at 320x240 and around five minutes at 640x480. Funny that they don't note the encoding rate on their web site.
Still, it's inexpensive and looks like fun. Don't forget the AA batteries.
If somebody can write software to sync the video to a GPS track, it would be great. You could drag the cursor on the map trail and see what went on in a side window. I know most people's videos and trails would be boring beyond description but there's always that great spot that you may want to relive and know where exactly it happened. It would also be great for "accident analysis" if used in cop cars, firetrucks and such.
Folks, I have my ATC-2000 in my hands, and needless to say, it's a huge improvement over the atc-1000.
The 2GB SD card is a huge improvement, but I will say this... if you buy the most expensive high speed SD card, it won't mean it'll take better video. It means the opposite.
I bought a 2GB Rocketfish SD card and it didn't look NEARLY as good as the SanDisk 2gb car that cost about $50 less. SO BUY A SANDISK card!! It'll work better for some reason!
The video quality is very good for such a small unit, WAY better than the super lame 15fps from last year.
It takes only 2AA instead of 4AAA which if yu ask me is a blessing as well. The batteries are less of a jumble when you're organizing your batteries.
The manual says this camera IS Mac compatible. (Why do people buy Macs... they're not WORLD compatible. I guess cause they're "pretty".... pretty useless.)ANYWAYS!
I'm very impressed with my camera. I've mounted it on my bike, my car, my dog, my head, my leg, just about everywhere, and it RULES! Can't wait to take it skiing.
Oregon Scientific came through on the public's request for a higher fps rate, a better battery management system, more storage, and tougher/better looking design.
Don't be afraid to buy it! You'll be glad you did. Just make sure you get some NiMH batteries to go with it!
The folks from Oregon Scientific were at the Summer Outdoor Retailer Show Taking orders frrom retailers. I wrote the review at http://www.travelsinparadise.com/gearreviews/technology/videocamera/ATC2000.html
The specs are from Oregon Scientific directly. The video wasn't 3 chip quality, but how can you beat the price!
I just found out about this new model. I've had the ATC-1000 since June. That one is 15 fps, and can store ~! hour of AVI on a 1 GB card (max size it can see). Since other reviews say the 2000 can store 2 hours on a 2 GB card, I am impressed if they can double the frame rate and keep the storage size the same.
As for Mac compatibility, the 1000, like many low-end digital cameras, cannot be seen by a Mac when plugged in on USB. I do not know if they upgraded the USB on this 2000 to fix that. However, I just read the SD card with a multi-format memory card reader, watch the raw AVI files in Quicktime, and edit them in iMovie. It works great. One limitation... any files longer than about 14 minutes have to be broken into chunks to import into iMovie. This requires QuickTime Pro ($30).
You can see my flying films on YouTube.. search on "cragins"
Craig
Wade maby you would be so nice and upload some example videos?
Hi ATC2K people! My name is Gabrielle, I'm coming to you straight from Oregon Scientific. We'd very much like to hear from you on your thoughts for ATC2K, and if you're willing, leverage some of your killer videos on our Web site and in marketing purposes. If you're interested, please contact me at gelmer@oscientific.com. BTW, ATC2K will work with 4GB cards, but due to its increased size, it will be a tight squeeze into the SD slot. Don't be surprised if it gets stuck....
Thanks so much, keep playing hard and recording everything!
I sent Gab. an email to let her know about a SD card that did not work and suggested that they put a list of known cards that are incompatible with the camera.
Here is a copy of my mail...
Hello,
I saw a remark from you on some of the feedback forums related to this camera and it mentioned to contact you with comments or suggestions. So, here it is...
I purchased one of these cameras just before Christmas and a 2GB Adata card as well. With the card in the camera would not turn on but it would with the card out. The card was formatted FAT 16 Or just plain FAT for those people that do not have the FAT 16 choice. Yet the card would not work. This is the brand that is sold in your on-line store for use with the camera. I would like to see a compatibility chart for different brands of SD cards. Although I can't for the life of me understand why some cards work and some don't. Like your comment about 4GB being an "increased size" What is this about? Is there not a standard that says in order to be a SD card it has to meet specific dimensional guidelines as well as electronic ones? Why should a 2GB be bigger than 1GB or a 4 bigger than a 2. Now that I'm seeing 8GB SD cards out there will they work as well or am I to assume they are bigger yet than a 4GB and will definitely jam in a SD slot?
If you know of incompatibilities it would be helpful to list them on the sight to steer the consumer away from them. By the way that same 2GB Adata card works fine in my Garmin Palm Pilot so it's not a total loss and oddly enough the 256MB card in the Palm works in the ATC2K but only gives a little over 7 minutes of recording time at full resolution and 30 FPS frame rate.
Thanks for reading.
Jim Yankel
Pittsburgh PA
Here is a list of times vs. memory size, resolution, and FPS.
VGA = 640x480
QVGA = 320x240
QQVGA = 160x120
32MB, or onboard memory =
VGA 30FPS = 52s, 15FPS = 1min 20s
QVGA 30FPS = 1min 36s, 15FPS = 3min 14s
QQVGA 30FPS = 5min, 15FPS = 11min 10s
2GB =
VGA 30FPS = 60min, 15FPS = 96min
QVGA 30FPS = 114min, 15FPS = 230min
QQVGA 30FPS = 356min, 15FPS = 794min
Anyone knows is this unit can use the 4GB SD card? or only 2GB?
I contacted Oregon Scientific Tech Support and asked them if a 4gb card would work in the ATC-2000, this is what they returned to me:
"We have not tested the unit with a 4GB card. I cannot confirm or deny
whether or not any card with more memory being compatible with the ATC-2000."
I just upgraded from the ATC-1000 and purchased the ATC-2000. I can't wait for it to come in! I looked everywhere on the web and I think I found it the cheapest here:
http://stuntcams.com/shop/product_info.php/products_id/52?osCsid=9aeedbc01795520a99a3113b9dc89e85
I'm going to post video here once I get it uploaded as well, so check back often.
jay
Hi Jay,
I found this (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pDBHrY2oGRM&mode=related&search=) Video on YouTube, which was recorded with the ATC-2000
The video seems to suffer from some sort of wobble in the picture. Can you confirm that this comes from the camera itself, or could it be due to a weak mount on the motorcycles frame ? Or maybe it was generated, when the video was edited after recording, because of a low video bitrate.
Did you see this wobbling in any of yur videos coming directly from the camera ?
What about your videos ?
Cheers,
Thomas
I have a few questions if i mount this to my helmet how do i turn it on and off also would i be able to take the 2GB card that i record on and put the card in my jvc hard disk camcorder which has a slot for a sd card and make copies to a disk
Gabrielle, i sent you an email and i have Called Oregon Scientific and no one seems to know how you were able to get this unit working with a 4gig SD card...
How is the 4gig SD card bigger? i was under the impression along with everyone else i spoke to that the size is standard, so i went to Fry's and purchased a 4gb SD @ 150x and went to the store in Santa Monica Ca to test it out and the guys there tried 2 different Units and none of them took the card and read Err.
Im Curious exactly what card did you test at 4gb? im interested in a few units only if i can verify it does work with a 4gig! thanks
Hi,
one of the guys at the german subsidary here in germany did some filming with the ATC-2000 through the windshield of his car and uploaded the UNCOMPRESSED AVI to megaupload for me to download and have a look at it. You can find the video here http://www.megaupload.com/?d=H92195HL
I think, megaupload has a download limit, so maybe someone else can provide another download source after downloading von megaupload.
It seems, that it was filmed during twilight which results in a pretty dark picture. Could be due to a improvable brightness detection, maybe ??
Anyway, see for your self.
Cheers
I think the u-tube videos are taken with the unit hard mounted to the bike. I don't believe the atc-2000 has image stabilization, so I would expect this from a rigid mount. It looks like it is also mounted to the rear of the bike where there is typically a lot of vibration. In addition, the authorsaid the original looked much better as it is heavily compressed for u-tube.
I ordered 2 of them yesterday, should have them by mid of next week. I got them for recording ATV trips. I believe that mounting them on a helmet will produce much better video since the human body wil act as a shock absorber. I will post video as soon as I get mine.
Could anyone post a short uncompressed video clip of it helmet mounted or hand held at full resolution/30fps? That would give prospective buyers a better sample of what it can really do.
Does anybody know where this camera is sold in Europe? (Netherlands)
I saw it on an English site where it is about 250 dollar, and tthis sounds rather expensive.
Thanks
cheapest way to get it in Europe is, what i have found so far, http://stuntcams.com
Looks like that YouTube may have been pushed through one of the post-production stabilization products out there that claim to take the shake out... Several I've tested produce that wavy wobble effect.
My bad - just read the youtube comments. That wobble came right out of the ATC2K. Hmmmm. Interesting by product - perhaps massive vibration?
A more in-depth review is now online @
http://helmetcameracentral.com/2006/11/06/oregon-scientific-atc2k-atc-2000-helmet-camera/ - This post will be updated as more information is avaiable.
Thx / Chad @ hcc.com
In addition to my previous post:
I asked the guy from orgen scientific, how he mounted the cam in his car and he said, that it wasnt mounted at all. It was simply lying on the dashboard. Thats why its shaking quite a bit.
What do you guys think about it ?
How about your sample videos ?
Cheers,
vid_rooky
I got mine sent to Europe for 99US$ + shipping from www.mountaingear.com
My english is bad but hope u understand;-)
That "wobbling" problem;
My opinion is that problem is caused by the whole mounting system.
As you can see, there`s only 1 narrow plastic strap around the camera unit, and its placed in the middle of the camera.
I think that piece of duct-tape on both ends of camera should make it way more stable?
After all, picture quality is good, i`ve seen all 3 clips, incl. that uncompressed one..was recorded at 30fs, but playback was only 23.30fps on QuickTime??
This might be exellent camera, but IMO, mounting the camera is not stable enough...needs to be fixed immediately.
Thomas,
I didn't have those problems w/ the vibrations with my setup. I think it was where and what he mounted the camera to.
I've also purchased their 520 Res camera - http://stuntcams.com/shop/product_info.php/cPath/21/products_id/28 - for some DVD footage that i'm taking and that resolution is much better, although i'm taping it w/ a camcorder and I have to put everything in my backpack before shooting.
jay
Use of duct-tape was ofcourse in case of "as helmetcam"..my bad.
Might need some Blu-Tack tapemasse by Bostik between the helmet and cam..
hey whats about wideangle? what lense does the cam use?
thanx 4 ur answer
Check out a few videos I posted on Youtube:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rzoVK5zM4sM
Youtube compressed the video a bit. The real video quality is better.
Is this camera waterproof or not?? In the official site is described as 10 feet waterproof, but the pdf manual says is only slashproof...who knows wich is true??
35.
I received my helmet cam (ATC-2K) last week and Ive been experimenting with motorcycle video. The sound recording is TERRIBLE. There should be a standard mic input jack to eliminate all the physical contact noise. (OREGON SCIENTIFIC, ARE YOU LISTENING?) The audio is muffled and wind noise is horrible. I taped a small wind sock over the mic pickup but that did NOT help.
I have contacted both Gabrielle gelmer@oscientific.com (suposedly from OS) and also sent an E-Mail to the OS Support (yeh, right) staff and have had no reply from either of them.
The helmet mounting strap is way too short to mount to any real helmet. It needs to be at least 50% longer to be of any use.
The round handlebar or frame mount is nice and solid but it transfers so much engine mechanical noise that the recording is worthless. There needs to be a way to isolate the mic from the camera body (see above).
Is this camera REALLY USB 2.0 capable? I have found that a 700Meg transfer is taking over 16 minutes, even when attached to a 2.0 USB port. Pretty slow for 2.0.
If this camera is truly Firmware Upgradeable as was mentioned in the review, PLEASE work out the bugs and send us an update for the sound recording problems.
The video is pretty good but all the other problems (Too short straps, mic noise picked up from physical contact, muffled voices) detract from the overall quality of this camera.
i have used the new cam twice-once downhill mountain biking and once snowboarding...and the vid quality is horrible....it cant keep up with the motion and is very choppy. anyone else having this problem or is it operator error?
thx
I got the ATC-2k and was very disappointed. The audio quality is poor to non-existent, the buttons are hard to use, and it isn't recognized by my Windows XP computer. I'm returning it and never buying another Oregon Scientific product.
I have exactly the same problem. Camera works without card but wont switch on with the card inserted ( Fujitsu 256 mb card) Some response from Oregon would be nice. If you sell a product that is advertised as with SD memory then unless you specify otherwise then it should accept ALL SD cards.If my car wouldnt start on SHEll I would be pretty upset.
I had the ATC 1K and recently bought the 2K version. I’m pleased to see Oregon Scientific have been listening to the consumer! They’ve addressed the battery issue, it used to be 4 AAA’s now its only 2 AA’s. Also the design looks better and the button size is bigger. Looking forward to their 3K!!