Mini Spy Cam Recommendations

[NtheBasement]

Bright lights make a big difference but the camera's optics are responsible for the dark corners.  The image is bright at the center and dim at the edges no matter which way the camera points.

[jereising]

No question -  it's the camera.  Records directly to chip, no WiFi, no phone. 
Lousy optics, the room is well lit.  No way to control any parameter other than movement or time stamp.
All of which is why it's on it's way back.

I'm really tempted to try one of the "4K" versions, with all the bells and whistles.  Only thing that's slowing me down is the abysmal state of the "manuals" - they are obviously written in ChEnglish, and even the product descriptions on Amazon looks like it they were written by a third grade illiterate.  And that usually indicates to me that the app that controls the camera will be poorly done as well.

I'm not a complete tyro around WiFi cameras - for two years I've had one hanging off my back deck to watch the armadillos tear up the lawn - and it's app called CamHiPro is not too bad.

Stay tuned, and I surely appreciate this thread to date.  What I saw on the short test convinces me that I really want to do this - I'm quite happy with the way the layout looks even through sh!tty optics.

[MK]

I wonder if there are any pictures on the web showing the insides of a Wyze cam.  Perhaps the critical components can be gutted out and utilized (or they could be too big).  The camera is super sharp, great in low light and under $25.

[MVW]

What I saw on the short test convinces me that I really want to do this - I'm quite happy with the way the layout looks even through sh!tty optics.

That's my takeaway. The layout looks great!

Jim

[NtheBasement]

What I saw on the short test convinces me that I really want to do this - I'm quite happy with the way the layout looks even through sh!tty optics.

Yeah, its really something to see your old familiar layout from a totally different viewpoint.  I kept my camera; even if I never use it again it was worth the $16.

I saw in my video a few things that... needed fixing.  A sharp focused hi res video might result in a very long to do list.

[Cajonpassfan]

Generally,  haven’t been a fan of train mounted cams; it seems to me many (most?) N scale videos I’ve seen capture points of view that were never meant to be seen, emphasize oversize track and overly sharp curves, catch ceilings and isles, and generally don’t do the layouts justice. Most layouts are simply not designed to be viewed that way.
The short clip Jim posted here may have lighting and resolution issues, but the layout’ s generous curvature, spaciousness and backdrops look really good. I can see why Jim wants to pursue this and look forward to V2.
Otto

[Santa Fe Guy]

 This is a video of a friends Sn3 layout I did using my Replay1080 XD Mini.
Great images, good colour and sound.
I have done a few others. Two on my N Scale Santa Fe Layout (now a fallen flag) and one on a friends N Scale also a fallen flag.
This is not a cheap camera however the results speak for them selves
I do all my editing using Cyberlink Director Zone V16.

[alhoop]

Lousy optics, the room is well lit. 

Are you sure? Doesn't look that way to me. Get one of those light meters and be sure.
There is a reason MRVP, Allen Keller and other  videographers lug those lights around.
Al

[NtheBasement]

Are you sure? Doesn't look that way to me. Get one of those light meters and be sure.
There is a reason MRVP, Allen Keller and other  videographers lug those lights around.
Al

When the train goes around a curve the bright area is always straight ahead.

[CRL]

What!? No Zeiss lens for $25?

[CRL]

When the train goes around a curve the bright area is always straight ahead.

That’s from the locomotive headlight! 

[alhoop]

What!? No Zeiss lens for $25?

TIC?
Al

[peteski]

Modern image sensors are quite sensitive, even with a rather small aperture lenses they should not need much lighting. But I guess that who knows what they used in a $20 camera.

[peteski]

Mike, I just received the same WiFi camera you have.
I have not messed with the settings, but I did take it apart.  The gooseneck is housing one of those thin flexible circuit boards and it is terminated inside the unit in a 24-pin connector (like the ones used in smart phones).  You should be able to remove the rubber cladding and then extract the small camera unit at the end (the bezel on the business end of the camera housing is just press fit).  You should be able to either roll-up or accordion the flexible circuit ribbon to be able to fit the unit inside a N scale loco shell.

[C855B]

Thanks. That's helpful.

Received the parts this morning to make this work. Here's the test rig:



And here's the video:

• This is recorded using VLC on a Raspberry Pi 4 via the WiFi link, and not an in-camera memory chip.
• Notice the monitor at the top of the frame from 0:00 through 0:50. That's the live feed. You might also note a ~1.5 second buffering delay between the two.
• I also am watching the live feed on the DS desk and running the train from there.
• Also notice a stutter every one second, especially when passing the freight train on the right. That is an MPEG4 method known as "GOP", or "groups of pictures". It is how MPEG4 corrects dynamic changes between individual frames by replacing the "base" image periodically. GOP is evidently set at "30", corresponding to a new base every 30 frames, so given a 30 frame-per-second stream it will correct once every second.
• I have not verified 30fps. It could be 25fps, the PAL standard.
• Signal continuity was excellent throughout. I did notice a few frame update skips watching it live as it went by the passenger train, which frankly is impressive since at that point it was 60 feet from the hotspot. (The hotspot is slated to be relocated to the ceiling in the center of the layout, so nothing will be further than 30 feet.)
• I need to contact tech support about what was mentioned before (getting rid of the timestamp, adjusting frame rate), and, now, setting GOP to something a little more frequent, either 5 or 6, more typical for field setups with full-frame motion. Those are camera-level functions, not something I have control over in the receiving software.

Obviously the bumpiness was amplified by that stalk jutting out into the air. I'm surprised it wasn't worse! As far as something more permanent, thought at the moment is to 3D-print "saddles" for the battery pack to mount trucks, similar to MTL log cars, then for the actual camera car... I dunno yet. I do have bare USB connectors to build a flex cable between the power car and the camera car. The devil in me wants to model SP's camera car, a Krauss-Maffei ML-4000 gutted for the purpose. Reality will probably be an E-unit, which would be long enough to not worry the stalk; the whole thing should fit.