Muvi cams

[Simon_m]

Hi there, I've been reading through one of the long chats about these Muvi cams for the ride into work. I see there are clones and the original ones, the atom and micro. Also see that there seems to be lots of problems with all of them. Has anyone come up with good test results on which is the best. Price, reliability, ease of use and longivity. I've been looking at the links posted to Firebox and the AEE clones etc, the prices seem to vary greatly. They look great and the qaulity seems fine when viewed on Youtube. Any more thoughts on them? thanks

 

[BSRU]

It's a gamble, I had a genuine muvi that stopped working within a few weeks, a clone that works most of the time and a clone that works perfectly.

 

[martint235]

Hi there, I've been reading through one of the long chats about these Muvi cams for the ride into work. I see there are clones and the original ones, the atom and micro. Also see that there seems to be lots of problems with all of them. Has anyone come up with good test results on which is the best. Price, reliability, ease of use and longivity. I've been looking at the links posted to Firebox and the AEE clones etc, the prices seem to vary greatly. They look great and the qaulity seems fine when viewed on Youtube. Any more thoughts on them? thanks

I've got a Muvi, I think its the atom but it doesn't have any markings on it other than Veho Muvi. The picture quality is fine. The only problems I've had with mine are:

1. Can't record above 4gb in one go (which it splits into 4 files). This is a bit of a pain as my weekend run is 2 hours long (30 mins = 1.18 gb). I'm not sure if this changes using the vox setting but I don't think it does.
2. Battery time is a bit limited although it does last longer than 2 hours (see above). I have left the camera turned on at work (although not recording) and then found not enough juice for the journey home. (I know it's my fault but it's a bit of a gripe nonetheless)

Other than those two points the Muvis are fine for short journeys and commutes.

 

[hackbike 666]

I've got a clone which I dropped and it no longer works.

Got two others which work and the original which has a knackered battery.

 

[Simon_m]

Hmmm. Well it sounds like pot luck and your probably better off buying the cheaper £15 clones then the much more expensive and just as dodgy "real" ones. Are the batteries not able to come out and be replaced? AA's?? Thanks

 

[g00se]

Hi,

The Muvi and the AEE MD80 are identical (The Muvi is a branded MD80) both are metal. the AEE is a little cheaper and you can pick them up unbranded OEMs at Maplins(£50-£60). (saying that, there are cheap Muvis on Amazon).

The clone MD80s (off ebay) are plastic and cost about £20. (A lot of folks think that all MD80 are plastic clones but that's not true). Be careful if you buy what you think is a real MD80 on ebay as they often use the real photos of the MD80 (grey slider switches) but supply the clones (black push buttons).

Both use micro SD cards - and all of these cares use the Microsoft FAT file system (so they can be read on PCs). There is a limitation on this file system that no file can be bigger than 4GB - even if the card is bigger (8GB). In this case, you need to stop recording before the file gets this big and restart a new file.

The real ones seem to get about 2 hours from a charge. The fakes seem to do 60 - 90 minutes - though it seems to be dependent upon the USB cable you use and can be a bit variable.

Also - the clones have poor file compression - so it will fill up 4GB of daylight riding in under an hour. The real ones are about double this I think.

The clones' night-time performance is much worse than the real ones. Very blurred and jumpy.

So, shortish commutes and a PC at work to recharge and empty the card, you'll be fine with a clone. Anything more and get a real one if you can.

 

[g00se]

No replaceable batteries - the cameras are too small. Also, if there is somethin gwrong with them, you'll be fine getting the real one replaced from the place you bought it. The clone will be harder to fix (though some on here have had success in getting free replacements sent - depends upon which Chinese supplier you get it from).

 

[hackbike 666]

I get about 90 minutes battery from my normal MUVI's although I am happy with them and normally have two for a full commute...Picture is good but they are crap in the rain...IE best not to use them in the rain unless you have the cover thingy...which was no good anyway as It couldn't pick up bugger all as the cover case was wet.

 

[chillyuk]

I have muvi clones, one as it came and records for about an hour, and another that I have wired into an external battery. However in a fit of madness I bought an ActionCam. These are much bigger than the Muvi but the big advantage it has over the Muvi is that it uses AAA batteries. It is quite heavy on batteries (20 minutes on Pound shop zinc chlorides), but on 800mA NiMh batteries it goes nearly 3 hours, and the 8GB card over two 4GB files will give a good 5 hours plus recording, so worth carrying a couple of spare batteries. The camera is large, and stuck on one side of the helmet makes me look like a Borg, or is that a dork, but has so far been reliable. Only real downside is that it's low light performance is nowhere near as good as the Muvi.

I have just bought some 1250mA NiMh rechargeable AAA's but haven't tried them yet.

 

[Rob3rt]

No replaceable batteries - the cameras are too small. Also, if there is somethin gwrong with them, you'll be fine getting the real one replaced from the place you bought it. The clone will be harder to fix (though some on here have had success in getting free replacements sent - depends upon which Chinese supplier you get it from).

I got mine replaced when the record button stopped working, no problems at all.

Id spring for the genuine model personally.

 

[Simon_m]

I got mine replaced when the record button stopped working, no problems at all.

Id spring for the genuine model personally.

Hmm it seems so hard lol. You say that it only records for 4gb worth of time, It stops recording then, or it starts a new file? I read somewhere on here that people were having files split. My commute is only 21mins long each way, so I should be fine. It would be nice to record long rides too, but they are around 6hrs long and I guess there is no chance of that?

One last question:

http://www.firebox.com/product/2384/Muvi-Digital-Video-Camera?via=ser

Micro or Atom? They are both so amazingly small! This VOX thing, if your shouting at someone who has run you over, will it stop recording then? lol The micro looks like it has a longer battery life. Thanks again

 

[Crankarm]

I bought a couple of genuine Muvi Vehos from Amazon a few months ago (£38 each) for security reasons and for using when I go out on my sunday ride. They are good except for the limited battery life which is really rather disappointing at about 1 hour 45 minutes. I haven't risked using them in the rain. They feel robust being metal. The only prob I get is with play back - the sound on some occasions is like listening to a fax or teleprinter through a hissing FM analogue signal. Don't know if this is the camera, card or a problem with Windows Media player or the specific MD player they supply. I use 8GB class 6 Samsung memory cards. I've noticed drivers do give you a lot more room passing fully on the other side of the road. If they look like getting to close then pretend as if you are adjusting the camera on the back of your helmet which makes them back way off. A rearward camera is also good for catching the a***hole moton who you can't hear approaching due to strong blustery winds, so you don't look around, who dangerously close passes you.

 

[Simon_m]

I bought a couple of genuine Muvi Vehos from Amazon a few months ago (£38 each) for security reasons and for using when I go out on my sunday ride. They are good except for the limited battery life which is really rather disappointing at about 1 hour 45 minutes. I haven't risked using them in the rain. They feel robust being metal. The only prob I get is with play back - the sound on some occasions is like listening to a fax or teleprinter through a hissing FM analogue signal. Don't know if this is the camera, card or a problem with Windows Media player or the specific MD player they supply. I use 8GB class 6 Samsung memory cards. I've noticed drivers do give you a lot more room passing fully on the other side of the road. If they look like getting to close then pretend as if you are adjusting the camera on the back of your helmet which makes them back way off. A rearward camera is also good for catching the a***hole moton who you can't hear approaching due to strong blustery winds, so you don't look around, who dangerously close passes you.

I'd not thought about putting one on the back of the helmet. Not sure if I will stick one on it at all, or on my rucksack shoulder strap. I guess on your helmet it gives you your full POV on playback.

 

[g00se]

The VOX thing is pointless really - unless you're using it as a spy camera in an office or something. Just keep it in regular mode (left side button) and switch it on and off manually as required.

For a 20 minute commute - I'd go for the clone. I've got a clone at the mo, but if I need to replace it, I'd get a muvi/aee as I can stretch out my commute to run out of juice/space.

 

[g00se]

Oh - adn when you get the Micro-SD card, make sure you get a class 6 one (fast). Otherwise the video capture could be too quick for the card to handle.