Database Develop

External Camera

I'll cut to the chase and save the boring details for the next paragraph: I want an external SDIO camera connected to my Tilt so I can record videos on bike rides. I've searched high and low, and I have a few products in mind. Can anyone tell me if they know of better products?
What I need:
- An SDIO camera which will work on the Kaiser
- An SDIO (standard SD size) to MicroSD cable/adapter (if microSD SDIO cameras do not exist)
- A way to hook up both a microSD card and the camera (if possible)
- A good shell to keep my Kaiser injury free when (and if) I take a spill
- Any other suggestions are welcome.
What I've found:
On Bluetooth Cameras:
So far I've found absolutely nothing in the way of Bluetooth Camera modules (except the following college research paper and patent application by Kodak) so I might be jumping the gun with Bluetooth, but here they are:
http://www.itn.liu.se/~shago/Exjobb/BT_Webcam.pdf [college research pap]
http://www.engadget.com/2006/04/02/kodaks-bluetooth-camera-module/ [engadget on kodak patent]
On MicroSD SDIO Camearas:
I have found nothing on this subject. If there are any microSDIO cameras that you are aware of or are around PLEASE PM, e-mail, reply, call or IM me!
On SDIO camera modules I've found the following:
- HP Photosmart Mobile Camera
This is for an iPaq with Windows PocketPC 2002 or Windows Mobile 2003. It takes video, but will it work on a Kaiser, considering it's a WinMo6 device? It looks like a good option.
http://h10010.www1.hp.com/wwpc/pscmisc/vac/us/en/sm/pocketpc/FA185A_specifications.html
http://forums.microsoft.com/MSDN/ShowPost.aspx?PostID=534595&SiteID=1 [this link suggests that it works fine under winmo5 and is even usable via camera APIs using some discontinued Veo camera APIs]
- eNnovation (LifeView?) FlyCam SD
For this one I have similar fears that some of the prerequisites are not satisfied by the Kaiser. Specifically they list the following:
CPU : Intel Xscale
OS : Microsoft Pocket PC 2000, Pocket PC 2002 and Pocket PC 2003.
The age of the OSes listed and the CPU requirement make me shy away from this one, although the HP seems just as bad when it come to support for WinMo.
http://www.ennovationtech.com/html/flycamsd.htm#F
http://www.msdner.com/dev-archive/144/11-35-1446805.shtm [this link suggests lifeview makes it and there's winmo5 support and an sdk, but the lifeview site is down.]
- Pretec SDIO 1.3MegaPixel Camera
This little card is just another one of the ones I've found. This one says Win PPC 2002 and higher, so I'm guessing it implies WinMo5&6 support, but that's a crap shoot. This camera also features 20fps max depending on resolution while the above two sport 30fps. Not my top choice.
http://www.pretec.com/epages/Store....s/Store.Pretec/Products/OS-CAS#Specifications
http://www.jactron.co.uk/pretec/io/sdio/sd-smartcam.htm
- Veo SDIO Camera
A lot is mentioned about these cams, but they seem to be discontinued and I am unable to find a place to purchase any of these. Would these be better suited? Anyone own one?
- Spectec SDIO Camera
This camera seems to be a 640x480 only discontinued model also. There is a chance that these do not work well with WinMo5/6 at all.
http://www.mobileplanet.com/p.aspx?i=121109 DISCONTINUED
On SD to MicroSD adapters/converters/cables:
I couldn't find any. The closest thing I found was a post on MoDaCo linking to an SD to MiniSD solution. I also found a camerahacker.com post on detailed images which show the pins are pretty much 1-1. I would also like to thank Chainfire who told me this fact ahead of time on IRC in #xda-devs. Additionally, there seems to have been an April Fool's joke about SanDisk making an SD to MicroSD adapter on another PPC device forum. Thanks to them I nearly soiled myself. I am highly inclined to create my own adapter, but feel free to save my time if one exists or is in development.
http://www.camerahacker.com/Digital/Inside_miniSD_Adapter.shtml [CameraHacker post describing pinouts with pics]
http://www.modaco.com/content/Windo...o-purchase-or-make-an-sd-to-microsd-adapter-/ [MoDaCo post related to this same endeavor]
http://www.diatec.co.jp/shop/det.php?prod_c=460 [Japanese site with an SD to MiniSD solution]
On Connecting Both SDIO Device and MicroSD/SD Memory Card
I have not found any information on any device capable of allowing this sort of chaining an SDIO card with an SD card. I did find a WiFi card and a GPS card which allow a pass-through to a microSD card. None of the cameras listed above had this capability listed, and I did not see it in any of the pictures (although I could have missed it?).
On Protective Cases
I found two suitable solutions for this, and I'm leaning toward BoxWave's Armor Case as it has a screen cover as well. They're both around $30.
http://www.boxwave.com/products/armorcase/armor-case-at_t-tilt_2906.htm [BoxWave's Armor Case]
http://www.tiltdepot.com/a/att-tilt-metal-cases/monaco-aluminum-case-_4-23--3294.htm [Monaco Aluminum Case]
So far this is what I've got, and the idea is that I would mount the camera in my helmet, connect the SDIO connector to a cable that runs to my pocket where it converts to MicroSD and plugs into my Kaiser. I would like to get this project together so I can record some videos of upcoming rides. If you know of any better suited products or shortcuts that I can take please reply!

notten:
Here is something I've been looking at to record videos on bike rides.
http://www2.oregonscientific.com/shop/product.asp?cid=0&pid=709&scid=86
The big drawback is all the reviews say the video quality is not very good..

Using your 'Kaiser' as the recorder for video I would have thought is a little impractical.
Firstly the mini-SD card is not SDIO compatible even if you could get an adapter. Secondly, you have to find some way of protecting both camera and phone. Thirdly, any wireless connected camera (BT or WiFi) will be of low quality due to transmission rates/resolution restrictions (Check out my thread on connecting a Linksys network camera with peer to peer).
I advise you to Google 'Sports video camera' as there are some good packs out there. Then you can convert the video at a later date for viewing on any device.
Not really the answer you wanted but someone else may come up with something.

The microSD slot not being SDIO is slightly disappointing. Are you sure about this? I wanted to have the phone record GPS along with video, so standalone devices wouldn't really do the trick. Thank you both for your replies. So far it's not what I wanted to hear.
Additionally I cannot find any of the cameras I listed except the HP on sale anywhere. The HP Photosmart camera can only take pictures through an SDK which makes the whole project even less viable.
Are you certain the Kaisers don't support SDIO over the microSD slot?

My bet, and this is a gut instinct, is that none of those camera's will work under WM6. Wasn't the processor and achitecture different on the PPC systems to the newer WM6 hardware? I seem to remember programs came in XScale, ARM and other versions depending on the processor your device carried so it would stand to reason that something designed for a XScale processor wouldn't be to happy with an ARM processor. Course I could be way off base here!
The fact that so many phones, PDA's etc these days come with built in WiFi, Camera's, Bluetooth etc would make the market for add-on devices such as this rather small and its unlikely people would waste their R&D time building something for a rather small market place.
How about something like these?
www.helmetcamera.com
www.helmet-cameras.com

OK, now I know I am pushing the envelope here but Coreplayer have said that they have solved the Qualcomm driver issue for streamed video and that the upcoming version (1.2) of Coreplayer works perfect with the 'Kaiser'.
I would bet that if you can find a 'Rugged' housing for any Linksys camera with reasonable resolution, you can have a good peer-to-peer link in your pocket!!!
Hey! wishful thinking for the New Year???
OH, one thing you have to remember on ANY camera setup! How do you record.....

Honestly, I hope you are correct. I will definitely try the Linksys camera if Coreplayer delivers the updated punch to the video streaming. When it does I will come bug you to test the Linksys camera. With good video it's likely to be my solution. Also, I have a very good buddy who might help me fab an aluminum enclosure for the camera.

notten said:
Honestly, I hope you are correct. I will definitely try the Linksys camera if Coreplayer delivers the updated punch to the video streaming. When it does I will come bug you to test the Linksys camera. With good video it's likely to be my solution. Also, I have a very good buddy who might help me fab an aluminum enclosure for the camera.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Well the Linksys WVC54G I have is only a poxy 320x240 cam but as I said in the thread, if you can find a Linksys cam with good resolution it should have the same stream available.
OK, I know Crimble is coming up but I will try to set up a 5V portable supply and test this out for you.....(only cause it looks like I'm doin summat good but you have me REALLY interested now for myself, SMILES).
EDIT; How often do we need GPS waypoint ties to vid recording do you think?? (Soz, brain running on...)

A qvga camera will do for me, but the VWC is just way too large. I don't think I can get those to comfortably stay on a helmet without looking outrageously falmboyant.
If there's anything in 640x480 that will stream to TCPMP and fit on a helmet I'm buying it. What exactly is this Crimble? I couldn't find anything on it, but I'll try to build a portable power supply myself if necessary.
As to the GPS waypoints on video: I'm looking to record cool rides and have the playback showing my location. I think I might've unknowningly stolen the concept from Indy 500, which sends some sort of local positioning system for the camera overlays they do with the races. I wonder what else could benefit from this.

notten said:
A qvga camera will do for me, but the VWC is just way too large. I don't think I can get those to comfortably stay on a helmet without looking outrageously falmboyant.
If there's anything in 640x480 that will stream to TCPMP and fit on a helmet I'm buying it. What exactly is this Crimble? I couldn't find anything on it, but I'll try to build a portable power supply myself if necessary.
As to the GPS waypoints on video: I'm looking to record cool rides and have the playback showing my location. I think I might've unknowningly stolen the concept from Indy 500, which sends some sort of local positioning system for the camera overlays they do with the races. I wonder what else could benefit from this.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Ahh... Crimble is my home location's (Yorkshire, England) acronim (you know, you use those in the US) for Christmas!....
Just buying a camera and using it is not in the 'METHOD' of XDA, if we can get it to work, WELL, then we take the guts and suit it to our purpose. If I can't do the hardware, I am sure somone else will look into that. One task at a time...Lets get a good image with GPS tags...

controlling HDMI

As stated in the (www .blogtalkradio .com/motodev) Q&A session yesterday with Motorola about the Droid X, in answer to the question asked at the 29:00 mark,
"The only time that we are enabling the HDMI driver on the device is when you are in the gallery mode. [...] The HDMI driver is not active any time outside the gallery," where the "gallery mode" is their included photo/video viewer.
I'm wondering how true that is...
(www .pcmag .com/article2/0,2817,2365630,00.asp ) PCMag's review stated that the youtube player and blockbuster player were not able to use the hdmi out at all.
As seen in (forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=703111 ) this thread the evo 4g, which also has hdmi out, is capable of allowing any app that uses VideoView to utilize that output, but that's supported by the phone maker.
Will that usability be true on the droid x?
Could we figure out a way to bypass any limitations Motorola includes, and maybe even send (an upscaled version of) the main screen through the hdmi (not just video but anything we could put on the phone's screen)?

I was just at a motorola event and we were able to run nfl mobile through the hdmi.
Yes the tv was in an ice sculpture and yes it was connected to a droid x via the hdmi cable
Sent from my ADR6300 using XDA App

That's great news, thanks for letting us know!
The more apps with handshakes to the hdmi-out we have, the better for us to get it working completely openly
The whole media-center-and-phone-in-my-pocket is just a great idea imho...
With the hdmi out we could:
put any videos and pictures from any source up on your home tv
connect it to the projector at work and give presentations
go with a few bluetooth controllers to your friend's house and play multiplayer (even online) games on their tv with minimal cords to deal with
maybe even video-chat would be possible if you set up the phone with the camera facing out in front of the tv
... ok, that last one sounds like a pretty lame way to get video-chat, but it would save on having to have a computer/monitor/webcam when you wanted to
Of course this is all far into the future stages of development on the phone, but I'd rather create buzz and excitement to build up a developer and user base

Talked to a moto rep, said it might have been a beta device as licensing is what will prevent this thing from being turned on when it hits consumers hands. At least we know it can be done.
Sent from my DROIDX using XDA App

no fun, i'm not much of a C programmer, but if it's just enabling or disabling the driver, I guess it comes down to the security on the phone. If you go into root, I suppose we should be able to start the driver. The only thing I fear is if the driver is signed and only a signed application can access it, then I think we might be SOL

I'm not particularly worried... if we get access to enough apps that use the hdmi driver, we should be able to document enough of the method.
I believe while the hardware can reject unsigned versions of the OS (roms), most apps are self-signed (see developer. android. com/guide/publishing/app-signing.html) so that shouldn't be a problem. We just have to figure out which hoops to jump through (following the programs that use hdmi) to get it to work. They'd have to leave the hoops pretty wide open or else risk the need of updating the thing every time a new app is released that needs to get through.

This is a mixed bag here. The reason why Motorola limited the hdmi driver is likely so they didn't have to put a fps cap on the droid x like htc put on the evo.
This is pure speculation here but I would imagine the way that the evo devs are going to "truly" overcome the fps cap is to mimic the droid x behavior of toggling on and off the hdmi drivers so that the evo can access up to 60 fps.
You guys are on the other end of the boat where by default your fps won't be artificially capped, but you likely won't have full access to the hdmi drivers at first.
I think the sweet spot for both phones is finding a happy medium where we can toggle the hdmi drivers at will.

Any news on this? I would really like to get rockplayer and youtube working through hdmi. In fact, I would like to get the entire OS through HDMI and possibly a bluetooth keyboard and mouse working so I can use it as a little media center pc.

2 way control
I would lime to see this pushed to.the level of controlling the phone through an hdmi touchscreen.

I thought we would be able to see pandora and other apps through the hdmi...This sucks the way it is...also does anyone think the sound is terrible through the hdmi?

There is no point int he HDMi at all if you can only use it for your pictures and your videos from the phone's camera.
They need to make it show what you see on the phone, but on the screen
I remember there was a windows mobiel program that popped up a small window on your desktop that let you see your phone's screen and interact with it on your monitor when connected through usb
anything like this for android?

sp1kez said:
There is no point int he HDMi at all if you can only use it for your pictures and your videos from the phone's camera.
They need to make it show what you see on the phone, but on the screen
I remember there was a windows mobiel program that popped up a small window on your desktop that let you see your phone's screen and interact with it on your monitor when connected through usb
anything like this for android?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
NO, the hdmi dock is a half ass design. For the $, it should do everything. MOTO/VZ dropped the ball on this. Hopefully they will open this up with a sw update.

Update: "Real HDMI" in the market
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=769990&highlight=control+hdmi

Hi,
I'm pretty new to Android development. So my understanding after reading a couple threads here is that HDMI access on the stock Droid X is limited to the gallery only, is that right? And the point of the "Real HDMI" app is that it will automatically redirect all output to the phone's display through HDMI, right? So no API exists which gives programmatic control over the HDMI port? That's a shame if so.
Do any of the Android devices allow easier HDMI port control or do we need these kinds of work arounds for all of them?
Thank you very much for any information anyone can provide.

Sorry to be a pest, but can anybody answer my questions? Should I consider posting somehwere else?
Thanks again.

commie64 said:
Sorry to be a pest, but can anybody answer my questions? Should I consider posting somehwere else?
Thanks again.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Maybe try posting in the Real HDMI thread over at DroidXForums.com because username GMAN (who made real hdmi) has a thread there. I'm sure his knowledge of the subject is pretty extensive.

[Q] Use a different (external camera) into SGS?

Could it be possible to use an external video camera in lieu of the camera on the back of the Captivate? What I'm thinking of here is how to mount a helmet camera that would just go straight to uStream. But without having to mount my phone on my head.
Thanks!

the captivate cannot be used as a usb host device.
also with the upload speed/quality of 3g would give horrible results for live steaming.
you would be better off buying a helmet cam with built in storage and upload good quality after.

Maybe strap one of these to your headmount with a cellphone battery and a big usb flash drive or SD card.
http://beagleboard.org/

http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00400O8PO
Looxcie Wearable Bluetooth Camcorder System, Android Compatible

Get a Go Pro. Problem solved.

Yeah, I knooooow that's a helluva lot easier to do but I wanted to show my friend in the UK a bit of what I do. I've tried the uStream app over 3G and you know, it's not terrible.
Those go pro cameras are pretty cool but they're so bluky. What I'm thinking here is a camera the size of like a webcam that you'd find in a laptop or even on a cellphone just permanently mounted into my helmet. I can plug it into my phone and then from there I can write a program to upload pictures at say, 1 minute intervals (if we're ruling out the uStream thing entirely) to a server with geostamps - I think that would be pretty cool.
I'm planning a big tour on my moto this summer and I think it would be good fun for those who wished to follow where I was and what I was seeing.
It might end up being easier to just teather my phone to a homebrew solution though (like K2340 is saying). That way it's independent of the phone and all. Easiest would be to mount the camera to the bike itself, but the helmet view would be much preferred.
Thanks for all the suggestions guys - keep em coming

video in/out on DS7

ok so i was very excited to get the wpa tweak working, got my DS7 on adhoc. have the front end installed and working, gps, internet radio, video player and thinking of how i'm going to build a mount and where to FG it into my truck. then my wife shattered my good time by asking "how are you going to hook up the back up camera?". my heart dropped, it sank even lower when i searched for video cables and couldnt find anything. so i ask, is there a way to get video in to have a back up camera play on my DS7?

wow 106 views and not one reply? i'm guessing that means no video in nor out huh?

since the wifi or bluetooth are about the only way to connect I would suggest trying that. the cable's not likely to work. try the droid wireless webcam app, for a starting point.
I'm not a dev so that's the best help I can offer.

Chemus said:
since the wifi or bluetooth are about the only way to connect I would suggest trying that. the cable's not likely to work. try the droid wireless webcam app, for a starting point.
I'm not a dev so that's the best help I can offer.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
i think you misunderstood, i want to connect my back up(attached to my vehicle) and have it displayed on my DS7

no I understood, I'm suggesting that you look for a way to make your backup camera wireless. I realize that the program I talked about is used to send video from the droid over ip. It's the closest thing I can think of to what you would need, even though it in the wrong direction.

well, I suppose the best thing to do would be to find a bluetooth webcam and some ducttape. elsewise a usb to bluetooth converter. unless you're willing to go the insane route.
1. get a cheapy Latitude off Ebay.
2. hook your backup cam to the laptop.
3. keep the laptop on car power with an inverter
4. Install Ubuntu, set up webcam software, hook it to the net with skype, set skype to auto answer with video and set the laptop to stay on when closed.
5. install a working skype on your tablet.
6. Call your bad laptop w/ skype whenever you need the backup cam.
cheap old latitudes are everywhere, for instance:
http://cgi.ebay.com/Dell-Latitude-C...ptops_Nov05&hash=item27bd70783c#ht_500wt_1156
http://cgi.ebay.com/DELL-LATITUDE-C...43370682?pt=Laptops_Nov05&hash=item4aadcb6fba
http://cgi.ebay.com/Dell-Latitude-D...ptops_Nov05&hash=item43a8fbe4ab#ht_656wt_1185

Ummm yeah, the DS7 has no video "input" for analog or digital video, output only via the PDMI through the dock (or hacked cable with decoder/encoder chip) .. So the only way to get video IN to the DS7 is wireless of some kind.

well i think i will get a used mirror for my truck and try to back mount a small monitor. that or just get a nice double din and retro fit that

angruss said:
well, I suppose the best thing to do would be to find a bluetooth webcam and some ducttape. elsewise a usb to bluetooth converter. unless you're willing to go the insane route.
1. get a cheapy Latitude off Ebay.
2. hook your backup cam to the laptop.
3. keep the laptop on car power with an inverter
4. Install Ubuntu, set up webcam software, hook it to the net with skype, set skype to auto answer with video and set the laptop to stay on when closed.
5. install a working skype on your tablet.
6. Call your bad laptop w/ skype whenever you need the backup cam.
cheap old latitudes are everywhere, for instance:
http://cgi.ebay.com/Dell-Latitude-C400-Notebook-/170681989180?pt=Laptops_Nov05&hash=item27bd70783c#ht_500wt_1156
http://cgi.ebay.com/DELL-LATITUDE-CPi-PENTIUM-NOTEBOOK-LAPTOP-Loaded-Clean-/320743370682?pt=Laptops_Nov05&hash=item4aadcb6fba
http://cgi.ebay.com/Dell-Latitude-D600-ST-D3KBG41-1-4GHz-Used-Laptop-/290597889195?pt=Laptops_Nov05&hash=item43a8fbe4ab#ht_656wt_1185
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Lol I used to do this as a baby monitor. Worked very well !!

Security Cameras

Ok so I am looking for a the cheapest and best Surviellance system that comes with 4 cameras and dvr. i found some on newegg for around 200 dollars, which is a great price, but want to see if anyone has any experience or recommendations for any. Thank you and leave feedback.

I do a little work for a security company. I prefer the pc based units instead of dedicated units. If you have a hardware problem you are back up and running with standardized parts as opposed to shipping them off.

Not helping much, but see if you can find the one that has a camera that detects movement, and is wirelessly connected to a receiver that can most likely connect to current channels. Also, if you install a movement detecting light, then you'll have a better picture, and you'll dazzle a thief, and also you'll light your own way. The receiver has a noise to alert you if someone is there. Also you can remotely view the image if you've hooked the video box (contains access points and hard drive) to your network, and, in some cases, set the system to record. Sorry I don't know the name, but now you have an idea of what to look for. You should find a good price of you look hard.
Sent from my HTC Wildfire S A510e using XDA

Wilife is definitely the way to go, because you can set the destination folder for recorded video to a public drop box account. In the event that your HD or computer is stolen, the video of the theft will still be saved in your drop box account. Also, with the Wilife system you don't have to wire the cameras. It uses your house's electrical system to modulate video signals. (this technology has actually been around since the 1960's and works quite well)
http://www.logitech.com/en-us/video-security-systems
The older less expensive system is still available for sale, and works great. One drawback is that you have to have a Windows mobile phone for remote viewing of cameras, but for $175, it's still a very capable system.
http://www.amazon.com/Logitech-WiLife-Digital-Security--Indoor-Master/dp/B0017U8FVI/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1336500655&sr=8-1