Flex Cam PIC is both a Sports & Action Camera and a Selfie Stick (Crowdfunding)

Sports camera are quite popular these days, and so are selfie sticks for better or worse… So a Korean team had a simple-yet-clever idea to combine both into a flexible camera that can be used as a selfie stick, and an action camera that does not require any accessories. You just need bend and roll the “stick” around an object. It’s cute too. Meet Flex Cam PIC. Preliminary technical specifications of the camera: SoC – Unknown Storage – 16GB NAND flash Camera – 720p30, CCD sensor, 124″ wide angle, 5MP Connectivity – Bluetooth USB – micro? USB OTG port Misc – LED for battery level, button Battery – 300 mAh (Good for about 1 hour) IP Rating – IP7 (Water and splash proof). Certified for 30 minutes use under 1 meter of water The specifications are not overwhelming, but it still looks like a fun product. It’s also unclear whether […]

Ambarella Unveils SL2m IP Camera Reference Design Promising up to 6 Months of Battery Life

Ambarella S2Lm IP Camera SoC features a Cortex A9 CPU core, encodes video with H.264 up to 3Mp30 / 1080p30, and targets  consumer and entry-level IP Camera designs. The company recently launched a new battery-powered IP camera reference design based on the solution that promises up to 6 months battery life, and can record Full HD video in less than 500ms from wake up, making ideal for battery operated security cameras. A Linux SDK is also provided with reference implementations for low-power standby operation, wake-on-Wi-Fi and fast boot to Linux. Unfortunately, that’s about all we know about the reference design, so instead I’ll have a look at the processor, and SL2m IP camera evaluation board. Ambarella SL2m SoC specifications: CPU – ARM Cortex-A9 processor with 32KB/32KB I/D and 128 KB L2 Cache, NEON and FPU, Crypto Engine – AES/3/DES/SHA-1/MD5 DSP / VPU –  Ambarella Image and Video DSPs Sensor and […]

AtHome Video Streamer App Transforms Android TV Boxes into IP Security Cameras

Some Android mini PCs come with cameras, for example Measy U2C or CS928, but depending on firmware support, most will also take a USB webcam, and the obvious application is for video conferencing with Skype or Google Hangout. But I’ve just found out an app called “AtHome Video Streamer” can transform any Android device with camera support into as IP camera for security or monitoring. The app will show with the name AVS, and it should detect your camera automatically, and show a live feed. I installed the app in Zidoo X9 TV box to which I connected a UVC USB camera in order to monitor… my chameleon plush / pillow. X9 camera support might need to be improved, as I lost access to the webcam a few times. You don’t have many options in AVS app, except Dimming the screen, and change the streamer name, username and/or password. So […]

Allwinner V3 SoC Targets 1080p60 Action Cameras, Supports Linux or Camdroid OS

I’ve previously written about Allwinner V10 and V15 SoC for video applications such as cameras, digital video recorder, and so on. So far, I’ve not found devices based on these, but Allwinner already announced another V-series processor with Allwinner V3 designed for Action camera recording up to 1080p resolution at 70 frames per second. Key specifications are listed below: CPU – ARM Cortex-A7 @1.2GHz Memory 16-bit DDR3/LPDDR3/DDR3L SDRAM controller, up to 1333Mbps 16-bit DDR2 up to 800Mbps, 16-bit LPDDR2 up to 1066Mbps up to 2GB RAM Video / Picture Up to 1080p@60fps or 2-channel 1080p@30fps H.264 video encoding 8M JPEG encoding H.264 1080p@60fps decoding, MJPEG 1080@30fps decoding Integrated ISP up to 8M pixels (HawkView ISP) 2 channel outputs for display and encoding respectively Supports various input and output formats Supports AE/AF/AWB Saturation adjustment, 2D/3D noise reduction,  defect pixel correction, and distortion correction Audio Codec Integrated 92dB audio codec 2x ADC […]

Wi-Fi SD Card Adapter for micro SD Cards Sells for $15 and Up

Wi-Fi SD cards are mostly used with camera in order to wirelessly transfer photos or/and videos to your computer or mobile device without having to take out the card or transfer them via a micro USB cable. I first discovered this type of card with Toshiba FlashAir in 2011, but now EyeFi seems to be the most popular brand, and comes in different sizes with the 8GB Wi-FI SD card selling for $44 on Amazon US. There are cheaper alternatives with some Wi-Fi SD card adapters accepting micro SD card selling for about $15 and up on Aliexpress or Buyincoins, and DX calls it CY EP-027, but sells it for $23. It does not come with storage but since a 8GB class 10 SD card now costs about $8, it’s still nearly 50% cheaper compared to the 8GB EyeFi SD card. Some features of the card: Max micro SD card […]

KEECOO 1080p Wi-Fi Action Camera Goes for $49.99 (Promo)

KEECOO is yet another full HD action camera with Wi-Fi connectivity that provides most of GoPro functionalities, and while it normally sells for about $90 to $95 on sites like GeekBuying or GearBest, Focalprice is currently offering a steep discount by selling it for just $49.99 for a limited time period (1 day remaining). It looks like they changed their mind, and it’s now $79.99… Keecoo sports camera features and specifications: SoC – Alpha Imaging Technology AIT8427 32-bit processor @ 500 MHz Storage – micro SD slot up to 32GB – Class 6 or above recommended LCD screen – Tiny grayscale LCD display on the front Camera 12MP CMOS 170° wide angle lens; LENS F2.8 , f=4.93mm, M12, 7G+1IR Image resolutions: 4000×3000(12M) 2592×1944(5M) 2048×1536(3M) 1600×1200(2M); JPEG format Video resolutions: 1080p30fps,  720p60/30; H.264 video codec, AAC audio codec, MOV container. Video Output – mini HDMI and AV out (PAL / NTSC) […]

Iocean M6752 Smartphone Review

Last week I provides specs, took some pictures, and run Antutu benchmark on Iocean M6752, a 64-bit ARM smartphone powered by Mediatek MT6752 octa-core Cortex A53 processor with 3GB RAM, 16 GB eMMC, and a 5.5″ FullHD display. I’ve been using the device as my main smartphone for over a week, and I’m now ready to write a full review for the phone. General Impressions At first the material and color used on the back cover feels a little strange, but I quickly got used it, and the build quality seems pretty good, and the phone is very light. I must have made one or two calls during the week, and I mainly use my smartphone to check emails, run social network apps, browse the web, play some casual games like Candy Crush Saga, watch YouTube videos, and make Skype calls, and for these tasks I could not really fault […]

Xiaomi Yi Full HD Action Camera Sells for $64

Xiaomi has decided to enter the sports camera market with an inexpensive 1080p action camera called Xiaomi Yi that will sell for 399 CNY ($64) in China, and outspecs the $135 entry-level Go Pro Hero camera. Specifications of the Yi camera: SoC – Ambarella A7LS ARM1136 SoC System Memory – N/A Storage – Some internal storage for firmware, plus a micro SD slot for pictures/videos (up to 64GB) Camera 16MP Sony Exmor R BSI Back-illuminated CMOS Image Sensor Aspheric HD Optical Glass Lens / F2.8 Large Aperture 155° Ultra Wide Angle 1080p 60/48/30/24fps, up to 960p60, 720p120, 480p240 video recording Multiple photo shooting modes: Single shot, Self-Timer, Time-lapse, Burst Shot Display – None Video Output – micro HDMI port Audio – Dual-channel 96 KHz sampling rate, 92 dBa SNR Connectivity – WiFi & Bluetooth 4.0 (Broadcom) for connection with Android / iOS devices Sensors – ST High Performance 3-Axis G-sensor […]

Exit mobile version
EmbeddedTS embedded systems design