ARCC Moulton and the Process of Getting There (LONG)

[Templogin]

I live about 150m from the sea ,well when the tide is in, otherwise 1500m granted the wind is not as high here but we do get storm's and Easterly . The Motus is aluminium frame, brakes are a plastic material, wheels are either aluminium or stainless steel .Not much to rust... And I am not employed by Raleigh!
I have a set of aluminium chairs outside for 8 years without deterioration.

...and the chain, sprockets, exposed cables? No, indoors is definitely the answer here. I wouldn't leave a bike of such value out in the elements.

 

[Templogin]

I may be a Luddite to some, but why get rid of perfectly good kit for a smartphone, which I will have to pay for through a subscription to the phone provider for the rest of my life? And when people drop that smartphone, and then are completely bu**ered without it, what then?

Efficient? You mean like taking two bottles into the shower? Sometimes I just wander over to the pier and watch boats bob along the water - how inefficient! Look on all those extra gadgets I carry as resistance training if you wish.

I get the feeling that there are a load of people who have swallowed a whole load of smartphone marketing.

 

[Danidl]

...and the chain, sprockets, exposed cables? No, indoors is definitely the answer here. I wouldn't leave a bike of such value out in the elements.

The brakes are hydraulic so are plastic tubes, the chain may well be stainless steel ... It is silvery. If one got the 8 speed hub version there is three inches of exposed cable. The hub gears is the preferred version for coastal areas anyway A little grease The drive sprocket on the Bosch drive is more than semi enclosed and there are plastic housings over the motor assembly.
The trouble is that any electric bike is heavy and lifting it up flights of stairs an unwelcome daily chores.

 

[Retyred1]

So a modern smart phone has an F4 lens with a 15 times optical zoom
And a 35mm sensor. That gives very high resolution images from quite a long way away even in relatively low light.
The sensor in a smart phone may have 30 million pixels but the focused image is so poor in contrast. Or maybe I'm a Luddite

But that's the point - diehards will keep preaching the DSLR as being far superior and cart around a backpack of lenses etc. but unless your an expert the resulting photos are usually no better than from a late model smartphone.

Smartphone cameras have killed off the point and shoot camera and are now decimating the DSLR market. And remember, the smartphone can do a million other things as well!

 

[Danidl]

So a modern smart phone has an F4 lens with a 15 times optical zoom
And a 35mm sensor. That gives very high resolution images from quite a long way away even in relatively low light.
The sensor in a smart phone may have 30 million pixels but the focused image is so poor in contrast. Or maybe I'm a Luddite

If phones had better lenses than pro or semi pro DSLRs then wedding photographer s would use them. They don't..... so arguement settled .

It is in the consumer space that the competition is more fierce. The OP is comparing an 8 year old compact fixed lens camera with 10 megapixel sensor and with a lens of probably 10mm diameter with 3mm diameter 20 to 30 megapixelsensor designed last year. The competition is therefore much closer. The older lens will have more light gathering power, and a higher theoretical resolution, the newer combo will have greater sensitivity and possible more accurate optics.
It is difficult to overestimate the power of mass production and global markets. This new technology from the likes of Samsung has the effort of thousands of engineering man hours and they can work almost miracles
Cameras like a number of other technology items need to be comfortable for the user . If the OP or anyone else is happier with descrete devices then so be it. They are not luddites but individuals.
In a similar vein I cannot understand the current attraction of vinyl records... There is no technical merit in going back to a world of wow and flutter, rumble, tracking errors mains hum, limited dynamic range but if someone wants to do so as some nostalgic reason ... Hey it's a free world.

 

[D8ve]

But that's the point - diehards will keep preaching the DSLR as being far superior and cart around a backpack of lenses etc. but unless your an expert the resulting photos are usually no better than from a late model smartphone.

Smartphone cameras have killed off the point and shoot camera and are now decimating the DSLR market. And remember, the smartphone can do a million other things as well!

Perhaps I'm an expert Luddite then.

 

[anotherkiwi]

Everything that my photography teacher taught me about optics is wrong then? Smartphones don't use optics? Larger diameter lens don't let in more light? Photography is no longer about light? ad nauseam...

 

[Deleted member 4366]

You're missing the point and being pedantic. A good quality smartphone takes very good photos for the point and click brigade. All my photos are taken with one, and I've never had any complaints. Look through my photobucket in the links below if you want to criticise them.

You have your phone with you all the time, so if you see something to record, you get it out, point, click, done.

The phone is connected to the internet, so you get more or less infinite storage, you can't lose your photos, they can be circulated/published immediately, etc.

Also you have massive processing power and intelligence behind the camera, so you can get a lot of smart features like focus tracking, face recognition, object recognition, auto-tagging, etc.

The argument isn't about which takes the best photos. Its about which is the most convenient and appropriate for the quality of photos you need. Do you need an SLR to show a picture of the mileage reading on your LCD or to share a funny road sign that you've seen?

 

[Danidl]

Everything that my photography teacher taught me about optics is wrong then? Smartphones don't use optics? Larger diameter lens don't let in more light? Photography is no longer about light? ad nauseam...

Your photography teacher presumably spent a long while on dark room techniques, developing, fixing enlarging masking applying filters. Mostly now irrelevant. Newer lenses made from plastics can be non spherical and autocorrect some of the distortions which these spherical lenses introduced. Of course larger diameter lens admits more light, and if distortionless allows for higher resolution... And that is a big if.

 

[Danidl]

You're missing the point and being pedantic. A good quality smartphone takes very good photos for the point and click brigade. All my photos are taken with one, and I've never had any complaints. Look through my photobucket in the links below if you want to criticise them.

You have your phone with you all the time, so if you see something to record, you get it out, point, click, done.

The phone is connected to the internet, so you get more or less infinite storage, you can't lose your photos, they can be circulated/published immediately, etc.

Also you have massive processing power and intelligence behind the camera, so you can get a lot of smart features like focus tracking, face recognition, object recognition, auto-tagging, etc.

The argument isn't about which takes the best photos. Its about which is the most convenient and appropriate for the quality of photos you need. Do you need an SLR to show a picture of the mileage reading on your LCD or to share a funny road sign that you've seen?

 

[Danidl]

I heard a saying sometime ago.


"Perfect is the enemy of good".

Striving to get the very very best can mean that the highly acceptable is constantly disregarded. All engineering and technology is a compromise between what is achievable, affordable, acceptable.

Smartphones with their collection of functions including highly capable cameras are compromises just as is the mirror lens on the Hubble also a compromise. They are convenience personified available at costs which previous generations would have viewed as miraculously low. They can be purchased outright without contract, they can be used without Sims,except for the minor matter of actually making calls, and are freely available. But their use is not compulsory.

 

[anotherkiwi]

Your photography teacher presumably spent a long while on dark room techniques, developing, fixing enlarging masking applying filters. Mostly now irrelevant. Newer lenses made from plastics can be non spherical and autocorrect some of the distortions which these spherical lenses introduced. Of course larger diameter lens admits more light, and if distortionless allows for higher resolution... And that is a big if.

We had another teacher for the lab...

I use a fixed lens camera (sometimes with a wide angle adaptor). Nikon called it the professional photographers pocket camera.I try and take all of my photos using natural light and even iPhones and high end Samsungs fall down in natural low light conditions. Not as badly as they used to. If I thought they could do a better job than my camera I would have (a secondhand) one. I would much prefer a Leica though...

 

[Deleted member 4366]

I heard a saying sometime ago.


"Perfect is the enemy of good".

Striving to get the very very best can mean that the highly acceptable is constantly disregarded. All engineering and technology is a compromise between what is achievable, affordable, acceptable.

Smartphones with their collection of functions including highly capable cameras are compromises just as is the mirror lens on the Hubble also a compromise. They are convenience personified available at costs which previous generations would have viewed as miraculously low. They can be purchased outright without contract, they can be used without Sims,except for the minor matter of actually making calls, and are freely available. But their use is not compulsory.

When I was at uni, a whole bunch of my close friends were into hifi. they spent all their money on the best decks, speakers and amplifiers they could buy. Then, when they bought a new record, they spent the whole time listening for crackles and rumbles, while the rest of us enjoyed the music on the crappy house system. I can remember one guy, Alastaire Beale, he usually took back three records for every one he kept because he could hear anomalies on them. Say hello if you're out there, Alastaire.

 

[Trevormonty]

In regards to weight, 20kg is about as lite a mid drive as your partner is likely to find. She might be able to lift 17.5kg (battery removed) up stairs, alternately use walk mode to wheel bike upstairs. I've successfully used Steps drive to walk bike up big dirt track stairs. A rack mount battery maybe better here as it lightens front wheel and is easier to lift bike vertical onto back wheel for landings.

 

[Templogin]

Can someone tell me what the built in macro/telephoto lenses are like on these smart phones please?

Focusing range?

And what ISO range can be set?

And aperture range?

And shutter speed range?

I am just curious how they compare to my Canon S95, which are: -

Focal length - 3.8xzoom:6.0(W)–22.5(T)mm (35mmfilmequivalent:28(W) – 105 (T) mm)

Focusing range - 5cm(2.0in.)–infinity(W),30cm(12in.)–infinity(T) • Macro: 5 – 50 cm (W), 30 – 50 cm (T) (2.0 in. – 1.6 ft. (W), 12 in. – 1.6 ft. (T))

Aperture range - f/2.0–f/8.0(W),f/4.9–f/8.0(T)

Shutter speed range - 1–1/1600sec. 15 – 1/1600 sec. (Total shutter speed range)

 

[Templogin]

In regards to weight, 20kg is about as lite a mid drive as your partner is likely to find. She might be able to lift 17.5kg (battery removed) up stairs, alternately use walk mode to wheel bike upstairs. I've successfully used Steps drive to walk bike up big dirt track stairs. A rack mount battery maybe better here as it lightens front wheel and is easier to lift bike vertical onto back wheel for landings.

Thanks a lot for this. We plan to weigh the Moulton and see if she can lift that up the steps. It really does need a bit of weight in the back to balance it out as the battery and motor are at the front. Of course the battery could be taken off, as could the ePod, but according to this thread we might not be being efficient (making two trips). The steps seem steep when you are trying to lug a bike up them, especially when you start to tip backwards. The joys of living on a relatively steep hill where the house has been across the slope.

The wind has been relatively low today, probably about 12 mph. I should have taken my anemometer out with me to measure it, something that I don't believe a smartphone can do.

 

[Deleted member 4366]

Can someone tell me what the built in macro/telephoto lenses are like on these smart phones please?

Have a look at these:

https://iso.500px.com/incredible-macro-photos-taken-with-a-smartphone-diy-lens/

Here's a photo of a 2 inch PCB that I took without a macro lens. You can read every point on the legend, which i couldn't with my naked eyes, which is why I took the photo. I do that whenever I'm studying the tiny surface mount components on PCBs. The resolution would be OK for photos of insects and things like that, but you can get a lot more with one of these:

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/180-Degree-3-in1-Clip-On-Fish-Eye-Wide-Angle-Macro-Lens-for-Smartphone-GU-/351622893874?hash=item51de5b9132:g:IkgAAOSwLN5WjibE



Here's a 2.5 mm diameter battery connector taken with my old Galaxy S5:



Have a look at these:

https://iso.500px.com/incredible-macro-photos-taken-with-a-smartphone-diy-lens/

 

[Danidl]

Can someone tell me what the built in macro/telephoto lenses are like on these smart phones please?

Focusing range?

And what ISO range can be set?

And aperture range?

And shutter speed range?

I am just curious how they compare to my Canon S95, which are: -

Focal length - 3.8xzoom:6.0(W)–22.5(T)mm (35mmfilmequivalent:28(W) – 105 (T) mm)

Focusing range - 5cm(2.0in.)–infinity(W),30cm(12in.)–infinity(T) • Macro: 5 – 50 cm (W), 30 – 50 cm (T) (2.0 in. – 1.6 ft. (W), 12 in. – 1.6 ft. (T))

Aperture range - f/2.0–f/8.0(W),f/4.9–f/8.0(T)

Shutter speed range - 1–1/1600sec. 15 – 1/1600 sec. (Total shutter speed range)

Andy I am more of a pick up and shoot merchant than a photographer craftsman .. so I will give you what I can about the Samsung s7 .. my phone


f no 1.7. in this generation Samsung has deliberately reduced the number of pixels in order to provide better low light performance.to 12megapixel
ISO max seems to be 1250( it's just a number to me. )
Shutter speed 1/24000 to anything else.g 10 seconds at least but this is programmable to longer times
RAW images as well as jpegs
Optical zoom range 8:1
No macro mode as such but does focus down to close to 2 inches (two finger joints ).

 

[Deleted member 4366]

The wind has been relatively low today, probably about 12 mph. I should have taken my anemometer out with me to measure it, something that I don't believe a smartphone can do.

Actually, it can do better. You don't even have to go out in the cold. Using my smartphone and Windfinder app, I can tell you that the wind where you are was about 13 knotts this morning and is presently blowing at 16 knotts from the north-west. By 21:00, it will have increased to 17 knotts. It'll peak at 20 knotts round about midnight, lull a bit after that, then pick up to northerly 32 knotts by 6:00 tomorrow, where it will stay all day, so batten down the hatches before you go to bed. Can your anemometer do that? What's more, unless you can get it on a long pole, it'll be affected by the boundary layer effect, and disturbed by land features around your house, which could make the readings unreliable. The one I'm using is a professional one up in the undisturbed air stream.

I use Windfinder a lot because of my sailing. It's very reliable and accurate. Did you know that you can track individual rain clouds with your smartphone, so you know within a minute when it's going to rain. I use that a lot to check when i can go out for a bike ride.

http://www.raintoday.co.uk/information/about_raintoday_premium

 

[Templogin]

Interesting specs Dan. Thanks.

I bought the anemometer because sometimes I can't believe how hopeless the forecasts are when I am out on the bike. One piece of software in particular made me give up on it when it predicted 66 mph winds and it was actually 6 mph. Usually though I suspect that the wind is higher than is being forecast and I want to check it. I am actually interested in the boundary layer effect as that is what I am riding in. I was pushed off the road once on my motorbike by the effects of the wind in a whistling around a hill. I was once lifted off my feet here by the wind coming around the corner of a building, and at 85kg I am not exactly light. Windfinder sounds interesting nonetheless, and I am sure that it is useful when a mobile signal is available if outside the house.