Be careful at traffic lights !

[daniel.weck]

Discovered that video from another forum:

YouTube - Why it can be dangerous to stop at red

 

[Mussels]

A bus and a van jump a red light but don't endanger the cyclist at all, what's the big deal?
It's a bit more annoying when people drive into me at junctions which has happened more than once.

 

[eddieo]

is that a helmet camera he is using? has anyone got one of these?

as when I eventually get knocked of the bike, it would be nice to have some evidence

 

[flecc]

A bus and a van jump a red light but don't endanger the cyclist at all, what's the big deal?

It can be horrific as in one accident here in Croydon. Double decker driver jumped the lights and hit a 36 ton tram. A front seat, top deck passenger was catapulted through the front window and killed as he hit the road and was further hit by the tram. The bus careered on a long way up the next street with the unconcious driver hanging out through the shattered windscreen and was eventually brought to a halt by an illegally parked BMW.

The Tunisian bus driver was charged with manslaughter after he recovered from his injuries but has now vanished, believed abroad.

Stop Press: The person standing bail for him has had to forfeit his £2000 surety.
.

 

[daniel.weck]

A bus and a van jump a red light but don't endanger the cyclist at all, what's the big deal?

Due to the difference in weight and speed, a bicycle can stop much quicker than a car/bus/truck. When there are no cycle lanes to keep the flow of vehicles separate, as a cyclist I need to be aware that drivers behind me may not fully understand how quick my bike will come to a standstill...thanks to drivers that stare at the orange/red light and cross the traffic junction anyway, you have a recipe for disaster !
That's why I make myself ultra-visible, I announce what I intend to do, and I stick to the side of the road so cars have enough room to "overtake".
++
Dan

 

[daniel.weck]

is that a helmet camera he is using? has anyone got one of these?

as when I eventually get knocked of the bike, it would be nice to have some evidence

The Veho Muvi (or its equivalent OEM unbranded version) does a good job for 50 GBP:

YouTube - Mini DV DVR Sports Video Camera Spy Camera Spy Cam MD80 VD80

YouTube - Jtek 4GB Mini Sports Camcorder Test Run

YouTube - Largs at dusk

YouTube - Jim Test Driving the Veho Muvi Micro DV Camera with Extreme Sports Pack (noisy scooter !)

Crystal Palace E/1/2 18/08/2009 on Vimeo

I found a cheap knock-off for 17 GBP including postage, specs seem good but does it deliver ? See here: DVR Sports Voice Recorder Video Camera Spy Cam Mini DV on eBay (end time 14-Jan-10 08:44:11 GMT)


It's also available for 35 GBP from this shop: freeyourmobile, but their email and online message form is totally broken, so I wouldn't trust it. (unless you can get through to customer service over the phone)

 

[daniel.weck]

 

[eddieo]

And from Hong Kong on eba*y MD 80 for around £12 inc postage

MD80 DC Mini DV DVR Sports Video Camera Spy Cam on eBay (end time 10-Dec-09 22:35:06 GMT)

what do you think? The image quality is surprisingly good from what I have seen.....

(not the attached one specifically but from you tube)

 

[daniel.weck]

Well, I'd rather pay 17 GBP including postage from the UK (see my updated post)

PS: and it includes some elements of the 10 GBP "Extreme Sports Pack" already, so it's a pretty good deal !

 

[daniel.weck]

Just bought one of these "mini DV camcorders" for 14.99 GBP (inc. postage). I'll let you know if they're as good as the more expensive 50 GBP models !

 

[eddieo]

Just bought one of these "mini DV camcorders" for 14.99 GBP (inc. postage). I'll let you know if they're as good as the more expensive 50 GBP models !

Have you a link please Daniel I'll get one as well.

 

[daniel.weck]

You can bid on this one which ends in less than 2 hours:

DVR Sports Voice Recorder Video Camera Spy Cam Mini DV on eBay (end time 16-Dec-09 22:29:35 GMT)

The same product is sold by the same eBay seller on a "Buy it now" basis for 17.99 GBP.

You should make sure to order today at the latest, to avoid the Christmas postage delays.

Cheers, Dan

 

[eddieo]

Have bid 14.99 will have to wait and see

No SD card with this, Amazon do Sandisk 4GB Micro SD card for £6.61

(got it)

 

[daniel.weck]

I'm looking forward to receiving this little video camera, because my attempt to ride with one hand in the freezing weather is rather pathetic:

http://www.pedelecs.co.uk/forum/electric-bicycles/4825-diy-stage-8-continuous-improvements-12.html#post65799



I will probably attach the mini camcorder to the strap of my headtorch, for a first-person view of the ride...another Christmas toy to play with

 

[eddieo]

I'm looking forward to receiving this little video camera, because my attempt to ride with one hand in the freezing weather is rather pathetic:

http://www.pedelecs.co.uk/forum/electric-bicycles/4825-diy-stage-8-continuous-improvements-12.html#post65799



I will probably attach the mini camcorder to the strap of my headtorch, for a first-person view of the ride...another Christmas toy to play with

Mine arrived today cant play with it as no memory card yet......

I guess there is no sound...never thought about it but in an RTA/ dispute with a driver it would be handy to have audio

YouTube - Mini DV Spy Camera AEE MD80 Review

no case or manual with our one. manual on disk...but where is the sound from in demo? spec also says 30fpm not 25 cardboard box is the same.

 

[daniel.weck]

No audio ? Are you sure ? It's voice-activated and records audio as far as I know.

Oh well, for 15GBP, I'm expecting OEM cheap and cheerful hardware, which is fine to experiment with

Hopefully mine will arrive soon (lots of snow here, maybe that caused delays in the postal deliveries)

 

[andrewgardner]

Mine arived today and so did the micro sd card i ordered the same time.
It has sound. It has vidio and sound mode to start with button, or voice activated. I have had a bit of a play with it and it seems ok for £15. the charger is a UK one which makes a change and the user manual is on a dvd.

Anyway i have to give it my daughter now to wrap up as she has bought it me for xmas so won't get to play with it again for a few days, shame with all this snow ah well.

Merry xmas to all our readers.

 

[daniel.weck]

I'm jealous ! You people getting your mail deliveries on time !

 

[eddieo]

my son just found a card in old phone. To dark now for a a trial outside but indoors all I can say is impressive for the money...... colour and clarity very very good! It does not like rapid movement, so not sure how good this will be on bike. this may be down to quality of memory card. will give it a go on bike tomorrow

sound quality fine!

 

[daniel.weck]

Great little gadget for 15 GBP !!

The audio capture is fine (raw PCM, Mono, 16bits, 22050Hz => 353Kb/s).

The video quality is good, although without image stabilization and without a fast Micro-SD card, the frame will wobble (M-JPEG codec, 720x480, 24bits color, 30fps => nearly 10,000Kb/s).

So 5mn of video means nearly 400MB on the memory card.

Useful utility to get video/audio stream information:

Mac OS X:
MediaInfo Mac :: Multimedia file analyzer for the Macintosh

Windows:
MediaInfo