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Operating the ThumbCam
Shooting Video
To turn the
ThumbCam
ON:
• Press and hold the Power Button for approximately one second.
• The blue and red LEDs will come on. When the red LED turns off and the blue
LED stays on, this indicates that the
ThumbCam
is now ready to record.
To turn the
ThumbCam
OFF:
• Press the Power Button for approximately one second.
• Do NOT turn the
ThumbCam
off whilst recording video, or immediately
after recording video.
• The
ThumbCam
needs several seconds after stopping a recording to write the
video the micro SD card – turning the
ThumbCam
off during the writing to
card process will corrupt the data, and render the video file unusable.
Low Power & Automatic Shutdown:
When the
ThumbCam
’s battery starts to run low, it will automatically shut itself
down. If it is currently recording a video, it will stop recording and finalize writing
the video file to the micro SD card before turning itself off. Recharge the battery
fully before turning the
ThumbCam
on again.
The
ThumbCam
will also automatically shut itself down when about to run out of
recording space on its micro SD card. To fix this, replace the micro SD card with a
fresh (or, at least, not full) one, or connect the
ThumbCam
to a PC and clear data
off the card by cutting and pasting it, or simply deleting it.
Resetting the ThumbCam:
Occasionally, particularly during long periods of constant use, the
ThumbCam
may
freeze and stop working correctly. If this happens, the
ThumbCam
needs to be
reset.
To reset the
ThumbCam
:
• Locate the Reset button, located immediately below the micro SD card slot.
• Using a thin (not sharp!) object such as an unfolded paper clip or hair pin,
press and hold the Reset button for approximately one second.
• Wait whilst the
ThumbCam
resets. The procedure is the same as when it is
first turned on.
• Once the
ThumbCam
has been reset, you’ll need to set the Time and Date
again (see page 11).
Recording video is the main function of the
ThumbCam
. To do so:
• Turn the
ThumbCam
on.
• Wait several seconds for the
ThumbCam
to properly initialize.
• When the red LED goes out and blue LED is on, the
ThumbCam
is ready to record.
• Press the Record/Stop button to begin recording video.
• Whilst video is being recorded, the blue LED will stay on and the red LED will
flash slowly.
• To stop the recording, press the Record/Stop button again. The red LED will
flash quickly whilst video data is being saved.
Important Notes:
• When you stop a recording, it takes several seconds for the
ThumbCam
to
write video data to the micro SD card. If the Record/Stop button is pressed
again or the power is turned off whilst the
ThumbCam
is writing data to the
micro SD card then the video data will be corrupted, resulting in either an
corrupt file (which is bad) or a corrupt file structure on the SD card (which is
worse). If the former happens, the video quality will be greatly reduced, if the
file works at all. If the later happens, you might need to reformat the SD card,
and risk losing all the data on it.
• See the Shooting Guide (page 14) for more information about recording.
Sound-Activated Recording:
The
ThumbCam
can be configured to operate as a sound-activated recording
device. This makes the
ThumbCam
a great solution for a set-and-forget recording
device. The internal battery will last for more than 10 hours of standby time if
nothing triggers the
ThumbCam
to record.
Soft sounds (for example, softer than a person speaking in a loud voice
approximately 3ft/1m away) may not trigger the
ThumbCam
to record.
To engage Sound-Activated Recording Mode:
• Turn the
ThumbCam
on in the usual way.
• Wait until the red LED goes out, and the
ThumbCam
is in standby.
• Press the Mode button.
• The blue LED will stay on, and the red LED will flash slowly to indicate that the
ThumbCam
is in sound-activated recording mode.
• While armed in this mode, a moderate to loud sound will trigger the
ThumbCam
to record.
• Once triggered to record, the
ThumbCam
will continue recording for a
minimum of two minutes, or longer if the sound continues.
• To deactivated sound-activated recording mode, simply press the mode
button. Once the red LED goes out, sound-activated recording mode has been
deactivated.
