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It would also be nice if it could use 12V. These files can be stitched together if you want to play them back with software, such as MS Movie Maker, but is a pretty big PIA.It would be nice to find a file on your SD memory stick that started when you pushed the record button and ended when you pushed stop. Seems to work okay but it breaks up the video into ~10 second pieces when recording HQ (708X480).@12 FPS. This is about an MByte.
So it only records when I have the key in the ignition and save about 3 hours worth on a 2GB card. I set this thing to record at full frames full fps and to always record when powered. Hasn't failed me yet. There's no other DVR of it's type that I could find. I have it in my glove box wired to a forward seeing sony lipstick cam and microphone for insurance reasons.
It took a while for me to figure out the problem, but once done, SVAT customer service was very responsive and sent a replacement cable immediately. If an event happens that you are aware of and want to review and save, simply stop the recorder and selectively play back the last minutes/hours recorded, and if you want to, download the data onto your computer to save it or simply pull the SD card with the recorded data, and insert a new one in the CVP800. After some minor initial bumps, I am very satisfied.
It has a powerful feature not found on other similar mini-portable units that I evaluated, specifically, the ability to loop record, i.e., continuously record, writing over the oldest data when it reaches the capacity of the SD card. Overall, I have found this unit to be well designed - user friendly, easy to understand, and highly flexible in both recording and playing back. This allows the unit to record 24 hours a day forever without any attention whatsoever.
I purchased the SVAT CVP800 with the CCDCO camera. On the positive side, the CVP800 is extremely small (easily fits into a shirt pocket), light weight and consumes very little power (under 1.5 watt). The only reason I gave the CVP800 a 4-star rating (rather than 5-stars) is the absence of an out-of-the-box way to power the unit in a car other than depending on the internal AA batteries.
When first received, the camera had a defective video cable. The only significant negative comments that I have are that the CVP800 does not include or offer as an optional accessory a 12VDC plug-in car power supply; also the instruction manual is not very helpful in several areas.
The pictures are not the best but they do serve there purpose. I still haven't really got the motion detection thing figured out, but it does work. I think if I had looked around a little more I could have found something a little better, but all in all it does its job. Once I figured out how to work it, it works well. The directions are really useless.
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