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| Ltl Acorn 6210MMX and 5210A |
Trigger Speeds and Reaction Times
MMS Modules
6210 Case Re-design
6210 Software Version update
5210 Software Version update
Future Tests and Reviews
6210 Availability
It looks as if the new updated 6210 is almost available, at long last; but I'm going to qualify that by pointing out that I can only report what I'm told.
Several times it seemed as if the camera would be ready and then the manufacturers have had to make fine adjustments to the case mould. I also know that there is completely updated software for this camera and all these improvements take time to get right.
Post Update 22.10.12: The new 6210 will be here
tomorrow (Tuesday 23rd October 2012)
I will be starting my evaluation on Wednesday and subject to successful testing, Martin at Wildlife & Countryside Services will be ordering new stock before the end of October.
We don't have an exact date for shipments from the factory yet, but at the moment it looks like it may be the second week in November, although we are hoping for earlier.
I've also discovered some software improvements which have been applied to the 5210, so I'll go through what I think I know for both cameras.
Trigger Speeds and Reaction Times
All Acorn cameras now have a 0.8 second trigger speed and with the help of the PIR side sensors, reaction time is very fast. See this test report.
This was a component level upgrade which means that older cameras can't be updated with firmware.
If your camera has this upgrade it will be identified as such by a yellow sticker on the front of the box.
MMS Modules
The MMS Modules for both series of cameras have been upgraded to improve the performance reliability when sending messages. Previously there have been problems with erratic or no sending of pictures and messages which were covered recently in this report. I will be arranging tests of the new module as soon as possible.
This was a component level upgrade which means that older cameras can't be updated with firmware.
6210 Case Re-design
Massive improvements to the case design are likely to make this camera almost, if not completely waterproof.
These were partially completed back in June but still needed more work, which has been ongoing till now.
More information about the original problem.
6210 Software Version update
The latest evaluation version is V1.1.010T and the designation may change.
Sense Level (Triggering sensitivity) There are now four options which are High, Medium, Low and Off. This allows for turning off or on the PIR detectors when using the time lapse feature.
Timers. There are now two timers to enable the camera to be instructed to turn on and off during any two programmable periods in 24 hours. This for example, would allow the user to set operation for dawn and dusk periods to record specific animal activity.
Time Lapse PIR detector operation can be either on or off controlled by the Sense level setting as mentioned above. This allows the camera to detect animals within range and trigger whilst set to time lapse.
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| Fig 1: 6210 940nm night illumination The fence in the distance is 63 feet (19+ metres) |
The improvement is impressive (figure 1), with the no glow 940nm LED array illuminating up to 60 feet (18+ metres) even if the resulting image is a bit grainy. Read this post for more information.
Acorn are also shortly to produce a dedicated light expansion/booster unit with 72 LEDs, which I'm looking forward to testing.
Automatic exposure control has also been upgraded to correct the sort of problem I highlighted in this post.
5210 Software Version update
Latest software versions for the 5210 series cameras are V3.03A and V3.03M which provide the following additional functions:
Sense Level (Triggering sensitivity) There are now four options which are High, Medium, Low and Off. This allows for turning off or on the PIR detectors when using the time lapse feature.
Time Lapse PIR detector operation can be either on or off controlled by the Sense level setting as mentioned above. This allows the camera to detect animals within range and trigger whilst set to time lapse.
There may be other improvements with this software version which, at the time of writing, I have no knowledge of.
Future Tests and Reviews
I have a 5210A with the new software and I'm waiting for a 5210MX to arrive. When I have both cameras I plan to do a complete review, including the MMS/GPRS functions and performance.
Because of the imminent arrival of the 6210MMX, which will need an immediate evaluation, I can't put a time frame to any of this; but it will all be done as fast as I can manage.
6210 Availability
We hope we will be able to supply the new 6210 by the last week in October.
