Ltl Acorn 6210MG Cellular Camera update and tests

Ltl Acorn 6210MGX hooked up to a
Cornet ED85EX
for measuring power output and monitoring
network connection attempts.

I expected to be writing this post in mid June but as always things are taking a lot longer than I would have hoped.

A month ago when I last wrote about Acorn's progress to correct network connection problems and repeat triggering, I made the decision to wait until Acorn had got the SMS remote control working before asking for a test camera.

I am beginning to regret that decision because I still have no news about the SMS and have given up on it for the time being. I have now asked for the test camera and hope that I will receive a fully up to date camera (without working SMS remote control) sometime this month.

Meanwhile I am creating a setup to make it easier to carry out tests on trail cameras (cellular and noncellular) generally. Functions that will be possible to test using this rig will include battery power consumption, trigger reaction times, RF power output, network connections, transmission sequences and frequency stability.

At the moment I am validating each part of the setup and when I
have finished I will be combining all the test components into one bench rig so that real time results can be monitored by video, which will allow me to carry out post test analyses of events against a timer. I am hoping to have the rig ready to start proper tests around the end of next week and will commence with benchmark tests using a 6210MGX with the old M10 GPRS Module circa July 2012.

I have also been asked to test the SG550M-8M and SG880MK-8M ScoutGuard models, which I will be running alongside the Acorn 6210MG tests over the next couple of months.

An associate of mine who uses Acorn cellular cameras within the security industry has recently carried out connectivity and stability tests on a batch of the latest 6210MG camera. He reports that they are much improved over previous batches and fit for purpose, although with the caveat that they still exhibit mild retriggering. These cameras are being deployed with external antennae on feeders which completely overcomes this problem, as I described in this post.

As soon as possible I will hope to corroborate his results and publish my own report.