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- Springboard Modules (http://discussion.visorcentral.com/vcforum/forumdisplay.php?forumid=10)
-- Eyemodule: Whaddya think? worth the price/ good pics/ uses for it.. (http://discussion.visorcentral.com/vcforum/showthread.php?threadid=5579)

www.eyemodule.com

I was really blown away by how good the images were.. I was really suprised.

I think it would be fun to just whip this thing out and take pictures of people and things.

I can imagine it would be great for capturing white boards images from office meetings. Or even better- small pictures for Home Builders- telling people what needs to be fixed by taking pictures and then points specifics out.

It seems like a great device.. unfortunatly, I was really stuck at the price. I know that there isn't any competition for this one- there aren't any other springboard cameras for the Visor out right now.

But, $200 is a little too steep for me.

That is half of a old car, or 200+MB of ram for my desktop.. or a used digital camera..

I hope for some competition to drive the price down.

I advise you to search the forums for eyemodule, read reviews and go to the web sites where people have posted their photos, then make up your mind. BTW, its $150 and I see one on Ebay for $130.

Actually, I am planning on holding back.

I have heard about another camera coming out that will blow away the eyemodule.

There is an image in the 'Kodak digital camera module' topic that is pretty good.

I've had my eyemodule for a few months (ordered it the first day it was available) and feel it's well worth the $149 I paid for it. People that expect higher quality images from a camera its size and for this price are out of touch with reality. The picture quality is fair at best, but convenience is fantastic. I keep it in my EB Slipper case (doesn't fit that well but does okay) and take "quick draw" shots all the time. About half of the people I've taken a shot of didn't know what I was up to even though they were staring right at it. If lighting is good and the Visor and subject remain still, quality gets pretty good. I'd like a higher quality digital camera, but I'll probably just go for a stand alone camera when I decide I need that. The only complaint is that it seems to suck up batteries (I keep it installed full time) even if I'm not using it.

[This message has been edited by harveyc (edited 08-08-2000).]

the eye module seems really neat- but still, I think 130 is a bit much.

Despite what I have heard from others, I think the pictures aren't that bad- when they are shot in sunlight.

Would you mind posting a gallary of pictures for people to check out?

I was also wondering on the focus for the eye module- is it automatic, focused.. or manual?

I still think it is really neat.

I have heard of a megapixel camera coming out in December- around $100 .. so i think i mgiht wait for that..

Thanks for your input.
(And I really would like to see some of those pictures..)

So, we meet again....

Here's my $.02 on the eyemodule.

1. It's $150, unless the price went up since I bought it. And that's not cheap. But you pay to be first.

2. The pictures are OK - not great, but OK. You have two levels of resolution on b&w, and one high resolution level on color.

3. The unit is mighty convenient. Just pop it in and click away. The controls are very intuitive. I once clocked myself and - removing the eyemodule from the case and then its pouch, pulling the dummy Springboard, inserting the eyemodule - was taking a picture takes less than 20 seconds at a leisurely pace.

4. Because it is a camera, and it's attached to my Visor, I find that my camera is much more accessible than in the past, so I take a lot more pictures.

5. There is no processing charge for the pictures, so that helps offset the cost of the unit.

6. There's no flash, no zoom, no focus. It's point and shoot - a digital polaroid, if you will. It's very easy, and not very sophisticated.

7. I've also heard about the Kodak unit, and - like everything else - I've also heard warnings about incompatibility with existing software. I like the samples I've seen from the "PalmPix" Palm camera attachment. But it's not out yet, and I wanted a camera now. If you're not in a rush, I'd suggest you wait for both to be released and test both.

8. You're going to find a lot less unanimity on this topic than on your 2MB v. 8MB thread. Many users were expecting the sun, moon, and stars from the eyemodule and felt that they didn't get appropriate value for price. People are picky about their pictures.

I hope that this helps. It's good to see someone checking out all the options and getting user input before making potentially expensive decisions. You're going to have a better Visor experience as a result.

HarveyC, thanks for the email.

Morris, thanks for the comments.

Concerning [qoute]People are picky about their pictures.
[/qoute],

I totally agree. I teach web design and have some personal websites that I work with- and it is a frustrating thing to have a wonderful layout- but for the pictures to have spotting because the picture was taken in low- light.

I comprimised when I bought a cheap digital camera- and I don't want to do that again. It was fun to have a camera- but the manual focus on my EZ-CAM USB is really hard to get down.

I think with non- image applications- you can always easily switch to another one- or just buy another program to get better results.

The eyemodule is there to stay.

--
On a different note, does anyone out there have any experience using the eyemodule for extremly useful circumstances? Such as taking pictures of claim checks, pictures of reciepts, written notes, white boards from biz. meetings, etc?

It seems like it VERY comvenient to work with, which is a real strong point for it.

I had the "BLIND EYE MODULE" it worked for two days then stopped woking and was sent back! $150 for blurry, dark, and poor pics is insane!! The idea was great, the design cool too... but the image quality SUCKED. Better to spend 6 months more in r&d and release a good camera like kodak did for the palm 3.


Wait for a quality camera module.
TheSmith

Do you have any copies of those pictures?

As with most cameras, they need extremly nice lighting, and also to be held still.

Anyone seen the image taken with the Palmpix in this forum? It is in the setting sun, or at least midday- wonderful times to take pictures with nay digital camera- producing good pictures with (cheap or expensive) cameras.

Did you hold it still and also take it in sunlight?

I have seen user pictures and also the ones on theeyemodule.com website. The pictures really are better than I thought..

"As with most cameras, they need extremly nice lighting, and also to be held still."

As a professional photographer and happy Visor owner, I am interested in a camera springboard. However, the eyemodule does not enhance, but rather LIMITS my ability to take good pictures. The photos taken by the eyemodule, no matter how pleasing the lighting or steady the hand, will look like the grainy, low res photos they are. For me, a camera module has to have at least megapixel capability, autofocus rather than fixed focus, some degreee of exposure control and ideally removable media before I'll buy it. Would I take more pictures if I had an eyemodule? Probably. Would I show those to anyone? No, the results are too poor. I can get FAR better results in any lighting with a little $20 disposable camera.

People who buy it seem to really like the eyemodule. I think that it does what they want it to do- give them a quick, simple way to take pictures. (Harveyc and morris..)
Here are some pictures from the eyemodule.com gallery..


This image doesen't seem to show any grains in it- but it is low res.


The picture above of the dog also has pretty good focus.

I think the camera does need work- but I don't think it is as bad as you make it out to be.

I will definatly be waiting for a different camera-

But I'll bet all those eyemodule owners are having a blast right now while we wait and twiddle our thumbs for the supposed long wait for a springboard module to come to light..



[This message has been edited by supernancy (edited 08-09-2000).]

If address book is improved like Sony PEG's(see this thread, Eyemodule would be really handy.

There's a review of the eyemodule at:
http://www.brighthand.com/eyemodule.html


------------------
Leo

On a related note, has anyone got their eyemodule to sync with a Mac, and if so, was that software included?

The eyemodule syncs with the Mac just fine. The software
was only released a month or two ago, so it has to be
downloaded for now.

A fun camera

I just thought i'd post a few of the pictures i've taken with the eyemodule on my website (see address below). I think its great... but as someone said it is the poloroid of digital cameras simple and low quality but instantaneous results.

Also, those of you waiting for megapixels or better, where do you plan to store those images and the eyemodule already sucks batteries like a paracite, so I would be wary of a high res digital cam. module.

My website:
http://members.home.com/french-fry/index.htm

French-fry

[Edited by french-fry on 09-06-2000 at 10:20 PM]

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<p><i>Ce qui n'est pas clair n'est pas fran�ais.</i></p>
<p>What is not clear is not French. <i>(Antoine De Rivarol 1753-1801)</i></p>

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Anyone have any information regarding the who, what, and when on the competitor for eyemodule?

quote:

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Originally posted by holidaze
Anyone have any information regarding the who, what, and when on the competitor for eyemodule?

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Jim Seymour, a PCMag Columnist, thinks the eyemodule is the best module so far. Read his opinion at : http://www.zdnet.com/pcmag/stories/opinions/0,7802,2615598,00.html

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Felipe Garcia
Happy Treo 600 user, so far. Thanx Cingular for having an unlocked phone.

My Treo 600 is my phone, my PDA, my watch, and my MP3 player. Oh yeah, I take a picture once in a while with it. Convergence is such a great thing.

It may interest people to know that, while everyone on VC is so negative about the eyemodule (myself included), Donna Dubinsky claims that it's the top selling Springboard to date.

Maybe the key is to think of it as a portable webcam rather than a "digital camera." After all, the Gameboy camera's picture quality is pretty terrible as well, and it's just as popular.