Need a good "keychain" video camera

[JDP12]

Hey all I need a good micro video camera that is under 2" across.  I'm planning on making a parachute round for my small grenade launcher, and want to put a camera on it.  I thought I'd just buy a key chain cAmera because they're cheap, but I've been reading some reviews and they all are terrible. So does anyone have a keychain camera recommendation?  I'd prefer to spend under 30 on this thanks all

[jrrdw]

If your on Facebook, contact this guy:

[youtube][/youtube]

[irisher]

I believe the ones he uses are around $60 but I could be wrong.

[Technician1002]

A helmet cam works well. They are built tough and have good video. Look for the ones used in model rockets.

[youtube][/youtube]

[jrrdw]

Wow a zero second delay on the motor. Must have been a small parachute on that rocket...

[Technician1002]

Look at the motor used. 5 sec delay. You mistook air noise for engine burn.
C6-5 motor.

[jrrdw]

Yea your right, you can really hear it in the 2nd launch played back in slow motion. I like the camera he used, this video really shows how good it is.

[youtube][/youtube]

[MrCrowley]

If only one of these cameras would work on the MiniBoy projectile

[jrrdw]

If only one of these cameras would work on the MiniBoy projectile

You can get the camera small enough that's easy. It's the battery, antenna and transmitter that's the problem...

[MrCrowley]

Yeah those issues, and acceleration forces, were my concern. I'm sure it could be possibly to gut a keychain camera and fit it inside MiniBoy.

[jrrdw]

Or build a mediumboy lol...

[irisher]

also you would have to actually recover the thing.

[Insomniac]

The keychain cameras you see on ebay are generally referred to as '808 cameras', and there are a whole bunch of different versions. Some good, some bad.

This site has a wealth of information about them:

http://www.chucklohr.com/808/

I've only ever owned a #3 type camera, and it wasn't bad. It occasionally dropped frames (possibly a low-spec memory card) and the charging circuit in the #3 cam never did work properly. It would never cut off the charge, you'd have to unplug it after an hour or so. Not good considering it uses a LiPo battery.

However, the footage wasn't bad. However, it used a 640x480 pixel sensor and upscaled it to a larger, 720x480 avi. Note the differing aspect ratio, so video out of a #3 camera appears stretched. They generally sell for $20-$30 dollars.

The newest version at the moment is the #11 cam. I'm not sure whether it suffers from the charging problem or not, but the great thing about the #11 is that it records in 720p HD, and has a true 720p sensor... No upscaling or stretching. These ones go for about $40.

[youtube][/youtube]

[Technician1002]

I found tying a bright pink, orange, or chartreuse mason line to a projectile provides very little drag and makes the landing easier to spot. The projectile can be buried in a bush and the 10 feet or so of the bright string draped over the bush makes them easy to spot. I've used this with bottles of water and a 10 to 20 foot (3-6 meter) string works well.

[JDP12]

This isn't to find the landing spot, this is to create an aerial camera project of my own.

Thanks for the info on the 808 #3 camera, I did some research, found a seller on ebay that seems reliable (As reliable as hong kong sellers can be that is), gonna keep looking though while my paypal account gets approved.