Test of the CCbetter Wildlife Observation Camera (Trail Cam)

Overview

The CCbetter Trail Cam, which is just 14x10x7cm, was delivered plus an AV cable and a ball-and-socket joint bracket with screws and dowels. Operating instructions were also included, but none of the numerous instructions was in German. Here you have to be content with English or French. The 8 AA batteries required for commissioning were not included. You don't necessarily need this, as the camera can also be operated with a 6V power supply.

The CCbetter wildlife observation camera is made of a robust plastic that is at least partially printed with a weatherproof camouflage optic. On the front of the case there are 44 infrared LEDs, the 5 megapixel CMOS sensor with a 120 degree wide-angle lens, as well as a front-mounted motion sensor and two inclined motion sensors. On the lower edge of the housing there is also the 6V power socket and a mounting option with a tripod thread. The camera can also be attached to the tree with a strap thanks to the attachment option on the back.

The camera can be opened via the side-mounted clip fastener. Here is also an eyelet, with which you can close the camera, for example by means of a lock. According to the product description, the camera is also splash-proof in accordance with protection class IP54. An insulation is looked for in the interior of the housing in vain. However, the battery compartment is protected by another plastic cover.

The camera is controlled and adjusted via the 'control center', which is located in the hinged lid of the camera. There is a 2.4 inch TFT display as well as numerous buttons and switches. Below there is also the SD card slot (note, no micro SD!), a USB socket and the power button, which can be set to the ON 'OFF and TEST positions.

The camera achieves a resolution of 1080p (1920x1080) for video recordings, whereby only 15 frames per second are possible here. With a lower resolution of e.g. 1280x720 pixels, 30 images per second are also possible. Further options are 848x480 @ 30 and 640x480 @ 30. A resolution of up to 12 megapixels can be set in picture mode. There are also options of 8 and 5 megapixels. The 12 and 8 megapixels are, however, interpolated.

OPERATION

The camera is easy to operate even without operating instructions. Settings are made in TEST mode. Here you can also change the language to German. Similarly, you can adjust the sensitivity of the motion sensor in TEST mode. If the camera is set correctly you just have to fix it and switch the switch to ON.

Features

The CCbetter wildlife observation camera has all the necessary features to get good shots.
Here is a brief list of all known settings:

• Video mode: Resolution (1080p, 720p, WVGA, VGA)
• Picture Mode: Resolution (12M, 8M, 5M)
• Other: Burst Mode, Video Length, Date Display, Timer, Password, Serial Number, Time Lapse, Motion Sensor Sensitivity, Power Save Mode, Language, Format, Factory Defaults, Date and Time, Auto Power Off, Sound Recording, Playback Mode, Firmware Version and Update.

Furthermore, you can watch the shot shots on the display.

field test

Setting up the CCbetter photo trap was easy and the most important settings were already set at the factory. The video and picture quality was quite good both day and night. The infrared night vision really does its job very well. The range of the motion sensor was also considerable, which means that movements that were a little further away were also precisely registered.