Nice!

I've been looking at the wifi version of the Polaroid Cube for a while and wondered if it would provide a decent view of the railroad without too much "fish eye". Thanks for sharing. I'm inspired to get myself a late Father's Day present as well!

Neil E

Camera

It is the Polaroid Cube Plus version that has the built-in wifi and it was really easy to use even for an old guy like me. 

Wow!

"Shipped"!

Ebay noted that my Poloroid Cube plus has been shipped! I probably paid too much as I decided not to bid and chose to "buy it now". Very exciting. I imagine that it should fit on a flat or gondola in On30 easily so look forward to seeing a view from the train. Thanks again. 

Neil E

Have Fun

It will fit much better on a car in your scale.   I will have to modify my planned tunnel portals ( from rounded to square openings) to accommodate the camera as it is a wide load in my scale.

Thanks

I appreciate the comment.  It helps to keep me motivated as I already have 3+ years building this layout and it will probably take me a few more months to complete the engine facility (inside of the east helix) at Union Station.  It will have one of the Walther's DCC 130 ft turntables so I am proceeding slow to make sure that I do it correctly.

Cube

That was great! (flubs and all) Hadn't thought about using one of those, but now i'm really interested.Thank You for the kick in the butt. That was a real demo. TK

I don't mean to hijack ...

... but I wanted to show the micro SQ8 camera that I got that may be a better size for us N scalers.

Here is is on a Walthers log car behind my Atlas RS-2.  It is .9" x.9" x .85", so clearance is much less of an issue (it is barely into overwidth load territory)

It is billed as being a 1080p camera, but that is at 15 frames per second.  It really does best at 720P 30 FPS.  Cost is somewhere around $25 without a memory card.

Here is a little video shot with the setup.

Flubs....

My videos are always unscripted (other than the general idea of what I wanted to show) so when things happen, such as hitting the building, I just leave them in the video...John

Your Camera

Toni,

Sure there are a lot of small video cameras (some for just a few dollars) and yes I did look at the one that you cited. However, while price was a consideration, it was the cube's WiFi interface to my iPhone (allows remote control of camera as well as a viewfinder) that was the key deciding factor as well as the ease of interface with my Mac Pro computer. 

camera

Do any of the camera's you guys are using transmit the picture real time in wifi. I'm looking to use something similar to transmit to a projector to be used for a full size cab simulator. I've been using the micro cam from SJT enterprises so far. Gives me a half decent picture but too many dropouts. This would be used in HO scale by the way. Looking for a higher quality picture and better reception mainly. ---Thanks, Ken 

No wifi on the SQ8

Yep, that is one of the things that I wish it had.  It does have a video out line built into the charging cable, so video is available to hack.  One of the guys I showed it to suggested adding a 5 Ghz wifi transmitter module, and I thought about it but I really like the tiny size.  

Real time

I got mine last week and, yes, it does transmit real time. I don't have a tv or projector in the train room but an Apple TV may allow you to push it to other devices. The idea of a cab simulator is very cool. I hope to allow guest operators on my layout and have near real time visuals. 

Neil Erickson 

My Answer After a Quick Test

Neil,

I set up the camera in my living room and connected to it (I don't have a TV in the train bldg).  I also had my Apple TV on. The cube camera is actually saving the video to itself while broadcasting to the iPhone as a viewfinder so while it was filming I could not find any way to interface the video in real time to the TV via the Apple TV The Polaroid app does not have a direct interface with the Apple TV (and they do not seem to have any plans to add one). After I stopped the video, the app did allow me to save the video to the iPhone which I was then able to project onto the TV via Airplay. The basic app, however, is compatible with the iPhone & iPad for viewing real time so, for me, that is all I need. As for a cab simulator, I don't think that it would work, but maybe there is someone who could figure that one out.  I vaguely rmember reading something about someone taking apart an older smart phone and using its camera on a model railroad but I do not remember where I saw or read that article.

John

Please See My Comments

Please see my comments to Neil about a quick test of the camera that I just did.....John

John - try this

Since the Cube+ broadcasts it's own wifi you will need to go to Settings, Network on the Apple TV and select the camera. My password is 1234567890 so after connecting do the same on your iPhone or iPad and launch the app. Slide up from the bottom to choose AirPlay and "Mirror" the device on the TV. I was looking at myself in bvd's so spared y'all from that image but was looking at whatever the camera saw. 

I am curious about how far the wifi will travel but a simulated cab in the same room or nearby would be awesome!

Neil

Yup..It Worked

You were right.  I got it to work per your instructions, so I guess if you have a tv & apple tv in your train room then you can have it mirror what you see on your iPhone or iPad viewfinder when using the cube+.

Your Camera

I found a smaller mini or micro digital camera that fits inside an N-scale gondola that might work OK.  It's called a TE-93 and looks like it was designed for R/C plane or drone applications. I am fiddling with a design and receiver for it at the moment.