Review: BirdWatchCam

Spring is in the air! To celebrate I thought I’d find a unique spring gadget to test out. The stranger the better I say! Well I found a doozey. Brinno’s BirdWatchCam.

The BirdWatchCam allows you to keep track and photograph birds coming and going from your yard, even when you’re not there. The motion sensor camera is designed to be used in any weather to snap quick pics around the clock. Bird watchers dream or bird brained gimmick?

Design

The BirdWatchCam looks and feels like an older bulky digital camera. The unit is fairly lightweight and is completely encased in a weatherproof shell so it can withstand rain, sleet, snow, and heat. A heavy duty snap resides on the side of the camera, to allow access inside.

The camera is battery operated and requires 4 AA’s. Brinno claims the batteries will last up to 6 months (but of course that depends on how much you use it). As for the pictures, they are all stored on a SD memory card. The camera will accept any SD card with a capacity of up to 2 GB. Both batteries and SD card are included with the camera.

Setup

There are three different ways to mount the camera. There are suction cups located on the back of the unit which makes it easy to stick to a window or other smooth surfaces. If you don’t trust suction cups you can screw it in place. There are holes in the back plate of the camera where screws can be used. The camera also comes with bungee cords so you can strap it to a tree or pole if the other options don’t work.

There is no viewfinder on the camera so you have to be careful when aiming it. Thankfully Brinno has attached a laser to the top of the camera so you get an idea on the framing of your shot. Pressing down a button will turn on the laser. Once it’s shining in the area you plan on shooting, secure the camera.

It’s important to note the camera does not auto-focus, so you must place it at certain set distances from your subject. By turning the lens you can choose from three different pre-sets. You are limited to three distances, 1.5 meters, 2 meters, and 3 meters. This is important! If you do not measure you will get blurry pictures!

Features

Once the camera is in place you’re ready to start snapping pictures. After you turn it on, the camera gives you one minute to fine tune your position and settings. After that the motion sensor will kick in and the camera will start taking pictures automatically.

The camera is designed to snap 15 photos in 10 seconds. This is to make sure you get at least a couple of good pics once the motion sensor has been triggered (more on this later). You do not hear any noise while the pictures are being taken, which is nice since you don’t want to scare off any birds. The camera can sense when it’s night time and will turn off automatically. A great feature to save on battery life.

When you want to check your pictures, just pull the memory card out and stick it in your computer. You have two options when it comes to looking at your pictures. You can either click and drag photos from the card onto your desktop and view them with the program of your choice, or install the software supplied by Brinno.

Photo Quality

While the camera takes decent pictures, they are by no means of professional quality. The camera only has a 1.3 mega Pixel CMOS, so that pretty much tells the tale right there. In open, well lit areas, you can easily identify the species of bird and get some nice detail. If photos are being taken on a cloudy day, or if your feeder is in the shade, your picture will not look as nice. The camera does not handle poor lighting very well. To get good pictures you must ensure your camera is in a good location.

Software on the camera automatically time stamps and dates your pictures. That way you know exactly what time that Blue jay flew into your yard, and how long it stuck around for. This can be an important feature if you’re a serious “birder”

Downfalls

While the idea of having the camera take 15 photos in 10 seconds sounds great, it can make for  a lot of work. Some birds are quick (Chickadees). They flew up to the feeder and took off right away Well, guess what? The camera grabbed one pic then took 14 other pics of an empty feeder. While we see the need for the “burst” of photos, it is a pain to filter through hundreds of photos and find 80% of them blank.

I also found the motion sensor was a bit too sensitive. If a branch located near your feeder happens to move in the breeze, pictures will be taken. If the feeder you are shooting happens to sway in the wind, a picture will be taken. Actually let me clarify that…multiple pictures will be taken. Don’t forget the camera will take pictures for 10 seconds once activated. You can imagine how many false alarms are triggered on a breezy day.

Bottom Line

There’s no denying the BirdWatchCam was a lot of fun to play. I’m by no means a bird enthusiast but it was kind of cool to see what came in and out of the area where I set it up. I am however disappointed by the picture quality. While the pics are decent, I can’t help but wonder why such a low grade camera is used. Why only 1.3 mega pixels? For the price ($179) I’d expect more.

If you are a bird enthusiast who needs to know what is happening around your yard, the BirdWatchCam may be worth checking out. Just don’t expect to take any award winning pictures. You’ll only be using these for personal use.

The Good

Weather resistant
Laser pointer helps you frame your shot
Time and date stamp on photos

The Bad

Poor Pictures in low lit areas
Only 1.3 Mega Pixel CMOS
Motion sensor triggers a lot of false alarms
Plenty of blank pictures
Expensive for a low end camera

[Brinno]