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Stuart,
This means that one could simply but manually shut OFF the license plate camera, thereby preserving battery power if one doesn't drive the car for a week or two?
Any idea how long one can go without a recharge of the camera (i.e., if the car is garaged)?
Thanks for updates. ...provides more justification for hinting this for xmas. ,
~Richard
My XKR is garaged and usually covered (blocks the solar panel) and is not my daily driver. This is the third time I've charged it since I installed it on August 30. So it appears that the battery lasts about 1 month between charges, and much more if your car is driven daily.
Will manually shutting off the license frame extend the life of that battery? I don't know for sure, but that's irrelevant to me because of the low battery warning and the fact that it recharges while driving during the day and the ease of plugging in my phone charger. Even if the battery dies, it's no big deal because I've driven it for so many years without a backup cam. It's nice to have, but not essential.
I sure hope that you've been good, because Santa knows! 🎅
Looking through Scorecard Rewards (A points reward program where you earn points when we use our Visa card), there is a similar wireless backup camera sponsored by Hammacher Schlemmer for 19,900 points. I went ahead and ordered it, however will not be able to test it until Spring when I put the car back on the road.
Read my review. I returned it because it obstructed the button to open the trunk lid and didn't want to flip it upside down. I prefer to Type S, which is pictured in my review.
Looking through Scorecard Rewards (A points reward program where you earn points when we use our Visa card), there is a similar wireless backup camera sponsored by Hammacher Schlemmer for 19,900 points. I went ahead and ordered it, however will not be able to test it until Spring when I put the car back on the road.
Thanks for posting this, have totally forgotten about Scorecard Rewards and will have to check it out. I bought the Type S from Costco and have used for about 3 weeks and am going to return it. Being in AZ and driving it almost daily, thought it would be a great solution, but it only seems to last 2-3 days and loses connection frequently. Maybe it is because it is in the garage and covered parking frequently, but just isn't going to cut it. I'm not going to plug the plate in every couple of days to charge it, not looking for a backup camera to be a hassle. Might have to wire one in and be done with it, but anxious to look at the HS you mentioned.
Have not contacted them yet. It seems to work fine after letting it charge 6-8 hours, then lasts about 2-3 days. The monitor is constantly plugged in.
I'm also in AZ and the car is garaged most of the time. I've had the Type S for several months and not had a problem losing the charge. Sometimes the car sits for a week, or longer, without driving. They have a good customer service guy who can help. It's not as good as a fully integrated system but, for the price, is a good value. I've got a convertible and it's like looking out of a periscope when backing.
It doesn't matter that you leave the monitor plugged in because the cigarette lighter socket is a switched circuit and will be "off" when your car is "off".
You should always lock your car to immediately turn your car off. Otherwise, convenience mode will stay on and that socket will stay "live" for around 20 minutes before convenience mode shuts itself off. I believe, but am not certain, that you can deplete the battery in the backup cam frame because when the display is powered up, even though it may be blank, it's connected to the frame.
Alternatively, simply pull the power plug out of the cigarette lighter socket.
With these long nose British cars, I need the camera in the front. Can never get a sense of where the nose starts on these cars!
Yeah, tell me about it! My eType has taken a few punches in the nose over my 50 years of ownership......Yeah, I agree a forward facing camera would be very nice.
Yeah, tell me about it! My eType has taken a few punches in the nose over my 50 years of ownership......Yeah, I agree a forward facing camera would be very nice.
I placed an order for one with Costco yesterday and am looking forward to trying it. This should be less expensive than buying an F-Type with a backup camera.
To do a dual camera, easiest option is probably a GVIF. Can have FOUR cameras if you want (or two cameras, a DVD player and a full set of gauges via any Android box). Super easy to install, but the cameras do need to be hard wired. Course, if you can hook up a CTEK, you can sure hook up a couple cameras.
There is a new option that looks perfect on many levels. (I am tied up at the moment and unable to experiment for the group, but will do this winter, perhaps someone may want to take the lead)
1. Its truly wireless- not only for the connection from camera to screen, but also the power to the camera. (its ingeniously solar powered, and can be charged by cable)
2. The screen fits in the ashtray
3. you can turn it on with hand gestures whenever you want, without or before putting it in reverse gear.
4. its very affordable, and integrated.
5.I would pay $100 just for that smart looking license plate cover
$150 at Costco
Originally Posted by Stuart S
My BIG THANKS to Queen and Country for going beyond the call of duty to help me get this amazing backup cam. I ordered it over the phone from the Nashville Costco warehouse and he picked it up and mailed it to me. Unfortunately, when he tried to buy one for himself, for some reason Costco had already pulled their remaining inventory from the shelves and wouldn't sell one to him. Hopefully, he can find another retailer.
This is a great backup cam for $124. Super easy to install and operate, and the display unit is inobtrusive because it fits perfectly in the ashtray with no visible wires. Remove the existing license plate and reinstall it in the new license plate frame with the integrated solar powered backup cam. Get in the car, start the engine, open the ashtray, attach the power cord to the display unit and plug it into the cigarette lighter socket. Get out of the car and press the "on" button on the license plate frame and... done! The display now shows the rear view. Grid lines can be turned on or off and are adjustable. All the adjustments buttons are on the top edge. The display is turned on with a swipe of the hand and turns off automatically, but a quick swipe of the hand turns it right back on. No interior mods are needed if you use the ashtray; an adjustable mount is included but I chose to not use it. The frame does not obstruct the button to open the trunk.
It's a great supplement to the OEM Parking Aid system.
Sure, I'd rather have a backup cam that's integrated into the touchscreen. But that can't be installed in less than 15 minutes for $124 ... and no aggravation!
My Type S Camera / Screen arrived today and I just completed the installation. So far, it looks like a winner. Thanks for the tips!
It doesn't matter that you leave the monitor plugged in because the cigarette lighter socket is a switched circuit and will be "off" when your car is "off".
I got this for my wife for Christmas and installed it a couple of days later. I went a full 12 hours charging the frame and everything seemed to work fine. We didn't drive the car for a few days and when we did, I noted the the screen was powered, but didn't come on when I waved my hand at it. I thought it had become unpaired so I accomplished the pairing steps again and it seemed to work. When it failed to wake up the next time, I realized it wasn't a pairing issue because as soon as I unplugged and re-plugged the power cable from the screen, it woke up and was fine.
It seems that once power is completely removed from the cigarette lighter--either by locking the doors or waiting for the convenience mode to go off--the screen no longer responds to efforts to wake it up the next time you get in the car. It has power--the little blue power indicator light is on and the screen itself has a back-lit glow, but no amount of hand waving or button pushing on the top edge wakes it up--not even recycling the power switch. The only thing that has been successful is unplugging and then plugging it back in.
I thought I would see if anyone else is having this problem before I call the company.
I've actually experienced something like that before. I really didn't give it much thought - just unplugged the power line from the screen unit and plugged it back in. One time, even re-pairing wouldn't work, but resetting the camera from the button on the license plate frame, just under the camera, did the trick. So the device has a few "quirks" - it's a cheap implementation of some decent technology, and I can forgive them the occasional hiccup.
12-06-2018, 07:35 PM
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