A total of 18 reviews have been posted.
Reviewed by: Ravi on 2009-11-12 17:11:06.
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Nice and simple product,its better than switching my dvd camcorder,good for saving and sharing small memories. I thought pen would be very bulky like some usb flash pens but its very light to carry in pocket.was not able to use as a usb web cam,that would have been a great add on for this simple product.overall very satisfied
Reviewed by: Not Into Spying BUT on 2009-11-09 14:52:53.
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I do not like or ever 'spy' on people; however after several unexpected stalking incidents by a neighbor who appears 'normal' but is clearly very mentally disturbed and was able to use this device to capture both video and audio of several episodes from my neighbor.
It is great to be able to carry with you at all times due to it's small size and ability to not have to 'hide' it and try to pull it out when needed, as well as no looking like a bizarre stalker yourself, always walking around with a visible video camera.
There are some problems, but most of them are caused by 'trying to get it to work with your system and programs'. The problem is only in trying or taking steps to 'install drivers' because none are needed. On Windows Vista Basic no drivers or software is needed. Trying to install it or find a driver will mess your head up and make you believe the product does not work.
Just charge, push once (long 1-2 seconds) to turn on, wait 10 seconds or so until the blue light comes on, and it is recording.
You can also skip the 10 second delay after powering up with a quick tap of the button.
Likewise, when power is on, one lite tap of the button turn recording on and off quickly as needed.
PROBLEM: CHARGING ... I thought mine was broken until I realized you can only charge the device with the included wall plug usb charger that comes with the product. BIG NOTE: It needed to be plugged directly into the charging unit to charge. Use of the supplied cable between the camera and the charger did not work, BUT ... IT IS BETTER, EASIER AND PREFERABLE to just plug it directly into the base.
4GB of space but only 1.5 hours of battery life per charge seems illogical. I thought so at first, but it does make sense. You can take 1.5 hours of time, plug and recharge, and use again and again without having to transfer to your PC via USB port each time (which is a slow process and in practice it works better to use it for several day or so, then all at once transfer/delete the files from the pen cam just like a portable flash drive.
It requires a lot of light to get excellent image quality, but ALL digital imaging is exactly the same.
Likewise, it needs to be held very steady to have a viewable jerk free video to watch ... Just like all digital video recording. The only difference is the packaging which is meant for discreet/hidden use, so of course it will require a lot more attention and effort to movement than a camcorder designed with large hand grips ergonomically designed to make shake free video as easy as possible. The Pen Cam was ergonomically designed for hidden 'spy' use - and that is what the pay-off is when choosing your video capture device. YOU CAN'T HAVE IT ALL.
HIGHLY RECOMMENDED WITH NOTE ON HOW EASY IT IS TO LOSE THE CAMERA. It is as easy to lose as a pen. If you are always loosing your pens, you are likely to lose the camera ... as I did. But would buy another one in a second if there were another situation that arises to need it. 5 stars for product as well as the seller.
Reviewed by: DJ-POUT on 2009-11-05 18:02:11.
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Video quality is very good if you have in mind the size of the part inside, used as the camera, it's so tiny!! I found a webcam function, by pressing the top button for few seconds while usb is connected, but where is the divers on the web??
Reviewed by: Cherylsaynhi on 2009-10-08 16:10:12.
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So far, so good! I didn't buy mine here, though. I bought mine on Ebay for $10 less. But so far, I really like this pen, and I think it's worth every penny of the price it's going for on this site. The only thing I am having an issue with is how to change the ink because mine seems dried up. What kind of ink doo-hickey do I purchase, and how do I remove the old one and install the new one?
Reviewed by: Edward on 2009-08-14 09:59:58.
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exelent!
for watch video on windows media player you have to download the file from here, first time I plug in, does not show video only sound, then I call costumer service shop4tech.com, very nice woman give instructions and done, all the issues gone, high quality video and sound, of course is a pen, just remember!
REMEMBER READ THE INSTRUCTION HERE shop4tech.com!
FULLY RECOMENDED FOR THOSE WHO LIKE TO SPY!
I LEFT IN MY DESKTOP AND RECORD UP TO 2HRS! COOL!!!
Reviewed by: LONNIE1949 on 2009-08-09 21:07:16.
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VERY EASY TO USE.VIDEO QUALITY IS OK FOR WHAT IT IS. SOUND DOESN'T MATCH THE VIDEO, LIKE AN OLD CHINESE MOVIE.VOICE IS PICKED UP QUITE WELL. WORKS BEST IN HIGH LIGHT. OR UNDER FLORESCENT LIGHT.SUNLIGHT IS THE BEST. YOU NEED TO HOLD IT QUITE STILL. I'M HAPPY WITH THE OVERALL QUALITY FOR THE PRICE.MY MAIN CONCERN IS WHAT YOU ARE SUPPOSED TO DO WHEN THE RECHARGEABLE INTERNAL BATTERY DIES.IT WOULD HAVE BEEN NICE TO HAVE IT REPLACEABLE .IT'S GLUED IN PLACE WITH ALL THE OTHER GUTS OF THE THING.PLAY BACK WON'T WORK WITH WINDOWS MEDIA PLAYER WITHOUT PURCHASING A PLUGIN FROM WINDOWS.YOU ONLY GET THE SOUND. QUICK TIME PLAYER WORKS, ALSO VLC PLAYER WORKS. PRETTY COOL GADGET THOUGH !!
Reviewed by: Codecs? on 2009-07-27 14:00:07.
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I have had no problem playing the video either directly from the pen cam or when moved to my hard drive and played.
I have Windows Vista Basic.
It works with:
The GOM Media player (free cnet download - excellent player)
The KM Player (also free cnet download)
Google's Picassa picture program recognized and plays automatically.
also:
Real Player (free version) works
Windows Media Player works, but personally I've never liked it very much and seems to be the worst for playing back videos played.
Reviewed by: Loved to disappointed to Loved on 2009-07-27 13:53:35.
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At first, out of the box, I loved this product. For 2 days it was amazing how great the 'tests' were.
The image quality is excellent (relative to the price, size and comparative to digital video recording in general).
After two days, I could not get the PenCam to re-charge. All I could get was 8-10 seconds of battery time before the auto shut off. A couple of times I got upto 30 minutes before the auto shut off for lack of battery power.
I was going to return it but I found out how to get it to work/take a full charge.
As shown, the product comes with a wall charger and a usb cord to the charger.
My Pen Cam would not take a full charge when I used the wall charger with the usb cord that came with it.
It also would not take a full charge through my usb port directly or with the cord supplied through my laptop usb port.
HOWEVER: So far, it seems to take a full charge and work exactly as it is suposed to by charging the PenCam directly into the charging base without the cord.
For some reason, the direct input into the wall charge adapter works. The yellow light flashes until the battery is fully charged, then remain on to indicate full charge (as the instructions indicate).
I seem to get around 1 hour and 15 minutes to an hour and a half with a full charge.
It is somewhat irrational to have the 4GB capacity when the battery life only lasts for, at most, an hour and a half recording.
But, for the price and compared to virtually nothing comparable for sale in the price range, I am not very happy again with the product and would highly recommend it (and I am not going to return it after all).
NOTES:
It takes a lot of 'LIGHT' to take good, clear images (but all digital recording and picture devices need good light to take decent pictures).
The movie is very shakey when played back to the extent you move the camera around when recording. You can't blame the shakiness on the camera if you are walking around recording with the pen in your pocket, just sticking out enough to take images.
The 'Blue Light' that is on while recording does seem to defeat the 'secret' spy cam aspect. But in reality, when there is sufficient lighting, the light is very hard to see, even when trying to make sure it is recording.
I think if someone was 'spying' with this camera and was 'caught' by the light, it could easily be dismissed as a bluetooth device for a cell phone with some story about it not working properly.
Also, the pen is large. Depending on the situation, I suppose it could look odd, but it does write and I don't think that the large pen would give it away.
More important, the bottom half is the where the working pen is located. The top half containing the camera and usb end can be used completely the same without the bottom 'pen' portion of the product.
Nobody will know you don't have the rest of the pen, let's say in your shirt pocket, where the top half is sticking out and appears normal.
My concern when using the camera without the bottom 'pen' half is protecting the USB connection, which is totally exposed without the bottom half to cover and protect it from damage, moisture, dust and physical damage.
It is overall a really neat, fun and useful product. Depending on your needs and patients with it's limits (time only 1 1/2 hour and the odd need to charge directly into the wall charger), I do recommend this product.
SIDE NOTE/QUESTION/SUGGESTION
IT WOULD BE AN AWESOME WEB CAM IF THERE WAS/IS A DRIVER FOR IT TO WORK WITH WINDOWS VISTA.
MY COMPUTER TRIED TO LOCATE A DRIVER AFTER RECOGNIZING THE DEVICE AS A WEB CAM WHEN ATTACHED TO THE COMPUTER AND THE RECORD BUTTON IS PUSHED AND HELD, BUT CAN NOT FIND ANY DRIVER.
IT IDENTIFIES THE PRODUCT AS "Anyka usb web camera" BUT I CAN NOT FIND A DRIVER FOR IT.
If anyone can help or knows how to install the proper driver, it would double the function of the SpyPen Cam and would be even better.
Reviewed by: Stealthnv on 2009-07-11 12:19:47.
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Have had this for several weeks. The video works great, the audio is way too loud, and usually distorted.
Reviewed by: sam on 2009-06-16 17:15:28.
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I am very impress with this camera. Picture quality is amazing.
Awsome.
Reviewed by: ED on 2009-06-03 08:33:11.
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I got the pen and tried to use it, but got only audio, no video. I did some research on the web and found out my PC was missing the codec needed to play the video. I downloaded the"k-lite codec pack" and ran it. I unchecked all the other codecs so nothing else would get messed up, and installed only the "h.263" codec. It works great now.
My operating system is Vista Ultimate but was still missing the codec.
I hope this helps other buyers.
Reviewed by: XINJ on 2009-05-14 14:03:37.
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I got this pen camcorder today and I was amazed at the quality of this little spy camcorder.However, the pen is not that much stylish and looks odd in the pocket. Apart from that everything is 5 stars and suggest this product to everyone.
Reviewed by: Cyberzombie1 on 2009-05-13 08:34:42.
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I bought this as a cheap gag to mess with co-workers. To my astonishment, it has an extremely clear picture and great audio! Keep in mind that this is a $40 "spy pen", so if you're looking for 1920x1080res. and 256kbs audio, then you'd better look at the $1000 cameras.
I am thrilled with the purchase (although I haven't had a chance to check battery life or to see if the battery is replaceable). I have used it for about an hour worth of videos, busted a couple of co-workers (in a fun way) and every one in my office is now buying these!!!
Well worth the small investment! The only thing that would be a nice feature would be delayed or motion activated recording, but again, for $40 you really can't go wrong!!!
I would definitely recommend this item if you wanna have a little fun...or maybe catch someone in the act of doing something they're not supposed to!!!
Enjoy and I hope this review helps...
Cyberzombie1
Reviewed by: Seymore Hiney on 2009-05-07 08:32:28.
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awesome pen! you of seen some of the vids i got in the summer time when i "dropped" my pen in the lockerroom!
Reviewed by: Sanjay on 2009-04-02 11:05:37.
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I bought this item. It is good for taking vidoes but didn't find it useful for taking pictures. Overall a great product by its size & utility as a secret gadget. Thanks!
