Spy Review

The micro-DVR camera kit is truly an expression of how small spy equipment has become over the years. This miniature camera stick is about the size of a standard cigarette lighter (73mm x 20mm x 11mm), yet it conceals a tiny pinhole camera and a simplified version of an MPEG4 video recorder! The micro-DVR supports up to 2GB microSD memory cards, giving you hours of video recording.

microDVR Spy Camera and microSD Card
(click to enlarge)

The kit comes in a neat iPod-style box, with an instruction manual, quickstart guide, USB connection lead and the microDVR itself. Pakatak sell the micro-DVR camera with and without a microSD card. For the microSD card to be included in the kit, it only costs you only £20 extra. If you’ve never seen a microSD card before (and I hadn’t), it’s tiny! The microSD card measures just 15mm by 11mm and comes with a special adaptor to allow you to use it with most USB PC card readers.

microDVR Spy Camera Kit
(click to enlarge)

The microDVR is very easy to use. You pop in the memory card, switch it on, and press the front button for a couple of seconds, and then the green light starts flashing. The camera is recording. To stop the camera, hold the button again for a couple of seconds, and the green light stays off. Simple! If you want to disable the stop button whilst recording, you simply flick the “hold” switch. It takes a couple of tries to get used to starting and stopping the recording. The first time I tried, I stopped the recording and started it again by holding on to the button for too long.

The camera itself is just above the shirt/belt clip on the opposite side to the buttons. This is the best place for the lens, as you can clip the camera onto your shirt, jacket or jeans without drawing much attention to the camera at all.

If you want to retrieve the videos from the microDVR, plug it into the computer using the USB lead and switch it on. The computer will automatically detect the recorder and allow you to transfer the video files to your PC using the normal file drag-and-drop method. Alternatively you can remove the microSD card from the microDVR and use any SD card reader you have already. To charge the microDVR, just leave the camera plugged into the computer with it switched off. A red light glows to show that it’s in charging mode.

The quality of the recorded video is very high, despite being in 3GP format. However, the video resolution is limited to just 176×144 pixels. The video is supported by Apple’s Quicktime codec, or you can play the video on Video iPods, iPhones and most modern mobile phones. As you can see from the sample video clip I recorded, the camera responds very well to light changes and there is no blockiness in the video footage.

Sample Video Clip
(Click to open. Requires Apple Quicktime)

This spy camera serves very well as a “quick and dirty” way of grabbing video footage covertly. It neatly fits into situations where you need to gather initial video evidence to warrant the need for most sophisticated video equipment. Given that you can start recording with this camera in just a couple of seconds, you can keep this little gadget tucked away in your pocket for ad-hoc operations. You could also think of it as a video Dictaphone.

For £120, the microDVR and memory card kit is very affordable. This has got to be the simplest digital video recording device you’ll find in the spy market. It would be nice to see higher resolutions in newer models though. However, it is perfect for last-minute operations where video evidence is essential.