iPod for video recording, possible??

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djkoz

Well-known member
OK, my ignorance is going to show a bit here.






A 40GB iPod sells for about $350. I assume there is a comporable PC version.


Is it possible to record video to the iPod either:



(a)[font=&quot] [/font]direct from the DVX100A into the iPod, with or without a tape in the camera? or



(b)[font=&quot] [/font]by running DV Rack on a laptop and feeding the signal into the iPod instead of a hard drive? (with or without a tape in the camera), and



(c)[font=&quot] [/font]ultimately feed the video back into the NLE PC ?



I would like to eliminate carrying around an external (heavy) hard drive, if possible.



Is there a better / cheaper solution? The FS-4 costs over $800 for 40 gb and, based on another thread, there seems to be many problems with this device when used with the DVX100A



My understanding is that 40GB will hold approximattely 3 hours of video. Is this correct?



Thanks in advance for the advice. This site is an invaluable resource and I appreciate the assistance very much.



Dan K
 
I've got a 60gb external hard disk in an enclosure, I think the total thing cost $150 when I got it last year. It uses a USB2 connection, and draws its power from the USB2 port (no power supply to worry about). It's infinitely portable, it's about the size of a calculator but provides 60gb of 5400rpm performance (I think the drive in it is a Toshiba laptop drive). Works great with DV Rack as an external drive, and stores about 5 hours of footage.

Don't know whether the ipod will do what you want or not, but this is an alternative that I think fits the bill, and costs half as much.
 
Also Hitachi makes those nice 2.5" laptop disks at 60gb (8mb cache) that spins in 7200RPM! I have one of those in my laptop, and it definetely feels faster than those normal disks. I also have one externally in a small USB2 enclosure. Very portable, and like Barry pointed out, draws it's power from the USB connection, so no power supply.
 
jleo,
The iPod is just a Firewire/USB 2.0 harddrive with some fancy firmware and a screen with controls...

if it was possible to blindly record from the DVX to a Hard Drive(no NLE intervention) than the iPod would be more than fast enough. It easily sustains close to the peak transfer limit of 50MB/sec (Firewire 400).

If I could, I would use my 20gb iPod to record to... instant digitizing... just gotta wait for the new HDX P2 cam instead :D
 
You might be able to record to the iPod drive, but it would probably end up frying the drive pretty quickly. Use a laptop drive. Cheaper, faster, much more rugged.
 
I have a question:

If you're using a small external hard drive to record to, then don't you do away with all of the following:
(1) tapes
(2) tape cleaners
(3) dirty heads
(4) wear and tear on heads (the heads won't even be used right?)
(5) dropped frames

I'm sure there are more to add to this list, but basically where's the negative side of this?

Why aren't we all doing this, throwing the tapes out and forgetting about the head cleaning issue (huge topic)?
 
Because sometimes hauling a laptop and hooking your camera to it and a hard drive isn't practical. Alot of my shoots are done in the woods, away from any source of power, and as well alot of them are handheld and/or supported in a place where you couldn't have a laptop...
 
Well, and yesterday I was filming an event and going straight to my laptop... In the cold 50 degree air, my laptop only lasted about 2 hours before it went to sleep. Fortunately there was a generator so I had power, but otherwise I would have been screwed.
 
So if a laptop is not always a good solution for making a non tape copy, what is? Besides FS-4?

Dan K
 
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