Playme Spark-overview

Playme continues to expand its range of DVRs, maintaining the tradition of giving devices their own names-easy to remember, as opposed to combinations of letters and numbers, like the vast majority of other manufacturers. The DVR in question is named Spark, which translates as Spark.

Package contents

Your device is shipped in a white box with basic product information printed on it. The kit contains everything you need to quickly install the registrar:

video recorder Playme Spark;
pad with adhesive strip;
cigarette lighter adapter with 3.5m cable;
user manual in Russian.

Construction

The plastic case of the recorder has a shape that is entirely determined by the purpose of the device. If not for the need for a screen, the device would look like a cylinder with two lenses. Here, the display protrudes above the cylindrical block with optics. The arrangement of the elements looks thoughtful, there are no complaints about the quality of the casting of parts and assembly (fortunately, they learned how to do this a long time ago). Five mechanical buttons, located in a row under the display, are perfectly felt in the dark. The buttons do not rattle, they have a soft and precise move.

The main lens, directed forward in the direction of the vehicle, has no tilt adjustment. But this is not required, because the mounting platform has such a mechanism. Unlike the main camera, the second lens is built into the rotating part of the body-a cylinder protruding from the left. The tilt range of this camera is about 90 degrees. This wide angle will allow you to tilt the camera to the floor or even lift it up to the ceiling.

Camera interfaces are mounted on the sides of the case: a Mini-USB port with a reset button on one side and a memory card slot on the other.

Mount and connect

The recorder platform is attached to the windshield in the area of the rear-view mirror, but exactly where-to the left, right or below-this is already selected based on the purpose of the device. If you want to take pictures of the driver's face, we attach it to the left. Do you need to capture the faces of passengers? We sculpt the site on the right. Need to write down everyone in the salon? Please hang the camera in the center, under the mirror. However, in this case, the driver's view will be slightly impaired if the windshield has a low height.

Device Management

The recorder is controlled by five mechanical buttons. The display shows all the necessary information: operating mode, current date and time, status of the built-in battery, etc.

Machine settings are not categorized, all parameters are in a single section, consisting of three pages.

By default, the display shows the video stream from both cameras in picture-in-picture mode, with the main camera taking up most of the screen, while the second camera broadcasts the stream in a small window in the upper left corner of the screen. The display mode can be changed by pressing the middle button, each press switches the signal sources in sequence.

DVR power supply

When power is applied, the recorder turns on automatically, video recording starts immediately. When the power is turned off, the recorder turns off after 5 seconds, with a last squeak. The device can be turned on forcibly even in the absence of stationary power, in this autonomous mode the supply of a fully charged battery will be enough for 3 minutes of video recording in a working display.

Video recording

During recording, Playme Spark splits the material into segments of the duration specified in the settings. The footage from each camera is saved to folders named F (Front) and R (Rear), which are located in the Event, Normal and Parking folders. Also, a Photo folder is created on the memory card, where photos taken by the recorder are stored.

The recorder encodes Full HD video with AVC codec with a maximum bit rate of 16 Mbps. This bitrate is usually sufficient for mostly static scenes with a Full HD frame size. The audio in files is encoded in stereo ADPCM with a bitrate of 256 Kbps.

The resolution of video captured by the DVR in good light reaches 850 TV lines on the horizontal side of the frame in the senior Full HD (1920x1080) shooting mode.

Additional functions

Playme Spark has a built-in G-sensor with a sensitivity setting, which is best immediately reduced to a minimum.

Another safety-related mode is the parking mode, which records events when the vehicle is stopped or parked. Events can be monitored by the G-sensor and software-optical motion detector. The G-sensor detects vibration or shock and automatically starts recording a short protected video. The motion detector behaves in a similar way: it constantly analyzes the picture, and upon detecting its change, it also records a video file. This recording will continue while the recorder detects movement, and will stop after the movement stops.

The next function is extremely rare in similar devices-work as a webcam.

When the DVR is connected to a PC via USB, a list of three items appears on the display:

Removable Disk
Webcam
DV

If you select the second item, then in a few seconds the system will install the required driver and a new one will appear in the list of devices:

This is a regular webcam that will work with any program that supports video sources. Yes, even Skype or Viber. However, with one peculiarity: the signal from the camera does not contain an audio stream. That is, this camera works without sound.

Sound

The sound recorder encodes with the ADPCM codec, the algorithm of which was invented in the early 1970s. The codec was originally used and continues to be used in telephony. The microphone is sensitive to all frequencies, from low to high. Speech remains intelligible, no overloads allowed.

Conclusions

Car DVR Playme Spark does not belong to the class of sophisticated and advanced solutions with exquisite video capabilities. This is a typical workhorse whose task is to work continuously for a long time without any excesses, freezes or reboots. The only drawback of the device is the weak battery. But why does a registrar need a battery, which must always be powered by a car battery? The positive properties of the recorder are obvious: bright display and good resolution. The presence of an in-salon camera takes the device out of the shopping list of an ordinary user. This design is necessary for various services, and it is also popular in the field of passenger transportation.

You can buy a Playme Spark video recorder at 130.com.ua with delivery in Kiev, Kharkov, Odessa and all Ukraine.

Buy Playme Spark