Mobius is no longer recognized by computers.

[TTan]

Hello,

I am on my second mobius camera. Both cameras have suffered the same issue within 3 weeks of use. I am hoping that someone out there knows whats up. I don't want to give up on the mobius camera, as its exactly what I need minus this issue.

The issue:
The camera via mini usb cable is no longer picked up by any pc that it is plugged into. The date has reverted to default, and cannot be updated.

I use my mobius as a dashcam, which is mounted on a suction cup mounting system, and connected via miniusb to an anker 13000mah powerbank, I use this while I am parked at work, (someone whacked my car for 5500 bucks of damage and got away with it), and for driving as I learned, one can never be too careful.

I feel like its a hardware issue with the mobius, but I'm not positive. The sucker gets pretty hot, and having a cable hang out of it, can't be a good thing.

I've tried multiple cables, and multiple usb ports, and multiple computers, and multiple programs to clean out usb drivers. I run windows 7 primarily, but I have several computers running other os's.

The first time this happened, I returned it, and the new one worked perfect. After 2 weeks in the car, not so much.

When it was new, it was picked up at every usb port, with every cable that I tried. It could be used as a webcam or I could browse the drive for the video files.

I upgraded it with a capacitor, and I have two class 10 64gb sandisk microsdxc cards that I can swap if needed.

I updated the firmware to the newest 2.33, and all of this worked perfect until recently. It still receives power from the miniusb cable, and since I set it to record when external power is connected, it will record in the car. The buttons are still responsive on the camera, as far as I can tell. Power will turn it off and on, and mode will swap, and record will record. The problem is connecting to computers.

When I mounted the capacitor, I used the double sided tape that was already in the camera from the battery and mounted it over the usb port. Maybe it gets hotter then the battery and damaged the usb?

Maybe the bumps in the road, caused jiggling of the cable and damaged the port? I had planned on running an up angle miniusb into the liner of my car around to my glove box, so there wouldn't be pressure/pulling, but hadn't gotten to that point yet.

The weather has been cold, where I am ~35-45 degrees f. So its not like its in a completely hostile environment.

I run the camera around 6.5 hrs at a time.

I'm at a loss here as to what's happening. All I can think of is, is hardware damage from overheating. I don't want to just replace this one and have the same thing happen. If I am doing something wrong, knowing that would be a big help. I've invested a bunch of time, and a bit of money into this project. I would hate to have to find another camera that can be used for my car and out about in the world.


Thanks for any insight

 

[Isoprop]

Setting the correct date and approx. time is easy, but you'll need to use the manual method by creating and editing the SYSCFG.TXT file if your PC doesn't recognize the camera. The date/time reverted to the default date/time when the supercap ran down or was replaced.

Assuming the on-board USB switch hasn't been damaged by incorrect wiring or over-voltage the only thing left is the actual USB socket or the USB plug. I know you posted that you've tried multiple cables, but you may have to try some more. Preferably you should make your own so you know the joints are well-soldered and you've used quality wire. Failing this, try and find a very thick and short USB cable.
If your original plug was heavy or there was excessive wire hanging on the plug then it's possible the solder contacts holding the USB socket onto the board have become cracked. A primitive test would be to use a multimeter to check if the connections from the USB cable to the solder contacts on the board are continuous. You would have to first remove the battery and solder needles to the ends of your probes to test. You may also want to inspect the solder joints with a magnifying glass. Always remove the battery before prodding anything.
Like I said, assuming the on-board USB switch hasn't been damaged, your problem sounds very much as if it's a physical problem with the USB socket/plug/cable.
Does video-out and webcam mode work?

 

[TTan]

Setting the correct date and approx. time is easy, but you'll need to use the manual method by creating and editing the SYSCFG.TXT file if your PC doesn't recognize the camera. The date/time reverted to the default date/time when the supercap ran down or was replaced.

Assuming the on-board USB switch hasn't been damaged by incorrect wiring or over-voltage the only thing left is the actual USB socket or the USB plug. I know you posted that you've tried multiple cables, but you may have to try some more. Preferably you should make your own so you know the joints are well-soldered and you've used quality wire. Failing this, try and find a very thick and short USB cable.
If your original plug was heavy or there was excessive wire hanging on the plug then it's possible the solder contacts holding the USB socket onto the board have become cracked. A primitive test would be to use a multimeter to check if the connections from the USB cable to the solder contacts on the board are continuous. You would have to first remove the battery and solder needles to the ends of your probes to test. You may also want to inspect the solder joints with a magnifying glass. Always remove the battery before prodding anything.
Like I said, assuming the on-board USB switch hasn't been damaged, your problem sounds very much as if it's a physical problem with the USB socket/plug/cable.
Does video-out and webcam mode work?

I'll borrow a multimeter soon from a friend and I will inspect the joints after work.

In the car, I've been using the cable that was included with the camera. My other cables, are new and appear to be high quality. I have several different lengths of this one: http://www.monoprice.com/mobile/Pro...Id=103&categoryId=10303&subCategoryId=1030302

I have not tested video out, but I can confirm webcam mode no longer works.

Thank you for your help,
TTan

 

[TTan]

Spoke with spytec today, attempting to troubleshoot. I didn't see anything noticeable with internals. Shining a light into the port, some of the pins seemed uneven but it was hard to see.
I did not have sewing needles small enough to move the pins around to see if it's a contact issue.

I'll see about stopping by Joanne's fabric for small curved needles. Maybe it's that simple.

I am not sure I can get a photo of it but I can try later on tonight. If I am going to take photos, I'm prepared to take it apart once more. Let me know if that's helpful.

Ultimately spytec didn't know what the issue was and suggested a return and reorder.

I am still interested to see what the problem is. If it happens again, well I think there is an idiom for that.