Where does Mobius get it time stamp info?

[AllThumbs]

Is it manually put into SYSCFG.TXT or installed from MSetup.exe?

 

[Bungus]

Msetup. Sync with my PC.

 

[Isoprop]

Is it manually put into SYSCFG.TXT or installed from MSetup.exe?

Both! If you use the manual method using the SYSCFG.TXT you can set the date and time but it will never be very accurate. With experience you'll be able to obtain a 1-5 second accuracy.
If you use mSetup (or the Android app) you'll be able to set the real time clock very accurately because the program communicates directly with the camera. mSetup will normally synchronize the clock to within 100ms (1/10 sec.) but the actual value depends on the idle state of the PC and the number of background jobs running.

 

[AllThumbs]

Both! If you use the manual method using the SYSCFG.TXT you can set the date and time but it will never be very accurate. With experience you'll be able to obtain a 1-5 second accuracy.
If you use mSetup (or the Android app) you'll be able to set the real time clock very accurately because the program communicates directly with the camera. mSetup will normally synchronize the clock to within 100ms (1/10 sec.) but the actual value depends on the idle state of the PC and the number of background jobs running.

 

[AllThumbs]

Isoprop,
Thank you.
You jogged my memory.

 

[sludgeguts]

Both! If you use the manual method using the SYSCFG.TXT you can set the date and time but it will never be very accurate. With experience you'll be able to obtain a 1-5 second accuracy.
If you use mSetup (or the Android app) you'll be able to set the real time clock very accurately because the program communicates directly with the camera. mSetup will normally synchronize the clock to within 100ms (1/10 sec.) but the actual value depends on the idle state of the PC and the number of background jobs running.

I update my Mobius through the firmware update programme (currently 3.0.5.1) and find that the timestamp never agrees with anything else. Whenever I come across something I may wish to put on YT, I make a note of the time as soon as it is safe to do so & noted a discrepancy. So now, when I start the camera, I call out the time on my phone & again as soon as it rolls over to the next minute. Friday's footage was stamped 3 minutes later than my phone.
My watch is a casio waveceptor - it checks the time signals from Rugby (?) every night, my clock radio alarm does the same. My PC automatically adjusts its clock somehow, as does my Broadband TV box. I assume my smartphone also gets its time from the internet?
Every one of the above devices shows corresponding time & yet my Mobius never shows the correct time, despite being regularly plugged into my pc & installing the latest updates.
I know it's not the end of the world but it could prove vital if footage was needed as evidence (lawyers will look for any discrepancies to get a case thrown out).
Aside from manually adjusting the time using syscfg.txt (And HOW do I do this?), is there a way to force the Mobius to better sync time with the PC?

 

[russ331]

...it could prove vital if footage was needed as evidence (lawyers will look for any discrepancies to get a case thrown out).

The time stamp on both of my Mobius cams disagree with each other & with my SGZC12RC & with my Casio WaveCeptor watch. I don't care. It doesn't matter whether the video has a time stamp or not. The video footage is all that matters. Don't worry about it.

 

[jokiin]

Setting the time and the ability to keep good time are two different things

 

[sludgeguts]

Setting the time and the ability to keep good time are two different things

I'm not expecting the cam to keep perfect time though. The cam uses a capacitor as its own power source & it's used every day - so externally powered for a good 9hrs with a break evenings and weekends. It doesn't gain or lose any time over these down times.
I just find it strange that, even after plugging into the PC and doing all the updates, it's still getting the wrong time. I could understand if it was an hour adrift, so not coping with the summer/winter change, but always 3 mins!

 

[jokiin]

have you kept track to see if it actually keeps time though, is it constantly 3 minutes out and stays that way, or does it drift?

quite a lot of camera don't keep time well without the aid of GPS to keep things in sync

 

[parklawn]

It doesn't matter whether the video has a time stamp or not. The video footage is all that matters. Don't worry about it.

I think so too. One of mine is off by a couple of years.

 

[Error7]

Don't want to state the obvious but if you're using mSetup to sync the Mobius time with the PC, you need to make sure that the time on the PC is accurate

 

[Isoprop]

I'm not expecting the cam to keep perfect time though. The cam uses a capacitor as its own power source & it's used every day - so externally powered for a good 9hrs with a break evenings and weekends. It doesn't gain or lose any time over these down times.
I just find it strange that, even after plugging into the PC and doing all the updates, it's still getting the wrong time. I could understand if it was an hour adrift, so not coping with the summer/winter change, but always 3 mins!

The date and time will not be updated unless you specifically tell the camera you want to do so. Updating the firmware will not update the time. Just connecting the camera to your PC will not update the time.
To update the time you must run mSetup, select the camera, make sure Sync Date/Time is set to Yes, and then click Set Parameters. At this moment the internal clock will be set as accurate as possible (normally within a few milliseconds) to your PC's date and time - guaranteed!

 

[sludgeguts]

The date and time will not be updated unless you specifically tell the camera you want to do so. Updating the firmware will not update the time. Just connecting the camera to your PC will not update the time.
To update the time you must run mSetup, select the camera, make sure Sync Date/Time is set to Yes, and then click Set Parameters. At this moment the internal clock will be set as accurate as possible (normally within a few milliseconds) to your PC's date and time - guaranteed!

AHhhhhhhh.
I see. That explains it - although I assumed I was already doing this as when I go away on hols for a week, the capacitor dies & the cam reverts to default time when powered so I always make sure to link to pc & run msetup etc. I'll be very careful to check that sync date/time is set to yes.
Cheers.

 

[Isoprop]

AHhhhhhhh.
I see. That explains it - although I assumed I was already doing this as when I go away on hols for a week, the capacitor dies & the cam reverts to default time when powered so I always make sure to link to pc & run msetup etc. I'll be very careful to check that sync date/time is set to yes.
Cheers.

The Sync Date/Time is set to yes by default. I suggest you take a picture or short video after setting the time just to re-assure yourself that the time has been set correctly.
It would be simple matter to also set the time when the firmware is updated by mSetup, but then I'd get complaints from those people who want to keep the camera's date and time, for example in preparation for a vacation in another time zone. I obviously can't please everyone so chose to keep the GUI as simple and understandable as possible. Anyway, the important part is that you now know the reason why the date/time wasn't being updated

 

[sludgeguts]

have you kept track to see if it actually keeps time though, is it constantly 3 minutes out and stays that way, or does it drift?quite a lot of camera don't keep time well without the aid of GPS to keep things in sync

Amazingly, for a camera that relies on a capacitor for power, it never seems to drift. When I switched on first thing, I would announce the time on my phone & again as soon as the minute rolled over. I used this to calculate the difference & that difference would stay throughout the day & be there the next morning at the time check.

Don't want to state the obvious but if you're using mSetup to sync the Mobius time with the PC, you need to make sure that the time on the PC is accurate

Well, the hours & minutes coincide with what my phone says & they both seem to roll over at about the same time.


When I ran the msetup prog, I was careful to check & the sync date/time was actually set to yes (as you say, by default).
There was another update to come in so I went through that then set parameters & this time the clock was set properly - although I'm sure I've done nothing different!
Every morning at startup, I took a vid of the time on my phone & it was sync'd.
Been good all week.
Mind you, it's been a great little cam since the day I got it.

 

[moctoddct]

We just had an accident, and my file is 5 years off. Is this a problem for insurance people, or do they know this is common? Can I fix the time stamp somehow before I hand it over to insurance people?

 

[jokiin]

Just let them know that the clock wasn't set

 

[Bungus]

We just had an accident, and my file is 5 years off. Is this a problem for insurance people, or do they know this is common? Can I fix the time stamp somehow before I hand it over to insurance people?

Agree with @jokiin. Don't doctor the video.
You should do a Msetup periodically to format your sd card and update your settings which includes time.

 

[SawMaster]

Unless someone wants to try to prove that an exact same incident in the exact same place happened when your cam's time-stamp indicates nobody will question it

It's just an unset clock. My cheap cams are awful with keeping accurate time but I don't care- it's the video that matters and they do that well enough. They all get reset every 2-4 weeks when I check the cards and by then the worst offender will be off by over an hour Just set up a regular maintenance schedule for your cams and follow it, then you'll be OK.

Phil