Inspection camera/ Endoscope

[Indy125]

Hi All,

Was wondering if anyone had any info on an inspection cameras for iPhone. See a bunch of very economical ones on Amazon. This particular one has a few attachments, but was looking for one with a claw at the end to grab fallen items if need be. I know Milwaukee makes a few, but these Amazon ones are much better for the wallet considering how little I might be using it... Thanks!

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B01MYTHWK4/?tag=atomicindus08-20

 

[txvwnut]

I have one of those and for the money it makes your phone or tablet into a decent bore scope.

 

[rharman]

I have the DepsTech on an Android tablet and it's worked well for my needs.

 

[Crazyjake8493]

I have the exact one in the link above and it's paid for itself several times over. It comes with a small mirror, hook, and magnet. If I need to grab something I'll tape or zip tie it to one of my flexible claw/retrieval tools. If I'm pushing it through a pipe or conduit I'll attach it to a fish tape, or if it's going through a ceiling or walls I'll attach it to some fiberglass fish rods.

The picture quality is excellent for the price, and if it ever gets stuck or lost in a tight space, I'll order another one immediately. The only downside is the short battery life if you use the light, but I keep it hooked to a Milwaukee M12 battery if I need it for extended use.

 

[dthor68]

I am also interested. I need the cable to stay rigid enough to push into animal burrows and in rock crevices. It also has to light up on the camera side. I just wish it was longer than 12'.

 

[dthor68]

Wow! They have one that reaches 30'.

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0785H3XR7/?tag=atomicindus08-20

If anyone has this unit I would appreciate any feedback on how rigid the cable is?

 

[ATC]

The only downside is the short battery life if you use the light, but I keep it hooked to a Milwaukee M12 battery if I need it for extended use.

How do you do that?

I just ordered one. Should be great for engines...

 

[rlitman]

...If anyone has this unit I would appreciate any feedback on how rigid the cable is?

I've got one like in the picture at the top of this thread. I think 15'.
The cable is about as rigid as a gooseneck lamp. You can bend and position it into shapes that it stays in, but it will flop under its own weight.

It's nothing like the big ones that plumbers send into drains.

 

[toplessHO]

I have a 15' as well,used it to inspect my well casing and found a bad spot about 10 ft down.works great on a tablet or phone,will work on my galaxy S6,but not my S7.
This one was a white box one from ebay for about $12.

got a 3 ft one a couple years before for $18 from amazon so price has come down a little

 

[Reed Prince]

There are an almost bewildering number of slightly different Depstech models, and the Amazon pages don't seem to include the model numbers, so I've been looking first at Depstech's main product page(http://www.depstech.com/?post_type=portfolio), clicking on different models to bring up their own page, and then clicking on the Amazon link there to get the current price, which is not always the same as listed at Depstech.

It appears that the most important difference between models is camera width, with some having a 5.5mm 1280x720 head and others having a 8.5mm 1600x1200 one. There are also different battery capacities, cable lengths and the WF050 has a remote picture-taking button and digital zoom.

My guess is that the benefits of a smaller diameter camera outweigh the drawbacks of lower resolution, but I imagine that the opposite might be true in some circumstances. I wish there was a slightly more expensive option that was both thin and high-res. They'll probably announce one a week after I make my purchase.

edit: It looks like at least one Amazon listing includes the specs of a few different models near the bottom of the page, and the 8.5mm has much deeper depth of field, 1-16 inches vs. 1-3 inches for the 5.5mm. https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07HH66N1M/?tag=atomicindus08-20

This third variable leaves me completely clueless about which is the better general purpose budget borescope.

additional edit: The longer focal distance appears to be a feature of only the "CameTele" models. And at least one 5.5mm has CameTele. A model/features grid would really be useful.

 

[Indy125]

I have the exact one in the link above and it's paid for itself several times over. It comes with a small mirror, hook, and magnet. If I need to grab something I'll tape or zip tie it to one of my flexible claw/retrieval tools. If I'm pushing it through a pipe or conduit I'll attach it to a fish tape, or if it's going through a ceiling or walls I'll attach it to some fiberglass fish rods.

The picture quality is excellent for the price, and if it ever gets stuck or lost in a tight space, I'll order another one immediately. The only downside is the short battery life if you use the light, but I keep it hooked to a Milwaukee M12 battery if I need it for extended use.

This is great advise. How do you wire it to an M12 battery?

Thanks everyone for your thoughts and opinions!

 

[racinfarmer]

Those of you with the Depstech cameras, how do you get them to work on Android phones?

Mine won't even open the app without in crashing.

Seems as though their app ***** the big one, big time, per reviews.

 

[toplessHO]

I had same problem and went backwards in my phone
from S7 to S6 and it worked fine.
Have also used an android and windows tablet.

 

[Reed Prince]

My S8+ works fine with their software. I downloaded WiFi View after reading of other people's problems, but have never had to use it.

 

[Jbullfrog]

I have one that connects via usb. Mine looks just like the one pictured above, but it has a USB plug on the end. The scope is 6' and I have a 3' usb jumper cable, so I can move the camera around easily. With my tablet I can record video and snap pictures as well as zoom in.

 

[Danglerb]

Ebay has the cheapest and widest selection. OTG is USB on the go, newer Android phones let you plug in USB items like flash drives and cameras, older ones don't.

I've got two of the camera types, one OK and one pretty good, plus one that is a microscope, all work ok. Spending $25 or more seems to do the trick on quality, with the usual caveats.