May 17, 2012

Essential Gear: Traqmate-GoPro HD Control


Traqmate HD Control will control your GoPro Hero2 camera.

There once was the Chasecam, a fantastic piece of kit it was tough, reliable and, best of all, could be connected with a Traqmate data recorder for both video/Data sync and especially, remote operation. In practical terms it meant straightforward and hassle free track day videos.

Chasecam may have been OK in the interlaced 640x480 world of the turn of the century but it doesn't cut it in a world of $300 1920x1080P GoPros. The problem has been turning on the damn things...

How many times at a track day or a race you have found yourself strapped into your harness only to realize you forgot to turn the camera on? I know you've done it, I know I've done it and you sit there steaming, thinking if you have to forget the video or waste precious time getting unstrapped, a pain. Or how about turning on the camera as you leave the paddock only to be stopped in pit lane for ten minutes while the track gets cleaned up? you finally go and your card fills up right as you blow by that 911 in your Honda... grrrr.

Traqmate HD Control Sync returns us to the the good old days of one button operation:   The Traqdash (or the simpler Traqmate display) will power on a GoPro Hero2 and start it recording the moment GPS locks. This also means your video is automatically sync's with your data. No more fiddling with the sync point in software, no more worrying about powering on and off the camera, Brilliant.

Once you get the interface from Traqmate, you have two options? Cut out the door on the GoPro case as I did, not very neatly, or spend $25 extra and order one of their pre-cut doors.

Either way, works like a charm and is essential gear if you either have a Traqmate or plan on ordering a system.

(Disclaimer: Traqmate are friends of Axis, we love their gear and have been using it almost from when it first came out, we'd give them a plug any day!

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