AIPTEK Explorer 300 User Manual [fr]

Explorer 300
8 x 22 VGA Digital Camera Binocular
Users Manual

English

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Table of Contents .................................................................................................................. 2
Quick Start .............................................................................................................................4
Features ................................................................................................................................. 6
Introduction ............................................................................................................................ 8
How to Use Your Binocular ..................................................................................................
Adjust Eye Relief .................................................................................................................. 9
Adjust the Barrels ................................................................................................................. 9
Focus the Binocular .............................................................................................................. 10
How to Use Your
Camera ...................................................................................................... 11
Insert Batteries .....................................................................................................................11
Select an Operation .............................................................................................................. 11
Taking Pictures and Video ....................................................................................................
12
Taking a Still Picture ............................................................................................................. 12
Capture Video ....................................................................................................................... 13
Operations.............................................................................................................................. 14
Use the Mode and Shutter Button ........................................................................................ 14
Use the Camera Mode .........................................................................................................15
Change the Camera Resolution ........................................................................................... 15
Use the Video Mode .............................................................................................................16
Erase (Delete) Pictures or Video ..........................................................................................
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Find Out How Many Pictures You’ve Taken ..........................................................................
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Use the Self-Timer ................................................................................................................ 17
Find Out How Much Power is Left in the Battery .................................................................. 18
Find Out Why Explorer is Beeping .......................................................................................19
Download Pictures ............................................................................................................... 19
Install Image Editing Software ..............................................................................................21

Table of Contents

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Table of Contents
Other Software and System Requirements ........................................................................ 22
Maintenance and Troubleshooting ......................................................................................
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Specifications ........................................................................................................................
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Launching the Explorer Manager ......................................................................................... 25
Using the Explorer Manager ................................................................................................. 26
Downloading pictures and movies ........................................................................................ 26
Album mode .........................................................................................................................27
Viewing pictures and Viewing movies ..................................................................................
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Album Manager ....................................................................................................................
29
Creating AVI files .................................................................................................................. 30
Sending mail ......................................................................................................................... 31
Aiptek Service ........................................................................................................................ 32
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How to start taking pictures...

Install 2 AAA batteries
(not included).
Turn on camera.
Press and hold down Mode for 3 seconds.
Point at something interesting.
Press the Shutter.
You’ve taken a picture!

Quick Start

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How to download your pictures...

USB cable
Plug in.
Connect Explorer to your PC using the included USB cable.
Sit back and relax a minute.
Explorer automatically installs on your PC. No drivers or other software is needed.
Install Ulead Photo Express.
Insert the CD, click on Ulead Photo Express and follow the on-screen instructions.
Enjoy your photos.
Open Ulead Photo Express to view, edit and print your pictures.
Quick Start
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Fig. 1: Top View
1. Eyepieces
2. Mode Button
3. Shutter Button
4. LCD Panel
5. Objective Lens
6. Barrel
Fig. 2: Front View
7. Camera Lens

Features

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Fig. 3: Bottom View
8. Diopter Scale (on right eyepiece)
9. Focus knob
10. Battery Compartment Lid (push forward and lift to remove)
Fig. 4: Rear View
11. USB Port
Features
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WARNING! Never use an Aiptek Explorer to look at the Sun! Looking at or
near the Sun will cause instant and irreversible damage to your eye. Eye damage is often painless, so there is no warning to the observer that damage has occurred until it is too late. Do not point the binocular at or near the Sun. Children should always have adult supervision while observing.
Congratulations on purchasing the Aiptek® Explorer® 300. Explorer 300 is an 8 x 22mm full-featured binocular. It is integrated with a digital camera that requires no film to capture pictures or video. This manual is designed to quickly guide you through the operation details of your Explorer 300. For best results, take a few moments to become familiar with the operation of your device, and save the manual for future reference. Explorer has the following features:
• Fully functional binocular.
• Capture pictures and video, and view them on your PC.
• Transfer pictures and video to your PC for easy printing and editing.
• E-mail pictures to your friends and family.
• LCD display panel indicates status for ease in performing desired operations.
Important Note: Images in the camera will be lost if the batteries are depleted or if the batteries are removed for more than 60 seconds. Accordingly, change the batteries when they run low. Images will be maintained in memory for approximately 60 seconds when changing batteries.
To conserve battery life, remove batteries after downloading images to a computer. There is continual battery drainage even when Explorer is turned off.
Be sure Explorer is off before changing batteries.

Introduction

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If you want to... Do this...
Adjust Eye Relief If you wear eyeglasses, fold down the
rubber eyecups and hold the eyepieces up against your glasses.
Adjust the Barrels
You need to adjust the barrels, as the distance between your eyes is usually different than the distance between another person’s eyes.
1. Hold Explorer up to your eyes in the normal viewing position. Use both hands to hold each barrel firmly.
2. Pull the barrels apart or push the barrels together until you see a single circular field with both of your eyes.

How to Use Your Binocular

Fold down
Barrel
Barrel
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If you want to... Do this...
Focus the Binocular 1. Set the Diopter Scale on underside of
Explorer at its center point between “+” and “-.”
2. Choose an object (such as a telephone pole) that is at least 50 feet (15m.) away.
3. Looking with only your left eye, rotate the Focus Knob until the object you are viewing is focused.
4. Looking with only your right eye, rotate the Diopter Scale until the object you are viewing is focused.
5. Now, looking with both eyes, rotate the Focus Knob to focus on both far and near objects.
Diopter scale
Focus knob
How to Use Your Binocular
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Explorer performs best under good lighting conditions. Take some time to practice capturing still pictures and video. Depending on the available light and your distance from the object, captured images may not appear as bright or centered as viewed through the binoculars. Explorer has a fixed focus (you cannot focus the camera manually) and takes focused pictures even if the image in the binoculars is out-of-focus.
If you want to... Do this...
Insert Batteries
1. Make sure camera is off before changing batteries.
2. Push the battery compartment lid forward and lift to open.
3. Insert 2 AAA 1.5v (user-supplied) batteries into the compartment, noting the correct polarity as illustrated inside the compartment.
Select an Operation • Press and hold the Mode button for 3
to 5 seconds to turn on the camera.
• Press the Mode button to display and cycle through the operation icons on the LCD.
• Press the Shutter button when the desired icon is displayed to select an operation.
Battery compartment
Mode
Shutter

How to Use Your Camera

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If you want to... Do this...
Take a Still Picture
The amount of pictures you can take: High Resolution (640 x 480): 360 Low Resolution (320 x 240): 1600
The number of photos you may take will decrease if you have also taken video.
1. Press and hold down the Mode button for 3 to 5 seconds to turn on the camera. The camera will beep and the camera icon displays on the LCD. The counter, battery life and resolution icons also display.
2. Point the binoculars at an object. You may use the focus knob to focus the image in the binocular, but keep in mind that the camera has a fixed focus and is not affected by the focus knob.
3. Hold Explorer steady and press the Shutter button. Note that the counter advances. For example, if the counter reads “016,” this means that this is your sixteenth picture.
Mode
Shutter

Taking Pictures and Video

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If you want to... Do this...
Take Video
The maximum length of a video: Up to 200 seconds.
The length of video will decrease if you have also taken still pictures.
1. Press and hold down the Mode button for 3 to 5 seconds to turn on the camera.
2. Press the Mode button once and the Video mode icon displays.
3. Point the binoculars at the scene you wish to capture.
4. Press the Shutter button. The camera now captures a movie.
5 The counter keeps counting (in
seconds) as you capture the movie. Press the Shutter button again to stop recording the movie. Note that the counter stops and the number of pictures advances by one (a movie counts as one object).
Mode
Shutter
Taking Pictures and Video
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If you want to... Do this...
Use the Mode and Shutter Buttons • Press and hold the Mode button for
3 to 5 seconds to turn the camera on or off.
• Use the Mode button to cycle through the operation icons. As you press the Mode button, the operation icons display on-screen in the following order:
Camera Video Resolution Self-timer Erase Last Image Erase All Images
The next press returns you to the Camera icon.
• Press the Shutter button when the desired icon is displayed to select an operation.
• Use the Shutter button to take a picture, and to begin or end the recording of a movie.
* *
*
Mode
Shutter
Operation Icons:
Camera Video Hi Res. Lo Res.
Self-Timer
Erase Last Erase All

Operations

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If you want to... Do this...
Use the Camera Mode
• Keep pressing the Mode button until the Camera icon displays. Then press the Shutter button to take a still picture.
Change the Camera Resolution
H: High Resolution mode (640 x 480). L: Low Resolution mode (320 x 240). (The default setting is High Resolution.)
• Select a Resolution setting before taking a still image:
1. The first time you turn on the camera, it displays the High Resolution icon. This is the default setting.
2. To change the resolution, keep pressing the Mode button until the Low Resolution icon displays. Then press the Shutter button to select Low Resolution. Low resolution allows you to capture more images with your camera.
* *
*
Camera Icon
High Resolution
Icon
Low Resolution
Icon
Operations
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If you want to... Do this...
Use the Video Mode
Note: The length of a video depends on how much memory you have available.
Audio recording is not available with this camera.
• Keep pressing the Mode button until the Video icon displays. Then press the Shutter button to begin recording a movie. Press the Shutter button again to stop recording.
Erase (delete) Pictures or Video
Erase Last. Keep pressing the Mode button until the Erase Last Image icon displays and then press the Shutter button. The icon flashes. Press the Shutter button again to erase the last captured image or movie.
Erase All. Keep pressing the Mode button until the Erase All Image icon displays and then press the Shutter button. The icon flashes. Press the Shutter button again to erase all the images and video.
Video Icon
Erase Last Icon
Erase All Icon
Operations
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If you want to... Do this...
Find Out How Many Pictures You Have Taken
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Note: If you take more than 999 pictures, the camera counter returns to 001. The camera icon flashes, indicating that the number of pictures is 999 plus the number displayed on the counter.
• Check out the LCD Counter. The counter displays the number of pictures or videos taken, from 0 to 999.
Use the Self-timer
• Keep pressing the Mode button until the Self-timer icon displays and press the Shutter button. The camera then pauses for about 10 seconds: It sends out 6 slow and then 6 fast warning beeps before taking the picture.
Counter Display
Self-Timer Icon
Operations
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If you want to... Do this...
Find Out How Much Power is Left in the Batteries
• Check the battery indicators on the display.
Find Out Why Explorer is Beeping
Note: When the battery is low, Explorer sends out six short high beeps. It is recommended you download the pictures or change the batteries at this time. If you
change the battery, remember that you have 60 seconds to change the batteries before your images are deleted.
Listen for the following patterns: Power on: Two short high beeps. Wake up:
One long high beep.
Sleep: One short high beep. Take a picture:
One short high beep.
Failed to take picture due to insufficient memory:
Three short high beeps Low battery: Six short high beeps (beeps only when power is On). Self-timer: Sends out 6 slow, then 6 fast beeps before taking a picture.
Full Power Indicator
Low Power Indicator
Operations
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If you want to... Do this...
Download Pictures
No driver is necessary for downloading your pictures or video. Just attach one end of the USB cable to the camera’s USB port and the other end to your PC’s USB port.
Your PC considers the camera as a mass storage device and displays it like a hard drive. You can then copy your still pictures or video to your computer or even copy files to the memory on the camera.
USB Port
Operations
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If you want to... Do this...
Download Pictures (continued)
Note: See “Troubleshooting,” page 23, for more information about connecting Explorer to your PC.
1. Using the provided USB cable, plug the one end of the cable into the camera’s USB port and the other end into your PC’s USB port.
2. Explorer automatically installs drivers on your PC (there is no need for external drivers).
3. After setup is complete, using Windows Explorer, you can browse the camera’s memory as if it were a hard drive.
4. If Explorer does not appear in Windows Explorer, it might be using a drive letter that has already been assigned by your PC (e.g., C:, D:, E:, etc.). Use Windows’ Disk Manager program to change the drive letter to an unassigned letter (e.g., K:).
5. You may now copy images or files from the camera’s memory to your PC just as you would with any external hard drive or flash memory.
Operations
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If you want to... Do this...
Install Image Editing Software (Ulead Photo Express)
Note: If you are connected to the internet and you click on the Meade logo on the splash screen, you will go to
meade.com.
1. Insert supplied CD Rom into your PC’s drive.
2. A splash screen displays. Click on “Ulead Photo Express.”
3. Follow on-screen instructions.
4. After you click “Finish,” the Ulead Photo Express icon appears on your desktop.
5. Double-click the icon to launch the program. You can now view, edit and print your images. Photo Express allows you to browse the camera’s memory as if it were a hard drive.
Operations
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Other Software
The included CD ROM contains other software programs by Ulead that will assist you in editing your images, allow you to transfer images to email, and provide you with other useful functions. Ulead Photo Express®, Photo Explorer, and Cool 360™, and Explorer Manager are proprietary programs, and may not be sold, licensed or distributed without the express written consent of Ulead. For more information about Ulead Photo Express, visit the Ulead website at www.ulead.com/pe. Click on the “Product Documents” link in the Download section of their homepage to find a link for the Photo Express manual.
• Windows 98SE/Win Me/Win 2000/Win XP
• 200MHz (or equivalent) processor or faster.
• 64MB of RAM free over System requirements
• Video (VGA) card with 2MB of RAM for minimum 16-bit (High Color) display.
• 4x CD-ROM drive.
• USB port (1.1).
• 600MB of free hard drive space.
If you have questions regarding your PC system specifications, please contact your PC manufacturer.
Operations

System Requirements

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Care of your Explorer
1. Never immerse Explorer in liquid. Remove dust or stains with a soft cloth dampened with water or neutral detergent. Keep in a dry, cool dust-free environment or a container when it is not being used. Do not spray liquid cleaners directly onto LCD. Using only gentle pressure, wipe the LCD with a slightly dampened cleaning cloth.
2. Important Note: Images in the camera will be lost if the batteries are depleted or if the
batteries are removed for more than 60 seconds. Accordingly, change the batteries when they run low. Images will be maintained in memory for approximately 60 seconds when changing batteries. To conserve battery life, remove batteries after downloading images to a computer. There is continual battery drainage even when Explorer is turned off. Be sure Explorer is off before changing batteries.
3. Avoid dropping Explorer. Do not disassemble Explorer.
It is very important to use the following connection and disconnection procedures to download pictures.
1. Only connect Explorer to your PC when the PC is on and Windows has completed loading.
2. Your Explorer camera and PC must be connected before running the Explorer Manager program.
3. Avoid physically connecting, disconnecting and reconnecting the camera during a download session. Instead, disconnect the camera using Windows software: Right-click the USB on-screen icon and select disconnect (or connect to reconnect).

Maintenance

Troubleshooting

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Binocular power 8X Binocular objective lens diameter 22mm Binocular optical design Folding roof prism, fully-coated Binocular close focus 16 ft. Field of view (diagonal) 8.2° Binocular field of view 382 ft. at 1000 yds. Image capture resolution 640 x 480, 320 x 260, 24-bit color Maximum length of movie Up to 200 seconds Camera aperture f/4.0; fixed lens Optimum camera range 49 ft. to infinity Memory 16MB SDRAM Storage capacity at each resolution 640 x 480: 360 images 320 x 260: 1600 images Operating system requirements Windows 98SE/2000/Me/XP Operating environment 41° to 104° F (5° to 40° C). 20%-85% relative humidity, non-condensing Interface type USB Display Icon LCD Weight 9.7 oz. (276g) Product dimensions 4.75” W x 2.4” H x 4.25” D Batteries (user supplied) Two x AAA 1.5V alkaline Accessories (included) USB cable, instructions, neck strap, cleaning cloth, carry case, CD ROM with image editing software

Specifications

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Launching the Explorer Manager

There are two ways to launch your Explorer Manager (If the program doesn’t launch automatically):
1. Double-click the “ “ icon on the Desktop to execute the program.
2. Click on the “Start” menu and go to “Programs.” Then go to the folder named “Explorer Manager“ and select it.
Note: To uninstall “Explorer Manager”, select “Uninstall Explorer Manager” from the Programs folder.
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Using the Explorer Manager

1. Make sure your camera is connected to your PC via the USB cable.
2. Explorer Manager displays. Click on the Album icon.
3. A dialogue box displays and asks if you want to “download” photos (“upload” if you have an Explorer VGA model) from your camera.
4. Check “Enhanced Resolution” to enhance your images from the current resolution to the next level of resolution. For example, if the resolution of your image is 1 mega pixels, it will be enhanced to 2 mega pixels. Note that the enhanced format requires more memory.
5. Click the “OK” button to begin downloading (uploading if you have an Explorer VGA model).

Downloading pictures and movies

Click this button to launch the download dialogue box
Click “OK”
Explorer Manager Download Dialogue Box
Click this button to launch the download dialogue box
Click “Upload”
Explorer VGA Manager Upload Dialogue Box
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Transfer images to the work area Album Manager
Transfer images to the album Album
Create AVI file
Image
Send Mail Work area
Select All Minimize
Delete Exit
Note 1: and become active and are highlighted when an image ( ) is selected. Note 2: Hold down the CTRL key on the keyboard and click on an image ( ) to select
or deselect.
Using the Explorer Manager

Album mode

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Double-click any picture or movie to launch the viewer.
Using the Explorer Manager

Viewing pictures

Viewing movies

Double-click any AVI movie to automatically launch the movie in your default media player.
Previous picture
Next picture
Slide show
Exit
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Using the Explorer Manager
1. Highlight a picture on the work area and click to transfer to the Photo Album.
2. Click the Album Manager
to create
a new Photo Album.
3. Key in a new album name.
4. Click 4 to designate a path where the album will be stored.
5. Click “Update” (5) to confirm the new album is created.
6. Click 6 to enter the new created album.

Album Manager

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Album Manager
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1. Select jpg / bmp images from the work area.
2. Click to load the images to the AVI File Manager.
3. Order the image sequence, and adust the frame rate.
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Using the Explorer Manager
Creating AVI files
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