Swann Atom HD User Manual

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MSPORTM210612E
English
Atom HD
2
Stu and Where It’s At: Contents
Stu and Where It’s At: Contents 2
Introduction 3
Where Stu is At (The Layout) 4
Slots, Ports and Batteries 5
Pushing Buttons (a.k.a. an “Operating Guide”) 6
Taking it to the Depths (Waterproof Case) 7
Getting Started 8
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You’ve gone and done it now. Really taken the cake. You’ve bought an
Atom HD 1080p Waterproof Sports Camera - the miniature, waterproof, easy to use, full HD personal action video recorder from Swann. Kudos
to you! Can’t say we’re not envious.
You’ve nabbed yourself a camera that’s perfect for capturing your insane antics and displays of immense skill*.
It’s great for recording biking, skating,
skiing or snowboarding, surng or throwing yourself out of a perfectly good aircraft. Or just about anything
else you can think of!
Strap it to your head, arms, legs, butt, bike, board, gear, rigging or shoes. Or you can think outside the box.
Use it to capture video to show your friends and share your videos online.
Don’t talk big. Show big. Prove you did it with the Atom HD.
* The camera isn’t going to make you any more skilled. Sorry.
It ain’t magic, just miniaturized technology. You’ll have to provide the skill!
Introduction
4
Where Stu is At (The Layout)
Indicator LEDs
The Atom HD can’t talk, so it’s got these nifty indicator LEDs to let you know what’s up.
Screw Thread Mount
It’s the same size as the tripod mount on most camcorders and digital SLRs. So, if you’ve got a cool set of camera mounts, the AtomHD will screw right on.
Port Cover
Beneath this cover lies all the ports and microSD card slots.
Lens
A bit of high-quality
glass used to focus
all the stu.
Light
One does not simply shoot
video at night, unless one has
light. Which this does. How
about that!
LCD Screen
Where you can see
all the things the
camera is up to.
Power / Record Buttons
All the controls you’re going
to need. We’ll deal
with them one at
a time later.
Battery Compartment
Herein lies the source of all power!
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Slots, Ports and Batteries
USB Port
For charging, computers and composite video output.
microSD Card Slots
For inserting microSD cards and nothing else.
Opening the Battery
Compartment
Don’t open the battery case
unless necessary or instructed
to do so.
The battery is located here.
This is a rechargeable lithium
polymer battery.
Handle with care.
Don’t attempt to charge it any way
other than INSIDE the camera.
Do NOT expose the battery to heat,
moisture or water.
Keep away from children.
Basically, don’t mess with it!
Mini-HDMI Port
Pure awesomeness in one output.
Push the
locking tab
down
Slide the battery
compartment cover open
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Pushing Buttons (a.k.a. an “Operating Guide”)
Power Button
Press and hold to turn the camera ON or OFF.
Video Record
Initiates video
recording.
When in the menus,
this button acts as
the DOWN arrow.
Light
Turns the front
light ON and
OFF.
Menu / Esc
This button has a few functions, depending
what the camera is up to.
• Press and hold to open the menu system.
• When in the menus, pressing
momentarily will access the next menu
screen.
• When in the menus, press and hold to exit the menu system (ESC).
Playback
Initiates playback of
video or stills.
In the menus, this
button acts as LEFT and
RIGHT arrows. (It makes
sense when you do it.)
Photo Capture
Takes a still photograph.
When in the menus, this
button acts as the UP
arrow.
7
Taking it to the Depths (Waterproof Case)
Locking Clasp
Pretty important - the
case won’t work at all
unless this is properly
locked and secured.
Seriously, we can’t stress
this enough.
If you’ve got any concern
about the integrity or the
case or the locking clasp,
don’t use it. Contact
Swann Technical Support
for help. The warranty doesn’t cover damage
to the camera caused
use with damaged
accessories.
The Stand Mount
For use with the included mounting
hardware - see page 22 for more
information about the mounting
hardware.
Before you head out, ensure that
everything is secure.
Lens Cover
For best results, ensure that this
is kept clean and
scratch-free.
Tripod Mount
Like the camera’s tripod
thread, this will attach
the case to all manner of
photographic mounts.
Through-Case Button Extension
You can continue to use the buttons as normal while the
camera is in the waterproof case.
Don’t use the buttons while the camera is actually
submerged, however - there’s a chance that, under pressure,
some water might slip in through the mechanism.
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Getting Started
Right. So: you’ve got the Atom HD. It’s Friday afternoon, and you’re headed out skating on Saturday morning and you want to get the Atom HD setup and ready to rock and/or roll.
1. Charge the battery.
Short version: Plug the little end of the USB cable into the Atom HD, and the big end into the included power adapter. Plug the power adapter into a wall socket. Wait two to three hours. Bam!
Check out page 11 for the long version on getting yourself some power.
2. Jam a microSD card or two in it. Gently.
Short version: Ensure there’s nothing on the microSD card(s) you want to keep, as we’ll be formatting it in a moment (that erases all the data and preps it for recording video). The Atom HD shoots high-def video, so grab yourself a decently big card - we reckon that 8GB is a realistic minimum, with 16GB or 32GB cards recommended.
Check out page 10 for the long version regarding microSD cards.
3. Set up your Camera using the On-Screen Menus
Short version: Using the buttons on the top of the camera, open the on-screen menus and set the important options. Failing to get these right will negatively impact the quality of your videos, and/or the duration that the Atom HD can record for.
We think the best course of action is to:
• Choose your recording format (PAL or NTSC) and appropriate light frequency (50Hz or 60Hz). Typically, NTSC users should choose 60Hz
and PAL users should choose 50Hz.
• Format your microSD card.
• Set the Date and Time.
• Choose your Resolution (see page 12).
• Choose your Quality settings (check out page 14).
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A few things you really have to get right:
Light Frequency & Video System
The Video System setting must be set correctly for your location if you want the highest quality playback possible.
The Light Frequency setting is very important if you’re planning to shoot under or around uorescent lights - if this is wrong, then they’ll ‘icker’.
Choose NTSC / 60Hz if you’re in the USA, Canada, Mexico, or Japan.
Choose PAL / 50Hz if you’re in the UK, Europe, Africa, or Australia.
Format
To clean old data o the microSD card and get it ready to record video, we suggest formatting it in the Atom HD.
Make sure there’s no data on the card you want to keep - you can’t get it back!
Date and Time
The time is represented in the
following format: YYYY/MM/DD
We suggest getting this right before you head out the rst time. Unless you do a complete reset of the unit or completely drain the battery (it will automatically shut down before this happens) you shouldn’t have to set it again.
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