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A question for 260/280 and 250 owners on Capture Pilot

Paul2660

Well-known member
I am curious how Capture Pilot/wifi connection works on your back?

I have a 260, and with the latest version of Capture Pilot 1.7 on an iPad, running iOS 8, the connection is if anything worse than it was when I last tried it in April 2014.

I see the same issues with connection to the adhoc wifi, but even when connected, I can't even get 25 images to load in consistently. In 10 tries yesterday, I only was able to get 25 images to all load in 1 time. In the past, I usually was able to browse an entire card, but would hang up while attempting to view at 100%. My issues are:

1. Attempting the Adhoc connection is hit and miss and takes reboot of back, iPad or both to make a connection. About 5 minutes spent to do that.

2. After connection, time to load 25 thumbnails, in-definite. I never got all 25 thumbs to load on the screen. Most of the time you get the spinning wheel and after about 4 to 5 minutes of waiting I killed the app.

3. 100% view, with "respect retina" on, looks to me as it did before, i.e at a 100% view you still really can't tell exacting focus, if you back off the view maybe to 75%, it helps.

4. I finally gave up on waiting for images to load in at 100%, as after about 4 views at 100%, the app just spins, and can't do anything.

From the limited images I was able to view at 100%, and not lock up Capture Pilot, I don't feel the view at 100% has improved any, but would appreciate others feedback on this. This is with "respect retina" turned on.

Phase One has made it possible for the 250 to send live view to Capture Pilot, which does appeal to me, since I would give me a way to view the LCD much easier when I have the camera in low to the ground shots. Plus it would give the viewer in effect a tilt screen (like on a DSLR) which allows for a waist level view (which I love). However if the 250 is connecting as poorly as my 260, then this all would not be worth very much.

As it's impossible for me to demo a 250 in my local, which out a huge one time payment to my insurance company, I am interested in just how well the live view on a iphone works. Plus I am still interested to see how others with a 260 or 280 are connecting to Capture Pilot.

If the connection process is much easier, then it's clear to me, that Phase One has made some under the cover improvements to the wifi controller in the IQ2 backs, which is not uncommon, but unfortunate for me as I have a 260 that shipped very early after announce. I just can't see anyone using the Wifi for live view with the errors and problems I have just connecting to Capture Pilot.

Thanks
Paul
 

dougpeterson

Workshop Member
Wifi should work. We are glad to help troubleshoot with you if you'd like.

APA insurance covers my personal equipment, all rental equipment, and gives me business liability coverage. It's less per year than the cost of a one day rental of an iq250.
 

Egor

Member
Doug has been very helpful with our setup.
We have a Credo80 as well but it doesn't have WiFi so not relevant

Short answer, its a little buggy, but not bad and hell of lot of potential.

We have the IQ250 setup with FW800 tether and use CapturePilot and adhoc WiFi from the back to stream LiveView to an iPad.
It works pretty darn good, but I whenever I put the iPad to sleep and re-open it, I have to go to the back, turn off the wifi and then turn it back on again with new adhoc ip address. Then, of course, open settings on the iPad and connect to the new adhoc network and re-launch CapturePilot...Doesn't take very long but shouldn't be that way.

We have found it, the Wifi tether, to be very promising but not quite "ready for primetime" as there is no white balance, and it is a little noisy compared to say, a Canon 5D3 LV....I hope that PhaseOne fixes the WB in LV thing and soon. ( we shoot with strobes but the modeling lights are tungsten and the LV is always very yellow)
...but all in all, outstanding achievement for PhaseOne and solves a minor problem we have in the studio wherein the camera does not charge via USB3 tether and the batteries go dead way too fast for busy production environment. (and thats not even using Live View very much). But if you want tethered LiveView to C1 v8 on the computer, PhaseOne has made that only available via USB3. So we shoot using the more "power-full" FW800 tether that keeps the databank charged all day long and use the wifi/capturepilot/iPad combo for LiveView when we need it.
 

dougpeterson

Workshop Member
It works pretty darn good, but I whenever I put the iPad to sleep and re-open it, I have to go to the back, turn off the wifi and then turn it back on again with new adhoc ip address.
On the iPad wifi settings menu there is a next to the network after you join it. Make sure to have it set to "auto join".

Also, depending on whether the iPad will be plugged in, it makes sense to change it not to go to sleep so it doesn't have to reconnect at all.

You can also set up a dedicated network. You had trouble with your dedicated network, but there are dozens of variables trying to join an existing general-purpose network. Instead you can buy a new Airport Extreme or Airport Express, configure it to generate a network that both the back and iPad join but no other devices. You can force it to be use the fastest (N 5Ghz) network protocol and password protect other devices from accidentally joining it and slowing it down. This will increase range (i.e. you can walk across the room and show someone an image), and eliminate the issue where if the back turns off the network it was creating becomes orphaned.
 

Egor

Member
Thanks, Doug, we will try what you suggest soon and see if it works.
Like I said, wifi tether shows great promise.
Love the new IQ250 so far, putting it through its paces and trial under fire is always a tricky business. I am optimistic.
As fortune may have it, one of my clients in the shop right now is a manufacturer of wireless speaker systems over LAN and their senior software developer says he can help with some of these network "variables" as well.
Thanks for the help again, as always!
 
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