Need Advice on data storage

[Agamemnon]

Hey all... I'm going on a 5 month trip to Africa this summer and I bought a Sony 60gb HD camcorder. My issue is that the camcorder only holds like 7 hours (give or take) of HD video (something like 22 hours reg. def).

Once I've filled it up... what should I do? How do I empty the camcorder's 60gb so I can keep recording new videos? Keep in mind I'll be in Africa, though I will be in major cities that should have computer cafes, so I'll have access to a computer.

There are a few options, but I'm an idiot and can't figure out which is best. Should I just haul an external HD with me and download the data onto it every month or so? Is it realistic to carry one of those around in a backpack all over the continent? Will African computers have USB 2.0? I'm transferring 60gb... it's no good if it takes a day to copy.

What about FTP or something? No idea if I'll have access to broadband though... not sure if they have much of that in Africa.

Any ideas would be very helpful.

[Rathji]

You could probably buy a cheapo laptop to hold extra files/burn them to DVD. It might not be as cheap as a portable HDD solution, but you have basicly unlimited storage through DVD's and access to a computer that you know the capabilities of.


I really don't know alot about current camcorders or portable HDDs but wouldn't you need a computer to do the transfers or do they have hard drives that would download and store the data without a computer interface?

[photon]

Even burning to DVD, it'd take 12 DVDs to hold even just one dump from the camcorder.

Uploading the video over the internet is a no-go unless you can find somewhere that has hugely fast upload bandwidth, unlikely. 60GB is a lot, at normal shaw internet upload speeds (1Mbps), it would take 5 days to upload.

Over USB 2.0, in theory you could transfer 60GB in half an hour, not sure how fast they are in the real world for that much data.

So to me the only real option is to take external USB hard drive(s) that add up to how much video you think you'll be taking. a 1TB drive is over 100 hours of HD video.

Then you just need to be able to move it over. I know some digital cameras now come with the ability to transfer pictures to a USB drive without actually having to have a computer, and some external USB drives were made specifically for digital cameras that can pull the pictures right off. You might try looking for something like that, then you don't have to look for a USB capable computer or lug around a laptop.

Taking a laptop to store the video won't work either, laptop drives aren't that big.

[Agamemnon]

You could probably buy a cheapo laptop to hold extra files/burn them to DVD. It might not be as cheap as a portable HDD solution, but you have basicly unlimited storage through DVD's and access to a computer that you know the capabilities of.


I really don't know alot about current camcorders or portable HDDs but wouldn't you need a computer to do the transfers or do they have hard drives that would download and store the data without a computer interface?
Then I Have to lug a laptop around 2 continents... seems like too much of a hassle. I think I need the computer to transfer the data, though I believe there's a Sony straight from camcorder to DVD recorder... I think it costs $300, and I'd still need dozens of DVD's.

[Agamemnon]

Even burning to DVD, it'd take 12 DVDs to hold even just one dump from the camcorder.

Uploading the video over the internet is a no-go unless you can find somewhere that has hugely fast upload bandwidth, unlikely. 60GB is a lot, at normal shaw internet upload speeds (1Mbps), it would take 5 days to upload.

Over USB 2.0, in theory you could transfer 60GB in half an hour, not sure how fast they are in the real world for that much data.

So to me the only real option is to take external USB hard drive(s) that add up to how much video you think you'll be taking. a 1TB drive is over 100 hours of HD video.

Then you just need to be able to move it over. I know some digital cameras now come with the ability to transfer pictures to a USB drive without actually having to have a computer, and some external USB drives were made specifically for digital cameras that can pull the pictures right off. You might try looking for something like that, then you don't have to look for a USB capable computer or lug around a laptop.

Taking a laptop to store the video won't work either, laptop drives aren't that big.
If I can find a camcorder-to-hard drive connection that doesn't need a computer that would probably be ideal...

Anyone know if that exists? An HD that can hook right up to your Sony HD Camcorder by USB?

[Russic]

I wouldn't count on anything resembling internet speeds that we're used to. My wife traveled through Africa a few years ago and she could rarely get a connection to remain constant long enough to get a proper email out. Perhaps it's gotten better since then or perhaps you won't go where she went, but I certainly wouldn't depend on using the internet without a solid plan b. That being said, transferring gigs of data from an internet cafe isn't that ideal to begin with.

I would get a budget laptop with a big hard drive or perhaps an external drive (if you're up for lugging it around).

Can you edit from the camera? I bet if you cut out useless stuff every evening or so it would really cut down on space usage.

Enjoy that trip!

[Rathji]

If I can find a camcorder-to-hard drive connection that doesn't need a computer that would probably be ideal...

Anyone know if that exists? An HD that can hook right up to your Sony HD Camcorder by USB?

If you can do this, it would be by far the best solution, but as Photon mentioned, even 1TB of storage is only going to hold 100hrs

[Hakan]

There aren't really any options for you except recording on lower qualities to extend filming hours.

[photon]

I don't see that the Sony camcorders support USB OTG (on the go), not sure what model you have though.

http://www.uniconsys.com/mcopy.html

That would be ideal, but not released yet.

Hm...

[photon]

http://www.gethitch.com/

Not sure if it will work or not.

[Flaming Choy]

I don't see that the Sony camcorders support USB OTG (on the go), not sure what model you have though.

http://www.uniconsys.com/mcopy.html

That would be ideal, but not released yet.

Hm...

That's a cool device. I was going to suggest OTG as well, but I guess photon beat me to it. It was great for my digi-cam though. This is the one I used, but i can't find it anywhere anymore

http://www.digitaldingus.com/reviews/macally/macally250otg.php

[photon]

http://catalog.belkin.com/IWCatProductPage.process?Product_Id=245923

Another one, but I haven't been able to find anyone with an actual HD camcorder that talks about these things.

[photon]

http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/forumdisplay.php?f=161

You could also try posting on this forum, or try and find an active camcorder forum.

[Agamemnon]

http://catalog.belkin.com/IWCatProductPage.process?Product_Id=245923

Another one, but I haven't been able to find anyone with an actual HD camcorder that talks about these things.
This seems ideal... but no one know's if it will work with my Camcorder?

http://www.futureshop.ca/catalog/proddetail.asp?sku_id=0665000FS10089418&catid=25716&logon=&langid=EN
That's the camcorder I've got.

[Agamemnon]

I wouldn't count on anything resembling internet speeds that we're used to. My wife traveled through Africa a few years ago and she could rarely get a connection to remain constant long enough to get a proper email out. Perhaps it's gotten better since then or perhaps you won't go where she went, but I certainly wouldn't depend on using the internet without a solid plan b. That being said, transferring gigs of data from an internet cafe isn't that ideal to begin with.

I would get a budget laptop with a big hard drive or perhaps an external drive (if you're up for lugging it around).

Can you edit from the camera? I bet if you cut out useless stuff every evening or so it would really cut down on space usage.

Enjoy that trip!
This is my worry... that African net speeds will be so slow I can't use an FTP or something, which is probably ideal.

Though really, I'll only need to do this transfer like 3-4 times... and the main cities I'm in should have hi-speed (CapeTown, Zanzibar, Cairo).

[photon]

High speed is still not enough though. With the fastest consumer high speed in Calgary it'd take 5 full 24 hour days to upload 60GB, it would probably be tough to find a place with higher upload speeds.

[Russic]

This is my worry... that African net speeds will be so slow I can't use an FTP or something, which is probably ideal.

Though really, I'll only need to do this transfer like 3-4 times... and the main cities I'm in should have hi-speed (CapeTown, Zanzibar, Cairo).

All I'm saying is have a plan B. Perhaps you could consult a travel agent or somebody who's been there recently?

[Hack&Lube]

With African internet cafes, you won't be trasnferring any large files :P I would not even trust using an FTP to upload files anywhere near 60GB (much less 600MB) from a Canadian internet cafe. Uploading is generally very slow and even frowned upon in public places and I have never heard of anybody ever doing or contemplating that. It sounds kind of crazy to be honest, I can't think of any internet cafe even here, that would even let you do that sort of thing.

It would cost you more money sitting for a week straight or more at the fastest highspeed internet cafe here in Calgary trying to upload 60GB than buying an external harddrive. Africa, even in the biggest modern cities would probably take you spending the entire 5 months sitting at the same computer of constant uploading just for 60GB. I'm also thinking Cairo's internet prices will be like Europe and that means pay through the nose for internet that is too slow to even browse websites properly.

Seriously, do as others suggested and buy a 1TB drive. When onsale, I have seen them for close to $200. A TB drive is 225 DVDs worth. Bring a cheap laptop with you to use in the room where you are staying. Popping out so much hardware at an internet cafe in Africa is a recipe for guaranteed theft as is the case with continental Europe and South America. If the laptop is too big to lug around, try one of those camera to usb to drive recommendations but no guarantee it will work, especially with a Sony camera which is usually extremely proprietary. You might as well buy a tiny laptop like an EEE PC or a UMPC and sell them when you get back.

Another thing to do is lower the quality of your recording, unless you are filming a safari with David Attenborough, you really don't need full quality.

[You Need a Thneed]

what are you filming for, personal use? I'd definately recommend lowering the resolution, or, if you would rather, get an external harddrive, and test it to make sure it works.

Maybe you should go to a dedicated video camera shop where they will have a clue as to what works with video cameras, and they can help you out that way.

You are spending a lot of money on your trip, if the video is really important to you, I would probobly reccomend getting a better camera, something with 3 CCDs. The picture quality will be better.