Posted on
08 July 2010, under
Dad Stuff; More Dad Stuff articles...
in the blink of a eye...
I recently went looking for some pictures I had taken at a wedding some time ago that I apparently hadn’t yet uploaded to my Mac. It tends to happen to me quite often actually and to add to the problem, I now realise that, after a hunt around the house, I actually have about 3 or 4 SD cards for my camera. I seem to buy them every so often and then forget that I have them. The result? I’m always missing valuable pics from my library without realising it.
So, imagine my excitement when I discovered the Eye-Fi! This cool little memory card is the same as the conventional memory card that fits most cameras nowadays but with one major difference – its WiFi enabled.
Just pop the card into your existing camera and snap away to your heart’s content. Eye-Fi will then automatically transfer your photos and videos to your preferred location on a PC or Mac. As if that wasn’t enough, Eye-Fi can also transfer your photos to anyone of 25 of the most popular sites as soon as it is within range of your WiFi network. It’s that simple. No more plugging in your camera or chip to your PC or Mac. No more manually uploading photos to FLICKR… its all done for you.
Another cool feature of the Eye-Fi is the Geo-Tagging capability. Most popular photo sites and software have a geo-tagging option now. Picassa, iPhoto, Flickr to name just a few, allow you to search and sort your photos according to where they were taken. If you have an iPhone (3G upwards) then your pictures will already have this information embedded in them, but most cameras don’t have this feature. That means that in order to benefit from geo-tagging, you either have to enter the information manually through your software or else upgrade to a camera with a GPS chip.
(Note: The Eye-Fi Geo, Explore X2 and Pro X2 models have this geo-tagging feature already built in, but if you have the basic Eye-Fi you can still upgrade to include this for just $14.95 per year)
So how does Eye-Fi add Geo-Tags to pictures without GPS?
Well, it seems that when you are out and about snapping away, Eye-Fi scans the surrounding area for WiFi networks. Using this information, the card then adds the geo-tag information when the photos are being uploaded to your PC/Mac using the Eye-Fi Service. The down side is that if you are in the middle of nowhere, with not a single WiFi for miles around, then geo-tagging won’t work.
Eye-Fi is extremely easy to use and set up. I recently got mine and I was surprised at how quickly and easily everything happened. When you first receive the card, you plug it into your PC/Mac using the USB converter (included) which then autoloads the configuration page which allows you to enter the one-off information that the card needs. If you have a protected WiFi set-up, you just need to let Eye-Fi know how to connect to your network by entering the password or code. In fact, you can configure up to 32 different WiFi networks so you’ll rarely have to worry about even having to be near your home network.
While you are in the set-up page, you can also let Eye-Fi know if you would like to have your pictures automatically uploaded to your favourite photo site (Flickr, Picassa etc...). Now I have to admit that I haven’t availed of this feature yet. It isn’t that I take pictures of anything ‘odd’ but I don’t like the idea of everything I snap automatically flying to my Flickr account. You just never know!
One last little goodie about the Eye-Fi is that, like all good things today, it has its own iPhone App which is available for free from the iTunes Store. Once installed on your iPhone, the App allows you to scan your iPhone photo library or Camera Roll and upload pictures directly from your phone to your PC/Mac over 3G or WiFi, whichever kicks in first.
Verdict: 4 / 5
OK, so I’m a gadget nerd, I know that, as soon as a new innovation comes out that I think is cool, I have to go out and get it. Having said that, this is probably one of the better gizmos that I have seen on the market in a while. At €69 for a 2GB version and €129 for the 4GB version (available from www.apple.ie/store), it is something that I find practical, time-saving and stable. My photos are now on my PC/Mac whenever I open my library and I don’t have to worry about upload them anymore.
Although you don’t have to have an Eye-Fi to use the App, it is definitely one of the iPhone features I use the most. Together with the Eye-Fi, it means that all my pictures are right there where I want them, in one location on my Mac. On the down side, the Geo-Tagging function can be a bit temperamental, but, in the words of Meatloaf, two out of three ain’t bad!
Fred Schelbaum is the founder/MD of Pressieport.ie – an Irish online shopping site for original and quirky gifts. Set up in 2007, Pressieport is now one of Ireland’s leading retail sites. Fred is an avid gadgeteer and tech-addict.
Back to top ^