Roader on Monday announced the Time Machine Camera, its latest offering that’s meant to provide a significant upgrade on the manner in which contemporary wearables record video. The main selling point of the gadget is its permanent state of buffering, allowing users to select recently capture footage they want to keep at any moment. Once they’re satisfied with their selection, transferring the desired clip to an Android or iOS device is as simple as pressing a button and conducted via a Bluetooth connection. In practice, the Roader mobile app will send and footage to your smartphone in 20 seconds or less, the company claims.The Time Machine Camera is primarily meant to allow you to capture the highlights of your day as it stores only ten seconds of footage before and after you press its record button. In doing so, it facilitates the process of editing videos and significantly reduces the time spent selecting footage you actually want to use, according to its creators.
The base model of the device comes with 16GB of internal flash memory, with Roader also planning on offering 32GB versions of its wearable camera. The clips themselves are captured in a 1:1 aspect ratio, with the square image format making them suitable for posting on social networks like Snapchat and Instagram without the need for manual cropping. Roader’s gadget automatically records video in two resolutions – 1,088 x 1,088 and 640 x 640. Both formats are captured at 30 frames per second, though only the lower-resolution one is transferred to a smartphone via Bluetooth so as to facilitate the process of sharing clips on social media. The high-quality footage stays stored on the camera itself and can be transferred to a PC via a USB Type-C port or a Wi-Fi connection.
The 8-megapixel sensor of the Time Machine Camera is mounted behind a lens with a 120-degree field of view that’s suitable for everything from action photography to use in controlled environments. The 2,350mAh battery powering the device is said to last between six to seven hours on a single charge and a built-in microphone is also part of the package. The Time Machine Camera will go on sale in the second quarter of the year with a recommended price of $199. Customers will also be able to participate in a pre-sale set to take place in late winter or early spring which will allow them to purchase the gadget for $149. Roader has yet to reveal the price of the 32GB model and provide more details on its potential plans to launch the Time Machine Camera outside of the United States. The compact wearable will be showcased at CES 2018 from tomorrow to Friday, January 12th.
