Zeiss Secacam 7 - I can see you!
- By Chris Parkin
- Last updated: 08/08/2024
Zeiss has launched the Secacam 7 units and seems to have hit the mark with hassle-free electronics to help hunters and observers of all types. Essentially, the only difference between the 5 and 7 is that the latter has an additional display screen, allowing you to easily view the recorded image.
Keep it simple
Inside the box, you will find the Secacam with batteries, SIM card, and SD card pre-installed. You only have to pull out the tab for the power to go live and then switch it on. It’s great that you can use it immediately with results or delve deeper and use more of the features available. A toggled latch opens the door, exposing the internal display screen and control buttons. These are large, tactile, and easy to use. The menu button allows access to the different capture modes (photo and video available), how many photos it will take, video size and length, sensitivity, flash mode etc. Critically, you have the choice of whether to transmit or not.
Transmission
The aerial on top, along with the SIM card, allows the camera to instantly send data over the mobile phone network, and if you are signed up and logged into the app on your smartphone, you will receive immediate photos and videos directly to your pocket. The Secacam comes with a prepaid allowance to get you started. You have the option to choose between pre-paid plans starting from £2.69 or a monthly contract for up to £13.49. This allows you to select and customize the amount you want to pay based on the amount of photo and video usage you expect. The details are all within the app and on the Zeiss website, so it’s worth looking in detail to see what you will need. Once up and running, you can control, in real-time, what photos or videos are being sent to you, with a notification tone like any other app to inform you instantly. The free starter period is fantastic because it allows you a month to assess your needs before any financial commitment.
You become a participant
Not everyone has immediate local access to their hunting ground, and Zeiss offers a multiple-item contract and anti-theft service with up to an 80% discount on a replacement camera if yours is stolen. The camera also has GPS capability. A local farmer has already bought into these and uses them as remote security devices. He knows how critical I am, and I have had no issues at all appreciating the Secacam. Like so many, I can’t be on the ground all the time. While photos from an SD card are great and time-stamped, receiving a quick alert on your phone just seconds after an encounter makes you feel more involved at the location and gives you a better sense of the real tempo of what’s going on. The image quality both before and after dark is good, allowing you to assess a photographed/videoed deer, for example. Plus, if your identification skills come up a little short, the AI feature will name what you are looking at, if somewhat simply categorised as a deer or bird etc.
24-7
The camera records in daylight or darkness and the sensitivity can be adjusted to compensate for likely foliage movement or sunlight direction. I was stunned when the camera was activated by the legs of a deer, which were only just visible through a hedge line 10m away, and I also like the fact I can control what I want it to do remotely. The app is reasonably straightforward to use, and the location of this camera in one spot has immediately initiated the purchase of an extra high seat.
Outdoor life
The camera is waterproof, of course, and with a mid-green dappled finish, it looks natural, without being too tactical, meaning it is not just for the hunter. This hopefully means that it is less likely to get vandalised or stolen. Funnily enough, a farmer called me to say he’d had a phone call with an admission of guilt from a trespasser, who realised he had been caught on the camera when he saw the aerial on top. He knew there was no point in denying it because the evidence was already recorded. Thankfully, he wasn’t actually ‘up to no good’.
Support act
The Secacam 7 has a ¼” thread insert below for camera accessory compatibility. Also, it uses a 32GB SD card for full-resolution recording, which you can physically collect and offload as desired. A USB cable is supplied, as well as a similarly camouflaged strap and buckle to attach the unit to a tree, fencepost, or gateway. The latter was my primary location as it was a natural funnel point for lots of local fauna.
I only have two criticisms, both of which are very minor. Firstly, the SD card is very fiddly to extract manually, regardless of fingernail length. In fact, I found I needed to use a knife tip or tweezers to get it out. Secondly, regardless of how I set the clock, either manually or automatically, the time stamps on the SD card photos and videos were correct but didn’t seem to match the app display clock setting, which was always an hour ahead. Maybe it goes via another time zone that alters it?
Conclusion
A well-priced and well-made product with simple operating procedures that are easily accessible and configurable to suit your needs. I like the fact you can choose a variety of contract types to suit the volume of traffic passing your camera, and that footage can be easily shared among a group of stalkers using the same land, without anyone needing to visit and disturb the location.