Aiptek 2000C Video Phone
Aiptek's Hyper VideoPhone 2000C combines a digital video camera and monitor which, when plugged into a touch-tone phone, makes a complete, all-in-one Video Phone allowing you to talk face-to-face with friends and family around the world.
In this case, a picture is definitely worth a thousand words. The Aiptek 2000C Video Phone connects via a standard phone line and allows you to converse with loved ones while actually viewing their smiling faces. Ideal for grandparents, extended families, or the hearing impaired, the 4-inch screen includes zoom, tilt, and pan picture adjustments; you can even disable the video if the ringer catches you in the tub. Images are transmitted with an average speed of 28.8 kpbs, which amounts to a solid 15 frames per second. Included are two jacks that allow you to connect the screen to your television or VCR, and a keypad is built right in. Aiptek provides a one-year warranty.
Aiptek 2000C Video Phone Accessories
Aiptek 2000C Video Phone Reviews
A slow speed, high quality setting allowed remote verification that she actually was taking her pills. The unit's camera works in low light conditions, but in dim light the pictures tend to be noisy and lack color saturation. Now it's used by our elderly relative and a favorite niece to keep in touch via long distance. With new concerns about airline travel, now may be a good time to consider this product.
It allowed an elderly relative to stay in her home after she became forgetful about taking her medication. I've used this easy to operate videophone (paired with an Aiptek 2000S) with highly satisfactory results in several applications. The system is indeed easy to operate: we purposely selected the 2000C unit with integrated screen, which requires no adjustment of operating controls at all, for our elderly relative. The system delivers surprisingly good image quality, given its POTS modem speed, which averages 28.8kbps (some wonder why it's not faster.33.6kbps is the fastest you can get in a dialup connection without an ISP).
Aiptek also includes a "PC" videophone mode, which allows the device to work modem-to-modem with some PC videophones (depends on the PC modem, which can't be a "winmodem", and the PC camera software). After she moved into a nursing home, I used the system briefly in a business surveillance application. A little attention to room lighting produces surprisingly good, colorful pictures.
I could easily see my parents and the delay was only very slight. Of all of the products I tried, the AIPTEK was the easiest to use and again picture quality was great for all of these products. The key with this is, if you use the smallest picture size the video will transfer very fast and you wont notice any delay. I was a skeptic at first but now I am sold and will be buying more
After researching and testing all of the vendors (Starview, Motion Media, Metaeye, Infoview and Aiptek) I purchased this product. I use the middle size and it works fine. Don't get fooled by the marketing gimmicks of 56K modems since they can only transmit at this speed in one direction and this is too much bandwidth for a standard telephone line. Here is the scoop on picture quality: All of the competing products are going to display the video at about the same speed. Bottom line: This product and concept is amazing and it makes my parents feel so much better when they can see their kids and grandkids 3000miles away on the videophone versus just a phone call. Picture quality of a TV broadcast is around 30 frames per second (fps). It is extremely easy to use and my computer illiterate parents had no trouble getting this hooked up.
Although the screen is 4" in diameter, you really can see a lot. I purchased this product so that distant grandparents in NY can see their new granddaughter. All of the products I tested broadcast at 15fps maximum and this quality looks good and is very clear (I was surprised.). Cost for AIPTEK was lower than some of the other units. Since a standard telephone line is used for 2-way communication with video, a 33.6Kbps modem is all that is needed.
Pretty decent frame rate of 15pfs. Great picture, but rather small LCD of approx 4 inches only.
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