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discussion / Camera Traps  / 29 July 2023

Bushnell cameras with date-time issues.

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We have 3 or 4 cameras that reset the date and time to the factory default on a regular basis.  Resets to   10/01/2016  for example.   Could this be a problem with the internal RTC circuit and or the coin type battery they use?

Thanks for any ideas.  Take Care.  Mike Hundt



Akiba
@Freaklabs  | He/Him
Freaklabs
I'm an engineer and product designer working in conservation technology. I specialize in technology for landscape restoration and wildlife behavioral ecology.
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30 July 2023 1:38am

I would suspect the coin cell for the real time clock as you mentioned. Especially if it's an older camera, it could indicate the battery is low and needs to be replaced. Also if it never did this before and only recently has been doing this, it's likely the battery. 

Colin Cook
@Colin_Cook
Friends of Brisbane Ranges
Commenter level 2

11 August 2023 12:40pm

I think this is a known problem with some Bushnell models. The battery connection only needs to be interrupted for an instant (by being moved for example) and the camera resets. If a coin battery, are they still charged?

Frank van der Most
@Frank_van_der_Most  | He, him
RubberBootsData
Field data app developer, with an interest in funding and finance
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11 August 2023 1:19pm

I am having similar problems with a campark camera. It's more than 4 years old, so it could be the button cell. I am also suspecting that humidity plays a role : the re-set happened a couple of times after long rain periods ( half a day or so ). Perhaps it was coincidence, perhaps some corrosion is going on.