Got my Sena 10c Bluetooth Headset and Camera today, and so far I am pretty impressed. Thanks to RevZilla for hooking me up so quickly - I ordered it on June 24th, and received it on the 27th. Glad I did too, as they are now showing out of stock.
This is my first Bluetooth communication system for my bike. I mainly got it because I wanted to listen to music while I ride, but didn't want a set of speakers that everyone can hear but me. Having a helmet cam was not in the original plan, but it occurred to me that I see a lot of wildlife and interesting sights when I ride, most of which don't lend themselves to pulling over and backtracking to wherever the shot used to be. So I figured, what the heck, and decided to give the Sena 10c a try.
For those unfamiliar with the specs, here's RevZilla's page for it. It has simple controls, consisting of a camera button on the top, a phone button on the back, a music button on the side, and a jog dial that acts as a volume and radio tuner. The buttons have multiple functions depending on how long you hold them down. For example, press the camera button to activate the camera. Once activated, pressing the camera button will take a still shot. Hold down the camera button to start recording, hold it down again to stop recording. Turn off the camera by holding down the camera and phone buttons, or it will just go to sleep if not used for a while. The side button turns music on and off, played from your phone. The basic features are easy enough to use with a pair of gloves on while riding, but anything more complicated should be done while you're pulled over.
I'll note here that there's no way (at least that I have found) to see what the camera sees - there's no live feed option. That might have made it easier to "aim" it when I mounted it. I didn't find out until later that the right side of any image is my helmet.
Also, the 10c supports up to a 32G micro SD card, but does not come with one. That sent me to Radio Shack while the 10c was charging.
THE HELMET STUFF
It's a good thing I recently replaced my helmet, as my old one didn't have the indentations for the earpieces. Because the earpieces are so thin, they didn't seem to want to seat properly in the helmet. I tried using the included velcro spacers but that made them stick out too far (I kept hitting them with my ears.) I ended up removing the spacers and just using the earpieces, which seem to be staying put. Will keep an eye (ear?) on them. The wiring tucked neatly behind the cheek pads. Since I have a modular helmet, I can’t use the surface mounted mic. I did try, but the cable kept getting yanked when I opened it, then got in my face when I closed it. I had to try several spots for mounting the boom mic underneath the left ear/cheek pad; the best spot puts the mic right up against my face once I put the padded bulb on it. I may try to adjust that better, but it actually did not bother me while riding.
THE DEVICE STUFF
There is a card in the documentation that tells how to download firmware updates. You go to Sena’s support site, where they require that you register the 10c to download the software for it. They offer Windows and Mac flavors. Note that the Mac software will complain if you’re installing it to Mavericks or Yosemite because of the Gatekeeper software. To bypass the warning, hold down Control while clicking the installer package, it will work fine from there. Once it was installed though, I did have an issue trying to get their software to recognize the Sena. This might be weirdness with my laptop though, as it's old and flaky (2010 MacBook Pro.) Worst case, i do have a Windows system here I can use if an update does become necessary.
I then paired the 10c with my iPhone 6+. Once the two were connected, the phone asked if I wanted to install the Sena app; sure, why not? The app lets you control the settings of the 10c, including speed dial settings and radio station presets. It even downloaded new versions of the users and quick guides. It told me that the firmware was 1.0, which is the latest. All the settings can be programmed using the buttons and jog dial on the device itself, but the app is much easier, offering slider switches for most functions and text entry for things like speed dial phone numbers and FM Radio presets.
You can set three speed dial numbers right into the device, but if you have a recent model iPhone, the phone button will activate Siri. This is a great thing, in case I get lost and have to ask "where am I and how do I get home?" Next trip out I will test out the turn by turn directions but I don't see why it wouldn't work.
Now that everything was firmly bolted down, what was left but to GO RIDE? I went on a 28 minute trip up and down the local interstate. I found the volume level to be adequate for listening to music and the Sena voice prompts, but when i tried to use Siri I could hardly hear it over the wind noise. (Not that I recommend it, but I had to try.) Perhaps when I finally replace my windscreen with a taller one, the wind noise will be reduced.
There are settings for what to record while filming: FM Radio, Music, Intercom, and Phone. I had all turned off but Intercom, so the recording included me sniffling and coughing a few times
but there was very little road noise. The video was pretty good considering it was being filmed at 65+ mph. The camera records video at 1080p 30fps or 720p 60fps, using h.264. The audio portion is AAC mono, 32khz.
The only other issue I had was pulling the video from the micro SD card. The SD card reader on my laptop doesn't work, so I used the USB charger cable. My laptop saw it as a removable storage device, and I was able to view the sample pictures I took before I went riding. When I got back though, my laptop wouldn't recognize the device at all. I removed the micro SD card and connected it to my Linux system, which immediately mounted and imported the video and pictures. Again it may just be my laptop but I'm interested in hearing from others.
Overall I am quite happy with it. Once I edit the video down, I'll post it someplace and link to it if anyone is interested.
Glenn
This is my first Bluetooth communication system for my bike. I mainly got it because I wanted to listen to music while I ride, but didn't want a set of speakers that everyone can hear but me. Having a helmet cam was not in the original plan, but it occurred to me that I see a lot of wildlife and interesting sights when I ride, most of which don't lend themselves to pulling over and backtracking to wherever the shot used to be. So I figured, what the heck, and decided to give the Sena 10c a try.
For those unfamiliar with the specs, here's RevZilla's page for it. It has simple controls, consisting of a camera button on the top, a phone button on the back, a music button on the side, and a jog dial that acts as a volume and radio tuner. The buttons have multiple functions depending on how long you hold them down. For example, press the camera button to activate the camera. Once activated, pressing the camera button will take a still shot. Hold down the camera button to start recording, hold it down again to stop recording. Turn off the camera by holding down the camera and phone buttons, or it will just go to sleep if not used for a while. The side button turns music on and off, played from your phone. The basic features are easy enough to use with a pair of gloves on while riding, but anything more complicated should be done while you're pulled over.
I'll note here that there's no way (at least that I have found) to see what the camera sees - there's no live feed option. That might have made it easier to "aim" it when I mounted it. I didn't find out until later that the right side of any image is my helmet.
Also, the 10c supports up to a 32G micro SD card, but does not come with one. That sent me to Radio Shack while the 10c was charging.
THE HELMET STUFF
It's a good thing I recently replaced my helmet, as my old one didn't have the indentations for the earpieces. Because the earpieces are so thin, they didn't seem to want to seat properly in the helmet. I tried using the included velcro spacers but that made them stick out too far (I kept hitting them with my ears.) I ended up removing the spacers and just using the earpieces, which seem to be staying put. Will keep an eye (ear?) on them. The wiring tucked neatly behind the cheek pads. Since I have a modular helmet, I can’t use the surface mounted mic. I did try, but the cable kept getting yanked when I opened it, then got in my face when I closed it. I had to try several spots for mounting the boom mic underneath the left ear/cheek pad; the best spot puts the mic right up against my face once I put the padded bulb on it. I may try to adjust that better, but it actually did not bother me while riding.
THE DEVICE STUFF
There is a card in the documentation that tells how to download firmware updates. You go to Sena’s support site, where they require that you register the 10c to download the software for it. They offer Windows and Mac flavors. Note that the Mac software will complain if you’re installing it to Mavericks or Yosemite because of the Gatekeeper software. To bypass the warning, hold down Control while clicking the installer package, it will work fine from there. Once it was installed though, I did have an issue trying to get their software to recognize the Sena. This might be weirdness with my laptop though, as it's old and flaky (2010 MacBook Pro.) Worst case, i do have a Windows system here I can use if an update does become necessary.
I then paired the 10c with my iPhone 6+. Once the two were connected, the phone asked if I wanted to install the Sena app; sure, why not? The app lets you control the settings of the 10c, including speed dial settings and radio station presets. It even downloaded new versions of the users and quick guides. It told me that the firmware was 1.0, which is the latest. All the settings can be programmed using the buttons and jog dial on the device itself, but the app is much easier, offering slider switches for most functions and text entry for things like speed dial phone numbers and FM Radio presets.
You can set three speed dial numbers right into the device, but if you have a recent model iPhone, the phone button will activate Siri. This is a great thing, in case I get lost and have to ask "where am I and how do I get home?" Next trip out I will test out the turn by turn directions but I don't see why it wouldn't work.
Now that everything was firmly bolted down, what was left but to GO RIDE? I went on a 28 minute trip up and down the local interstate. I found the volume level to be adequate for listening to music and the Sena voice prompts, but when i tried to use Siri I could hardly hear it over the wind noise. (Not that I recommend it, but I had to try.) Perhaps when I finally replace my windscreen with a taller one, the wind noise will be reduced.
There are settings for what to record while filming: FM Radio, Music, Intercom, and Phone. I had all turned off but Intercom, so the recording included me sniffling and coughing a few times
but there was very little road noise. The video was pretty good considering it was being filmed at 65+ mph. The camera records video at 1080p 30fps or 720p 60fps, using h.264. The audio portion is AAC mono, 32khz. The only other issue I had was pulling the video from the micro SD card. The SD card reader on my laptop doesn't work, so I used the USB charger cable. My laptop saw it as a removable storage device, and I was able to view the sample pictures I took before I went riding. When I got back though, my laptop wouldn't recognize the device at all. I removed the micro SD card and connected it to my Linux system, which immediately mounted and imported the video and pictures. Again it may just be my laptop but I'm interested in hearing from others.
Overall I am quite happy with it. Once I edit the video down, I'll post it someplace and link to it if anyone is interested.
Glenn
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