plow250

hey everyone, first post on the forums

just looking for expertice and suggestions for cheap trail cams... i have a 5MP wildgame innovations that was 89 bucks and i have nothing but good to say about it, problem is, i doubt they make them any more SO...

are there any people out there who have a camera with decent picture quality (like 5MP or better), good picture range (atleast 50 FT), good battery life, and some options (like picture, burst, video, ETC ETC)

my cam has all of the above, but i need a few more, because im planning on getting a few spots with cams on them for bow, so im not limited to only one spot.

i already looked into the wildgame 6x, and 8x, and they definately would meet my standards, but im afraid that they would not be so battery friendly... (i only use picture mode, so im sure that helps, but IDK if the 8MP pictures have any effect on battery life)

can anyone shed any light on this or give out some suggestions? much appreciated

handles II

try one of the trailcam testing sights (trail cam pro, chasing game) to find what will best suit your needs and pocketbook.

littlearrow

To increase your battery life with any camera that accepts AA batteries, go to Ultimate lithium. These are expensive but test 1.79 to 1.83 volt using a digital meter. These are ideal for cold weather use due to high voltage. Another good brand is Duracell Copper Top which test 1.60 volt.
As for cameras Moultrie has several good ones: D55-IR, D55XT, M80, M80XT, M100 and M880. I have all these versions and am happy with them. The only down fault is night time where pictures or videos can be blurry if the animal passes close to the camera. SpyPoint Black Flash is another good camera. I have the BF7 which is total black flash (undetected by the human eye, but will be detected by another trail camera when it triggers). The other camera shows it as a white flash. Good luck in your choice.

plow250

Thanks for the help guys, been interested in the moultrie cams for a while, so I have to check out those sites and the moultrie site

handles II

I just saw that cabela's is having a trailcam sale. the Moultrie 550 is $99, 880 is $119. If those are models you are interested in, prices aren't bad.

Wisco94

Avoid the M550. I have one and it's worse than my $60 WGI camera…

buckmaster68

I have not heard much good about the moultries and the stealth cams suck for sure, along with the wildviews. The primos makes a good camera but they are pretty much disposable because they will not fix or cover them after the year warranty and they have a internal battery that saves the date you program and the battery seems to go bad and it will not hold the date even after you set it. It reverts back to 01-01-2012 or whatever year it was made. Have seen numerous posts where others have had this problem also.
I would go onto the sportsmansguide web site, I they sell the wildgame innovations cams fairly reasonably priced and for the money I think that is the way to go. You can get them for under a hundred bucks.

Wisco94

I second the Wildgame Innovations if your just looking for a cheap basic camera. I've had two for two years now and have had 0 problems. The one takes C batteries and I left it out all of last year through March and we had months of below zero weather and I just replaced those same batteries two weeks ago. That camera only took a picture every 30 seconds however and that was as quick as it would allow. From what I've noticed the WGI will have less features (burst modes, shorter delays, etc.) but again will be cheaper. If you do go WGI make sure to fill out the warranty card! I've heard they can be a PITA to deal with if you don't. Mine are both out of warranty though and I've never had a problem. I also have a Cabelas camera, made by Boly that I think has become my new favorite.

Wilcam47

another for the Moultrie M80...as was stated use ultimate lithium batteries. battery life can be extended by increasing the shot time. In my experience the larger the batteries the less time they last...such as game cams that use D batteries dont last as long as AA lithiums.

golfpro261

Bushnell. Hands down great bang for your buck. I can double check model numbers but the trophy cam hd models from last year you can find New for under 100.