Taser introduces tiny, sunglass-mounted videocameras for LEOs that automatically uploads videos to Amazon's cloud

[Jenna]

TASER, best known for their electric shock guns, has a new product: Tiny, sunglass-mounted cameras that upload live footage from a cop's P.O.V. to the cloud. The idea? They will help prevent police brutality lawsuits and increase accountability.

Although TASER made their product announcement just a few hours ago, they already have a customer... the Bay Area Rapid Transit (BART) Police Department, which faces numerous charges of police brutality, has already ordered 150 cameras. Each camera stores approximately two hours of footage and has a 14 hour battery.

The 15 gram DVR at the heart of AXON Flex records a tamperproof stream of footage from the officer's POV (well, as long as it is turned on first) that is then automatically uploaded in encrypted form at the end of the officer's shift to the Amazon cloud-powered Evidence.com service.

More here: Smile, You're on (Digital) Camera: TASER's New Police Minicam and the Cloud: Scientific American

[IndianaFuzz]

These cameras have been around a while. Is it the cloud usage that is new?

[Rhino]

TASER had a POV cam out for a while now. Whomever designed this to go on sunglasses I guess figures police wear sunglasses all the time. Putting them on sunglasses makes them all but useless. And yes, I understand you can change the lenses out, and clear lenses are fine for the night crawlers. But during the day when we have sunglasses on we can go from daylight to a dark basement in seconds and don't have time to futz around with lenses.

[toneless]

Our Highway Patrol ( Troopers ) have been doing trials on similar video cameras except that they are not fixed on to sunglasses. I don't know if they were accepted but I sure as hell don't want every dealings with a crook recorded.

Cameras don't always tell the real story especially when you deal with a scumbag that knows that he/she is being filmed.

We are already accountable for almost everything we do or say here. hell, it's getting to the point where you can't even scratch your ass here without having to explain why you used the left hand and not the right...

The changes always seems to be in favour of the crooks and usually brought about by some Civil Libertarians who live in fantasy land.

Sooner or later there will not be any reward in doing this job.

[berserk]

I used to be opposed to cameras, because I figured that some of the things I might say to society's worthiest members aren't fit for public consumption. Entirely appropriate to the situation, but not the sort of thing that would go over all that well if repeated in polite society. If I tell a thug "sir, be quiet," then he'll probably keep testing me. I've had more success with "shut the fuck up." I didn't really want that to be the impression I left on my boss, or a judge, or the press.

But then I thought about it a little more. I'm not an abusive person. I'm generally respectful to people who I contact, no matter what their background. If I switch to a more aggressive communication style, then it's after someone has demonstrated that it's necessary, and I think John Q can understand that.

More importantly, I will stand by and own up to anything that I say. If I speak to someone politely, that's easy. But if I rip someone a new one, it's the same thing; I'm not going to pretend like it was a polite and orderly discussion if I was laying down the law. My report is going to say that I was shouting, and if my boss asks me about it later I'll tell him exactly what I said, how, and why. So if I'm good with all that, why would I care if it's recorded? Really, recordings are going to work out in my favor every time.

The only reservations I have left are that I would want a recording to capture my perspective accurately. I like where Taser is going with the glasses-cam, but like Rhino points out there's definitely some kinks to be worked out with that. I'd rather have something that I can wear without attaching it to equipment (like sunglasses) that has another purpose. I don't see the benefit in requiring my camera to multitask.

By the same token, I'm completely unwilling to attach a camera to any of my weapons. In another forum where I used to post, there we a discussion a while back about attaching cameras to guns. Not happening, and I was just as disappointed when Taser had a system for attaching cameras to their batteries... incredibly stupid. All of my weapons exist for one purpose: to do varying degrees of harm to another person. I'm not willing to add something to them that isn't directed towards that purpose. Besides, if the camera is on my weapon then it's probably only going to catch a few seconds of video of some guy getting stunned or shot, and not much of what led up to that. Better to have no recording at all than one that only tells half the story.

...apologies for this drunken rant.

[Xiphos]

Still too bulky.

[lewisipso]

No thanks.

[jmistric]

I've tried this thing. No matter how much I try, it's just too much. Before we know it, we're gonna be covered in an extra 30 pounds of gear while chasing bad guys...Oh wait, last time I checked...shorts and t-shirt plus "me" - 180...at work all geared up - 208 pounds. I've had enough of this stuff.

[lewisipso]

I've tried this thing. No matter how much I try, it's just too much. Before we know it, we're gonna be covered in an extra 30 pounds of gear while chasing bad guys...Oh wait, last time I checked...shorts and t-shirt plus "me" - 180...at work all geared up - 208 pounds. I've had enough of this stuff.

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