Brinno BCC200 Construction Time Lapse Camera Bundle - 42-Day Battery Life, 720P HD, Waterproof Case - Perfect for Outdoor Security, Job Site Monitoring & Progress Documentation (Includes TLC200 Pro Camera & Mounting Clamp)

I just purchased this camera kit to do some time lapses at our lake cottage. I was a bit apprehensive given some of the reviews, as I am a bit of a techno snob when it comes to quality and user experience . I tried to research other options using gopro camera setups, etc...but I was short on time, and I was drawn not only by the price point but also by the fact that this was essentially ready-to-go out of the box for outdoor use. Also, the stated battery life was a huge plus...while I could run power to the camera theoretically, it was another aspect I was short on time to evaluate. At $300 for the kit and enclosure, and given my limitations, it seemed to be about the best thing going.I ordered it on a Saturday, and happily it arrived on Monday via my 2-day free prime option. We were leaving the lake on Monday, so I had to hustle it up to get it going.The packaging was great, two smaller boxes in the bigger retail packaging contained the camera placed inside the weather proof housing in one, and all the accessories in another.There are some comments on here about figuring out how to work this...I had absolutely no issues whatsoever. I took it out of the packaging, while my 9 year old opened the accessories box, and I would saying within 2 minutes had the batteries and memory card in (one is included, but I bought an SanDisk one with larger capacity) and the thing standing on our kitchen table taking 2-second time lapses of my daughter making funny faces as a test. There are only 3 buttons on the whole thing...the only part that might take some adjusting to this non-touch screen in this "touch screen world" we live in is that the menu navigation is using these 3 buttons in an overloaded manner, similar to the old flip-phones we use to live in where two buttons had primary functions, but also were used to navigate around menu options and settings. But it was no problem figuring it out.Starting a recording is crazy simple...out of the box, if you took the default settings, it is literally turning the unit on, and pressing the OK button 2x and away it starts. Obviously, if you are going to change the setting like most people would, you have to go through the aforementioned menu and settings process, but I don't find it to be confusing. There is a button labeled "menu" and another labeled "time"...really easy to work through what to have to do. Again, in a matter of 2-3 minutes, I had it up and recording on our kitchen table.Viewing the videos was simple...all you need to do to stop the recording process is hold down the "OK" button...it stops recording, displays a "processing" message, and thats it. Then pop the card out, and I was able to insert it into my MacBook, goto finder/explorer and see it as a drive with a folder with the .avi file...click on it, my MacBook opens it as a .mov file and there it was!The video quality was good, maybe even very good. It was very much 720p like. Anyone looking for the latest super-high-def-crazy-4k-whatever will probably find a bone to pick here. But it was far from pixelated...very reasonably clear, all reasonable details perfectly clear. It was a great time lapse of my daughter being silly at the kitchen table.After this test, I took it out to set it up. It comes with a couple thin bungee cords that stretch nicely and were perfect for wrapping around a tree. The bungee cords have hooks that attach to eye holes in the weatherproof housing. I tried to eyeball the view from my planned attachment point, and had a rough idea from the preview on the screen what I was looking at. The display on the unit itself isn't great, so don't expect a lot of clarity...but it enough to give you an idea of what you are framing...but you really can't tell anything specific about how well the details of within your frame are going to pop in the images. There is a "focus" mode, but I didn't try it (yet). What I did was take a test shot from the angle...then I took the card out and looked at the video on my MacBook. I was satisfied with the focus as it was set, so didn't touch it...but I know others have complained about needing to use a small screwdriver to adjust focus. I suspect that they set the focus assuming that the target is somewhat a distance away (20'+), so that is probably the default focus. I might have been able to dial it in just a bit more, but honestly given the nature of the time lapse video, I am not sure it would matter. My recommendation would be to just allow yourself some time to setup and position the camera, take a test vid, take it down, and check on your laptop/pc how it came out, and adjust from there. For me, it was a fairly quick process.The ergonomics of setup are going to be a bit cumbersome. So, it actually straps to things very easily...the bungee system worked for me, and it was less than a minute to tie it a tree limb. One it is strapped on though, access to the display and buttons are compromised a bit. But the bungee has enough give where I could kind of pull it from the tree a few inches to see the display and hit the buttons. I didn't find it to be a huge deal. Also, certainly you could set the thing recording and then go ahead and strap it up. I didn't use the included mounting bracket, but it looks useful. In any event, I was pleasantly surprised how quickly this thing got up and running.The enclosure has some rubber button "contacts" that let you interact with the 3 buttons of the unit while the camera is in the enclosure. It occurred to me just now, after reading some other reviews of people who set it up and didn't get the desired video they wanted, I wonder if it is possible that when using it in a scenario like I did (a tree covered with bark), if bungee'd on irregular services if it is possible for pressure to be placed on a button and for it to foul up a recording. To be clear, I did NOT observe this at all, and I think it is a long shot....but I guess it is possible. I would think it would take a rather unfortunate set of surface conditions and just the right level of pressure in the right spot, but I guess it is possible, though I would say unlikely.Overall, I think for $300 this is an excellent option. If there are other options for another weatherproofed time lapse camera setup that I can get 30+ days of shots out of the battery, I would love to hear about it. Nothing jumped out at me. Even in the reviews here, people complained and said they were going to return it for another option, but nobody has posted what that option might be. I think it is reasonably easy to use...in fact, setup is fairly quick out of the box. There is a quick start card included, and it was easy enough to follow. You can be taking time lapses in less that 5 minutes with this, and I would say if you want to be very particular about making sure your camera is placed well and focused, allow yourself 20-30 minutes of setup (I didn't fuss with the focus, but it seems easy enough). If you are concerned about focus, I would forget relying on the screen. Take a test shot, then view the video...tedious, but probably the best bet.I would happily pay a couple hundred $$$ more for the ability to control via an app, and even get a live view to aid in setup and focusing.There may be better options out there, but I didn't see anything that jumped out of me for out-of-the-box solutions for outdoor long term battery use around this price point. Maybe a gopro with some weatherproof housing options?I am letting this run for a month, and we'll see what we get. I will come back and post results, but I am giving it a 4-star rating for now. I will adjust based on the results I get. But I am very satisfied so far!