The EV100 Micro AV Recorder is a DVR for the Eachine EV100 headset. Eachine should have built this into the headset, but here we are. It's about the size of a matchbook and works quite well despite a short learning curve. It's powered by the same battery included with the EV100 and uses the white balance lead. Other than that you can use either of the included 2.5mm to 3.5mm cables to plug it into the video input/output port of the EV100. You can either strap it beside the battery in the headstrap or use the included double sided tape to mount it to the top of the goggles.

Vs the Eachine ProDVR

This is obviously a repurposed Eachine ProDVR, but it does simplify the design. The ProDVR has different pins for each input and output. In fact the entire side of the unit is dedicated to various inputs, outputs, controls, power and ground. This does make the ProDVR more flexible in terms of custom applications, but requires some custom wiring for most applications. The EV100 DVR has simplified the entire design offering only a single jack for both video input and output. A switch was added to toggle between the two. This allows you to record your footage during flight and review footage within the goggle at the flip of a switch.

Tip: To put the EV100 into video-in mode hold the right button until you hear the 3rd beep.

Features

What's nice about this is it offers more features than FatShark does on their DVR. FatShark does nothing but playback and auto record. Unfortunately the EV100 DVR does not do auto record, but it does allow you to change the video resolution, disable audio, toggle PAL and NTSC and change the refresh rate. I think it's great that you can disable the audio. This eliminates that loud buzz normally found in DVR footage. These are the resolution options:

• VGA (640x480)
• D1 (720x480)
• HD (1280x480)

Since the EV100 uses 4:3 displays you'll probably want to keep this at 640x480. The other options just stretch the footage to make it wider. Both the D1 and HD modes are quite oddball resolutions that don't even match 16:9. If you plan to publish a 16:9 video with DVR you're best off stretching the 640x480 footage yourself to avoid letterboxing. It'd make more sense to offer an option for 853x480. At least this would stretch it to 16:9.

Final Thoughts

If you fly the EV100 exclusively this is a must. It's not perfect, but it gets the job done. The buttons aren't very intuitive nor are they very tactile. I find myself fumbling to press the correct button when navigating the menus. A word of advice, if you see "Format" in the menu don't expect that to change the video format. It formats your microSD card! Don't ask how I know this. Otherwise I wish this had an on/off switch. I feel like I'm putting a lot of stress on the balance lead pulling it out all the time.

The quality of the footage is on par with any other DVR. In fact I found the bitrate to be slightly higher than that of my FatShark DVR, so it does seem to use some newer technology. For the most part it's indiscernible though.

Pros

• Very compact and lightweight
• Easy to remove microSD
• More features than FatShark
• Higher bitrate than FatShark
• Perfect for the EV100

Cons

• Unintuitive controls and usage
• No on/off switch
• Wires too long