Lost ability to record video using GoPro Hero4

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At my track session this past weekend, I went through my usual routine before starting Laptimer: I went into Settings on my iPad Mini to confirm that my XGPS160 was connected via Bluetooth, and that my GoPRO Hero4 was connected via wifi. Check. Then I went into Laptimer, opened up the Race menu, selected Timer, then pressed the Video button on the lower left part of the screen to check that the GoPRO icon is displayed in the upper right hand corner of the Video screen, and that the usual message "Video will begin recording when the Start/Finish point is passed." But instead, I got a message inside a dialog box in the center of the screen that said, "Select internal and external cams to use from above. Currently, no cam is selected. This means LapTimer will record lap times and data without video and overlay options." So I selected the image of the Hero4 camera, and I got messages that cycled between statements that the "Video operation is set to external cam only. The internal cam will not be used to record additonal footage. Cam(s) connected: GoPro Hero4", and the same message above, that no cameras are available. Worse still, this problem appears to have blocked Laptimer from working altogether, as I also didn't collect any data from my session this past weekend. In other words, Laptimer collected neither data nor video when I passed the start/finish point.

I'm doing the exact same procedure described above here in my room as I type this, and this time, I get a spinning sheel in the Video Operation message box - Laptimer isn't recognizing my Hero4, even though it is sitting inches from my ipad mini, with the blue wifi light flashing. When I menu back to the Race window, the message under Overall Status: says "Conditionally Operational", which doesn't appear to be true, based on my experience last weekend where no data was recorded.

When I go into the Settings menu in Laptimer, it has "Master" written next to Multicam Preset, and it has "HERO4" written next to External Cam, which I believe are the correct values for these settings.

I have another question, unrelated to my problems above, which I will post in another thread. Thanks.

[Harry]

The way you used the front end looks seems to be ok. A frequent issue with the HERO4 is it disables WiFi for power saving without notice. The blue light and WiFi indicators are still in but the connection is lost. The GoPro app powers WiFi on using BT LE built into the HERO, LapTimer is not yet doing this. Once the cam is connected, it will stay on because it is contacted regularly.

Another issue is when the GoPro app is operated in parallel to LapTimer. This will generate the type of connected / disconnected effects described.

On missing data *and* video: this is not related to the cam. Lap recognition is never influenced by cams - they are triggered when laps start only. So the issue has most probably been around GPS reception or a missing / wrong track set.

Harry

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Hmmm... I seem to remember you had mentioned this power saving mode for the Hero before. Is there any way to detect that it's in this mode, and to get it out? It's odd that it would go into this mode, as the camera was fully charged when I arrived at the track. I realize you're not responsible for issues with the GoPro, so I will do some searches on this wifi disconnect power saving mode, as this is very frustrating - it's happened to me many times now that the camera doesn't record.

As far as the data not recording, this is very strange, because right before my session, another driver inquired about which Laptimer I was using, so I told him it was HLT, and he downloaded a copy on the spot (do I get a comission? ), and data recording worked for him during the exact same session we were both on (he was running HLT through his android phone, and did not have GoPro). So, the GPS reception and track setting seemed to be OK.

[Cloud9...68]

I just tried it again, and the fundamental problem is that when I press the video icon in the lower left portion of the Timer screen, I get that Video Operation dialog box I described in my opening post. Selecting any of the four options (None, Internal cam only, External cam only, or Both) just gives me a spinning wheel - none of the camera selections is ever completed. So I don't think the problem is related to the GoPro, because I get the same spinning wheel even when I select the Internal cam only option. Oh, and if it helps, when I press the External Cam option in the Video Operation dialog box, it causes my GoPro to beep. Not sure if that means anything, but it's another piece of information.

[Harry]

The spinning wheel means LapTimer is searching for a cam. It will be there when selecting internal + external and external only.

The GoPro will beep when connected because LapTimer send a number of configuration / initialization commands. The place to watch is the help / status text in Video Operation. It will change when cam states change.

The only option to verify the cam has its WiFi on is checking the network connection of your phone. It will disconnect from the WiFi (after some time) when the GoPro's WiFi drops.

And to repeat: once the H4 is connected to LapTimer, it will not drop connection because LapTimer is asking for the cam status regularly.

Harry

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But what I don't understand is that when I tested it last night at home, there was no indication of a problem - the GoPRO was connected via wifi, its battery was fully charged, and all the settings in HLT for the external cam feature were set correctly. I did this test with no time delay betwen confirming the wifi connection, and starting up HLT. Why did HLT keep searching for a cam, given that everything was set correctly for the Hero4 to be recognized? I gave it a solid 15 minutes to recognize teh Hero4, and it never did - the wheel just kept spinning. This behavior started very recently - it never did this prior to my track session last weekend. Maybe I'm not understanding something of what you're recommending...

Also, HLT never even recognized the ipad's internal cam (can't remembr if I got the spinning wheel, but I defintely didn't get confirmation that the internal cam was recognized when I selected it from the choices on the Video Operation dialog box). In other words, HLT isn't recognizing ANY of the available cams.

[Harry]

The internal cam is not "recognized"? It is there. In case you have declined access to cam or microphone when asked accidentally, please enable access in iOS ‣ Settings app ‣ Privacy for LapTimer.

The spinning wheel will be on when searching for external cams. As you can connect other iPhone running MultiCam, it will not stop once the HERO4 is found.

In case the HERO4 is not found, please make sure it is recognized by GoPro's app. Connection making for the HERO4 is super complicated designed, so there might be an issue too. Once this has been verified, kill the GoPro app. When both the GoPro app (in background) and LapTimer talk to the HERO4, anything may happen.

[Cloud9...68]

Harry,

I took another look tonight, and I may have not interpreted what the information in the Video Operation dialog box is telling me completely correctly. It IS working with the internal cam - when I select the internal cam from the Video Operation dialog box, it gives me the option to preview, and when I select Preview, I get the reassuring message that video recording will start automatically when the start/finished line is passed. When I select the internal/external cam option, it also gives the option to preview, and I get the same message, along with the equally reassuring icon of a GoPro camera at the upper right hand corner of the video screen. So at least today, it appears that if I select the internal/external cam option, the GoPro camera will automatically start recording when I pass the start/finish line. However, when I press the external cam only option, it does not give me the option to preview; "Done" is the only option I get. The statment in the dialog box tells me that video operation is set to external cam only, and that the cam connected is the GoPro Hero4. However, the wheel keeps spinning, and when I press Done, it just goes back to the Timer screen, with no message that video recording will start when the start/finish line is passed. I have a feeling that I selected the external cam only option from the video operation dialog box before my session last weekend, which is why I didn't get a video recording. So the external cam only option doesn't appear to be working, at least for me.

If I choose the internal/external cam option, I think it will turn on the GoPro, which is good, but it will also make a video recording of my session using the ipad mini's internal camera, which will be a 25 minute video of my dashboard. Is there any way to turn off the internal cameral recording, and just use the external cam? I vaguely remember you discussing this before, so I apologize if I'm asking a question that's already been answered. Thanks.

[Harry]

Using the external cam only mode is comparably silent and invisible. There is no preview, so there is no Preview button. Once you get the message the H4 is connected, press Done and drive using the Timer View. You can see the H4 is connected looking into the status bar in Timer View. A solid cam symbol (without the red cross) means the cam is operated. Green and blue bubbles are shown for messages sent and received. So as long as they are busy, things are good.

Harry

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My daughter just got back from a Study Abroad program in Europe (didn't include Germany, though), and she took both the ipad mini and the Gopro with her, so I haven't been able to use HLT this past month. But both she and the devices are safely back, so I'm planning to do a track session tomorrow. So, I'm reviewing where I left off, and what's happeng when I select the video button at the lower left corner of the Timer screen is that I get the same dialog box I described in my earlier posts, and when I select the "external cam" choice, it cycles between telling me the the Hero4 is connected, and that "no rxternal cams are connected currently." And the spinning hweel keeps spinning the whole time, as if HLT can't make up its mind whether it recognizes the GoPro cameraa or notl It cycles between these two messages on a very regular basis: it stays on the "Hero4 connected" message for ten seconds, then stays on the "no external camera connected" for five seconds, and keeps cycling back and forth between these two messages very regularly at these intervals. This can't be OK - there's no way the video will record with the GoPro like this, right? What can I do to fix this?

Also, for mre information, when I select both the internal and external cam, which allows me to do a preview, at first the message that "the video recording will start when the start/finish lines is crossed" is displayed, then it disappears after a few seconds, probably in conjunction with the message that there is no external cam connected. Also, in no mode am I getting the icon of the GoPro camera in the upper right hand corner of the video preview screen like I used to. I have to say, this is getting very frustrating. Thanks.