I LOVE my Pixio! Got it last March (shipped instantly no waiting), takes less than 5 minutes to set up and works pretty reliably. Well enough for me to sit here and pick apart my rides and help understand how my horse looks as opposed to how he feels! I use it regularly.
Glad I went with the Pixio because if I’d wanted the solo shot it sounds like i’d STILL be waiting for it, and I don’t have that kind of patience! haha
I also love my Pixio, which I’ve had for almost a year now. It’s easy enough to set up that I use it for most rides, the longest part is walking one lap around your arena to set the beacons. It follows, zooms and pans better than a human cameraman.
For those who are sure to buy the soloshot 3 or pixio. At this moment, there is a €60 reduction on the pixio 'till november 15th. Don`t know of this is usefull for anyone. Saw this action on their instagram-page. So… It’s not a lot, but it’s something…
A friend of mine has one and it has not worked in HER indoor. Apparently the beacons need to be 10’ away from metal and her ring has metal siding
For those looking into Soloshot, FYI that some of us have now received our SS3 orders and are actively trying them out. We have a few recent SS3 clips of riders on our Soloshot EQUESTRIANS facebook page - come on over!
Now that the SS3 has been out a while… what are people’s thoughts on it?? I’ve been researching and its 50/50 reviews whether it is good or bad. A lot of the videos I watched on youtube had a shared flaw of if you get too close it just zooms way out and loses focus for a few seconds. Other people showed that it never really followed the tag well and filmed a lot of the sky instead of them. Is this a setup error or has any of it been fixed with upgrades?
All opinions are appreciated!!! I want to be able to film lessons on my new horse; was thinking of the optic65 camera.
I’m still using my SS2, but wanted to share that the majority of problems I’ve seen with others’ use of the system have been user errors. I’ve done “training” sessions for several people who are now using their units successfully.
I am in 2 FB groups and I would agree with atlatl that it is very easy to perform user errors. I know it because I have been through millions 
Its amazing what can go wrong. In my case it was never the fault of the SS3. In one case Soloshot did offer to exchange my tag but they gave me a suggestion to try and that solved the problem. SS3 is not forgiving. Either you do it correctly or it doesn’t work.
I love it. i think its ideal for equestrians, and this is an example of its performance…
https://youtu.be/RY3i_kcjhnM
I think its also very important to use it a lot to really get familiar with everything. Otherwise it might not work when you really want a video
The SS3 isn’t enough cheaper than the pixio for me to consider it. One has at least enough happy users that I could justify it. The other doesn’t.
I got the SS3 - my first one was probably defective - SoloShot eventually sent me another one, and it works much better. Set up is NOT that difficult (if you get one that works) - but you need to make sure all the software updates are loaded before you use it. My first one took a full day to charge the battery, and it would lose focus and just stop focusing at all. And the initial set up was - horrible. It wouldn’t work at all until they finally did a big software update - that helped. Until it stopped focusing.
You have to be at least 20 feet from the camera for it to be able to keep tracking you - otherwise, it does swirl around looking for the tag (aka the rider). So rule 1 - at least 20 feet from your arena.
Then - it does take a few minutes for it to turn on and start tracking - and you have to be unmounted for those few minutes (or get back off your horse to finish the process). I groom and get my horse saddled, then I go turn on the SS, then go back and bridle my horse and put on my boots. You can turn the recording process on or off from the tag, so I just wait until we are warmed up before I start the recording process.
My biggest complaint - it does not zoom in very well - even if you have it on the “tightest” setting. And it does not (yet) work in an indoor/covered arena - although they are working on an update for that.
Having said that - it is a very useful tool - I ride alone, I don’t have mirrors, and now I can see what my riding (and my horse and pony) look like!
I got the camera with less range - and it can still track us several hundred feet outside of the arena.
Interesting that you need to be at least 20 feet away from the SS3. I routinely ride within 10 feet of my SS2 with no problem. I guess I’ll stop longing for the new system.
My first SS3 gave me trouble, but I think I was one of the early ones to receive it. They gave me a replacement and it’s been great. MysticOakRanch - I do a manual zoom in and its really good. I also just manually centre it on the tag and don’t worry with a walk around now. I have no complaints with my replacement unit.
You are right, atlatl, the SS2 is great and unless you got it for the amazing early pre-release price it is not worth the upgrade. However, I love my SS3! Unlike my SS2, I have never dismounted to find that it did not record my ride – always user error – there is just less opportunity for error setting up the SS3. As atlatl said above, a lot of the issues you see online with the SS3 are user error. Of those that were familiar with the SS2, I only remember one that had an issue and that did turn out to be hardware, which was replaced. Honestly, a lot of the people complaining online are new to robot cameras and seem to have unrealistic expectations for where we currently are in the technology. As long as a system uses GPS, it will not work where it cannot get a signal and there will be a distance within which the GPS signal coming from the tag and the base appear to be the same location – apparently, that is around 10 feet. I don’t find that distance to be any different from the SS2. The 65’s resolution is better than the SS2’s Sony camera. The battery life is longer. I love the user-friendly touchscreen. I find the zoom to be just as tight or tighter than the SS2’s. Unlike the SS2, there are no cords connecting the camera to the base, so it can turn 360 degrees allowing it to be set up in the middle of the arena. After I read all of the negative reviews, I held onto my SS2 until I was sure I liked the SS3 better. My SS2 is now for sale.
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My barn has a Pixio that we use to take lessons while my trainer is down in Florida. The tracking and video resolution is GREAT but there is a steep learning curve when it comes to managing wires. I’d imagine if we didn’t have it hooked to the laptop, this might be a bit easier, but as it is we sort of use a bunch of rubber bands to keep the wires from weighting down the robot and getting it off the tracking. Overall, though, now that we’ve gotten that figured out, it’s great!
As I mentioned on the previous page, I got a Pixio in early November. The stars finally aligned for me to use it last week. One time. After I managed to get the microSD cards I needed (the original one I got had too much capacity, which somehow was a problem), I found that I needed a special adapter to snap the GoPro onto it. When that came, I found I needed a special adapter to get it on the tripod I had for it. Once that came, I did all the software updating, but then the watch wouldn’t charge and I had to communicate with customer service who suggested that I try a different wireless charger. I had to buy one to try it ($40?) and when it worked, they offered to send me a new one, but considering it had burnt out the first time I ever used it, I declined and kept the one I bought (which was much better, but an extra expense on top of an expensive product). Once it was charged, I couldn’t get the robot to recognize it so back to customer service. Fortunately they were very responsive despite being 7 hours ahead. We figured out that the watch update hadn’t completed correctly, and after two tries, it did finally complete.
Finally! I was able to use it with the GoPro, however since that isn’t one of their compatible cameras (which I knew from the start), I didn’t have the auto zoom feature or the ability to turn on/off from the watch. It turns out that the wide angle of the GoPro captures nearly the entire arena anyway, and without the zoom, you can’t see much. So basically I could have set the GoPro on a chair. I figured it was worth the expense of a compatible camera (not hugely expensive) and it came Sunday. So now I just need to figure out where the input is and what cable to use. The instructions are very general on this point.
On the the plus side, the robot is practically silent, and it really does track you. And it was less of a pain to set up the beacons than I thought it would be. It does say that beacons should be 3’ off the ground, which is easy in the indoor. I’m moving to a place where there is no fence around the outdoor, and not sure how I will resolve that issue.
I started following one of those FB groups yesterday and saw some of your posts. I think you have the system working really well for you. All I need it for is schooling at home alone and my occasional lessons. I don’t ride in an indoor so that won’t be an issue.
Are you able to switch the ss3 out for a compatible camera like the pixio or do you have to use the standard one?
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Thank you!! I think there is a pro option where you can switch the camera. But its not out yet. With this model you have to stay with the standard camera
Which compatible camera did you get inexpensively? I am thinking about purchasing because I ride in an indoor most of the time.
Ugh, I wish I had not just checked because I spent more than I remembered. It was $185. I think to protect my sanity, I chose to remember it closer to $100. It was the CX405. I have not used it yet though! I need to update the drivers for the robot and figure out what cord I need to connect to the robot, and it was 70 degrees today and dropping back into the 30s tomorrow, so I hacked out. Maybe I will figure it out tonight and I can use it tomorrow.
Pretty sure I have the Sony CX405 camera that I use with my Pixio and it works great! It was the cheapest video camera I could find, but it zooms and tracks just fine with Pixio. Perhaps I might get slightly better video quality (cant remember if it films HD quality or not) with a more expensive camcorder but this works for my training rides.
I use Pixio quite regularly except in the depth of winter or height of summer (I only have an outdoor and I worry about the equipment sitting out there in extreme cold/heat).
LOVE my Pixio. Have heard so many ‘issues’ about the Soloshot and really once I got familiar with the setup process of Pixio it has been totally issue free. Worth the price.
