SpeedView

Hi vodkashots, As you've said, GPS knows where you are. Knowing where you are now, where you used to be, and how long it took you to get there, the gadget/phone can work out what your average speed was. Availability of GPS is good these days, but accuracy (particularly in built up areas) isn't as good as you might think. High end GPS kit tells you how accurate your position (and so speed) readings really are, but consumer grade kit just spits out a number which people assume is gospel but can easily be 20% off. Corners and hills are a classic problem, as most GPS systems don't have terrain mapping so calculate your speed as the crow flies. (under-estimates ground speed on hills and bends). Most people are blissfully unaware of these effects, but even they see the effect (lag) of averaging. Lag is annoying and there's nothing that you can do about it unless you can push the refresh rate up. This can be done but the higher you push this the better the GPS hardware you need - crank it up too high on consumer grade hardware and you'll see a steady 30 show up as 28-31-29-30-32 due to the positioning errors, rather than a plain 30 where all the errors are averaged out over time. There are some cheeky software tricks that you can do to make it look like the position/speed are refreshing quicker than they are that I can explain if you're really interested. The short of is that fundamentally, GPS is a positioning system. It is good at positioning. It is ok for speed; absolutely fine on motorways but can be unreliable on B-roads and is pretty awful in urban areas or if your speed is changing quickly. A real live ground speed signal, as used by your OEM speedo or the SpeedView, is better. These statements are completely correct from a technology standpoint - this isn't marketing speak. I've used both and the screens just don't cut it in bright sunlight. (iPhone 4 ~500 nits; SpeedView ~5,000 nits) Better handsets are approaching 1,000 nits nowadays and that's just about usable in a tintop vehicle, but there'll still be times where the display is bleached by sunlight. OEM direct glass head up displays are stupendously bright (some at 25,000 nits) but also prohibitively expensive. They also don't cut it at night either, because the "black" on an LCD isn't black at all I'm not rubbishing a free thing on either the GPS or the display side. For free, smartphones are awesome. As a fit and forget, working rain or shine type solution the have their shortcomings - which is where the SpeedView comes into play. Easiest way to explain the benefit might be passenger door mirror versus rear view mirror. If something changes in your passenger mirror, you won't notice it unless you're actively looking at it. When something changes in your rear view mirror you'll notice that something has changed (but not always what has changed) immediately, as it's always in your peripheral vision. Same with the SpeedView (peripheral vision - you'll notice a leading one appearing or the leading 7 changing to an 8) vs dash cluster (don't see anythgin change unless your'e looking at it). Ah, we're talking about the same thing using different words here. The fighter jet HUD is in your direct line of sight (you look at or through it). The Corvette display you've shown is in your peripheral vision (below where you're looking, normally you look over the top of it). That's a personal preference that you're fee to experiment with. Most people find that their vision is centred towards the right hand side of the steering wheel (centre of the road) rather than the centre of the wheel (centre of your lane) but there's plenty of cable so you're free to experiment during installation. That's a little unfair. No truths were twisted or otherwise harmed in the making of this programme - I say it the way it is then stand by it with no quibble returns. (I've only had one unit returned for a full refund so far; chap with a Ford S-Max where Ford disable the speedo signal output from the ECU shown on the wiring diagram unless you pay their dealers £70 odd) It's all good, aside from the line on twisting the truth - these aren't for everybody but they're also not the only product that I've got planned and the feedback all goes into the spec for that. :-)

No harm in baptism by fire - all valid questions! :-) I've typed a lot so you might want to skip to the bold bit that you're interested in: Why not use a smartphone? Performance: Smartphones aren't daylight visible. Try hold one up to the sun and snap a photo as I've done in the first post. Pop one on the dash at night and snap another. (black isn't truly dark on a phone screen, and shiny glass/bezels also cause nasty reflections) The GPS is no use as a speedo either. (lags too much, and has transient availability/accuracy problems on bends and hills) Convenience: Smartphones are great for experimenting freebie app one night, but you're not going to bother dash mounting it every time you use the vehicle and it's tricky to use the smartphone as a sat-nav when it's sat near the bottom of the windscreen. What's with the positioning? Many people ask why SpeedView say NOT to mount the display directly in front of the driver, in your direct line of sight. We've all seen the head up display in fighter aircraft: Image courtesy of Rasmussen @ Wikimedia Commons. (image in public domain) Why wouldn't it be great to have this? Maybe with a few missiles too, for all those other people on the road? Well, the missiles might be useful, but a head up display in your direct line of sight is actually NOT what you want! In an aircraft there's nothing to look at except clouds or the head up display, so you use your "gunsight" to hone-in on your target. Watch the display, aim for the target. Watch the display, hit the target. Remember when you were learning to drive, and checking the mirror/blind-sport was so tricky, because you kept moving into the other lanes? Or when you're trying to hit the Apex on track? You look there, you go there... That's exactly what happens if you pop a head up display on the screen. The human eye/brain likes contrast and likes shiny things. If it moves, it'll watch it. If its different, it'll watch it. If you put the head up display in your direct line of sight, it will be a distraction that draws your eye down, towards the bottom of the windscreen/end of your bonnet. Putting the display in the corner of your eye, like its a rear-view mirror or the driver's mirror, means that you immediately notice any big change (a 6something to 7something, that leading '1' appearing, or the red alert showing) but it otherwise doesn't distract you. This is quite a bit better than the factory speedo which is not in the corner of your eye and, if its analogue, doesn't change in a discrete way that your pattern-recognising brain is good at noticing. (You'll notice that the OEM head up displays are all low down on the windscreen, for much the same reason) Sun visor area isn't practical sorry - it needs to be towards the base of the windscreen. What's with the reflective film? You need a reflective film with an aftermarket HUD in order to avoid ghosting. (Detail: http://www.speedview.co/forum/Thread-Why-do-you-need-to-use-a-projection-film-on-the-windscreen) The film needs to be a "tint" and not opaque for legal reasons - tints are exempt from MOT positioning restrictions, opaque stickers are not. Because the display is peripheral vision/not obscuring the view of the road ahead, it makes sense to make this tint as dark as possible to improve contrast, so the supplied film is a 5% tint. I supply the film 95 mm wide and 75 mm high so that different height drivers can see the display without adjusting the position of the projection unit. 75 x 55 mm works quite well too. 55 x 40 mm is about as small as you'd want to trim. Most customers don't have an issue with the size of the screen though - no more annoying than a tax disc. Is it too cheap? Yes, the SpeedView is the one of the cheapest Head up Displays that money can buy, but it isn't tat. I originally bought a Valeo unit for my own car (Valeo are a giant French manufacturer that make parts for OEMs) and liked it but not the price tag (RRP >£100) or the product support (none) that it came with. I get the SpeedView made in the same factory that Valeo have their made in, and it's been through the same EU Type-Approval tests as the Valeo units. The test are primarily electrical. Will this device interfere with the ABS/Stability Control systems in the car? (they use or provide the speed signal in many cars) Will it continue to do so for the life of the vehicle? Can the factory prove that it can consistently produce the same product at the same quality? Not the cheapest thing to have done, but I thought it absolutely necessary before selling these. Matt dark grey is a dull colour and there's no branding on the unit visible from outside. This is good for reducing reflections against the glass and doesn't look expensive. This is deliberate, as people are less likely to steal unidentified things that don't look expensive. Cheaper HUDs are available, especially if you don't want a warranty, support, or to pay your taxes. I wouldn't recommend them, as the money saved isn't worth the drop in performance and quality. Nicer HUDs are available too (Defi) and if you have the cash these are great, but the extra cash doesn't really buy much extra performance. Is it too big? Can I dash mount it? Smaller than you might think; 8x5x2 cm for the projection unit; don't be fooled by an MX5 in the demo photos as that car has a tiny windscreen. Dash mounting is not something that the SpeedView is designed for. Generally too much work for an aftermarket part, but that hasn't stopped people trying devious approaches. Sandwiched looks pretty good: http://www.speedview.co/forum/Thread-Can-I-fit-the-SpeedView-flush-to-my-dashboard How is this gadget even helpful? Are there any photographers or opticians in the house? The human eye needs to change position, focal length, and light level in order to do the read road>read speed>read road task. Position (approximate muscle movement) is quick, but focus change (precision muscle movement) takes time and light level change (chemical process) takes even more time. BMW's promotional materials and research papers peg this at about 1 second on average, or 28 metres at 60 mph. In younger people it'll be quicker, and in older people much slower. The SpeedView is further away that your OEM speedo. This makes the focus change substantially quicker. The light level of the Head up Display is similar to that of the road, whereas the OEM speedo is usually much lighter or darker. This reduces the time taken for your eyes to adjust - the photos I've posted do a pretty good job of showing this I think, as cameras have nowhere near the dynamic range of a human eye. Being digital and in your peripheral vision (vs analogue and something that you only see when looking for it) makes the reading easier for your brain to keep tabs on. The reading will be accurate (unlike most OEM speedos) and there's an element of want=simple need too. Thanks mods and Graham BTW - and yes, this is just the one unit I'm offering. If there's interest I'll be sticking around as a trader but for the moment we're just testing the water with a unit below cost price. :-)

Hi all, I'm Marko and I sell a gadget that projects speed onto your windscreen. (SpeedView daylight visible Head up Display) A couple of photos and a video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jCP7fzrHULw The speed shown (kph or mph) will be correct no matter what you've done with tyres/gearboxes/diffs, and it's a great way to properly convert an imported car. Did I mention it being dead flair and showing up well on trackday cameras too? The SpeedView is easy to fit with the universal instructions, but it’s even easier with photos and a few tips and tricks from somebody who has fitted one before. Real enthusiasts and customers write the best “How To” guides, so if you write a quick guide to share with other people I'll discount your SpeedView to just £40 (including delivery) to say thanks. (retail price £69.99) Think you might be interested? Have questions? Please ask here! Website: http://www.speedview.co/ (thanks to groover for permission to recruit gurus on 300zx.co.uk)