Moultrie AC-42i Mini Cam Reviews?

[UTGrad]

I picked up one of the new mini cams from Moultrie at Academy Sports and it is deployed in the woods.

Has anyone run one these? They are the smallest cameras on the market right now.

 

[UTGrad]

 

[Ski]

They're subpar IMO in terms of pic and vid quality. But they only require 4 batteries and are easily concealed. Overall I like them OK. They most certainly are not 42mp. My old 12mp Moultries take better pics.

 

[BSK]

Just remember that few (if any) trail-cameras have imagers that take higher resolution pictures than 4 MP. Anything above that size is pure "interpolation," which means the software artificially adds pixels to make the image a lot bigger. But the added pixels aren't actually a real part of the original image.

 

[TheLBLman]

I obtained two of these last year for testing.
I had been overall reasonably pleased with some of Moultrie's other non-cell models.
Not pleased with the AC-42i (considering its price point).
It might be a fair trade with a $19.95 price point.

They're subpar IMO in terms of pic and vid quality.
But they only require 4 batteries and are easily concealed.

Totally agree.
The appeal was the small size.

Overall I like them OK.

Overall, I have been disappointed, and will not be adding any more of them.
I've found battery life to be shorter than expected (even considering only 4 batteries).

Image quality is the absolute worse of any the many brands/models I'm running.
What's worse, these cams can quickly fill a 32gb card when set on 42 mp.
And never mind that those 42 mp are more in line with the 1.3 mp of an old Cuddeback.

They most certainly are not 42mp. My old 12mp Moultries take better pics.

Any other cam I have takes better pics, even when "set" on a 4 to 8mp (or "low to medium") image quality setting.

Just remember that few (if any) trail-cameras have imagers that take higher resolution pictures than 4 MP. Anything above that size is pure "interpolation," which means the software artificially adds pixels to make the image a lot bigger. But the added pixels aren't actually a real part of the original image.

BSK nailed it.
However, these images appear to be interpolated from maybe a 1.3mp original.
They are just way sub-par in today's trail cam market.
And again, many of Moultrie's other cams' imagery has been above par.

To add insult to injury, my biggest single complaint for these tiny cams is their non-intuitive programming, and lack of programming options. Flash range is also very short, making these cams virtually of no value at night on a food plot or field (can be ok on a salt lick or scrape).

 

[TheLBLman]

At present, my current "go-to" smallest cam (non-cellular) remains the Browning Dark Ops, which uses only 6AA batteries, and is relatively rich in programming features (all easy to understand). The Dark Ops is significantly smaller than any my other cams, exception being the tiny Moultri AC-42i which is barely over half the physical size of the Dark Ops.

You can usually find any prior year's model Dark Ops in the same price range as the Moultri AC-42i.
And they will work well, running at least twice as long on 6AAs as the AC-42i on 4AAs.

No matter how you turn, can be a crap shoot with trail cams,
as a particular brand/model that was good last year, can be crap next year.

Much of our thoughts are more about "value" relative to the "price point".
Moultrie has generally done well with this before the AC-42i.

A new non-cell cam on the market that has my attention is the $90 Gardepro T5NG.
I have just started field testing a couple of these, but so far, so good.

It is slightly larger than the Browning Dark Ops, but is also true black flash.
The Gardepro uses 8AAs, and has ample, intuitive programming features.
Imagery may exceed the Dark Ops, flash range is at least as good.
Tell you more in a few weeks, months.

 

[Ski]

Image quality is the absolute worse of any the many brands/models I'm running.
What's worse, these cams can quickly fill a 32gb card when set on 42 mp.
And never mind that those 42 mp are more in line with the 1.3 mp of an old Cuddeback.

Yeah the image quality sucks. Flash does too. I set mine to the lowest setting on 3 pic burst and haven't had a card filled yet. But I'm not using them anywhere deer congregate like food plots or mineral sites. I set them on trails and they catch deer as they pass by. I don't need them to take ultra clear pics. I only need to know which deer it caught. A whole lot of which camera I use and how I use it depends entirely where it's used. That said, for the money those lil buggers cost, there are better options.

The WGI Hex is cheaper, smaller, doesn't make shutter noise, has better flash, and takes far clearer images.

 

[UTGrad]

Yeah the image quality sucks. Flash does too. I set mine to the lowest setting on 3 pic burst and haven't had a card filled yet. But I'm not using them anywhere deer congregate like food plots or mineral sites. I set them on trails and they catch deer as they pass by. I don't need them to take ultra clear pics. I only need to know which deer it caught. A whole lot of which camera I use and how I use it depends entirely where it's used. That said, for the money those lil buggers cost, there are better options.

The WGI Hex is cheaper, smaller, doesn't make shutter noise, has better flash, and takes far clearer images.

Well dang, I feel like I made a bad purchase lol.

 

[Ski]

my current "go-to" smallest cam (non-cellular) remains the Browning Dark Ops

I'm running about a dozen of those. I like them a lot. Always dependable. Only thing I'm not crazy about and no idea why it happens, but it seems if they lose resolution at distance. If I've got them set up close the pics & vids are clear. If set up 10-15yds away they are dull & grainy. It's almost like they use a macro lens.

A new non-cell cam on the market that has my attention now is the $90 Gardepro T5NG.

Per your recommendation a few months ago I bought one to try. I'm pretty impressed. I've not used it in video yet, only pics and set to low resolution. It has outstanding clarity, strong flash for being true black, and nighttime pics are very clear at near distance. Naturally it fades as you get to the outer edge of the flash range but if a deer is within 20ft you're seeing it clear.My favorite thing about the flash is that it's not a spotlight. It covers the entire frame.

 

[Ski]

Well dang, I feel like I made a bad purchase lol.

Nah, it's fine. We pick apart cameras because we run so many and are always trying different ones. If you're not a trail cam junkie you'll be plenty happy. Here's a day & night photo from the Moultrie and the WGI. As you can tell the difference is splitting hairs. I just notice stuff that's insignificant or meaningless to other folks. The only real measurable difference between the two is night clarity, flash coverage, and the click noise the Moultrie makes that deer sometimes notice. It's never spooked one but they do glance up when they hear it.

 

[UTGrad]

Ok those sample pics of the Moultrie are serviceable.

 

[Ski]

Ok those sample pics of the Moultrie are serviceable.

Yes they are quite serviceable. That's why I said overall I like them. Clear enough is clear enough. I'm not entering my trail cam pics into a photography contest. I only want the ability to identify deer, time, day. If it can reliably do that then it gets a thumbs up from me. There are other factors that matter to me as I'm wading into the weeds but for intents and purposes those little cameras get the job done.

 

[UTGrad]

Yes they are quite serviceable. That's why I said overall I like them. Clear enough is clear enough. I'm not entering my trail cam pics into a photography contest. I only want the ability to identify deer, time, day. If it can reliably do that then it gets a thumbs up from me. There are other factors that matter to me as I'm wading into the weeds but for intents and purposes those little cameras get the job done.

Don't get me started on glass in binoculars and scopes. I have gone to the ends of the earth to get the best glass. I see differences in quality between a $500 set of binos vs a $2000 set, especially in low light.

 

[BSK]

I've got 4 of the Browning Dark Ops, and really like them, especially their small size. Only complaints are grainy night photos and limited flash range.

Those Moultrie and WGI pics are excellent Ski! I would be happy with either.

 

[Ski]

I've got 4 of the Browning Dark Ops, and really like them, especially their small size. Only complaints are grainy night photos and limited flash range.

Same here. The only time the night pics are grainy is when the deer is out a bit away from the cam. Within 20ft the pics are good.

Those Moultrie and WGI pics are excellent Ski! I would be happy with either.

Yessir they're plenty adequate. They're not the clarity & crispness you get from high end cams but there's no problem identifying individual deer.

 

[TheLBLman]

I've got 4 of the Browning Dark Ops, and really like them, especially their small size. Only complaints are grainy night photos and limited flash range.

Each "next" year's generation of the Dark Ops line seems to have improved pic clarity.
I suspect your Dark Ops are at least 2 or 3 yrs old?

As to those tiny Moultries, perhaps I was given a couple lemons for testing, but my pic quality, even when set on 42 mb, doesn't look as clear as what Ski posted.

I usually test 2 to 4 units of any new cam, just in case one is a lemon.
You can even get a lemon Reconyx, just rarely should happen.

 

[BSK]

Each "next" year's generation of the Dark Ops line seems to have improved pic clarity.
I suspect your Dark Ops are at least 2 or 3 yrs old?

Correct. 2021 models.

 

[ttf909]

The x 7000i was great but their others not much

 

[UTGrad]

The x 7000i was great but their others not much

Moultrie has had some great cameras over the years. The M80, M888, M50 are a few I owned that took excellent pics.