VIEVU translates wearable law-enforcement video cameras to ‘prosumer’ marketplace

The camera features a 95-degree wide-angle lens, and its rechargeable power source provides 90 minutes of continuous operation, and up to two days of non-continuous operation. The components are housed in a rugged and waterproof case that can be worn on a belt, lapel or pocket, or they can be attached to a lanyard.

Though it has a smaller form factor than the LE2, Lovell stressed that the VIEVU² is not a covert camera.

“It’s not something that you wear on your body to surreptitiously record somebody—this is a product that will let you know that you’re being recorded. In fact, there’s a ring around the lens that notifies the person that the camera is recording,” Lovell said.

Privacy laws are the primary concern, but it is not the only factor, Lovell said.

“In the U.S. there are still 12 two-party-consent states, where you have to let people know that you’re recording,” he said. “But, when people know that they’re being recorded, their behavior often improves, a benefit that we call the ‘calming effect.’”

Though it adds to the manufacturing costs, the company thought it was important that the device—priced at $349—is housed in a case made from military-grade anodized aluminum, according to Lovell.

“A lot of the wearable cameras today are mad out of plastic,” he said. “We didn’t want that. We wanted something that felt professional, something that when you held it, it made you say, ‘Wow.’ That was important.”