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Scoutguard SG565 Review
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3.6 Stars
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Bottom Line: The SG565 is on of our favorite incandescent trail cameras of all time. This is a solid all-around camera trap.
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Read Full Analysis
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Pro's
- Small, compact design
- Excellent color nighttime photos
- Solid battery life
- Wide detection zone
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Con's
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Trailcampro Analysis
Every year it seems the options in the incandescent market seems to shrivel. Most people are moving to infrared cameras. However, there is still a rather sizable market for flash cameras because of their superior night pictures and ability to ID specific animals.
Detection Circuit
 3.3 stars
The detection circuit is typical of any Scoutguard, consistent. The 2012 SG565 has an improved trigger and recovery time. The camera triggers is 1.313 seconds, it recovers in 5 seconds and the detection zone is just a bit wider than the field of view.
The detection range is a bit shorter than we'd like to see, coming in at 30-35 ft.
Picture Quality
 4.3 stars
Day pictures are excellent with vivid color and excellent clarity. This is a real strong point with the SG565.
The night flash is huge, reaching out 90 ft. consistently. Since this is an incandescent camera, both day and night pictures are in color. Objects close to the camera can "white out." Ideally you would not want the camera within 10 ft. of the animals you want to photograph. We have heard of some researchers that try to cover the flash to minimize its effect on close animals with marginal success.
Battery Life
 3.0 stars
The SG565 works off 8 AA batteries. The battery data is exceptional, especially considering it has to have a slightly larger than normal night current draw to operate it's big night incandescent flash. The duration of photo will bring the overall battery life down, but you can still expect 2-3 months of battery life overall.
Resting Current Draw
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Day Current Draw
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Night Current Draw
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Duration of Photo
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0.23 ma
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136 ma
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407 ma
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5.5 s
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s = seconds
ma = milliamps
We use Tenergy Nimh Rechargeable batteries in the SG565. However, because of a relatively high cut-off voltage, they will not get as long of battery life as normal alkalines would. If changing batteries isn't an obstacle for you, we would still recommend the Tenergy batteries. If you need the camera to last longer in the field, alkalines would work or we would recommend using lithium batteries for the absolute longest battery life.
Ease of Use
 3.8 stars
The Scoutguard SG565 is well-built, made of high quality material, comes in a completely sealed case (keeps the weather and humidity out) and camouflaged nicely.
The ease of use score gets knocked down a bit because you have to use a remote (comes with the camera) to program the SG565. The remote does have a little viewing screen that can help in the initial setup process. Also, the actual programming of the camera is simple and anyone can master it in seconds.
The overall durability of the SG565 has been excellent with minimal returns and warranties.
Overall, this is one of our favorite flash cameras of all time. It is solid all-around camera trap, and will work well for you whether you are using it to take color night photos or if you are trying to specifically ID different animals of the same species (i.e. big cat surveys). This camera is an excellent value.
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