SnapBridge: that was fun! Now what: USB Tethering? WiFi?

[David H. Hartman]

For Ilkka and anyone else interested, you can find a (long) thread on DPReview where a solution is proposed, then others comment (not necessary to follow the whole thread through!)

Colin,

Thank you for posting the link to dpreview forum. I read it in full.

I've come to the conclusion that SnapBridge (using v 2.7.1) on a Moto G7, Android 10 phone (all up to date) is that SnapBridge is NOT intended for professional use. It's an iOS/Android app for use with lower end Nikon cameras for users who want to send moderate size JPG(s) photos to family and friends (or no one in particular ) using social media.

From reading the dpreview thread I understand that the Bluetooth to Wi-Fi method of communication is to use low camera battery drain Bluetooth and only switch to high battery drain Wi-Fi as briefly as possible. If one accepts SnapBridge as a convenience for SnapShooters then this is all quite reasonable. What is not reasonable is it's so damned complicated to get and keep SnapBridge running in this Bluetooth to Wi-Fi model (at least in my experience). I survived Window NT 4.0 SP3-6 and setup Windows 2000 Server with two clients running Windows 2000 pro so while I'm no tech genius I'm not helpless maintaining a Window or OS X computer.

SnapBridge and my D850 (both up to date) communicate to the extent that GPS location data is easily sent to my D850 if SnapBridge is running on my phone and Bluetooth is running on my D850. I think that is all I'm going to get from SnapBridge for now. This is enough that I can recommend SnapBridge to D850 owners who are satisfied with GPS data transfer and don't bother with image transfer.

Again thank you for the link!

Dave

[David H. Hartman]

I bought an USB 3.0 extension cable which increased the total length to 4.5m. I compared transfer speeds with the Nikon cable alone and when combined with the 3m extension and they were the same.

Thank you for testing the USB 3 extension cable. I’m planing to try the same.

The extension cable is blue so that it is noticeable and perhaps less likely to be stepped on by accident. It doesn't seem necessary to have active extension….

Ilkka, it would be a great help if you would supply a link to the seller of this cable. I’ve only found black USB 3 extension cables and would much prefer something more visible. I really hope an active pigtail like the Tethered Tools unit is not necessary. Money for me is very tight.

I noticed that there is a lot of conflict between my L-brackets and cables connecting to the left edge of the camera body...

Ths RRS Modular L-Plate (shown below) might be the ticket for some as it's adjustable to give space under the camera for cables when vertical on a tripod. I’m more likely to buy the RRS Ultra light L-Plate as I don’t want the extra weight of the modular plate on the camera in general use.

Thank you!

Dave

Postscript: I uses Really Right Stuff Camera L-Plates, KES (Kirk Enterprise Solutions) brakets and Wimberley, Inc. Clamps and Plates. These are all Arca-Swiss type products and work flawlessly together. I’m not associated with any of these companies. I do recommend them base on my experience with these companies and their products.

[MFloyd]

Colin,

Thank you for posting the link to dpreview forum. I read it in full.

I've come to the conclusion that SnapBridge (using v 2.7.1) on a Moto G7, Android 10 phone (all up to date) is that SnapBridge is NOT intended for professional use. It's an iOS/Android app for use with lower end Nikon cameras for users who want to send moderate size JPG(s) photos to family and friends (or no one in particular ) using social media.

From reading the dpreview thread I understand that the Bluetooth to Wi-Fi method of communication is to use low camera battery drain Bluetooth and only switch to high battery drain Wi-Fi as briefly as possible. If one accepts SnapBridge as a convenience for SnapShooters then this is all quite reasonable. What is not reasonable is it's so damned complicated to get and keep SnapBridge running in this Bluetooth to Wi-Fi model (at least in my experience). I survived Window NT 4.0 SP3-6 and setup Windows 2000 Server with two clients running Windows 2000 pro so while I'm no tech genius I'm not helpless maintaining a Window or OS X computer.

SnapBridge and my D850 (both up to date) communicate to the extent that GPS location data is easily sent to my D850 if SnapBridge is running on my phone and Bluetooth is running on my D850. I think that is all I'm going to get from SnapBridge for now. This is enough that I can recommend SnapBridge to D850 owners who are satisfied with GPS data transfer and don't bother with image transfer.

Again thank you for the link!

Dave

I repeat myself: I used it professionally in 2020 for about sixty days in missions abroad (D6, SnapBridge, Lr Mobile) / Bluetooth, because of  virtually no access to Media Rooms (Covid-19 isolation bubbles). I reaffirm, it works, without a problem. With the D850, it’s another story.

[David H. Hartman]

I repeat myself: I used it professionally in 2020 for about sixty days in missions abroad (D6, SnapBridge, Lr Mobile) / Bluetooth, because of  virtually no access to Media Rooms (Covid-19 isolation bubbles). I reaffirm, it works, without a problem. With the D850, it’s another story.

If SnapBridge worked for you under difficult circumstances that's very good. Perhaps Nikon thinks a professional or anyone who wants professional product performance should buy their Nikon Camera Control Pro 2 product. That's my best guess. I'd be working for a friend so she can earn a little selling on eBay to pay copays for her health care. My friend has major paralysis, a T4 spinal cord injury. I do this without compensation.

Dave

[Ilkka Nissilä]

For Ilkka and anyone else interested, you can find a (long) thread on DPReview where a solution is proposed, then others comment (not necessary to follow the whole thread through!)

https://www.dpreview.com/forums/thread/4114865

Note: this thread focuses on the D500, so benefits or options may be different on other models

I don't have a camera standby timer timeout related problem. The wifi connection is formed reliably as long as there is no significant source of external radio interference (ie. being in the vicinity of 1000 mobile phones would be such interference and Snapbridge would probably not connect).

The sequence that works for me is this: I go to snapbridge, I select the correct camera and set it in wifi mode. Then I go to the camera and select establish wifi connections and go to settings/wifi in my iPhone and once D850 appears in the list, I click on it. I then wait a few seconds until the connection is formed. This typically takes more time than my standby timer on the camera is set to (10 s) but this doesn't cause a problem. However, the app must be set in Wifi mode before I start the sequence otherwise it won't work. Also if I click D850 in the Settings/Wifi and leave Settings to Snapbridge before the connection is formed, no luck: the connecting process is interrupted. I must stay in settings/wifi until the connection is established and only then go to Snapbridge. You could call it a secret handshake, I suppose, there are so many ways in which the user can do this wrong and it seems a lot of it is related to the mobile device not multitasking properly.

I mistakenly thought the dropping of the wifi connection is dependent on how long I am idle. This doesn't seem to be the case. As long as I don't leave the Snapbridge app screen, the connection is maintained. If the phone wants to access the internet in the meanwhile, it asks me if it is ok to connect using mobile broadband instead of the default wifi, and I say yes it is then it still retains the wifi connection to the camera. However, if I switch to another app then the wifi connection to camera is immediately lost. This seems to be my main problem: I want to go to the photos and send them and then I would like to continue transferring more images but the wifi
connection has to be re-established since I left the app screen.

So: for me it is not a timeout problem; I waited a long time with the Snapbridge screen open after transferring the previous file, and more files could be downloaded and remote photography activated as long as I did not for a second leave the Snapbridge screen.

When making the wifi connection from the D6 to a laptop or desktop, this was not an issue; the connection was not lost by using applications on the computer. This is how it should be in the mobile device as well. I want to multitask, I've been doing it for 30+ years and a connection should not be lost merely because I use other apps on my device.

Anyway, I am gaining a better understanding of what works and how it can be used successfully and what kind of user behavior leads to connection failure. This has been a good discussion.

[Ilkka Nissilä]

My Arca-Swiss L-bracket is modular and if I extend the vertical part far out it can give enough space for cables but I am a bit worried about using so much extension. The L-bracket is actually quite heavy but this is one of its advantages.

The USB-3.0 extension cable that I got is this (link to Finnish store):

https://www.verkkokauppa.com/fi/product/68633/qckdv/DeLOCK-3-m-USB-3-0-A-A-uros-naaras-jatkokaapeli-sininen?utm_source=productlink&utm_medium=orderemail&utm_campaign=order_gathered

I think you can probably find it in US online stores by googling. It is not the cheapest cable but itpassed my initial testing. I have contacted a reseller of Tethertools cables to discuss their products as well but for now I will continue with the extension cable I bought.

I still don't understand why you can't get Snapbridge wifi to work. I mean, knowing
the reputation of the app it shouldn't surprise me, but since we are using the same camera and app version the only difference should be the phone and operating system which are different. Also, I am not trying to switch to wifi from a bluetooth connection but have bluetooth off from the camera and the app set to wifi mode before establishing the connection.

[David H. Hartman]

Getting SnapBridge to transfer JPG(s) from my D850 to my phone seems hopeless. I can use an "on the go" USB C to USB A adapter with a tiny USB 2 SDXC card reader so if I really need to get half sized JGP(s) from the D850 to my phone I can do it.

Transferring half size JPG(s) from the D850 with AirNEF is fast and not too fiddly. Transferring NEF(s) with AirNEF is possible but slow. The laptop I'm using has a built in SD card reader so transferring NEF(s) with the card reader isn't bad. Since I bought the D850 on a shoestring I don't have a CFExpress card yet. Once I do I'll have to either use a USB cable or carry a CFExpress card reader.

SnapBridge is quite easy to use to download GPS so I've got that. Maybe an upgrade to SnapBridge will fix the Bluetooth to Wi-Fi transition failure.

Thanks for all the help!

Dave

[MFloyd]

The D6 has inherited (some parts) of the Z interface, which make inter alia exchanges more stable and easy. Indeed, as already mentioned, the D850 is another story. Maybe a software upgrade could fix this ?


Nikon D6
D6 « Z-like » interface. 4th column: upper row: Bluetooth interface; lower row: WiFi interface. Display is programmable. You also notice that the D6 has a GPS connection and a Bluetooth one.

[Alaun]

I had similar problems -reconnecting WIFI with snap bridge- with my I-pads.
The solution was rather easy, and it might be a security feature.

Establishing a WIFI connection to a device (camera), there is a profile generated, which the I-pad remembers and tries to use on a reconnection.

This profile might get “outdated” , when you restart the device (camera).

To get a connection, you just have to delete the profile for that device on the I-pad (on the I-pad, that is done in the WIFI-part of the settings).

Something similar might be the case with Android (and Windows 10 also stores connection profiles)?

[David H. Hartman]

Something similar might be the case with Android (and Windows 10 also stores connection profiles)?

I've tried deleting the camera from SnapBridge. I'll have to try that with Android although I may have. Windows saves Profiles and I use one for my normal Wi-Fi router and one for the D850. I turn off Wi-Fi with the Windows 10 flyout on the task bar then turn it on. Sometimes it automatically connects to the D850. That only works for AirNEF.

Dave