Power and runtime¶
Trinet cameras have no internal battery. They run from any USB-C source that supplies 5 V at 1 A or more — a USB power bank for wearable use, or a phone, computer or charger.
How much power the camera uses¶
| Typical current at 5 V | |
|---|---|
| Standby (ready, not recording) | about 50 mA |
| Trinet Mono, recording | about 170 mA |
| Trinet Stereo / Stereo GS, recording or streaming | about 350 mA |
This low draw is why some power banks switch off — see below.
How long it records¶
Estimated continuous recording time on a fully charged power bank:
| Power bank | Trinet Mono | Trinet Stereo / Stereo GS |
|---|---|---|
| 5 000 mAh | about 15 hours | about 7 hours |
| 10 000 mAh | about 30 hours | about 15 hours |
| 20 000 mAh | about 60 hours | about 30 hours |
These are estimates. Real runtime depends on the power bank's efficiency, its age and temperature, and settings such as bitrate. To estimate for your bank:
Runtime estimate
runtime (hours) ≈ capacity (mAh) × 3.7 V × 0.85 ÷ (camera current (mA) × 5 V)
For a 10 000 mAh bank and a Stereo camera: 10 000 × 3.7 × 0.85 ÷ (350 × 5) ≈ 18 hours at best; plan for about 15.
For multi-hour sessions, use a full-capacity bank, keep it charged before each session, and avoid charging the bank while recording for long periods.
Power banks that switch off¶
Many power banks decide a device is "fully charged" when it draws only a little current, and switch off after a few seconds or minutes — cutting power mid-recording. Fast-charging and MagSafe-style wireless banks are especially prone to this.
- Use a bank that is known to work, or test yours for a full session before relying on it.
- Some banks work on their USB-A port but not their USB-C port (a USB-A to USB-C cable or adapter helps).
- Don't press the power bank's button during a recording — on many banks that restarts the auto-off timer or switches the output off.
If power is lost¶
If power is interrupted mid-take, the recording is not lost. The next time the camera starts with that card it repairs the take automatically (light shows white), losing at most the last second.