WiFi connections with Nikon D2x

[bill c.]

Don't know if this is the most appropriate forum for this, but it

doesn't seem to fit anywhere else.

 

I'm a working pro, and I'll shoot breaking news at times for my agency

in NYC. Upload operations to the agency have been the recent

bottleneck, and I'm thinking about getting the D2X when it comes out

(hopefully) this December.

 

This camera has an optional WiFi add-on available which can xmit

between camera and a nearby computer. There are also some reports

where people have been able to hit public WiFi hotspots with the

camera (like at hotels and convention centers) and send their shots

directly back to the main server at their publications for editing,

thought they are vague about how they achieved this.

 

No other shooter I know has used a set-up like this on an open system,

just from their camera to their own computer. Here are a couple of

questions:

 

1. If I do hit a public WiFi hotspot, is it expected that I can send

files directly via FTP to my studio computer or my agency in New York

directly from the camera at the remote site? If so, is it the facility

that set up the WiFi (presumably for the convenience of it's customers

or visitors) that pays for the Internet connection?

 

2. How ubiquitous is WiFi? I know that it is already in place at

several convention centers and hotels, but is it filling in.?

 

3. Is there any other option for high-speed wireless connecting?

Suppose WiFi directly from the camrea isn't possible, but I WiFi (or

otherwise send) the images back to my nearby laptop. What high-speed

wireless options are available for Internet connections from the

laptop? Of course, we can assume that this will not be available in

remote areas, but the more populated ones.

 

Many thanks for all info. Please, no vague suppositions, just cogent

info from people who actually know something. -BC-

[jeff_lu]

1. Don't know if you can directly send them, but in many of the WiFi hotspots available,

the customer pays for the service i.e. Boingo Wireless or T-Mobile Hotspot, which is found

in most Starbucks and Borders.

 

2. In NYC, WiFi is widely available in coffee shops. Every Starbucks I've been to in

Manhattan has been equipped. It's quite convenient.

 

3. I'm not sure what you mean. Are you asking what ways can you connect to the internet

besides WiFi? In Asia, I used to use a cell phone to connect via dial-up, but as one would

expect, it's comparatively slow.

 

www.boingowireless.com and www.tmobile.com/hotspot

[bill_chiarchiaro]

"is it the facility that set up the WiFi (presumably for the convenience of it's customers or visitors) that pays for the Internet connection?"

 

It depends. Go to a Best Western hotel, and you can use WiFi to get on the Internet for free (as long as your computer, camera, etc. can run a DHCP client to get an IP address). Go to the Acela Club waiting room at Penn Station, and you have to be able to run a Web browser (in addition to a DHCP client) in order to provide a credit card number to pay $10/day. These are examples of public WiFi services I've used during the past few weeks.

 

--Bill

[klix]

Don't know if a camera-directly-to-studio via wifi hotspot is possible... BUT if you have the Nikon D2X w/ wifi option AND an 802.11 enabled laptop, you'd be able to send images from the camera to the laptop.

 

Then take the laptop to a wifi hotspot, and you basically have full internet (including ftp) access.

 

Some caveats that others can better discuss -- wifi security (or lack thereof) and differing 802.11 standards outside of the US (such as 802.11h to satisfy European regulations about 5 the 5GHz spectrum)

[bob.velkov]

As long as you have ftp access to your server, technically it wont be a problem to send the images over wireless. However, keep in mind that this communication would be not encrypted in any way, so that any nearby hacker can get the same images and send them to his agency first! Wireless is a very dangerous animal if you are not familiar with security and if the devices does no support setting extensive security options (as it is with the wireless transmitter).

 

Cheers,

Bob.

[bill_chiarchiaro]

"However, keep in mind that this communication would be not encrypted in any way"

 

According to the D2X article at www.robgalbraith.com, the WT-2/2a WiFi device does support encryption.

 

--Bill

[bill c.]

Many thanks to all who responded with info. It's been a big help. My next task is to see if I can hit WiFi spots conveniently in the Capitol building in DC and the White House.

 

Happy shooting. -BC-