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Unistellar eVscope - More Experiences (V. 1.4/1.5/1.6)
Introduction | The New App Version (Version 1.4.1) | The New Image Format and the New Image Processing | User Alerts for Enhanced Vision Problem Detection | Small Bug List | Suggestions for Improvement | First Conclusions on Version 1.4 | The New App Versions 1.5 and 1.6 | Links
Archive
On this page, I describe further experiences (no observations) with my electronic 4,5" Newton telescope Unistellar eVscope (I took part in a Kickstarter campaign in mid-November 2017; it arrived on January 27, 2020). This sixth "experiences" page covers first experiences with the new app version 1.4 (from September 2, 2021 on). This page was also meant to cover first experiences with the new app version 1.5 (from December 13, 2021 on) and app version 1.6 (from May 2, 2021 on). However, I had little or no opportunity to make observations with these two app versions, because I did not have an eVscope available at times. And at the beginning of July 2022, App version 2.0.1 was already released, which seems to have little in common with App version 1.x.
I report on the app version 2 on a separate page (and further pages).
Note: Since Unistellar replaced app version 1.x described here with app version 2.0 at the beginning of July 2022, this page has become obsolete! |
Notes:
- See also page Old Versus New Image Processing (since V. 1.3) for details and examples with regard to the image processing.
- App version 1.4.1 was released on September 2, 2021, and there were few opportunities for observations with the preceding app version 1.3. On the page for version 1.3, I focus on the new image processing, and on this page as well. For more information on the image processing see page Old Versus New Image Processing (since V. 1.3).
- App version 1.5 was released on December 13, 2021. App version 1.6 was released on May 2, 2022, but I had no opportunity to test it with my eVscope 2, because it was in repair and inspection...
- See page Overview of the Unistellar Pages for just that!
- For a detailed version history of the app, see page Unistellar App Version History.
Introduction
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Photos: My eVscope (End of January 2020)
Read First, Please!
My eVscope arrived at my home at the end of January 2020. During the first weeks, it had an app with a version number below 1.0. My experiences with this early app version are reported on page Unistellar eVscope - First Experiences. For links to further experiences, see page Overview of the eVscope Pages.
Note: Those who already start with a newer app version do not need to read the above-mentioned pages.
The following experiences are based on the app version 1.4 and refer initially only to changes compared with the previous state, later also to changes made in the course of this version.
On the one hand, according to Unistellar, some bugs were fixed, on the other hand, some changes were made regarding the user interface. So, no new functionality was added!
In the following, I therefore just describe my experiences with this version (an not new features). For a more detailed version history, see page App Version History.
The New App Version (Version 1.4.1 and Newer)
App Version 1.4.1 (September 2, 2021)
The new app version (V 1.4.1) is available in Europe since September 2, 2021, and I downloaded it on the very same day. First of all, the app required me, as did the three previous versions, to update my eVscope, which succeeded right away. The new app version offers, according to the App Store, the following new functions (in my own words):
- eVscope experience improvements. Now, we have a "eVscope experience" instead of a"Unistellar experience"; probably, both mean the same...
- Various bug fixes
Obviously, app version 1.4.0 was never published...
Status: There were two updates (see below).
eVscope Experience Improvements
Regarding this aspect, I was not able up to now to find out what this refers to...
Various Bug Fixes
As always, no information on this...
Why A Jump in the Version Number?
Why did Unistellar increase the version number, although no new functionality was added? In general, something like this is unusual.... On the one hand, Unistellar indicated to me that the new version contains "tons of bug fixes", and on the other hand, I assume that this version has been adapted to the new eVscope 2 and therefore contains many changes "under the covers". But this is only a guess! However, the quickly following version 1.4.2 (with the same comments) would in my eyes support this assumption ...
Another assumption might be that version numbers jump, whenever an update of the eVscope software is needed...
App Version 1.4.2 (September 16, 2021)
- eVscope experience improvements
App Version 1.4.3 (October 18, 2021)
- User alerts for Enhanced Vision problem detection (my proposal!)
- Planets mode improvement
- Improved access to Science sign-up
- Eyepiece experience improvements
- eVscope experience improvements
- Various bug fixes
User Alerts for Enhanced Vision Problem Detection
This item was suggested to Unistellar by me (and perhaps by other eVscope users as well...). In an Unistellar Help Center article is explained, how these alerts look like (see below for more).
The New Image Format and the New Image Processing
So the main innovation of this app version is still the quadruple size of the photos in Enhanced Vision mode, especially since I had little opportunity to observe with app version 1.3. When comparing "old" and "new" photos or when looking directly at the new photos, I noticed the following changes, beginning with app version 1.3:
- The new photos are initially very grainy. The graininess is reduced with longer exposure times (EV times, to be precise...), but ultimately always remains stronger than in the old photos.
- On closer inspection, the new photos appear less "painted" to me than the old ones. These may be nuances, and not everyone seems to recognize this, but to me this effect is evident. Thus, Unistellar would have met my desire to "paint" less when processing the images.
- Color saturation, contrast, background seem to have changed (more saturated colors, stronger contrast, blacker background).
- "The bottom line" is that the new photos seem to look a "tiny bit" better and sharper than the old ones, with the "graininess" of the new photos speaking somewhat to the disadvantage of the new image processing.
On page Old Versus New Image Processing (since V. 1.3), I try to substantiate these observations with examples. There, I also present a collection of examples for comparing the old image processing with the new one. On this page, I present a few selected examples from this collection for illustration. Please click the previews for the larger versions (1280 x 960 pixels) for an easier comparison!
Selected Comparison Examples
Old Processing (< Version 1.3) |
Version 1.3 and Newer |
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M 3 - May 15, 2020, processed |
M 3 - Sep 8, 2021, processed |
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M 8 (Lagoon Nebula) - Aug 23, 2020, processed |
M 8 (Lagoon Nebula) Jul 17, 2021, processed |
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M 13 - Sep 15, 2020, processed |
M 13 - Jul 18, 2021, processed |
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M 17 (Omega /Swan Nebula) - Aug 23, 2020, processed |
M 17 (Omega /Swan Nebula) - Jul 17, 2021, processed |
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M 27 - Nov 2, 2020, processed |
M 27 - Oct 16, 2021, processed |
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M 33 - Oct 10, 2020, processed |
M 33 - Oct 9, 2021, processed |
See also page Old Versus New Image Processing (since V. 1.3) for details and examples with regard to the old and new image processing.
User Alerts for Enhanced Vision Problem Detection
In the Unistellar Help Center article "Enhanced Vision Stopped or Dropped": What does it mean? is described what the error messages, which are issued during Enhanced Vision mode, mean. I therefore just list the messages that can come up:
Enhanced Vision stopped (aborted):
- “Important shock detected – Please check level and re-align”
- “Too close to zenith – Please re-align at a lower altitude”
- “Your eVscope is stopping the Enhanced Vision. Do you want to save the image?”
Enhanced Vision dropped (frames are discarded):
- “Enhanced Vision dropped. Vibration detected”.
- “Enhanced Vision dropped. Too bright”.
Small Bug List
Entering DSO Coordinates Manually
If you enter the coordinates of a DSO manually, the app remembers them and displays them again. It does this even if you turn the smartphone off and call up the manual coordinate input again after a few days. However, then the problem occurs that the GoTo control moves in a completely different direction, that is, it uses wrong coordinates. Only after one has once again entered the identical coordinates by hand, the GoTo works correctly.
I have observed the problem myself, and another eVscope owner has also reported it to me. I have not yet investigated at what point in time the error occurs, that is, whether it only occurs after switching off the smartphone or already after restarting the app.
Problems with the eVscope 2?
- Dec 5, 2021: Beim Kollimieren machte mich die App ständig zum Beobachter, obwohl ich mit dem iPad neben dem Teleskop stand.
- Dec 10, 2021: Zweimal fuhr das eVscope2 zum alten Ziel statt zum neuen; erst mit etwas Trickserei konnte das neue Ziel wieder aktiviert werden. chi Persei wurde auch nicht richtig getroffen...
Diesmal keine "Kontrollverluste", aber ein paar kleinere Macken...
Manchmal dauerte das Speichern ewig, der Prozessor schien überfordert.
>> On December 13, 2021, the new app version 1.5 was released, which seemed to exhibit less errors...
Suggestions for Improvement
And as always, I wish that important image data would be saved with the image!
First Conclusions on Version 1.4
The new image processing actually seems to bring advantages in the presentation of the sky objects, such as more details and sharpness as well as a darker background; increased contrast and changed colors, however, are a matter of taste and and ambivalent one. Now, I only wish that the graininess of the photos and the amplifier glow can be reduced...
In addition, more messages are issued when there are issues during the Enhanced Vision mode. In the Unistellar Help Center article "Enhanced Vision Stopped or Dropped": What does it mean? is described what the error messages, which are issued during Enhanced Vision mode, mean.
The NewApp Versions 1.5 and 1.6
Since app version 2.0 had already been published, before I was able to test app version 1.6, the following is already obsolete...
Version 1.5 (13.12.2021) and Newer
On December 13, 2021 App version 1.5 was published, and I installed it already on the same day. First of all, as with the four previous 1.x versions, the app required me to update my eVscope (2), which succeded. According to the App Store, it offers the following improvements:
- eVscope experience improvements
- Various bug fixes
State: There were no version 1.5 updates.
eVscope Experience Improvements
I was not able to find out what this referred to...
Various Bug Fixes
As always, no information on this ...
Why the Jump in the Version Number?
A guess would be that a jump in the version number happens, whenever an update of the eVscope (2) software is necessary.
Version 1.6 (2.5.2022) and Newer
Am May 2, 2022 app version 1.6 was published. I was not able to ,load and test it, because I sent my eVscope 2 on May 4 2022 to Unistellar for repair (on August 22, 2022 a new eVscope 2 returned to me, after version 2.0 already had been published). According to the App Store, the new version offers the following improvements:
- eVscope experience improvements
- Various bug fixes
State: There were no version 1.6 updates.
eVscope Experience Improvements
I was not able to find out what this referred to...
Various Bug Fixes
As always, no information on this ...
Why the Jump in the Version Number?
A guess would be that a jump in the version number happens, whenever an update of the eVscope (2) software is necessary.
Links
- Unistellar Website: unistellaroptics.com
- eVscope Kickstarter campaign: www.kickstarter.com/projects/unistellar/evscope-100-times-more-powerful-than-a-classical-t
- eVscope vs DIY - Watch Before You Buy! (Cosmic POV): www.youtube.com/watch?v=v6fD_nQXQw0
- See also my page offering Astronomy Links.
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made by  on a mac! |
| 24.10.2023 |  |