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Recording guide · XbotGo

Record with XbotGo Falcon

Standalone tracking camera on a tall tripod. Records to a microSD card; controlled from the XbotGo app.

Maker's cloud is optionalFirst-time guide

Needs a real-camera test

This guide needs a real-camera test before you rely on it. It's built from the maker's help pages, but hasn't yet been checked step by step on a real camera. Check each step against your app.

Look out for "Unverified – check against your app"

Steps with that label aren't confirmed in the maker's help, or depend on your app or firmware version. Check them on your own device, and follow the maker's help if anything differs.

What it is

The Falcon is a tracking camera that sits on a tall tripod by the halfway line and follows play. It records to its own microSD card. You control it from the XbotGo app on your phone, and you get the recording out through the app, a card reader or XbotGo Cloud.

Own subscription or cloud? Not needed to use Squono. XbotGo Cloud gives 20 GB free per account, plus 20 GB when a Falcon is bound (40 GB). Paid 1 TB and 2 TB plans are sold through the app stores.

What you need

  • XbotGo Falcon, fully charged

    The battery must be above 50% before a firmware update will run.

  • The XbotGo app on your phone

    Connecting the Falcon in the app binds it to your XbotGo account.

  • A compatible microSD card

    • Minimum V30. UHS-I only – UHS-II cards are not supported.
    • Up to 1 TB, formatted exFAT.
    • Named by XbotGo: SanDisk Extreme / Extreme Pro V30 A2, Kingston Canvas Go Plus V30 A2, Samsung PRO Plus / PRO Ultimate V30 A2.
    • High-endurance cards are recommended.

  • The Quick Release Plate that came with the Falcon

  • A tripod that reaches the right height

    2.5 m (8 ft) for 5v5. 3.5 m (11.5 ft) for 7v7, 9v9 and 11v11.

  • Something to weigh the tripod legs down

    For example a sandbag or a heavy kit bag. Squono safety advice.

Recording choices

What you record on the camera and what Squono shows are two separate choices.

  • Squono streams at up to 1080p

    Whatever you record, viewers watch it in Squono at up to 1080p. Recording in 4K is about keeping a sharper original for yourself.

  • 4K/30 – best original to keep

    About 295 MB a minute (HEVC) or 425 MB a minute (H.264): 27–38 GB for a 90-minute match. Slower to copy and upload.

  • 1080p/30 – the low-cost route

    Unverified – check against your app (needs real-camera test)

    About 110 MB a minute (HEVC) or 104 MB a minute (H.264): roughly 10 GB for 90 minutes. Quicker to copy and upload, and needs less card and phone space. Use it if your firmware offers it.

  • HEVC ("Efficient") or H.264 ("Compatible")?

    Squono's video provider processes both. H.264 plays on more computers, TVs and editing apps, so choose it if you also keep copies on a computer.

  • File sizes above are XbotGo's figures for firmware v5.1.0

    Other firmware may differ.

Before match day

  1. Step 1:

    Charge the Falcon

    Charge it fully. Firmware updates only run when the battery is above 50%.

  2. Step 2:

    Update the app and the firmware at home

    Update the XbotGo app from your app store. The app downloads new firmware on Wi-Fi, and the update starts when you connect the Falcon. Do this at home, not at the ground.

  3. Step 3:

    Check the Scoreboard will work

    Marking goals needs Falcon firmware 3.4.0 or later and app 4.5.0 or later.

  4. Step 4:

    Insert and format the microSD card

    In the app: Device Connection > Falcon > Camera Storage > Format > Format Now. This erases the whole card – copy off anything you want to keep first.

  5. Step 5:

    Check there's space

    Recording won't start with less than 1 GB free, and the Falcon can't record without a card. A 90-minute match is about 10 GB at 1080p/30 and 27–38 GB at 4K.

  6. Step 6:

    Choose your resolution and encoding

    Unverified – check against your app (needs real-camera test)

    XbotGo lists 1080P/30, 1080P/60, 2K/30, 2.7K/30 and 4K/30, and Efficient (HEVC) or Compatible (H.264) encoding. Which options you see depends on your firmware. See "Recording choices" below.

  7. Step 7:

    Set Anti-Flicker to 50Hz

    UK mains power is 50Hz. This stops floodlights flickering in the video.

  8. Step 8:

    Select Soccer mode

    Unverified – check against your app (needs real-camera test)

    Goal Auto Transfer only works in Soccer mode. Where you pick the sport can vary with app version.

  9. Step 9:

    Set up Goal Auto Transfer (optional)

    See "Goal clips" below. Do this before match day. Clips are only made for goals you mark during the match.

  10. Step 10:

    Do a short test recording

    Record a minute or two in the garden or park. Download it to your phone (see "After the match"), check it plays and check the file size. Then you know the whole route works before a real match.

Goal clips (Goal Auto Transfer)

Makes short clips of each goal you mark and saves them to your phone's gallery after the game. Soccer mode on the Falcon only.

  1. Step 1:

    Open Gallery, then the four-dot icon (top right)

  2. Step 2:

    Tap Auto Transfer

    The same menu also lists Transfers and Cloud Recycle Bin.

  3. Step 3:

    Turn on Goal Auto Transfer

  4. Step 4:

    Set the Goal clip duration

    Use − and + to choose how many seconds Before and After each goal. XbotGo's screenshot shows 10s before and 5s after.

  5. Step 5:

    Defaults and limits for clip length

    Unverified – check against your app

    The default, minimum, maximum and step size haven't been confirmed.

  6. Step 6:

    During the match, mark each goal on the Scoreboard

    This is what creates the clips. It is not automatic goal recognition.

  7. Step 7:

    After the match, connect the Falcon to the app

    The clips download to your phone's gallery. Upload them to the fixture in Squono as highlights.

On match day

  1. Step 1:

    Put the tripod level with the halfway line

    Stand it 1–3 m outside the touchline, level with halfway.

  2. Step 2:

    Raise it to the right height

    2.5 m for 5v5. 3.5 m for 7v7, 9v9 and 11v11.

  3. Step 3:

    Make the tripod safe

    • Spread the legs fully and weigh them down.
    • Keep children, balls and spectators away from the tripod.
    • In strong wind, lower it or don't record.
  4. Step 4:

    Attach the Falcon with the Quick Release Plate

  5. Step 5:

    Check the framing

    Slight elevation, with the line between the two goals running across the middle of the frame.

  6. Step 6:

    Let it calibrate

    The Falcon calibrates itself when it starts. To realign, turn the tripod – never turn the Falcon itself.

  7. Step 7:

    Start recording, then hands off

    Don't touch the Falcon or the tripod once recording has started. The M1/M2/M3 presets let you long-press to record without the phone.

  8. Step 8:

    Mark every goal on the Scoreboard

    Open the Scoreboard icon while recording and add each goal as it happens. Goal clips are only made for goals you mark.

  9. Step 9:

    Stop recording after the final whistle

    Unverified – check against your app (needs real-camera test)

    Stop it from the app. Then lower the tripod carefully before taking the camera off.

After the match: get your file out and upload it

  1. Step 1:

    Get your goal clips

    If Goal Auto Transfer is on, the goal clips download to your phone's gallery once the Falcon connects to the XbotGo app. They don't go to the cloud.

  2. Step 2:

    Option A – copy the full match to your phone

    In the app: Gallery > Falcon tab (with your phone connected to the Falcon) > Media > Select (✓) > choose the videos > Download. They're saved under Saved > Media and in the phone album "XbotGo". Make sure your phone has room – a 4K match can be 27–38 GB.

  3. Step 3:

    Option B – use a card reader

    Unverified – check against your app

    Take the microSD card out and read it on a computer. The folder names on the card haven't been confirmed – look for the video files and check they play.

  4. Step 4:

    Option C – download from XbotGo Cloud

    Only if the match was uploaded to XbotGo Cloud. The account owner can view and download it at cloud.xbotgo.net.

    XbotGo Cloud web portal(opens in a new tab)

  5. Step 5:

    Use the untouched file, not "Export to Gallery"

    Saving from the Match Library with Save to Album > Export to Gallery goes to the album "XbotGo-Export" and adds an intro title card. For the untouched original, use Option A.

  6. Step 6:

    Keep a copy of the original

    Copy the original file to a computer or drive before you delete anything from the Falcon, the card or XbotGo Cloud.

  7. Step 7:

    Open Upload in Squono

    Use a computer or a phone on Wi-Fi. Big match files upload far more reliably on Wi-Fi than on mobile data.

    Go to Upload →

  8. Step 8:

    Choose the team, then the match

    Pick the fixture the recording belongs to, so the video appears on the right match page.

  9. Step 9:

    Choose the full match file

    Under "What is it?" choose "Full match (one file)". MP4 or MOV works best. Keep the page open until the upload has finished.

  10. Step 10:

    Add goal clips as highlights

    Add the clips to the same match and set "What is it?" to "Highlights / scoring clip".

  11. Step 11:

    Wait for processing

    Squono's video provider processes the file. Long matches can take a while. You can leave the page once the upload has finished.

  12. Step 12:

    Review, then publish

    When the video is ready for review, watch a little of it, check it's the right match, choose who can see it and publish. Nothing is published automatically.

    Open Review →

  13. Step 13:

    Add the score

    Open the match from Fixtures to add the score, and goalscorers if you want.

    Open Fixtures →

Score and goalscorers

  • Add the score in Squono yourself

    The team manager enters the score on the match page, and goalscorers if you want. Goalscorers can stay unpublished.

    Find the match in Fixtures →

  • Squono doesn't use or connect to XbotGo Pro Soccer

File format

  • Efficient = HEVC (H.265). Compatible = H.264.

  • Firmware 5.0.0 made 4K/30 HEVC the default

    Unverified – check against your app

    XbotGo's blog says this; the help centre doesn't. Check what your Falcon is set to.

  • Files are MP4

    Unverified – check against your app

    Not confirmed in XbotGo's help centre.

  • The XbotGo logo watermark can't be removed

    The timestamp overlay can be turned off.

Before the maker deletes it

  • Shared XbotGo Cloud links expire after 30 days

    They are view-only.

  • Over your cloud limit, the oldest videos are deleted

    Uploads stop when XbotGo Cloud is full. After a 30-day grace period the oldest cloud videos are deleted automatically.

  • The Recycle Bin keeps deleted videos for 30 days

    They still count towards your storage while they're there.

Upload tips

  • A 90-minute match is roughly 10 GB at 1080p/30, 27–38 GB at 4K

    Allow time and use Wi-Fi.

  • Squono plays matches at up to 1080p

    Uploading a 4K file is fine, but viewers will see it at up to 1080p in Squono.

  • HEVC and H.264 both work

    Squono's video provider processes both. You don't need to convert files before uploading.

  • Very large files

    Very large single files haven't all been tested yet. If an upload is refused for size, split the recording (for example by half) and upload each part to the same fixture.

Costs and clouds

  • Squono doesn't need a paid XbotGo plan

    You don't need any paid cloud plan to watch recordings in Squono. Upload the file and Squono handles playback.

  • Auto Upload goes to XbotGo Cloud only

    Falcon Auto Upload sends new recordings to XbotGo Cloud. It can't send them to Squono or to any other storage.

  • How Auto Upload is set up

    Connect the Falcon in the app > Gallery > Cloud > Auto Upload banner > enter the Wi-Fi name and password > disconnect your phone > plug the Falcon into its charger.

  • Auto Upload limits

    • Only uploads while the Falcon is on a charger.
    • Needs Wi-Fi with a password. Wi-Fi with a sign-in web page (captive portal) won't work.
    • Up to 10 Wi-Fi networks. One account per Falcon. The sign-in lasts 6 months.

  • Think twice about "Delete Local Files After Backup"

    It deletes recordings from the card after a successful cloud upload. Leave it off until you have your own copy of each match.

  • XbotGo Cloud storage

    20 GB free per account, plus 20 GB when a Falcon is bound (40 GB). Paid 1 TB and 2 TB plans are sold through the app stores.

Important

Goal clips rely on goals you mark

Goal Auto Transfer uses the goal markers you add on the Scoreboard. It doesn't find goals by itself, so a goal nobody marks won't get a clip.

Formatting erases the card

Copy off anything you want to keep before you format.

Tripod safety

Tall tripods can blow over. Spread the legs fully, weigh them down, keep children and balls away from it, and lower it or don't record if the wind is strong.

Match-day checklist: XbotGo Falcon

0 of 24 done · saved on this device only

Before you leave home
At the ground
After the match

Sources

Makers change their apps. If a menu doesn't match, the maker's own help is the final word. Squono is independent. We are not affiliated with, endorsed by or partnered with any camera maker named in these guides.