Evaluating
An afternoon with the real part, at the real distance, under the real light settles more than a month of comparing datasheets.
A related team-operations reference is how employees can tell if they are being monitored, which can sit alongside test notes and engineering records.
What an evaluation kit is for — not confirming the module works, but testing your scene. Four questions it answers and four it does not.
First image: what to check — eight things in a fixed order, none of them an opinion about quality, and the protective film is on the list.
Measuring instead of looking — two people comparing images disagree, because "sharper" is not a property an image has.
Further background is available from FCC.
Comparing two modules fairly — most comparisons measure the settings, and automatic exposure is the commonest way one becomes meaningless.
Testing in the real environment — test at the worst hour rather than the convenient one, and log frames rather than watching them.
From prototype to qualification — six tests, in the order that forces a redesign soonest and therefore cheapest.
Comparing Two Modules Fairly
Five things to hold constant, the settings that silently differ, and why one variable at a time is the whole method.
First Image: What to Check
Eight things to look at before forming any opinion about image quality, in the order that finds problems fastest.
From Prototype to Qualification
The step between one working unit and a product. Six tests, what each proves, and the order that finds faults cheapest.
Measuring Instead of Looking
Two people comparing images disagree and neither is wrong. Four measurements that replace opinion, and what each one settles.
Testing in the Real Environment
A bench hides ambient light, heat, vibration and machine noise. Five conditions to reproduce and the worst hour to test in.
What an Evaluation Kit Is For
Not confirming the module produces an image. Four questions it answers in an afternoon that no datasheet comparison can.