2017 Covert Black Maverick Review

The Covert Black Maverick receives high marks for picture quality, battery life, and ease of use. The detection speeds are far slower than what we would like to see. - TCP Staff

Model #5342

Pros

• Top-notch daytime pictures and videos
• 10.3-Month battery life in picture mode
• 1.5" internal viewing screen
• Easy to program and solid case design

Cons

• Very slow detection speeds
• White-out on close animals at night

Trailcampro Analysis

The Black Maverick is Covert's high-end no glow trail camera for 2017. Let's see how it scored...

Picture Quality:  

Photo resolution: 12 mpxl (interpolated)

Video resolution:  1920 x 1080 w/ audio

Flash Type:  No Glow IR

Day pictures are spectacular. You will be hard-pressed to find anything wrong with a daytime image. Gorgeous photos.

Night pictures have tons of flash range but also display white-out and some blur. For a no glow camera they are good, not great night pictures.

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With the high resolution (1920x1080) videos, you will find the Black Maverick day videos to be outstanding. Very clear, fluid, and colorful. Great day videos.

Night videos mimic pictures. White-out when the animal is close and just a general lack of sharpness. Still, the night videos are good, they just aren't top-notch. Audio is very poor.

Megapixel Ratings:

In the past, many people get confused with the megapixel rating trail camera manufacturers advertise.  Companies inflate the mpxl rating to attract eyes to their products.  They do this through interpolation, which digitally adds megapixels to a photo without actually improving the picture.

The best way to judge picture quality is to look at actual pictures.  You will notice this the most when you zoom in on a full-size image that a camera has taken.  The details of the photo will appear hazy or even digitized.  This is normal, and to be expected.

Battery Life:    

Picture & Video Resting Power (on):   1.73 mW

Picture Daytime/Nighttime Power Consumption:  2.25 Ws |  3.48 Ws

Video Daytime/Nighttime Power Consumption: 25.23 Ws | 91.3 Ws

The Black Maverick is very efficient in picture mode but only average in video mode.

Picture Mode:

If this camera were to take 35-day and 35-night pictures every 24 hours, the Black Maverick would last 10.3 months in the field on a set of 8 AA Lithium Batteries. This is outstanding battery life.

Video Mode:

If this camera were to take 15-day and 15-night videos (10-second videos) every 24 hours, it would last 1.9 months in the field on a set of lithium batteries. This is middle of the road battery life for a video camera.

Detection Circuit:     

Picture Trigger & Recovery Speed: 0.9 s. / 4.9 s.

Video Trigger & Recovery Speed:  2.82 s. / 4.9 s.

Detection Range:  70 ft.

The Black Maverick is very slow compared to other cameras currently on the market. In picture mode, the Black Maverick is slightly below average. In video mode, the trigger speed is extremely slow and the recovery time is average.

The camera hit several times at 70 ft. during our preliminary detection range tests.

Overall, this detection circuit is not competitive compared to the rest of the trail camera industry.

Quality of Design:    

Dimensions: 5.5" x 4.875" x 2.5"

Battery Type:  8 AA Batteries

External Battery Jack:  6-Volt

Case Design

The Black Maverick has a unique latch and case design. The latch slides up and down to unlock the camera. This works really well and is easy to manipulate. The outside of the camera is typical of Covert scouting cameras. The plastic feels thick and rugged. Very well-built cameras.

The unique part about the case design is that the camera on the inside of the case is removable. While this isn't the first camera to do this, it is uncommon. In the past, we haven't liked these designs because the cameras have a tendency to fall out or be dropped. The Black Maverick's camera actually stays in the case really well until it is pulled out. So the risk of dropping the camera is very low. For this reason, we don't mind the design and find it rather useful.

The Black Maverick has a built-in python bracket on the back of the camera and a 1/4" x 20 threaded insert on the bottom for a Slate River Mount.

Camera Setup

The Black Maverick sets up quickly and easily. The settings are easy to navigate to and marked clearly. The 1.5" viewing screen is a tad small, so bring your reading glasses if you have trouble seeing.

We love that Covert includes start/stop time, sd card overwrite, and password protection in the options.

SD Card Storage Examples

With an 8 Gig SD card and the camera taking 3 mpxl photos (this is our recommended setting as it is closest to the native resolution), the Black Maverick could store 10,500 pictures on the SD card. This can always vary depending on the percentage of day to night pictures.

With an 8 Gig SD card and the camera taking 1920x1080 videos, the Maverick could store 412 10-second videos.

From this data, you can extrapolate out storage capacities of different sized SD cards and different resolution settings. We give you an 8 Gig SD card with the purchase of this camera through us. If you need additional or larger SD cards, you can shop all SD card options here.

Durability

Through our 2-year warranty program on the trail cameras we sell, we are able to track warranty rates on all trailcam manufacturers. We do not publish this data but Covert Scouting Cameras have had an average warranty rate. If an issue arises in this model, we will update this Covert Black Maverick Review immediately.

Covert Black Maverick Review Conclusion: 

We feel like a broken record. Covert MUST improve their picture and video trigger/recovery speeds to become competitive in our ratings. Which is a shame, because the daytime picture quality on this camera is incredible. It also has 10+ month picture battery life and a really solid case design.

If you aren't concerned with speed (feeders, bait stations, traps), then we think you will like this camera. 

Enjoy our reviews?  Please consider purchasing your next trail camera from us.

FAQ's: Covert Black Maverick Trail Camera

Q: How do I view the pictures?

A: There are a number of ways to do this. Pictures/videos are stored on the SD card you place in the camera. This camera has an internal viewer that can play pictures and videos. Here are some other ways to view pictures.

• View pictures on your computer. Plug the SD card in a desktop computer or laptop via the built-in SD card reader or use a USB reader if your computer doesn't have one. This method works for most tablets as well. With this method, we recommend having two SD cards per camera so you can swap them in the field.
• View pictures on your smartphone. Choose between the iOS Reader for iPhones and the Android Reader. Phone readers require an app to access the photos, you can read more about these via the previous links.
• Trail Camera Viewers. While more expensive, handheld viewers are useful if you don't have a smartphone or run multiple trail cameras. 

Q: Will this trail camera trigger on small animals (birds, rodents, etc.)?

A: Trail cameras detect on a combination of heat and movement, so, yes, small mammals will trigger the camera. However, if you are going after smaller warm-blooded mammals, we recommend getting the camera closer to your target. For best performance, place the camera in an area that would enable picture detection from 3 - 20 ft.

Q: Can animals see the infrared flash on this camera?

A: This is somewhat controversial. Humans can't see the flash as the nanometer spectrum is above what the human eye can detect. It's also much harder for an animal to see, but that could depend on the species of animal as different species see in different light spectrums. 

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