I’ve written about using the I-Ball back up camera as a way to keep an eye on my horses while trailering (the Zelda Cam). After Zelda fell in the trailer, I’ve always felt more comfortable watching her — she still moves around more than I’d like, but so far she’s stayed on her feet.

But what the I-Ball is designed to do, is help you hitch your trailer. For a long time, I used it only for trailering. What a dope I was. Being able to see the ball and hitch align without getting out of the car a dozen times is priceless. It reduces the time spent hitching to a few minutes.

I just upgraded to the new I-Ball Digital Pro and on my first trip, last weekend, I was pleased by how much clearer the image was while trailering. I could always see the horses, but sometimes the image flickered a lot. This promises to be an even better solution.

Oh, and did I mention that it’s a plug and play solution? There is no hard wiring. You simply plug the screen into your cigarette lighter and position the camera where you needed. My only complaint is that the magnet on the camera could be a bit stronger, but you can fix that by gluing on a stronger magnet, or by putting a second magnet below it.