Riley Craven

iTrader: (1)

So after another great state meet a couple have wondered what I and others have for filming.

I personally use Sony HDR-XR500V in combination with a heavy duty suction cup mount.
Lord ET has an SD Go Pro
KWarner has an HD Go Pro.

But I'm starting to want to pick up more footage (at this point this hobby is turning into an obession considering the amounts of data I'm compiling)

I'm starting some research into this area, (that honestly didn't exists when I entered it) and have found a few more contenders to look at

The Drift HD170
The ContourHD
and The ATC 9K HD

If anyone is interested in my hobby let me know and I will continue updating this post as I go along.

renesisjim

iTrader: (3)

I'm leaning towards the HD Go Pro but would love some more info.

Riley Craven

iTrader: (1)

The GoPro can take some awesome footage from what I've seen, but has several killing factors, battery life, no screen to set shots up, poor useability as well because of the screen, no remote start, stop etc, and bad audio (at least compared to my full blown sony) Since you seem interested I'm going to try do a full review of all of them with pros cons etc, but may take alittle time to compile.

Grungepup

iTrader: (2)

actually.... The gopro does have an add on option now for a screen that mounts to the back.

The mounts come with 2 separate back plates for varying sound quality/water proofing.

You can change the settings for one button record, so when you turn it on it starts recording.

I charged the battery at night, and then on our stops and didnt run out of battery life.

KWarner04

Jimmy, all three of these videos were shot with my GoPro HD.

http://media.kyleinprogress.com/

My biggest complaints are the audio and battery life. The audio just plain sucks. I've got a few things planned to try and fix it, but you have to work at it. As far as the battery, you can buy a "backpack" which doubles the battery life to almost 4 hours straight. You'll run out of room on a 32GB flash card before you run out battery at 4 hours.

The fact that is uses flash cards is nice though. I keep about 4 on me at all times and just switch them out when we stop. We seldom go more than 2 hours without a break, so it works out great for me.

I just like the fact that I can mount it on top of the car and not worry about damaging it. Ask Thomas how comfortable he is with putting his camera outside his car. Plus, he has to have an AC adapter to use his. He forgot it a few weeks ago and got about 40 min worth of video total.

Riley Craven

iTrader: (1)

I could buy a 200$ waterproofing kit for mine and roof mount it as well, but wind noise is going to be awful at those speeds. If you want engine noises, your either going to have to mount it inside, or have a separate mic attached somewhere out of the wind.

The biggest reason I don't outside mount the camera (besides flying debris) is that I can't watch it. If its not plugged into power it will shut itself down. (there isn't a way to turn this off since Sony is stupid)

As to the power, I didn't forget the power for the camera, I didn't have my AC converter. Was a bit of special circumstance that Jen was out of town and had my backpack with my laptop in it. Normally that converter is always in my car. I don't believe in buying separate car power accessories for various devices. Lastly, given the length of a lot of what we do, I actually prefer using cords for power over batteries. Save that batteries for uses for when I don't have power. Don't have to worry about charging at all then.

Riley Craven

iTrader: (1)

The reason I bought mine was because HD sports camera's didnt exist at the time. (This was around March 2009, and I bought it the day it was released) It HAD to be HD, no question; and this was at a time when consumer camera's were just starting to pick up HD. It also had to have hardware image stabilization, and it also had to have a **** ton of space upfront, since storage wasn't cheap back then, or at least not cheap enough that I could justify buying storage + a camera. Lastly, I wanted to also be able to use it for family related events knowing that I was going to have kids soon.

Riley Craven

iTrader: (1)

Here's what I have so far
This outline is mainly to focus on perfect setups etc.

HD Motorsports HERO $300 http://gopro.com/cameras/hd-motorsports-hero-camera/

Specs
2.5 Hour battery ($20 for spares)
5 megapixels
Various cables and connectors
Mounts
4h 21min 1080p vid on 32gb SD Card ($50-75)(not included)
Waterproof housing
Optional LCD Screen ($80)

Thoughts: 300 to get mounts and housing, and another 50-75 to get usable storage plus another 100 to get a spare battery and LCD means you’re in the whole 550 minimum when all said and done (to get comparable features to other cameras). And you have a max of 5 hours record time at max battery performance (assuming two batteries for which you are going to have to change out). Leads to micromanagement of camera on longer cruises which when you consider it does not have a remote, this can be a hassle. Does take great HD video, but mounted outside, the claims of hearing anything but wind noise at 85+mph is greatly exaggerated.

Drift HD170 $300 http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/produc...efinition.html

Specs
2.5 hour Battery ($12 for spare, $30 for 4 hour battery)
5 megapixels
Various cables and connectors
Mounts (mostly for helmets or handlebars) (suction cup for $24)
8hr 1080p vid on 32gb SD Card ($50-75)(not included) (need to verify this)
Watertight housing (note not waterproof)
Built in LCD
Rotating lens (for getting perfect shots, A killer feature IMO)
Remote control
Can add external mic

Thoughts: Costs exactly the same as the Hero, takes the same great video (and probably the same awful audio) but with better features for the same price. All in you will have spent roughly 400 bucks (300 for the camera, 30 for the spare 4 hour battery, 24 for the suction cup mount, 50 on the SD card) You do loose complete waterproofing, but since I doubt any of us are divers or snorkelers the water tightness of the camera will still serve the same function as the proofing of the Go Pro in the rain.

Video Review: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BW3521vp_1Y

KWarner04

You might want to add the Contour (http://contour.com/camera) to your list. It's the big competitor to GoPro right now. They have an HD version and an HD/GPS version. The GPS feature is pretty cool because it logs GPS coordinates along with the video. The problem is how often it logs. I bought a GPS logger that logs at 5Hz which is good for us. Anything less and you miss some points.

It does have a cool feature that lets you use your iPhone as a viewer. So it transmits the video via bluetooth to your phone and lets you view it. But it is a fixed focal length and lens like the GoPro.

The GoPro does now offer an LCD screen and extended battery. They have "backpack" functionality that allows them to expand the camera. They recently created a cord that lets you join two GoPros together and shoot true 3D video. So they are constantly expanding and updating the functionality. I'm sure the others are doing the same, but I don't have any so I can't speak to that.

I think it just comes down to what do you want and what is important. The GoPro is easily the smallest of the 3, but lacks some features to achieve that small size. These cameras are all great for getting the POV shot, but you'll want to upgrade to true HD cameras if you want to create "Top Gear Quality" videos.

TeamRX8

iTrader: (25)

I have the rear GoPro display, not sure that it adds much value IMO. I'm pretty sure you have to choose one or the other, can't have the battery pack and rear display at the same time. The features emphasis at this cost level seems a bit overplayed to me. If you want real features then spend the money for a Chase Cam setup.

Jedi54

iTrader: (7)

Team: glad you mentioned the rear display. I've been thinking about getting one, care to share more thoughts on your experience with it?
I don't use my GoPro that much, mainly just on road trips, caravans, etc but we have the Vegas meet next month so I thought it would be helpful for setting up the camera for the drives.

Riley Craven

iTrader: (1)

This is where I have to vehemently disagree. When you have competing products that have roughly the same level of performance and cost roughly the same amount, features is exactly the metric by which you chose to make a purchase.

Personally, I think the screen is a must have for setting up shots and displaying information. Fiddling with the one or two character screen on the go pro is just plain annoying.

Edit: You did get me curious about the Chase Cam and based on footage alone (off of their own website) I'd say its an inferior product

KWarner04

Again, it's all about what features you think are important. I don't think a screen is that important for a simple fixed lens camera such as the gopro. You aim it where you want and that's the view you get. To me, I'm much more concerned about something small I can put in a number of different locations. Having a screen requires extra room and means I wouldn't be able to put it in different locations.

Your camera does have the view finder which is great for setting up the shot. But honestly, once you've set it up once, you don't need it again and again. This is how the gopro works...you just have to test a little beforehand.

As far as the chasecam setup...I don't know if it's full HD or not, but the big advantage is that it does data logging along with it. So you can display all the cool stuff you see on TV like acceleration/braking, speed, gear, etc on the video.

So at the end of the day, you consider a screen a must have feature. I don't. That's fine...but to say one product is so much better than another just because it has a feature you like is a little misinformed.

Riley Craven

iTrader: (1)

You are making my argument for me. I'm making the argument that at this price point when all else is equal, feature set determines what you buy.

If people would read more carefully the would notice that A. this write up to this point has been solely based on features and to some extent price since it appears all of the cameras are made with the same sensor package and B. that while my commentary is slighted to the features I prefer I've covered all the features the camera's have. Lastly, I also not once in this thread stated that one was much better than the other. (again trying to eliminate bias)

Riley Craven

iTrader: (1)

Mark Twain "The difference between the right word and the almost right word is the difference between lightning and a lightning bug."

TeamRX8

iTrader: (25)

frankly it seems as though you just have a strong bias against the GoPro regardless and are trying to emphasize every point you can to discount it and promote the other

Riley Craven

iTrader: (1)

And you are making statements not based on fact, nor or you providing evidence for your assertions.

KWarner04

Just saw this in the current issue of Men's Health. Here's their video review:

http://www.menshealth.com/techlust/wearable-cameras

Riley Craven

iTrader: (1)

I actually wasn't aware of the VIO POV HD http://www.vio-pov.com/products-all/pov-hd.html (my guess is probably because of the price point)

I'm curious why its so costly.