To MANY action camera choices

RoAddiction

RoAddiction

Wannabie Member
Well, the time is fast approaching for me to buy a second action cam after i originally had the Gopro Hero many moons ago. Problem i,m having is now that there is SO much choice, the decision making is even harder, which, with all the choice you'd think would be easier but truth be told, i am 100% stuck :confused:
 
I think if you go for one of the main brands, you can't really go wrong. It depends on where are you going to place the camera and what features you really like and those that you can live without.
I wanted my primary camera on my helmet and didn't like the wide frontal area of the GoPro.
I wanted one which had a rotating lens, to avoid the slanted horizon you see on some videos, so that ruled out Sony.
I needed to be able to replace batteries on longer rides, so the Replay XD was out.
So for me it was down to Contour and Drift. Now it was much easier for me to compare the prices and features of just 2 cameras.
At the time, Contour looked like it might be going out of business. Would getting parts or service be a problem?
The Drift Ghost came with everything I needed in one box; remote control, microphone, wifi is useful when setting up camera angles and viewing video, and the
screen makes it easy to view or delete video or change settings while I'm out riding. You can also record while powering it from the 12V socket.
When I wanted a 2nd camera, this time to put on the bike, mainly for facing towards me so I can add the picture-in-picture effect to my videos, I didn't need the capabilities of the Ghost and I
didn't want to spend so much money on a secondary camera, so I found a new Drift 720 for a quarter of the price of a Ghost.
So get the camera that will best suit your needs and your budget. But start be eliminating cameras that lack features you consider important.
 
TriumfAnt said:
I think if you go for one of the main brands, you can't really go wrong. It depends on where are you going to place the camera and what features you really like and those that you can live without.
I wanted my primary camera on my helmet and didn't like the wide frontal area of the GoPro.
I wanted one which had a rotating lens, to avoid the slanted horizon you see on some videos, so that ruled out Sony.
I needed to be able to replace batteries on longer rides, so the Replay XD was out.
So for me it was down to Contour and Drift. Now it was much easier for me to compare the prices and features of just 2 cameras.
At the time, Contour looked like it might be going out of business. Would getting parts or service be a problem?
The Drift Ghost came with everything I needed in one box; remote control, microphone, wifi is useful when setting up camera angles and viewing video, and the
screen makes it easy to view or delete video or change settings while I'm out riding. You can also record while powering it from the 12V socket.
When I wanted a 2nd camera, this time to put on the bike, mainly for facing towards me so I can add the picture-in-picture effect to my videos, I didn't need the capabilities of the Ghost and I
didn't want to spend so much money on a secondary camera, so I found a new Drift 720 for a quarter of the price of a Ghost.
So get the camera that will best suit your needs and your budget. But start be eliminating cameras that lack features you consider important.
Click to expand...
Very wise words Triumfant, it's so crazy cos one side of me is whispering Drift, i wouldn't mount my Gopro on the side of my helmet as i feel it just sticks out to far, and the chin piece is really sharp with a large vent so i think it rules that out but i feel almost as if i'm cheating on Gopro lol!! I couldn't afford the Ghost S or the Hero 3+ black but have come down to either the Drift HD Ghost vs GoPro Silver+....this is where i sit as i like some features in the Drift and some from the Gopro lol!
 
ThirdWorld said:
Very wise words Triumfant, it's so crazy cos one side of me is whispering Drift, i wouldn't mount my Gopro on the side of my helmet as i feel it just sticks out to far, and the chin piece is really sharp with a large vent so i think it rules that out but i feel almost as if i'm cheating on Gopro lol!! I couldn't afford the Ghost S or the Hero 3+ black but have come down to either the Drift HD Ghost vs GoPro Silver+....this is where i sit as i like some features in the Drift and some from the Gopro lol!
Click to expand...

Yeah, there are a ton of choices, we've achieved market saturation in a few short years. GoPro and Drift seem to be the strongest two options though...
 
I went with gopro cause I have a pet peeve for assimetrical things. Everything needs to be perfectly simmetrical. So the camera MUST be in the middle of the helmet.
Top of the helmet was a no-go cause of the mohawk. Side of the helmet would be assimetrical, so no. So only on the chinbar.
Then only camera for the chinbar is the gopro. So there ya go. Its the everyday camera, and vlogging camera.
 
Cagerontwowheels said:
I went with gopro cause I have a pet peeve for assimetrical things. Everything needs to be perfectly simmetrical. So the camera MUST be in the middle of the helmet.
Top of the helmet was a no-go cause of the mohawk. Side of the helmet would be assimetrical, so no. So only on the chinbar.
Then only camera for the chinbar is the gopro. So there ya go. Its the everyday camera, and vlogging camera.
Click to expand...


You've kinda freaked me out a bit with that
 
i was very much leaning towards the drift, reasons being my chinbar is quite sharp and has a really non flat vent, so center mount for me as much as i would love to just can't work :(
Also, as much as i,m a Gopro loyal brand slut, i feel a tad robbed knowing i have to cough up so much for each little part i'll need, such as the mic, Drift includes it, Gopro i must now add another $80 for it!!? AND the attachment to make it work??
Then the remote, not really a necessity but a nice addition, drift include it, gopro i must get the black edition to get it, and truth be told after the horror stories i've read about the hero 3 it would mean i need hero 3 + ...when you add it all up the gopro comes in just so much higher. Yes, i believe the pic quality to be slightly better but then again i,m not a famous vlogger, and i definitely ain't a cinematography guru so for me it seems my option is get the most bang for my buck, at least to just start vlogging. I wish i could afford both, but yeah. I currently am just sitting in limbo ready to buy but then back out and second guess my choice haha.
 
i agree that the choice really ony comes down to gopro and drift cams

I have 2 gorpo 3+ black cameras, first off i liked the picture better and the wireless capabilities and the phone app.
when i decided to buy a second camera i just got the same model again partly because of mounts, batteries, chargers etc.

I would ike to try the chin position but i just bought a variant helmet :P need to see how i get it on the chin there...

If i buy a 3rd cam... maybe in a few months :P I think i wi try a drift. even tho the bulky go pro next to the helmet doesn t bother me much (mainly because of boring low speed tokyo city riding) I think i wil try a drift for a smaller profile and (I heard) onger battery.

I think my dream setup is 2 go pros hardwired to the bike, and controlled by the wifi remote (also hardwired) and the drift on the helmet (easy access on/off) :P

lets see what will come in summer


another big argument for the go pro as the initial camera is that i SCUBA dive and i haven t seen another camera yet that cn hold up to 40 meter depth

quick question... anyone up for some vlog/scuba vids xD?
summer will coem and i have a little scuba area not too far away from tokyo
 
Well I currently use
Sony Action Cam -> facing forward
GoPro HD1 -> Facing Backward
Drift HD 1080p -> On Helmet
Contour HD -> on frame
Bullet ACT20 -> On crash bars
All of them work great and are perfect for what I use them for.
 
Thanks for all the responses guys, that's the reason i'm loving this community so damn much!
Ok, so, i decided on the Drift, i found a great deal on Ebay selling the Ghost S for $320 and emailed the online store (based in Canada) about shipping pricing! As Murphy's law
would have it, the shipping to South Africa was $180 excluding the import tax i'd pay at customs :(
So then i thought to hell with it i'll just buy one here, well well well, in MY country, the Ghost S costs roughly $550 BUT here's the catch, in my country the external mic etc is removed and you
must buy it seperately for $34 and then STILL buy the sd card on top of it...all in all, with everything i need to start vlogging from my crazy city the Ghost S will cost me about R8000 ($742.14)
So now, my friend is selling his Gopro hero 3+ black edition with LCD backpack and 32 gig card for $417.45.....which i think is a deal to good to refuse? I dunno, maybe i,m wrong but to me it seems dirt cheap!
So, for now that is where i stand!
MrCodajastal you DEFINITELY have it waxed regarding cameras bro!
 
MrCodajastal said:
Well I currently use
Sony Action Cam -> facing forward
GoPro HD1 -> Facing Backward
Drift HD 1080p -> On Helmet
Contour HD -> on frame
Bullet ACT20 -> On crash bars
All of them work great and are perfect for what I use them for.
Click to expand...


yeah .. they work great .. when they arent busy falling off and getting temporarily lost!!!!! :p

... edit...

oh and everyone thinks MrCods here just goes riding and vlogging on his own all the time!! ... thats rubbish.... its just by the time he has all those cameras turned on and lined up.... the group has moved into the next suburb!!! :D
 
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