You can’t just do something dangerous and insane these days without filming it for posterity. And while action cameras let us relieve these life-highlights over and over, they aren’t all created equal. We decided to see for ourselves which one could handle your extreme adventures best.
When you buy a ticket for a Captain America movie you know what you’re going to get: A super-powered dude in blue doing crazy things with a shield, busting people in the jaw, and being very Americanny. Good news! Captain America: The Winter Soldier scratches those itches just fine.
     |
First it was the Lego Batman action figure. Then it was Lego Spiderman. And now Gizmodo friend Michael McCooey has created another awesome, fully posable Lego superhero action figure: Iron Man. More »
Holy mother of Moof. Remember the ultra-realistic Steve Jobs action figure? I thought it couldn’t get creepier until its creators decided to make it pose on the arm of the full size Madame Tussauds’ Steve Jobs—which you can see here completely finished. More »
Between GoPro, Contour, Drift and several others, the market for digital action camcorders has gotten mighty saturated. So with all the competition out there, how do you make your action cam stand out from the crowd? Well, you could do what Oregon Scientific has done with their new ATC Chameleon.
This unusual action camera has a unique feature in that it has a pair of moving lenses which allow it to simultaneously capture two angles at the same time. It can record two different 170° views at the same time, so you can capture a total 340° field of vision. This allows you to see the action from more than one viewpoint on a single split-screen video. In addition, each lens can be moved up to 180° – one moves side-to-side, and the other moves up and down. Just flip a switch to choose between side-by-side or top-and-bottom video modes.
The camera offers 1080p resolution from each lens, however, the FAQ states that you’ll probably need to work with the video in 720p. According to my math, two 720p images side-by-side is 2560×720, so they must have to do some funny business with black bars and downscaling to get that to fit into either a 720p or 1080p video. Still, it looks like a pretty cool way to capture more than one angle without having to splurge for two cameras.
Oregon Scientific offers a wide a variety of optional mounts – most of which sell for $29.99 – which make it easy to attach the camera to vehicles, helmets, surfboards, handlebars and more – however, the camera itself doesn’t include any of these. While the camera is splashproof, you’ll also have to spend extra if you want the waterproof case. That said, the ATC Chameleon is priced at just $199(USD), so it’s pretty reasonable to begin with. It’s available for order now over on the Oregon Scientific website.
The market is flooded with sports cameras it seems. Not long ago, GoPro unveiled its new HERO3 action camera that’s designed to be used for all sorts of sports from auto racing to skiing. Now, Drift Innovation has unveiled its latest sports camera called the Drift HD Ghost which has some solid specs of its own.
The Drift HD Ghost is a wearable camera that can also be mounted on an automobile or other motorized vehicle to record your racing and off-road exploits. The camera can record in HD resolutions up to 1080p(30fps) and is water-resistant to 9.84-feet without any housing. It’s got a wide-angle lens and offers digital zoom up to 10x. It can also capture stills at up to 11 megapixels, and at speeds up to 120fps in WVGA (800×480) resolution.It has an included wearable on-off remote control switch with LEDs to show the mode in use. The camera also has continuous loop video recording, integrated Wi-Fi, and a built-in 2-inch LCD screen.
That LCD is a big deal if you like to be able to tell that your shot is lined up correctly and see what video you’re recording while in the field. The LCD is covered by Gorilla Glass to protect it from damage. The Wi-Fi connectivity allows the camera to interface with the Drift app that will be available for both Apple and Android devices. The battery promises up to three hours of recording per charge, and the camera has integrated audio technology to provide clear sound even during windy situations. Captured video is stored on a Micro SD card (up to 32GB capacity), and it’s also got a mini-HDMI output.
The Drift HD Ghost camera is available for pre-order now for $399(USD), and is expected to ship on November 19th. If you order now and enter promo code “100Free“, you get up to $100 in bonus accessories.
About a week and a half ago we talked about the official unveiling of the awesome new GoPro HERO3 action camera. The camera was up for pre-order when we mentioned it last time with an estimated ship date to be somewhere around the middle of November. GoPro has now announced that the camera was now officially available for purchase in its three main versions.
The HERO3: Silver Edition is available right now and has all the same features as the HD HERO2 it replaces – and more – including 11 megapixel still photo capability, up to 1080p HD resolution video, and adds integrated Wi-Fi. This camera sells for $299.99. The HERO3: White Edition offers five-megapixel picture resolution, up to full HD video recording, and has integrated Wi-Fi for $199.99. This camera is a direct replacement of the original HD Hero. As with all GoPro cameras, there is a vast array of mounts available to suit just about every recording need.
The top-of-the-line HERO3: Black Edition ships starting on November 14th for $399.99(USD) and includes the Wi-Fi Remote accessory that normally sells for $79.99. That remote accessory allows you to turn on the camera and start recording even if the camera located too far away from you to reach physically. That is a big deal if you use one of these cameras for motorsports where deeply bolstered seats and racing harnesses make movement very difficult within the vehicle. The HERO3′s resolution is pretty incredible, with full 1080p/60 and even a 4k mode (only 15fps, though.)
All these new features make my original HD HERO look pretty lame.
This week, GoPro revealed its new HERO3 series of action cameras, and this batch could definitely give the competition a run for their money. As the dominant player in the action cam space, GoPro doesn’t look like it will be resting on its laurels anytime soon. At the top of the heap is the HERO3 Black Edition, a gadget that will likely be topping many Christmas lists this year.
The HERO3 Black Edition is 30% smaller and 25% lighter than previous models, but that doesn’t mean it’s less powerful. Taking a page from Apple’s playbook, they’re packing more capability into a smaller package. GoPro claims the camera shoots video at twice the resolution and speed as the HERO2, and captures stills 3 times as fast. It’s also got an improved lens, designed to reduce distortion, and offers selection between ultra-wide, medium and narrow fields-of-view.
The HERO3 can capture 1080p video at a full 60 frames-per-second, and can also shoot 4:3 1440p video at 48fps, or 720p at 120fps, and a DVD+ quality 848×480, 240fps mode for slow-mo shots. It can also capture 12 megapixel stills at up to 30fps, and even has a razor-sharp 4K mode – though it is limited to 15fps. It actually supports many other modes as well, listed below:
The camera has full Wi-Fi control support, and can be operated with an iOS or Android app – or the included keychain Wi-Fi remote (a $79.99 value). It also includes a durable waterproof housing, which will protect the camera down to depths of 197 feet (or 60 meters.) Here’s an overview of the HERO3 Black Edition from GoPro themselves:
And if you care to check out some footage, look below, then go into full screen 1080p mode for the ultimate experience. Keep in mind, you’re looking at a video after its been uploaded to YouTube – so the video directly downloaded from the camera will likely be even higher quality:
The HERO3 Black Edition is available for pre-order now for $399.99(USD) and is estimated to ship around November 14th, 2012. Be sure to go for the Surf Edition if you want the surfboard mount instead of the standard ones. If $400 is too expensive for your budget, you can always go for the less-expensive Silver Edition ($299.99) or the White Edition ($199.99), but these sacrifice image resolution and low-light performance. But if you can afford it, I say go for the Black – and if you can’t, save long enough that you can.
Being an avid road racer, I own several cameras that are designed to use suction cup mounts and stick to a car when you’re racing on the track. One thing about those cameras is that they are generally $300 and up to get a decent HD resolution camera. Contour has announced a new camera called the ContourROAM2 that is a basic action camera costing under $200.
The lightweight (5.1 oz.), waterproof camera is available for pre-order in black, blue, red, and green for $199.99(USD). The main differences between the ROAM2 and its more expensive ($399.99) sibling, the Contour+2 is the lack of Bluetooth, GPS and HDMI outputs. It offers the ability to record full HD 1080p resolution video at 30 frames-per-second or 720p resolution video at 60 fps for slow-motion playback. It can also snap 5MP still photos at pre-determined intervals, ranging from 1 to 60 seconds. It’s also got a handy laser level built in for ensuring straight shots.
The ContouROAM2 is designed to be very easy to use with no power button and a sliding instant-on record switch. I can tell you from experience that trying to find the power button and hit record on an action camera can be a pain when you’re wearing gloves and cinched into a racing harness.
The camera ships with a 4 GB microSD card included, as well as a rotating and a flat-surface mount. The only downside is that this camera doesn’t include a suction cup mount for use in vehicles. The suction cup mount accessory is available for an additional $39.99.
Polaroid may not be the first name that comes to mind when you think of adventure-friendly video cams — Contour and GoPro own that space, with Sony now making a heavy push of its own — but the insta-film maker turned camera manufacturer now has a rugged lineup of its own. First off the assembly line is the XS7, a $69 cam that packs a waterproof housing (rated to 10 meters), 720p video capture and a 2-inch touchscreen. This model is as entry level as they come, and Polaroid reps said to expect to see it in stores like Toys ‘R’ Us. If you’re slightly more serious about image quality, you might opt for the XS20, which packs a “professional” CMOS sensor, 720p shooting, a waterproof housing (20 meters) and a battery that’s rated for up to 3 hours of use. It also includes a fixed lens with a 120-degree viewing angle that’s surrounded by eight LCDs, for shooting in the dark. Finally, The XS100 is what you might consider to be Polaroid’s flagship, with support for 1080p video, an adjustable frame rate, a 170-degree lens, an orientation sensor for auto rotation and a $200 price tag. All three cameras use microSD cards, but the XS100 also includes 32MB of internal storage, letting you store a small collection of 5-megapixel stills.
The sports-shooting trio may not blow you away spec-wise, and we also weren’t floored by the design, but they weren’t created to lead the market from a performance perspective — Polaroid is playing up the cost angle here, and we don’t blame them. Based on our quick test of the XS7, image quality was passable, but you’re not going to want to use it for close-up shots as we did here. Even with the underwater housing removed, frames were either under or overexposed, generally unsharp and audio wasn’t terribly clear. It’s worth noting that we played with a pre-production sample, that’ll run you just shy of $70 when it does hit stores. That said, if quality is key and you don’t mind dropping a few hundred bucks, you’ll probably be happier with a more established model. Because we’re at a photo show and Polaroid was generous enough to let us take the XS7 for a spin, we figured there’s no better way to demonstrate this camera’s capabilities by using it to film our hands-on — you’ll find that video tour just past the break.
Filed under: Cameras
Polaroid XS7, XS20 and XS100 Sports Cameras run $69 and up, we snap away at Photokina (sample video) originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 18 Sep 2012 12:46:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
Permalink | | Email this | Comments
This is site is run by Sascha Endlicher, M.A., during ungodly late night hours. Wanna know more about him? Connect via Social Media by jumping to about.me/sascha.endlicher.
