Well after my earlier post where I bought a cheap action camera, it quickly became apparent that you gets what you pays for. I could live with the video quality, I wasn't expecting 4K broadcast quality. I could live with the audio, which was slightly echo-ey but just about acceptable given it would be used on the motorbike and therefore only pick up wind noise anyway. However, the date/time being constantly recorded over the video just gave the air of security camera footage, or even worse, something from Police Camera Action....
So my NoPro has been kicked into touch. I'm keeping hold of it, but it will be used in situations where destruction is entirely likely, such as being mounted to the top of my HPI Savage. For the uninformed, that's a 1/8 scale radio control monster truck that I've GPS clocked at 58mph so far, and is prone to wheelies or backflips at any speed. We'll see if it can cope with that.
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| The NoPro. It's a bit shit. |
Not wanting to give up the opportunity of getting some footage on Vietnam's epic mountain roads, I then started looking wantingly at GoPro's. Now although the video quality is always somewhere between good to excellent with a GoPro, I have to admit that I'm not really a fan of the type of footage people put on youtube. A 5 minute first-person POV video is enough to make me feel nautious. That said, if you mix in GoPro footage with shots from a regular digital camera from a static position, the results can be very good indeed. I then noticed they brought out a base model, the GoPro Hero, at a wife-friendly price. Well it would be rude not to, wouldn't it??
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| The new GoPro Hero |
So I picked one of these bad boys up and have been playing around with it, and I have to say it does the job nicely. Unlike other previous GoPro's this one is moulded into the case. That's good and bad. The battery isn't removable but by the time the battery on this is past it's sell-by date you'll probably be able to buy a model much better for half the price anyway. The fact it can't be removed from the case won't make much of a difference to most people, but it does mean you really need to look after that lens cover. If it gets scratched up I'm not sure if you could polish it out or get it replaced. Maybe an adhesive screen protector would be a good addition.
A quick test with a 2GB micro SD card shows that it can fit around 4 hours HD footage on a 32GB card. I picked up two 32GB Samsung Micro SD's for about 11 quid each. I also got a bundle of mounts to let me mount it on the bars, windscreen of the car, helmet or wherever for 20 quid on Amazon.
It's limited in the resolution department but not in a bad way. It supports 1080p at 30fps, 720p at 60fps and 720p-Super at 60fps (this is a new mode GoPro have introduced that seems to have a more condensed aspect vertically but a wider angle as a result). The file size usage is identical in any mode so I've settled on 720p/60fps since the higher frame rate should work better on a motorcycle onboard shot.
So, with this all set to go now I'm looking forward to getting footage as we ride the Ma Pi Leng pass in particular. The pass is at altitude and is known for often being above cloud cover or in the clouds. Should be epic!
Roll on Friday 20th Feb, only 8 days to go now!!
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