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devilsadvocate
2nd January 2014, 09:17
Hello

I struggled on where to post this so figured this was the best place!

I am looking to get an Action Camera to use when Mountain biking mainly but also to stick in the car at times.

The prices seem to vary and the quality seems to move in accordance with the price which is to be expected.

The GoPro ones seem to be the market leader but at £330 on Amazon for the Hero3+ black edition, it seems fairly expensive :geek:

I have been looking at the Contour Roam2 and the Sony Action Cam as these are half the price but is it worth paying the extra??

The Contour looks lighter and seems to mount better being circular so could be better for mountain biking with a helmet or on the bars?? I don't really want to spend upwards of £300 but will if the GoPro is worth getting over the others.

Any personal experience?

Cheers

unclewinnet
2nd January 2014, 09:57
Have a look at aee cameras its similar to the he gopro I have one its hd you get a lot more for your money they come with a waterproof remote and a screen which are both extra on thd gopro you can pick them up from £130 I use mine on my jetski and the quality is as good as the gopro as my mates have the gopro


Jobn

matt_vtr_15a
2nd January 2014, 10:09
I was in your same situation and made a compromise, I went for the GoPro Hero Silver.

Theres a good app on android and iphone for the hero 3's allows you to mount your GoPro and wirelessly start/stop the recording etc. to save you getting out od the car everytime you need to.. (no need for wireless remote which is £60-80 it also allows you to easily change the settings of the gopro instead of going thru the GoPro menu.

You can pick them up for around £220ish from from argos, the whitebis cheaper but the Silver is worth the little extra imo. Grab a suction cup mount and you already have A LOT of mounting options.

I also grabbed some safety wire type stuff which I attach to anchor point in my car so I don't lose it if it fails at high speed.

LVC
2nd January 2014, 11:38
Yes I was pretty sure that GoPro was the only choice until someone mentioned the SJ1000 to me - under £60 I was convinced that it would be crap .......

definitely not the case ..... 1080P real HD, superb light/dark reaction, on a back to back comparison in some conditions the colours in the GoPro are purer but for the price difference I am extremely pleased and even GoPro owners are impressed.

Waterproof with virtually all of the fixings included (not the case with the GoPro) and a decent fish-eye quality lens.

I use mine on my jetskis, quads, bikes and cars and every time the result is great.

It's not a pro camera so don't expect BBC quality images but for what most of us use the action cameras for it's still the best buy - check out youtube and you'll find plenty of comparisons - bought mine off ebay from a chap in the UK (quicker delivery than China) and a spare battery and charger from a bloke in Jersey.

I didn't see the point of spending over £200 when I get the same results (as far as my usage goes) for under £60.

devilsadvocate
2nd January 2014, 13:17
Thanks for the replies so far, has given me a lot to think about!

josh11490
2nd January 2014, 13:21
I've also been looking into getting a Gopro over next few months, from what I can see the Gopro is the best for a reason, but I've no experience using any, I'm a firm believer of you pay for what you get.

DaveybVTS
2nd January 2014, 13:23
Have you seen the polaroid action cam? They look really good and arent to expensive either. Get some great reviews on the internet

devilsadvocate
2nd January 2014, 15:46
Have you seen the polaroid action cam? They look really good and arent to expensive either. Get some great reviews on the internet


Good shout on this, they look pretty good and £120 seems a good price as you get a bike mount with it!

Hmmmm