Camera Recommendations

[J4CKO]

Ignoring the pro's/con's of having a camera, legalities or whatever, how much do I need to spend, what brand do you recommend to get some decent quality footage ? needs to be idiot proof, rain proof and fairly robust and have the capability to hold plenty of footage.

I want it to be fairly hard to spot and not be a huge thing sat on top of my head like an ornamental German 1st world war helmet.

 

[thomas]

Ignoring the pro's/con's of having a camera, legalities or whatever, how much do I need to spend, what brand do you recommend to get some decent quality footage ? needs to be idiot proof, rain proof and fairly robust and have the capability to hold plenty of footage.

I want it to be fairly hard to spot and not be a huge thing sat on top of my head like an ornamental German 1st world war helmet.

To have it rain proof you're probably going to need to look at one of the ATC camera, probably the ATC5000...which I think i sub £200. It is quite big though.

I think Gaz's contour has a rain proof cover, so that might be a good contender too....

Not sure on their battery lifes though, which is generally the most limiting factor on how much you can record.

 

[HLaB]

How waterproof is the Muvi now you've got the sports pack thomas? Size wise it seems to tick better boxes, as you say the 5K is robust but its fairly awkward (size wise). For quality however I'd be tempted to go with the new version (the MD91) as it doesn't compromise too much.

 

[thomas]

How waterproof is the Muvi now you've got the sports pack thomas? Size wise it seems to tick better boxes, as you say the 5K is robust but its fairly awkward (size wise). For quality however I'd be tempted to go with the new version (the MD91) as it doesn't compromise too much.

Not at all. The silicon cover doesn't work when it's in the helmet mount . I think the waterproof cover you can buy is good...but breaks a lot

I have ridden with mine in light rain and a bit of a blizzard (for about 10 minutes) and it was fine....but I wouldn't do that a lot.

I didn't suggest the MUVI as you'll only get about an hour and a halfs footage, which I wasn't sure would count as 'plenty' or not?

 

[mr_cellophane]

The Muvi is not rain proof, although I have used mine in a light shower. The slot for the SD Card is exposed so as soon as water gets in there it will be stuffed. It comes with a silicon cover, but that stops it being used on some of the mounts. There is a waterproof "box" which makes it a lot larger.
ATC's are restricted by card size as to recording time and Muvi's by battery life.

 

[HLaB]

Not at all. The silicon cover doesn't work when it's in the helmet mount . I think the waterproof cover you can buy is good...but breaks a lot

I have ridden with mine in light rain and a bit of a blizzard (for about 10 minutes) and it was fine....but I wouldn't do that a lot.

I didn't suggest the MUVI as you'll only get about an hour and a halfs footage, which I wasn't sure would count as 'plenty' or not?

Cheers; I think I only get 1h40 from the 4gb card in my 5K and you're limited by the batteries too (although I've found with rechargeables its not a problem, the memory card fills first) so its not much better that way. The new Muvi like camera (the MD91) claims it can go for 2.5h on one charge and can take 16gb card (I'm guessing thats up to 8 hours).

 

[gaz]

If you have the money - talking £300
ContourHD - HD camera that records at 30fps or in SD mode records at 60fps.
16GB Card - that will record around 3 and half hours on max quality and max bit rate (settings can be changed to get much more out of that card)
Waterproof case - the contourhd is water resistance, but in heavy rain it will get inside the lens cap and your footage is going to be rubbish after that.
Helmet mount - best place to mount your camera imo.

It ticks all your boxes apart from it not sticking out. It's fairly large compared to the muvi, it's light so you don't feel it in your neck. And with the waterproof case (which is orange) people certainly know yo have something on your helmet. Do they know it's a camera? not from behind, from the front maybe as it has a red record light when recording.

 

[BentMikey]

What's the battery life on your Contour, Gaz?

I'd suggest it's better for the camera to be obvious - it'll change motorist behaviour around you for the better. People tend not to misbehave nearly as badly if they think someone is filming them.

 

[gaz]

Well it lasts the whole of a london sunday ride, so about 3 and a half hours..

 

[hillrep]

For the really cheap and cheerful option search eBay etc for MD80.
I think this is a copy of the MUVI, and is much cheaper (~£15). The video quality is better than the ATK2000 I had and the MD80 is much smaller and lighter. The downsides are that it is not waterproof, and you have to buy a memory card for it.

 

[J4CKO]

I think I might try the cheap Ebay job before committing any more money, cheers for the info, heads off to Ebay whilst how to explain yet another package tot he missus !

 

[mr_cellophane]

I bought my clone on ebay from pirlo for £11.99 didn't have the silicon cover though

They have gone up to £14.50 now. You might even find a genuine one for not much more now. like ebuyer for £23.49

 

[itchyrider]

Just an update on which camera to get so here goes, The HERO GOPRO 5mpx it is brilliant!! Check it out. http://www.goprocamera.com/video_sd.php

 

[thomas]

Cheers; I think I only get 1h40 from the 4gb card in my 5K and you're limited by the batteries too (although I've found with rechargeables its not a problem, the memory card fills first) so its not much better that way. The new Muvi like camera (the MD91) claims it can go for 2.5h on one charge and can take 16gb card (I'm guessing thats up to 8 hours).

The muvi I've got claimed 3 hours battery life I think

I think I might try the cheap Ebay job before committing any more money, cheers for the info, heads off to Ebay whilst how to explain yet another package tot he missus !

Just get it delivered to work

 

[gaz]

They have gone up to £14.50 now. You might even find a genuine one for not much more now. like ebuyer for £23.49

I would not recommend the ebuyer one, despite the good reviews. I bought one last week, got it and found one screw missing form the case, it doesn't actually work when you turn it on AND the lens isn't even centred so it is half covered by some plastic. and various things missing from the box.

Just an update on which camera to get so here goes, The HERO GOPRO 5mpx it is brilliant!! Check it out. http://www.goprocamera.com/video_sd.php

The problem with the GoPro is that it really stands out when on your helmet and it's low light recording is really poor.