When Did You Buy Your Helmet Cam?

[Adasta]

I was undertaken (again) today while on the CS7 - I was just past Vauxhall heading south. It was such a needless manoeuvre. In fact, I was ahead of the guy by the time we stopped at the next set of traffic lights. This sort of lazy, careless driving really bothers me. However, I'm far too skint to buy a helmet cam. If I did, I'd buy an HD one - probably the Contour - because they seem to give a very clear image.

Anyway, I was curious to know when you finally got round to buying a helmet cam?

 

[Rob3rt]

Following the second time I got knocked off within the space of about 3 months.

The fact that the driver wasnt insured and became aggressive in his body language as he came toward me when I took a photo of his registration prompted me to buy one.

 

[HLaB]

I didn't but I have one; a Christmas present. I'd commuting about 5 or 6 years before I got it. Its a brute (ATC5K) so I don't actually wear on the Helmet and don't use it all the time.

 

[magnatom]

I got my first helmet camera way back, in Jan 2007. I started riding in July 2005, so I cycled 1 and a half years before I got one. I did use a mobile phone for a few rides around June 2006, so I'd been wanting one for at least 6 months before I bought it.

It really is a shame that the old C+ forum pages weren't archived, as I would have loved to look back at my posts from then to see how my thoughts have about cycling and helmet cameras etc have evolved since then. I do know that when I started there were only a couple of others doing it. Ah those frontier days...

 

[gaz]

I got mine in dec 2009. I got it after I was hit by a car and it was a nightmare trying to sort it out.

 

[BenM]

I got mine last year after 18 years of commuting. Why? I bought the Orca on C2W and fancied a record of my mishaps when learning to ride it. That reminds me - it is light enough now for the Muvi to get decent pictures on the commute so I better dig it out and charge it up again...

B.

 

[MrHappyCyclist]

I got mine in October last year on Amazon. It is a cheap one from Chilli Technologies (Actioncam), only 640x480 and 25fps, but it works well in good light, and is acceptable in fairly low light. I bought it when the price dipped to £35, but it's up at about £55 now.

It hasn't been without problems, though. I do sometimes get home to find that the files on the micro SD card are corrupt or it has just failed to record anything. This may be a problem with the card rather than the camera, so I have just ordered a new, good quality card. I'll see what happens.

 

[Moodyman]

I've never ridden with one and have no intention of doing so.

I'm sure they're useful, but there's plenty of things on a typical commuter bike to worry about without adding another item.

Besides, I don't think the camera will prevent the unnecessary maneuevre you refer to. Though it will be very handy as evidence if you were ever hit.

 

[HLaB]

I got mine in October last year on Amazon. It is a cheap one from Chilli Technologies (Actioncam), only 640x480 and 25fps, but it works well in good light, and is acceptable in fairly low light. I bought it when the price dipped to £35, but it's up at about £55 now.

It hasn't been without problems, though. I do sometimes get home to find that the files on the micro SD card are corrupt or it has just failed to record anything. This may be a problem with the card rather than the camera, so I have just ordered a new, good quality card. I'll see what happens.

Bizarrely, I found a few corrupt files can be recovered by converting them from avi to wmf you could try that.

 

[ohnovino]

One week ago. I bought it after having random abuse shouted at me from a minibus full of scumbags. In fact, I've had far more trouble like that (assaults or abuse) than genuine near-misses over the three years (ish) I've been cycling.

As it happens, today I've sent my camera back to 7DayShop for a refund because it won't charge up. I'm still yet to decide whether I'll get another one, because I think I'm better off just ignoring the idiots and rising above it.

One other thing: I did find in the short time I had my camera I was spending far too much time thinking about it while riding. That might be because it was mounted on the handlebars rather than out of sight on my helmet, and also because the novelty factor hadn't worn off yet - still, it was a distraction I'm probably better off without.

 

[Origamist]

I started filming rides in 2006 after watching a Lucas Brunelle vid - these were mostly off-road and I was using the movie function of a digital camera. The quality was poor and the vids were dull.

I bought a dedicated cycle-cam for commuting in June 2010 after years of dithering. The quality is now good, but thankfully the vids remain dull.

 

[DamoDoublemint]

I've been using a camera for the last few weeks. I've been commuting by bike for nearly 2 years, thought about getting a camera for a while, my mind was made up when I was hit be a taxi a few months ago, and the police didn't do anything.

Decided to go for the Contour HD, as the picture is really clear, and it can pick up number plates (in daytime anyway).

 

[fimm]

Magnatom, why did you decide to use a helmet cam, when it wasn't a thing that many people did then?
(Don't have a cam myself, so can't answer the OP's question.)

 

[Bman]

I decided to get one about a year ago. I was constantly trying explaining the issues I came across to my partner or friends. A picture paints a thousand words and all that.

I probably wouldnt have bought one either. My MUVI was a present. It still works fine and picks up number plates perfectly well in daylight.

 

[downfader]

I had been riding for what must have been about 16 odd years before I got into the cameras. First one I used was about spring 2008 iirc. Just a Nikon LS10 with a manfrotto superclamp and head mounted on the stem. About a week or two earlier I had been clipped by a van driver's wing mirror on the dual carriageway in Bitterne (Bitterne road, oddly enough).. I was doing about 35mph but he decided he HAD to get past and on a corner.

Workmates wouldnt beleive me about what I would tell them. Its only in the past few years that things seem to have deteriorated down here, and for some reason everything seemed to start being blamed on the cyclist.

Next cam was an atc3k by Oregon Scientific. Good camera build, naff sound and naff picture, but when I was hit in 2008 it became rather handy in proving the driver had pulled out, and showed the following events (including me screaming at the guy to stop pulling at my legs).

Finally settled on a HQ2 and HQR2 package from Dogcam Sports in about 2009. Works very nicely in the dark. Got an MD80 (Muvi clone) late last year and used that too for a bit. Battery is naff on those though imo. I've now got two new cams on the way that the BBC have been using for the sports, not sure how or when I'll use them, most probably will upload the videos for stopSMIDSY as I've always been naff at remembering plates and company details.