Crazy - 1080p cam + 180' housing for $270?

[Matt S.]

It probably depends on the lighting. In daylight I know the Flip does just find handheld, I used one.

 

[Gombessa]

I've read were the Flip needs to be held very still for the video not to come out blurry. Judging by the base jumping videos, the Hero doesn't need to be held too still for the video to turn out clear. I'm still going to wait to see what the Hero does at depth.

The main factor that affects this is the angle of view. Neither of these cameras have any mechanical image stabilization. But the Hero HD boasts a 170 degree field of view, which is something like a 10mm lens; it covers so much that it should be very easy to handhold. My informal guestimate of the Flip is that it has a 40mm equivalent lens, which isn't telephoto, but certainly isn't wide, something like a 60 degree field of view. As you narrow the field of view, you increase the effect that camera shake has on the camera, and as a result, you do need to use a very steady hand (or get a wide angle converter) for the Flip.

 

[supersand]

I broke down and ordered one. I'm a real sucker for new gadgets. Shipping date says last week in oct. Figured it would be fun to use on my motorcycle as well even if it doesn't work well underwater. I have a pocket cam/ housing that shoots great 720p video but the field of view is 35mm equivalent so you loose out on a lot of the scenery. The wide lens on this camera should be fun.

-Erik

 

[Gombessa]

Bump - any of these things out in the wild yet?

 

[Matt S.]

The site I pre-ordered at now says that they will get to customers in the first week of November.

 

[ae3753]

Looks promising, please keep us posted!

So tempted to Add to Cart.

 

[lucas*]

+1 to the list of people eagerly awaiting reviews of these cameras. if they cope ok with low light then I'm definitely getting one while the aussie $ is still strong

 

[supersand]

It says shipping on the 30th of Oct at the Gopro site.

I ordered the helmet one. I'm thinking of a couple mounting options. Either on the right hand soft goodman handle style using the vented helmet adaptor or the other option, on top of the light on the left hand. Max spread on the light reflector potentially pringles lid (or something along those lines) over the beam to soften the hot spot a little, it would help with the aiming as well.

My biggest concern is that after using my point and shoot with auto white balance instead of the green ocean white balance preset or manually white balancing the camera is that all the video on the gopro will have such a strong green or blue tint (depending on your location) that it won't look that great (a light will probably help though). Its possible to negate some of this by setting the wb during editing but its been my experience that it doesn't look as good and it seems to loose some of the colors dynamic range.

We'll see how it works. Probably more of a toy than high quality video system but it should be fun since its so small.

I'll post some sample video after I get it in the water.

-Erik

 

[EAN]

I'm just tagging along for the update. I had a JVC DV camcorder that recently died. I realize the Hero is HD, but high resolution and good quality are very different. I am interested is knowing how close the video quality is to a DV camcorder.

These things are cheaper than getting an underwater still camera setup from what I've seen.

 

[Gombessa]

I realize the Hero is HD, but high resolution and good quality are very different. I am interested is knowing how close the video quality is to a DV camcorder.

I wouldn't keep my hopes up on that--IMO these cheapo-cams like the Hero and Flip are better compared to P&S digicams with movie modes than DV cams.

But the Flip and some other cheap cams have been tested at Camcorders - Independent Camcorder Reviews, Ratings & Comparisons, and you can see the sample low-light footage as compared to real camcorders. For the price, they're not bad.