go pro

This is what I'm looking at on ebay. Sorry don't know how to use emotican 'link' thing.

I know it's up to personal choice on how much to bid and I know they cost a fortune, but what do you peoples on here think I should bid up to or if there's a better one (different make) I should look at.
Do you think this one is good or shall I leave it. Hmmmmmmmm.......

thanks

Depends on what you want to use the camera for. There are a lot of people who don't like watching lots of footage of the road, so don't see the point in having a cam. A growing number of two wheelers in London use cam's in case there is an accident, in this case a GoPro wouldn't be the way to go. I guess you want to record your rides and then 'relive' them later.

I would think you would want to buy a second battery for it, they don't last very long (before going flat). Also you'll need to factor in some SD cards - class 10 would do.
HD videos are fairly big so you'll soon be filling up your hard drive, also your computer should be powerful enough to handle HD. Oh and some video editing software.

Didn't answer your question, but just some things you'll soon find out when you get a cam.

I wouldnt waste money on a gopro tbh.

I have an 808 Keycam #16 which is about £28 delivered for the 720p HD version on ebay.
Unlike many cheap cams It actually does record in 30fps @ 720p. Image quality is pretty damn good for the money, only issue with them tends to be battery life as half the batteries seem to be pretty well knackered by the time they arrive! cheap and easy fix though, buy a 2200mah nokia phone battery ( £5 ebay) and solder that in instead. i can now record until my 16gb class 10 card is full without running outta juice!
You can also get them like mine with a fisheye lens, mine is no longer set perfectly as i took it all apart to replace the battery, but its plenty good enough that i wont be worrying about it anytime soon!

couple sample vids (make sure to click to watch them in 720p):

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Yes, a GoPro is better, but to me, it isnt £100's better!

Also depends where u r putting it.
I have a drift 170hd and I put that on top of my helmet and I found it was dragging my head all over the place.
I have now put it on the side of my helmet and it works a treat
GoPro camera is quite big see

The contour Roam2 gets superb reviews too.

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This thread is relevant to my interests...

Been looking at getting meself a camera of this type. How does one go about attaching them to your lid/bike?

Carlos_1977 wrote:Also depends where u r putting it.
I have a drift 170hd and I put that on top of my helmet and I found it was dragging my head all over the place.
I have now put it on the side of my helmet and it works a treat
GoPro camera is quite big see

I've watched the links. The Keycan16 looks superb!!! Don't you get video on its side when on the side of a helmet or can you swivel the lense?

i have a drift hd and it seems good but an external battery pack is a must if u wanna record more than 2hrs. i have a mount for the mirror stem and have one mount on my helmet.

Thanks for adding the link Steve.

SteveCat wrote: A growing number of two wheelers in London use cam's in case there is an accident, in this case a GoPro wouldn't be the way to go. I guess you want to record your rides and then 'relive' them later.

I'm not really bothered about reliving the ride later, but maybe the novelty of having one would mean I would watch it back to see what I could do different and maybe improve my riding a little.

My main reason for getting one is definitely in case there is an accident, as lately there have been a lot of dickheads (sorry about the language) on the road pulling out at very short notice even when I'm the only vehicle coming.
Even coming out of work today, a customer pulled out when I was literally 10ft away from her. customers have to look left (there's a big sign saying so) so I politely asked her to pull over and explained how I almost crapped my pants. She was about 70 so I stayed calm lol.

Thanks for the other comments guys, looked at the links for the keycan16 and I must say it's good quality videoing, shamefully though I've found out my laptop aint powerful enough to run HD lol.

I think I would put it under the headlamp, don't particularly want to stick anything to my helmet lol.
2 hours battery life is fine by me too (for now)

Helmet would give you a better overall view I reckon if its from a general safety point of view, it moves where you look rather than static under the headlight.

Personally I really like the GoPro, but then again I use mine for diving as well as biking and other things to, so for me currently its the best camera for what I need. yes it has its limitations, with batteries but any camera that isnt hard wired is going to have battery issues. just have to realise that when you buy what ever you choose.

let us know what you decide

Dave

GazzyG wrote: How does one go about attaching them to your lid/bike?

I use BlackTak. As the name suggests, its like blutak, only black!  Its a seriously strong version of blutak, have tested it at 150mph ( on private property etc etc ) and it holds firm!

have tested it at 150mph ( on private property etc etc )

Of course it was private property Dean...   

You know me Paul, i dont exceed speed limits on pubic highways!!!!! 

It has a fish eye lens on it which also turn 180 degrees
You are right about the batteries owen I had to by a extra 2 for my Europe trip.
No good with just one

Excellent bit of kit though I would definitely recommend ( Drift 170HD )

I'm on my 3rd camera setup, think I've been using them for about 5 years. Just some of my thought's / observations / requirements - won't be the same for everyone.

I started out with the only bullet cam available at the time. Not sure if it's something I really wanted, I didn't want to spend a lot of money on it. The quality of it irked me, but not as much as having to regularly change the batteries (2hours) and SD card (every hour). The newer low cost ones are far better quality, recording capacity is far greater and probably the best for you to start  - low cost and really a disposable purchase if you don't get on with it or feel you want to upgrade. Gives you a chance to make sure you can play the videos back etc.

The requirement for a CCTV in case of an accident wasn't on my original radar, was more to review my riding and to see what a wally I am. However when I had my off I didn't have the camera with me. Unless the cam is always recording when you on the bike, the same thing could happen.

I specifically wanted a cam which was permanently attached to the bike (be discrete so it wouldn't be yanked off by idiots), would be powered by the bike battery, automatically start/stop  recording when I turn on /off the ignition and I could override (turn it on and off)  from the handlebars if I wanted.

OK, this is was I got, nothing special really as it's my first one until I want something seriously good.
It's waterproof and records HD too. £32 off fleabay

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Played with it already in the house, plugged it up an my laptop is shite lol. Stuck it on the TV an the pictures not too bad, sounds ok and overall impressions so far so good    

Going out for a blast later with it, will try an upload a short vid if I can cut it down to size

l8rs

P.s Thanks for all your advice guys

thunderstu600 wrote:
Played with it already in the house, plugged it up an my laptop is shite lol.

Try viewing the .avi files through MPC: [You must be registered and logged in to see this link.]
It's simple, straightforward and handles almost every format better than WMP.

thunderstu600 wrote:OK, this is was I got, nothing special really as it's my first one until I want something seriously good.

That's the updated version of my first one, plenty good enough to get you started. Couple of sets of rechargeable batteries and you're set.

Wooster wrote:

thunderstu600 wrote:
Played with it already in the house, plugged it up an my laptop is shite lol.

Try viewing the .avi files through MPC: [You must be registered and logged in to see this link.]
It's simple, straightforward and handles almost every format better than WMP.

Thanks Wooster, very quick download with good viewing. Ta  

tried out the cam the other day, viewed the vid and all i could see was the sky lol, readjusted and went back out but it said memory full even though i'd only done about 20 minutes worth of videoing, deleted all the files and went out last night (lovely ride too), used it on way to work and back and it's still recording. setting up niggles I think.

anyways, uploaded to you tube but not sure If Ive gotta save anything or just wait till it's uploaded. God help me when I get older, all the tech is doing me in lol.

I'll upload my initial 5 minutes in candid-cam as the cam saves every 5 minutes instead of running the full course of the journey.

looks good for the money, may have to invest in one myself.