Helmet Cams
- Thread starter mosquito
- Start date
Cincinnatus
Not-quite retired Army
Contour for both my bicycle and my motorcycle. :thumbup
dravnx
Well-known member
I just picked up a Sena Prism Tube Wifi. I used to run a Contour Roam II. I like the Sena because it will loop record. Both have similar battery life of about 2 hours. The Sena also is a bit smaller. I didn't look into the Roam III because a friend gave me a gift certificate for the Sena that he had won in a raffle so my out of pocket was very low.
davidmc
Moto Traveler
I have an original Sena Tube and it works well, but it’s very simple and lacks features. I’m sure the Sena WiFi is improved and the price is good. The helmet clamp mount is innovative but can come loose with use.
I’m looking to upgrade now and I’m probably going to go the GoPro route. My Sena has decent picture quality, but it won’t pick up license plates all the time.....I think this is critical if using for insurance/liability purposes. The newer GoPros supposedly have good image stabilization too. But they aren’t cheap.
Another consideration is mounting, where you mount it may have an effect on what shape/type camera you buy.
Looking forward to comments by others.....
I’m looking to upgrade now and I’m probably going to go the GoPro route. My Sena has decent picture quality, but it won’t pick up license plates all the time.....I think this is critical if using for insurance/liability purposes. The newer GoPros supposedly have good image stabilization too. But they aren’t cheap.
Another consideration is mounting, where you mount it may have an effect on what shape/type camera you buy.
Looking forward to comments by others.....
mosquito
Above all I like to play.
In case anyone is interested, other recommendations are showing up in the Vehicular Assault thread.
--
ETA: Some of the info there in a linked video, as collected by bicyclists:
1:12:40 Old version of the Fly6 camera: the new 1080p version is better
13:30 YI Action Cameras: several 4K models, cheap, $70+, looping, fussier to use, 90 min battery capacity
--
1:27:20 New Fly6 Camera: easy attachment, charging, rain when improperly closed is a problem, $180
The Fly12 Camera: bigger, $280, battery lasts longer than with the Fly6, better rain protection
The cyclist's group did a bulk order with 30% off. A couple of discounts were mentioned.
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1:38:18
Contour Camera & Helmet Cams in general
-The Countour seems to be good in the rain, uses an SD card
-Helmet cams are more visible and seems to make others be more respectful
-1080 resolution minimum for easy license plate reading
-Helmet cams make it easier to record a legible license plate
1:49:45 fly6 bad at night... most are bad at night
1:54:45 Sony action cam, nice mounting options
--
ETA: Some of the info there in a linked video, as collected by bicyclists:
1:12:40 Old version of the Fly6 camera: the new 1080p version is better
13:30 YI Action Cameras: several 4K models, cheap, $70+, looping, fussier to use, 90 min battery capacity
--
1:27:20 New Fly6 Camera: easy attachment, charging, rain when improperly closed is a problem, $180
The Fly12 Camera: bigger, $280, battery lasts longer than with the Fly6, better rain protection
The cyclist's group did a bulk order with 30% off. A couple of discounts were mentioned.
--
1:38:18
Contour Camera & Helmet Cams in general
-The Countour seems to be good in the rain, uses an SD card
-Helmet cams are more visible and seems to make others be more respectful
-1080 resolution minimum for easy license plate reading
-Helmet cams make it easier to record a legible license plate
1:49:45 fly6 bad at night... most are bad at night
1:54:45 Sony action cam, nice mounting options
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Surj
Uneasy Rider
The 6 is a taillight and rear-facing camera, the 12 is a headlight and front-facing camera. I have not used either, but I've been watching Cycliq's tech develop and happened to write about their impressive features today.
"135-degree wide angle video at 60 FPS or 30 FPS, 6-axis electronic image stabilization, “black box” incident protection, bike alarm, ANT+ and Bluetooth, Strava integration, USB-C fast charging, and of course water resistance and looping video.
"If a Cycliq device’s accelerometer “detects the rider has been involved in an incident” the black box incident protection “automatically locks and preserves the footage.” According to Cycliq, this kicks in when the device is tilted more than 60 degrees from the vertical for more than five seconds—the unit locks the current and immediately preceding video segment and shuts down the device after 30 minutes to ensure the footage isn’t overwritten by looping."
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mosquito
Above all I like to play.
2strokeYardSale
Moab on my mind
As a long time Contour ROAM user, one of its weak points is recording at night. Of course you'll get headlights and tail lights but, for example, jaywalking pedestrians will be harder to see. My ROAM finally broke after 6 or 7 years.
My Drift 720 is much better at night, though I've never used it on the bike, only as a car dash cam. It can be mounted on a helmet. It's not as convenient as the Contour, but if it's just for commuting without repeated on/off stop/record, it would be fine.
I'm going to get a Sony X3000 for its image stabilization. It supposedly has decent night capability.
My Drift 720 is much better at night, though I've never used it on the bike, only as a car dash cam. It can be mounted on a helmet. It's not as convenient as the Contour, but if it's just for commuting without repeated on/off stop/record, it would be fine.
I'm going to get a Sony X3000 for its image stabilization. It supposedly has decent night capability.
2strokeYardSale
Moab on my mind
I got the Sony today. It's very small, smaller than the Contour. It's got a small LCD screen with some non-intuitive icons that aren't explained in the documentation. But I paired it with the Android app that has easy text menus.
Some things definitely require help from the internet. Like why the best setting for recording movies is only 1080p 60fps. (Because that's for MP4 output; the other format allows 2160 30fps.) Or the difference between the three stabilization settings.
I never did see a "low light" setting but there are color and lighting balance settings.
It gets warm just navigating the menus, not actually recording, and the docs say 104F max ambient.
Some things definitely require help from the internet. Like why the best setting for recording movies is only 1080p 60fps. (Because that's for MP4 output; the other format allows 2160 30fps.) Or the difference between the three stabilization settings.
I never did see a "low light" setting but there are color and lighting balance settings.
It gets warm just navigating the menus, not actually recording, and the docs say 104F max ambient.
2strokeYardSale
Moab on my mind
I used the Sony the other day, on a custom jaw mount and under the visor peak. Also on a tripod. The former were upside-down mounts and the cam has an option to vertically flip the recordings. But I had to switch that option for my tripod shots, and switch back for the helmet mounts.
With the medium stabilization setting, it still gives a sense of riding the bumps, without being vibrating or jarring like an unstabilized cam. And the medium field of view setting was just about right.
At 1080p60 things looked good on my computer. But after rendering and uploading to YouTube, only the tripod clips and very slow helmet clips looked good. YT's avc1 codec made all the nearby terrain look like crap at higher speeds. This might not be a problem on a street bike, where you aren't going by bushes and trees.
The most surprising thing about the camera was the sound. I didn't turn on the wind noise setting or use an external mic; I just put some foam over the built-in mic. I had no wind noise at dirt bike speeds and it made great recordings of engine/intake/exhaust sounds.
The one-touch record feature works OK. With the power off, you press Record and it does so until you press it again to stop record, then it powers down after a minute (or your custom time setting). The problem for me is, even with the volume setting at max, the "starting recording" and "ending recording" sounds are not audible under power. They are barely audible with the engine running. Also, the small button with a light spring does not offer much tactile feedback when wearing gloves. A small red recording light is on the back of the cam but it's not visible with any helmet mount that puts the cam out of your vision. My kingdom for a Contour style slide switch!
With the medium stabilization setting, it still gives a sense of riding the bumps, without being vibrating or jarring like an unstabilized cam. And the medium field of view setting was just about right.
At 1080p60 things looked good on my computer. But after rendering and uploading to YouTube, only the tripod clips and very slow helmet clips looked good. YT's avc1 codec made all the nearby terrain look like crap at higher speeds. This might not be a problem on a street bike, where you aren't going by bushes and trees.
The most surprising thing about the camera was the sound. I didn't turn on the wind noise setting or use an external mic; I just put some foam over the built-in mic. I had no wind noise at dirt bike speeds and it made great recordings of engine/intake/exhaust sounds.
The one-touch record feature works OK. With the power off, you press Record and it does so until you press it again to stop record, then it powers down after a minute (or your custom time setting). The problem for me is, even with the volume setting at max, the "starting recording" and "ending recording" sounds are not audible under power. They are barely audible with the engine running. Also, the small button with a light spring does not offer much tactile feedback when wearing gloves. A small red recording light is on the back of the cam but it's not visible with any helmet mount that puts the cam out of your vision. My kingdom for a Contour style slide switch!
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ctwo
Merely Rhetorical
How does video compare with your old Rome? I have a Rome and was thinking of a Sena Prism Tube too. I don't really need it since the Rome still works, but can't read most plates and night recording is not good.