Gitup G3 Duo
$79.99
The Good
- Solid build quality
- Decent daytime video details
- Average audio quality
- Pleasant user interface
- Highly customizable
The Bad
- Some issues with exposure and colour balance
The Gitup G3 Duo is a few years old at this point, and now with a lower price (at least in Canada) it represents a fantastic value. If the price is over $80 USD, this camera may be too expensive for the video quality unless you specifically need some of the special features it offers. Those include a secondary camera unit that can be hooked up to the main unit and a GPS module – interesting features for adventure trekkers, motorcyclists and quad/atv riders. The base unit itself, the only component tested in this review, is more like an ordinary action camera. It supports a high level of customization, is easy to use and has decent video quality overall, making it a compelling option when the prices is under $100.
Specifications
- Novatek NT9666X Processor
- Sony IMX117 Sensor
- Touch Screen
- Wi-Fi
- Optional accessories: external mic, secondary (slave) camera, GPS unit
Build Quality
The build quality of this camera is sturdy. Unlike other budget cameras, it has quite a bit of weight to it and that lends to a solid feeling. The texture plastic offers nice grip. On the back is a large and vibrant touch screen that is easy to see during the day. This camera is not waterproof without an external case, which is included in the box, as are a basic set of mounts. There is no secondary battery included which is unfortunate because this camera does not take the standard batteries that many budget cameras take, so the availability may be limited.
The user interface is intuitive and well thought out. Settings are broken down into two separate menus, one for overall settings such as date and time, and the other for function specific settings such as video resolution.
Video Quality – Day
In the day the video quality of this camera is quite good, although not excellent. Firstly, this is not a real 4K camera. It offers the typical Novatek stretched fake 4K, upscaled from 2880×2160 @ 24FPS to fill a normal video frame. It is not particularly useful, so better use the 1440p instead. There is a great level of video detail in almost every resolution offered, with the lens quality of this camera being notably better than many budget cams. Lens flares are smaller and more pleasant and sharpness persists throughout the frame. Gitup has really refined the Novatek platform over the years and it shows in the quality of their firmware.
However, colour balance is still not great. As with most Novatek cameras, this cam by default colour balances too reddish in situations that should be bright green. Also, it tends to blow out the sky in almost a “nuke” type pop of brightness (albeit not as bad as the original IMX078 Novatek cameras). This over exposure also happens in other situations with a lot of shadows as this camera is not great at holding onto highlights and instead pushes them far too vibrant.
Video Quality – Low Light
At night, this camera offers two modes: Low Light On and, surprise, Low Light Off. This changes how the camera handles frame rates. With Low Light turned on, the camera will drop below the 1/30 sec shutter speed required for each individual frame. This results in brighter video but also blurrier video. Turn Low Light off for sharper video at expense of brightness.
There’s a lot of grain and noise. At least if there is some light source brighter than standard street lights, it is possible to tell what is going on around.
Customization
One of the unique features about Gitup cameras is their high level of customization. This can be used to overcome some of the drawbacks noted with colour balance in the Video Quality section of this review, as the camera can be set to a custom white balance. As well, many other properties can be adjusted including contrast and sharpness and two additional vividness levels of video colour saturation.
Still Photos
This camera offers some of the best still photos of any action cam, in terms of detail. The same issues persist with color balance, however, when it comes to actual resolution the higher quality lens really struts its stuff. Side by side with cameras built on similar hardware show off how much better this lens is with text being legible to a smaller size and fine details like leaves being more easily discernible.
Audio Quality
Audio quality from this camera is fine. It’s a little bit fuzzy but at least it is pretty loud and easy enough to understand. There is a somewhat “tinny” aspect to it, compared to some other cameras that have more rich audio with bass and depth. It is acceptable.
Where to Buy
Amazon Canada | Amazon USA | AliExpress
Conclusion
Mainly whether or not this camera is worth it to buy comes down to price. At its current price of CAD$80 (USD $65), on Amazon Canada, it is a fantastic deal and substantially better than any other sub $100 camera offered. However, its average price elsewhere on the web is often double, closer to CAD $160 (USD$120) and for that price other cameras are more compelling choices, such as the Akaso V50X. At the higher price, unless the specific features of a secondary external camera are needed, it may be worthwhile to look elsewhere.