dashcam, action cam, tech reviews and videos
All of these cameras are so close and the differences in how they process video are so minimal, that what you should look for while watching is which camera processes exposure more appealingly to you, which camera has the most appealing audio to you and which cameras user interface will work best for you. No matter which you buy you’ll end up with a camera that has decent video quality.
I’ve been using this as my go to controller for playing games on my PC. The controls are responsive and the overall design is comfortable. However the clear plastic is quite slippery and can be hard to hold in tense situations.
The Hamswan F68 is the perfect example of “fake specification”. This camera is capable of a maximum 1080p @ 30FPS. It uses frame doubling to achieve 1080p @ 60FPS. There is not enough resolution on the sensor for 2.3K nor 4K. Due to the high price and poor video quality, we recommend avoiding this camera.
The SPCA 6350 / OV4689 Processor and sensor combo does a decent job faking 4K. Some Youtubers even claim (incorrectly) that it’s better than GoPro 4K! You might not be able to tell the difference on a smaller screen…
English menus are now available on the Xiaomi Mijia 4K action camera, but there are no clear instructions on how to update. Since I don’t speak Chinese it was difficult to navigate the menus and find the right options, so I have written it out in a (hopefully) concise list.
This is one of the first cameras that combine the Ambarella A12 with an 8MP Sony IMX317 Sensor, so it has the possibility of standing out among competing real 4K cams for video quality. It’s got solid 4K video so far. It just needs some refining here and there (and a waterproof case).
Sure, the color and exposure is a bit off, the framerate of the 4K is too low (not real 4K) and the 1080p 60 looks like it’s been scaled up from 720p… But funny thing, from my preliminary tests this camera does better sharpness wise than many other cams I’ve tested that are also based on the Allwinner V3 / IMX179 (that are often 3x the price!). I can forgive a $25 cam for these issues but when resellers are selling these things for $75 – $150… Heck no! If you buy one, buy it at this price instead.
Initial impressions of this camera are very positive, and this camera is fast becoming one of my favorite real 4K cameras I’ve tested to date. The reason I prefer it over competitors such as the SJ7 Star or the ThiEYE T5e, is because it loudly beeps when buttons are pressed, compared to the other cameras, which only have soft beeping that is difficult to hear in the waterproof case.
I don’t expect a $30 cam to match a $100 camera for quality, but if they advertise 4K they should AT LEAST get something close, not … this … mess …
While this camera may not have the best video quality of all the cams I’ve tested recently, it certainly has some of the best hardware, with a metal front plate and handsome orange accents. The camera feels well built in comparison to other cheap action cameras. Since this cam is based on the OV4689 4MP image sensor, it is not capable of real 4K.