So after much debate I ended up picking up one of these little guys at a local retailer in the Bay Area. I'm gonna say that so far I'm completely satisfied with the amount of money I spent on it. Its lightweight, seems pretty durable and is super easy to use. The slider switch is kinda stiff to the ungloved hand, but with a gloved hand the added traction causes it to operate with no hesitation. I use it for motorcycling. The flat surface mount works great so far on my helmet (a slight curvature of the helmet) just have to find the 'sweet spot' to stick it in. typically this will also result in a good forward facing attitude/angle, the camera is seeing what you're seeing.
Video quality is superb, no complaints. It really is as good as they're saying it is, most of the other reviews i've read seem to amplify the negative qualities. the fisheye effect at 135 degree field of view is really not noticeable unless you get right up on something then it'll distort but other than that, its rather pleasant and easy to watch. recording at 1080p you have a 110 degree field of view. I have noticed that when you point the camera directly at the sun it causes a vertical strip to appear... some sorta digital artifact due to being pointed directly at the sun, but other than that there is no lens flare or ghosting. at it only really occurs when you have the sun directly in the frame. pretty normal for the size sensor that's in there.
Audio quality... 5/10. cuz when your standing still or walking its good. picks up your voice, depending on the where it is/and the microphone gain settings. on a motorcycle, anything faster than 10mph is just wind noise. really good wind noise at that, no distortion or any sort of harmonic. so be prepared to invest in a way to dub music over the video if you're really into showing off your adventures.
Software. 5/10. Free software, available from their website. The only real function it provides is being able to setup the camera. Programming the hi/lo switch, mic gain, exposure, metering, sharpness, contrast.. other than that its fairly useless unless you really want to participate in Vholdr's online community. but hey, thats why i have youtube and facebook. so the movies come off the camera really more like accessing a flash drive. The software has rudimentary video editing abilities. in other words, you can cut the beginning and ends off of a video but thats it. just to show the good stuff in the middle. It works good for what it does but thats all it does, you know?
Overall? I love it. Its perfect for what it does, its not complicated, and you can stick it to just about anything. The question remains, do you really need 1080p? as a motorcyclist, i deemed quantity over quality and realized in hindsight that being able to record at 720p/30fps and have 30min/gig was more useful than 15min/gig at 1080p/30fps. but then again, i really like the 720p @ 60fps feature too for those short rides where i know i can fit it all on a 16gb card and have that lush video at 60fps. maybe more appropriate for those snow/ski people doing mad tricks and they can playback in nice liquid slow-mo those awesome jumps yeah? just need to buy video editing software to make it all come together.Get more detail about VholdR ContourHD 1080p Wearable Camcorder.
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