{"id":25,"date":"2008-01-24T12:35:10","date_gmt":"2008-01-24T20:35:10","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.mountainbikebill.com\/blog\/?p=25"},"modified":"2009-12-06T16:51:54","modified_gmt":"2009-12-07T00:51:54","slug":"is-this-a-good-helmet-cam","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.mountainbikebill.com\/blog\/?p=25","title":{"rendered":"Is this a good helmet cam?"},"content":{"rendered":"

I get\u00a0questions regarding helmet cams off and on regarding the various all-in-one and lipstick camera setups. \u00a0To start off with here is my current setup and Video How-To Page<\/a>.\u00a0 The camcorder mounted on the helmet\u00a0method described there is what I use. You can not beat the quality you get from using an actual camcorder versus the tiny optics of a lipstick camera. \u00a0\u00a0For me image quality is extremely important.\u00a0 I want my footage to look good even if I viewing it on a big screen TV.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

The vast majority of people I have talked and emailed with on the subject\u00a0are mostly concerned with sharing the videos online or viewing it on their computer. \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0For these users the lipstick cameras and all-in-one setups can work just fine.\u00a0\u00a0 If you are not going to use the camcorder mounted on a helmet setup here is what I would consider next.<\/p>\n

Lipstick + MiniDV Camcorder<\/strong><\/p>\n

A high quality lipstick camera feeding a miniDV camcorder in <\/strong>your bag via an AV input jack. \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0The recording quality will be the best possible, 720 by 480 DV-AVI (uncompressed). \u00a0You can also use the camcorder for other things such as off the bike stuff or around the house stuff. \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Should you later decide to do the helmet mounted camcorder approach you already have a camcorder.\u00a0 \u00a0I highly recommend that you get a camcorder and that has a LANC connection. \u00a0This will allow you to use wired remote controls so that you can stop and start recording easily without digging in your pack. \u00a0(The wireless remotes that come with camcorders are almost exclusively infrared which means the remote and camcorder must seet each other to work.\u00a0 That won’t happen if it is in your pack)<\/p>\n

Hoytech<\/a> has a nice kit at a\u00a0pretty reasonable price. \u00a0I would get the Professional Helmet Camera Kit.\u00a0 Thier site also has a good list of compatiable camcorders.<\/p>\n

Lipstick + minDVR<\/strong><\/p>\n

The next catergory down I would\u00a0consider is a high quality lipstick camera feeding a mini DVR vice a camcorder.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Most of the all-in-one and minDVR setups involve recording to some type of flash memory card coupled with video compression. \u00a0\u00a0Don’t be fooled if\u00a0they say they record to AVI.\u00a0 It is a compressed form of an AVI.\u00a0 Most of these setups give you a few options for how much compression you use. \u00a0The more compression you select the more time you can record on the memory card but the video quality gets progressively crappier.\u00a0 Remember you can always increase the video compression later, but if you compress right from the start, it is never going to look any better. \u00a0\u00a0I highly recommend that you record with the highest possible quality setting if you use an all-in-one or minDVR\u00a0unit. \u00a0This however will mean you will need to carry an extra memory card or two with you on the trail.\u00a0 Considering the price of memory cards today this should not be a big deal.<\/p>\n

\u00a0\u00a0 There is a nice aspect of the tradeoff of using a miniDVR.\u00a0\u00a0 You can use the minDVR for other things such a portable MP3\/Video Player.\u00a0<\/p>\n

If I was going this route I would buy Helmetcamera.com’s HC1 kit with the 560line lipstick camera<\/a>.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0The resolution of the lipstick camera is better than the DVR’s recording ability, but should you later decide to use a camcorder, you will get the full advantage of the better lipstick camera.\u00a0 While Achros<\/a> has a miniDVR helmetcam system available, I think the setup from helmetcamera.com is a better option as you are not forced to use the Achros lipstick camera which is not a particularly good one.\u00a0\u00a0<\/a><\/p>\n

All-in-One Systems<\/strong><\/p>\n

Before going with an All-In-One system, you also need to assess how much into the video scene you think you are going to get into as the all-in-one units do not “grow” well. \u00a0\u00a0You can not improve the recording capability later.\u00a0 You also can not easily use this setup for other things that are not Point of View shooting, like filming your kids hockey games, birthday parties or whatever. \u00a0\u00a0They are however really easy to use out on the trail.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 I think the best model going in this class is the VIO POV1<\/a> as it has the best recording capability in the class, however it is still not on par with a miniDV Camcorder . \u00a0It is waterproof and it has a remote that can be mounted on your handlebars or on your camelback shoulder strap. \u00a0It however is not anywhere near cheap, but if you go this route you will mostly likely be satisfied for a long time.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

The \u00a0VholdR<\/a> is a nice very convenient and tiny package.\u00a0 It weigh less than five\u00a0ounces. The videos I have seen from them look alright.<\/p>\n

Finally the GoPro Helmet Hero<\/a> has a lot of bang for the buck. \u00a0Okay quality at a great price.\u00a0 \u00a0At less than 200 bucks or so it is an okay way to get into doing video, but you can quickly outgrow it.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Final Words<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n

When deciding on which way you want to go, I think of this along the same lines as someone first getting into mountain biking on real trails and getting their first bike. \u00a0\u00a0If you get a department store bike you will not be happy for long. \u00a0If you go buy a boutique brand bike with all the goodies and end up not really into mountain biking you have wasted a bunch of money. \u00a0\u00a0However if you get a well built bike with a mid-range group of components and you get into mountain biking seriously you will be happy for a long time and you can upgrade to top shelf components later.<\/p>\n

More Stuff Like This<\/h3><\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t \n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t \n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t
<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t <\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t \n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t Spring in AZ08 Pages Up<\/span>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t \n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t \n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t <\/a>\n\n\t\t\t\t\t\t <\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t \n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t \n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t
<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t <\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t \n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t Quick Weekender \u2013 Guacamole<\/span>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t \n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t \n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t <\/a>\n\n\t\t\t\t\t\t <\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t \n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t \n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t
<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t <\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t \n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t Fort Ebey and Kettles Park<\/span>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t \n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t \n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t <\/a>\n\n\t\t\t\t\t\t <\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t \n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t \n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t
<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t <\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t \n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t Help Save \u201cUrban Legend\u201d<\/span>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t \n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t \n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t <\/a>\n\n\t\t\t\t\t\t <\/div>\n<\/div>