Best pov cam? - Snowboarding Forum

henry06x · 08-14-2012, 05:49 PM

I was just wondering what people thought the best cam was. What takes the best video in bad lighting, night riding and such. I have herd so much about the GoPro and Contour and they seem to be the most popular. The videos I see with both are great quality, but I don't see much night riding with them and that's when my friends and I have our best moments for recording.

I have an older Contour HD 720p and I like it for the most part but it isn't very reliable. Sometimes when you turn it to record it doesn't actually record. This had caused me to miss a boat load of good footage. It's also terrible at night even with the lights on the run you can barely see what's going on. I was thinking about getting the new Contour ROAM because I already have most the mounts for mine and I hear its more reliable. Plus it's waterproof and you don't need to use the housing as much (unless you need it to float).
Any thoughts?

Nivek · 08-14-2012, 07:15 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by henry06x

I was just wondering what people thought the best cam was. What takes the best video in bad lighting, night riding and such. I have herd so much about the GoPro and Contour and they seem to be the most popular. The videos I see with both are great quality, but I don't see much night riding with them and that's when my friends and I have our best moments for recording.

I have an older Contour HD 720p and I like it for the most part but it isn't very reliable. Sometimes when you turn it to record it doesn't actually record. This had caused me to miss a boat load of good footage. It's also terrible at night even with the lights on the run you can barely see what's going on. I was thinking about getting the new Contour ROAM because I already have most the mounts for mine and I hear its more reliable. Plus it's waterproof and you don't need to use the housing as much (unless you need it to float).
Any thoughts?

I've never had an issue with my Contour HD. So I highly recommend the ROAM with all the connectivity and whatnot. Signal actually uses those a fair amount for ETT.

backstop13 · 08-14-2012, 08:44 PM

inb4porncomments

hktrdr · 08-14-2012, 09:31 PM

You will soon get comments from the Go Pro faction, the anti-Go Pro faction, the Contour faction, the anti-Contour faction...and nothing that will get posted will be anything new/anything that has not been posted before.

Use the search function and Google and you will find lots of reviews, discussions, ravings, rantings, etc. Plenty of information out there about the advantages and disadvantages ofv he various cameras to help you decide what is the 'best' camera for you.

To address your one specific question: Go Pro Hero 2 has by far the best video quality, particularly in low light conditions.

DrnknZag · 08-16-2012, 11:33 AM

Shawn White is sponsored by GoPro, brah! How can you go wrong???

But seriously, search is your friend.

mjd · 08-16-2012, 12:54 PM

I have both. I use the Contour for snowboarding. It doesn't look as douchey as the GoPro and less chance of it getting clotheslined off in the trees. I've used it a lot for the last two years and never had any problems with it and the thing seems bullet proof.

I use the Hero 2 for surfing and flat water SUP. It takes better quality video as far as color and clarity is concerned. The water proof mount for the Contour only attaches sideways which is whack. All the edits get letterboxed vertically. That's just wrong. The Ram mount for the GoPro is awesome and you can set at any angle. Plus the Hero 2 has wide angle options, various resolutions, high-speed options, still frame shooting and sequence bursts- love that.

The newer Contours definitely have to be a few steps up from mine though. Both cameras need some kind on board zoom. Everything looks small as shit from any distance.

Theres also a new company out called Ion. It's supposed to be wifi-ready out of the box.

Extremo · 08-16-2012, 05:41 PM

I run the Contour. Picture quality out of the box is just a little less bright and clear than the GoPro. But any mid grade or higher editing program makes the picture quality equal.

And like MJD said, both are only good for super close up filming. Anything farther than a few feet away is too small. With no zoom, you capture way to much surrounding frame field. It takes awhile to get used to filming that close...at first you'll feel like you're up in peoples space, but you'll adjust.

henry06x · 08-16-2012, 06:04 PM

What's a fairly decent inexpensive editing program?

glm · 08-16-2012, 06:48 PM

One you download
But seriously check out the Cyberlink Powerdirector, it's a great program

03SVTCobra · 08-16-2012, 07:22 PM

I had the original Contour and it was a good camera but the Hero2 takes much better video. I do agree that it is goofy looking but comparing footage it seems to look the best. The mounts for the contour seem to be shit. I broke several and my buddy broke one every time he used his contour gps. The hero2 feels a bit heavy on your helmet at first but you get used to it. I still think the footage on the hero2 is much better than even the new contour cameras.

Battery life. On my contour two batteries would basically last a full day of recording. I would swap batteries at lunch time. On the Hero2 I barely get a full day of recording at 720x60fps out of two batteries.

Cant really go wrong with any of them they all work well.

08-14-2012, 05:49 PM	#1 (permalink)
henry06x Senior Member Join Date: Feb 2011 Location: Ohio Posts: 348	Best pov cam? I was just wondering what people thought the best cam was. What takes the best video in bad lighting, night riding and such. I have herd so much about the GoPro and Contour and they seem to be the most popular. The videos I see with both are great quality, but I don't see much night riding with them and that's when my friends and I have our best moments for recording. I have an older Contour HD 720p and I like it for the most part but it isn't very reliable. Sometimes when you turn it to record it doesn't actually record. This had caused me to miss a boat load of good footage. It's also terrible at night even with the lights on the run you can barely see what's going on. I was thinking about getting the new Contour ROAM because I already have most the mounts for mine and I hear its more reliable. Plus it's waterproof and you don't need to use the housing as much (unless you need it to float). Any thoughts? __________________ 2011 Academy Propaganda Rev - 2012 Rome 390 Boss 2012 Never Summer SL 2012 - Ride Capo

08-16-2012, 12:54 PM	#6 (permalink)
mjd Senior Member Join Date: Mar 2009 Location: neverbored RI Posts: 374	I have both. I use the Contour for snowboarding. It doesn't look as douchey as the GoPro and less chance of it getting clotheslined off in the trees. I've used it a lot for the last two years and never had any problems with it and the thing seems bullet proof. I use the Hero 2 for surfing and flat water SUP. It takes better quality video as far as color and clarity is concerned. The water proof mount for the Contour only attaches sideways which is whack. All the edits get letterboxed vertically. That's just wrong. The Ram mount for the GoPro is awesome and you can set at any angle. Plus the Hero 2 has wide angle options, various resolutions, high-speed options, still frame shooting and sequence bursts- love that. The newer Contours definitely have to be a few steps up from mine though. Both cameras need some kind on board zoom. Everything looks small as shit from any distance. Theres also a new company out called Ion. It's supposed to be wifi-ready out of the box. __________________ Try this trick and spin it, yeah Your head will collapse

08-16-2012, 06:04 PM	#8 (permalink)
henry06x Senior Member Join Date: Feb 2011 Location: Ohio Posts: 348	What's a fairly decent inexpensive editing program? __________________ 2011 Academy Propaganda Rev - 2012 Rome 390 Boss 2012 Never Summer SL 2012 - Ride Capo

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08-14-2012, 08:44 PM	#3 (permalink)
backstop13 -LIFETIME MEMBER- Join Date: Jun 2012 Location: East Tennessee Posts: 485	inb4porncomments

08-14-2012, 09:31 PM	#4 (permalink)
hktrdr Veteran Member Join Date: Apr 2012 Posts: 1,150	You will soon get comments from the Go Pro faction, the anti-Go Pro faction, the Contour faction, the anti-Contour faction...and nothing that will get posted will be anything new/anything that has not been posted before. Use the search function and Google and you will find lots of reviews, discussions, ravings, rantings, etc. Plenty of information out there about the advantages and disadvantages ofv he various cameras to help you decide what is the 'best' camera for you. To address your one specific question: Go Pro Hero 2 has by far the best video quality, particularly in low light conditions.

08-16-2012, 11:33 AM	#5 (permalink)
DrnknZag Veteran Member Join Date: Feb 2010 Location: PNW Posts: 919	Shawn White is sponsored by GoPro, brah! How can you go wrong??? But seriously, search is your friend.

08-16-2012, 05:41 PM	#7 (permalink)
Extremo -LIFETIME MEMBER- Join Date: Nov 2008 Location: NH Posts: 3,112	I run the Contour. Picture quality out of the box is just a little less bright and clear than the GoPro. But any mid grade or higher editing program makes the picture quality equal. And like MJD said, both are only good for super close up filming. Anything farther than a few feet away is too small. With no zoom, you capture way to much surrounding frame field. It takes awhile to get used to filming that close...at first you'll feel like you're up in peoples space, but you'll adjust.

08-16-2012, 06:48 PM	#9 (permalink)
glm Senior Member Join Date: Aug 2011 Location: Ontario, Canada Posts: 127	One you download But seriously check out the Cyberlink Powerdirector, it's a great program

08-16-2012, 07:22 PM	#10 (permalink)
03SVTCobra Senior Member Join Date: Mar 2012 Posts: 121	I had the original Contour and it was a good camera but the Hero2 takes much better video. I do agree that it is goofy looking but comparing footage it seems to look the best. The mounts for the contour seem to be shit. I broke several and my buddy broke one every time he used his contour gps. The hero2 feels a bit heavy on your helmet at first but you get used to it. I still think the footage on the hero2 is much better than even the new contour cameras. Battery life. On my contour two batteries would basically last a full day of recording. I would swap batteries at lunch time. On the Hero2 I barely get a full day of recording at 720x60fps out of two batteries. Cant really go wrong with any of them they all work well.