Hey guys,

I'm currently shopping for a Go-Pro or similar camera to capture my AutoX runs. This is quickly getting confusing & I would like to get some feedback from the community. Any options to look for? I heard the remote option is obviously pretty handy... but then which version has it?

Any viable (or cheaper) alternatives to the Go-Pro monopoly..?

Any help is greatly appreciated.

 

I have a Hero 3 silver - it's light metering and noise cancellation are pretty darned good, it's rare I take a bad video with it. There's a reason they are the "go to" camera. Wi-Fi app that lets you control it with your phone is neat, but it sucks battery real fast in Wi-Fi mode. 720p/60fps videos look gorgeous, but if YouTube supports it I don't know how to upload them that way. So I normally run 1080p/30fps mode.

Now that the Hero 4 is out, perhaps you can score a 3 on Craigslist or eBay for cheap?

 

Just get the go pro

 

Go Pro is pricey, but good; there are a lot of great knock-offs out there for a fraction of the cost if you're budget-limited. I

FWIW, I use a GoPro Hero3 I won as a door price, but usually just used my cell phone or my old point & shoot on a suction cup mount before that. I have a knock-off, too (SJ1000, I think?) that I love using for scuba diving but never liked much for autocross. I can control my Hero3 from my cell phone, but rarely bother. Usually I'm running a telemetry program on my phone (with GPS, g-force, rpm, and all) so I can't really use it as a remote anyhow.

 

I've had two GoPro, last being a Hero3. Got tired of the short battery times and occasional hangs. I found I never used the fancy GoPro apps and if I did, I found my GoPro would crash. And it would crash when it was exposed to the sun too long and got hot.

I picked up a ReplayXD 1080 mini and have never looked back. It is much smaller, much more rugged, has a superior lens and hence image quality, battery life much better, simple user interface.

Cheers,
DJM

 

I covered my sons hero 3 and Iphone each with a microfiber towel between runs and didn't have a problem short of me not turning it on for each pass. The APP worked great it was the first time that I used it. I used my Iphone before but the video has to much vibration in it.

 

I had an original go pro which kinda sucked, then the first gen HD, which my only complaint was no remote capability. I now have a hero 4 silver, and while the battery life isn't as good as the original hd, the remote capability, the screen, and remote mic features are great.

Make me an offer on the original HD if you want it.

 

I'm using an iPhone 6 and a GoPro 3+. My wife bought the 3+ for a diving trip we did, so I didn't really choose it. Takes great 1080p vid @ 60fps which makes for really smooth playback. I use it with remote wifi triggering from the iPhone. Like everyone says, battery life sucks so I keep a spare handy and swap out after my runs. The vast array of GoPro compatible accessories is nice and you can find them anywhere if you lose or break something. I've been thinking about one of the cheap clones just to add some additional angles and ability to share the mounts etc.

 

If you have one of those battery packs you use for charging your phone, you can top up the go pro battery between runs. Cheaper than having to buy another battery pack

 

I have a gopro 3 silver and it works well enough, it can be a pain in the *** to watch your run during the event though, it locks up sometimes while streaming the vid to the phone. Go pros are better for after event edits IMO, i usually run my phone in a rammount on the windshield so i can review my run immediately after i get done checking tire temps and such. This allows me to watch multiple times, This is the most important feature to me as it helps me learn the course faster.

 

A guy on Sunday had a micro USB, micro SD card reader. He took the card out of his GoPro and popped it in his phone for immediate playback there. Pretty cool if your phone doesn't have a slot for an SD card.

 

I use a GoPro Hero 4 Silver for auto-x and I've found that it is plenty for the time I have it on & recording during the day (battery wise). I have wi-fi on because I use a remote with it to turn it on & off for runs and that is probably helping me conserve battery as well.

Video quality is fantastic IMO when I record in 1080p/30fps. Sound is decent too but it could be better if I'm being honest. Especially when you have the camera in the case but that is to be expected with a waterproof case to be fair.

I looked at a bunch of other cameras on the market before I went for the gopro and honestly there are a ton of great cameras out now so you really do get a nice selection when you go to choose. The reason I opted for the GoPro was for the accessories & I had a GoPro a long time ago that I was happy with when I was racing more often so I went back to it. I don't think you can go wrong with one of the competitors to the GoPro though. Sony & some of the others have great video quality.

Another camera I seriously considered was the SmartyCam HD. That thing looks slick. It wouldn't work for me because I use the camera for more than just racing so it wouldn't meet my other needs. But for racing, that thing looks pretty awesome. Comes at a higher price tag though.

 

Thanks for all the replies. I finally chose the Replay XD 1080 as the price & options were pretty hard to beat.





Received it via Amazon this week, initial impression is good, weatherproof metal casing looks very sturdy & controls are as simple as it gets. Just what I need. I will report back once I use it for the next event!