Skateboarders do it, Snowboarders do it, almost all action sports enthusiasts do it or have done it once – they have all filmed themselves or have been filmed in action. Because they allow you to shoot directly, from a first-person view, wearable cameras offer totally new perspectives. The image quality offered by the latest models is nothing short of impressive. And cameras for action enthusiasts aren’t the only spiffed up product currently on the wearable camera market. Because video sharing on the internet has become extremely easy and, more importantly, extremely popular, the communication between video camera devices and the internet has also considerably improved.
Read about the most exciting models on the market right now, some of these have been tested personally by our team:
GoPro’s HD HERO Naked is a high performance wearable 1080p HD video and still photo camera. Professional quality 1080p / 960p / 720p HD resolutions record at 30 and 60 frames per second (60 fps in 720p). Record up to 2.5 hours on a single charge, and up to 9 hours total on a 32GB SD card. But the most interesting part of the GoPro camera is that, thanks to its removable polycarbonate housing, it is waterproof to 180’ / 60m and protected from rocks and other hazards. Check out the video below and watch Geli and Manu wearing it during a bungee jump! Manu went also kitesurfing with it:
The GPSHD Action Cam is a wearable camera from gobandit. It has a 720p (1280×720) resolution at 30 frames per second, and is waterproof up to 1m depth. With its GPS function, it can keep track of the wearer’s speed and position. The gobandit camera makes sharing easy. With its software the videos can easily be styled with different “skins” and then uploaded to the favourite video community. Just to show that the device works as superbly for activities other than action sports, Sonja took the camera horseback riding.
The Contour Full HD is a helmet camera (compatible with all trail mountings) with full HD resolution (1920×1080 pixels). Because footage is recorded on a 16GB MicroSD card, it is possible to record up to 3.5 hours in Full HighDefinition – and with the ease of simply using the slip case on top of the camera. The system works with a rechargeable battery that lasts about 2-3 hours at full power. The camera’s robust housing is dust resistant and splash-proof. The company’s additional launch, the ContourGPS, a GPS enabled version of its HD camera, allows users to track speed and route. For a look at the device in action, watch the video below:
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With its ATC9K Action Cam, Oregon Scientific offers a wearable action camera with colour LED display. The camera is water resistant up to 20 meters. It rotates movies in 1080p Full HD quality and stores up to 5M of photographs. And, as if that wasn’t enough, this multitasking device also measures the force of gravity during acceleration. It features an optional GPS plug-in to determine the location, speed and distance with the help of Google Maps or Google Earth. Minimum battery life is 1.5 hours. Check out it out in the video below:
Liquidimage offers a number of goggles and glasses with integrated HD cameras (video: 1280×720, HD 720p) for a variety of such sports activities as offroad, diving and skiing. In the future, the company also plans to offer camera goggles for motorsports and surfing. In the fall of 2011, Liquidimage will release an enhanced, HD1080p resolution version of its goggles. The battery of the goggle lasts 1.5 hours and can hold a Micro SD/SDHC Card with up to 32 GB. Christian went skiing with one in Lech, Watch the video below to see what he saw on his way down the slope:
Looxcie
Looxcie is a wearable video cam that can instantly share videos with the social network via a smartphone. The ear-fitted camera allows others to participate in the wearer’s moment. Via Bluetooth clips can be instantly shared on Facebook, Twitter and YouTube. With companion apps, videos can be previewed, edited and shared, but it also works as a standalone device. The VGA camera records at 30 frames per second and can record for 1 hour. The battery life is 2 hours. With LooxcieMoments App (mobile sharing quality), the HVGA camera records 15 frames per second at a 800 kbps bitrate and offers 5 continuous hours of looping video capture. Watch the video below to see how the Looxcie works:
The Vicon Revue is a wearable digital camera designed to take photos without user intervention whilst being worn. Based on Microsoft SenseCam technology, the Vicon Revue is a research tool aimed at researchers as an aid for people with memory loss. The device boasts a fish-eye lens that captures an extra wide angle, a 2GB memory, a temperature sensor, a light colour and intensity sensor, an infrared motion detector and a multi-axis accelerometer. Watch the video below to see how the Vicon Revue works:
