GoPro HD Helmet HERO Camera

4 Comments »

• J. Gaetani says:

  April 5, 2010 at 16:43

  This is hands down the best affordable POV camera on the market. The picture is amazing, especially in good light. The formats are great and the mounting options are only limited to your imagination. Couldn’t be happier with this camera.
  Rating: 5 / 5
• George Marinich says:

  April 5, 2010 at 16:51

  I’ve used the HD Hero quite a few times now, and as the other reviews said, it does a very nice job. It’s nice and compact, seems to be quite tough, and takes really nice hands-free POV stills and video. There are a few things I’ve had to look out for, however. One is that with the wide angle lens and no way to see what the camera is seeing, it’s very common to get “warped” shots – ones where the horizon bends drastically up or down. It’s the nature of the lens, of course, but something to look out for. If you can get it pointed properly the shots come out very nicely. The screen for settings is also barely usable. It’s simple enough to use, but difficult to see. With the case on the buttons don’t feel very positive, so once in a while I find that I didn’t actually start the camera rolling. As a result just about every clip I take starts and ends with me looking at the camera to make sure it’s on or off. Not a huge deal, but shouldn’t be necessary either.

  The other issues are ones that I think can easily be fixed by GoPro. First, the battery on mine is far more difficult to remove than any other camera I’ve had. It seems to be partly due to the slick coating on the battery label, and partly due to the way the battery snaps in. It’s not a big deal when you’re in the house, but out in the field changing a battery can be a challenge. Similarly, the memory card is a bit tougher to get out than on any of my other cameras. Again, not a problem in the house, but more tricky than it should be when you’re trying to quickly swap cards so you can keep shooting. The gizmos that connect the camera to your helmet (I also got a bike clamp) are all plastic, and would benefit by a more rubberized surface or something. It seems like it would be very easy to over tighten the clamps (trying to get the whole setup to hold still) and break the plastic. I have a few ideas to work around that, but haven’t had a chance to try them out yet.

  Image quality is better than I expected for both video and stills. I saw the online samples, which are good, but the real deal is even better. Overall this camera is great fun to use, and since it fits in my pocket I find myself taking it with me often. If you want a camera that you won’t have to worry about knocking around and getting wet, this is a great choice.
  Rating: 4 / 5
• Frank Loose says:

  April 5, 2010 at 18:37

  I can’t agree with the previous poster who said there is no support at GoPro. I have left four voice messages and all four calls were returned within the same business day. At their web site, download the PDF parts manual, and on the last page they list their phone number. Regarding the camera, I just received mine and have not used it on a job yet, but the tests I have shot so far look quite nice. It is impressive for such a little guy and for such a reasonable cost.
  Rating: 4 / 5
• technojerry says:

  April 5, 2010 at 20:22

  I have used this camera a couple of times since receiving it for Christmas. I have used both the strap mount for my vented bicycle helmet as well as the permanent stick on mount for my dual sport motorcycle helmet. In both cases, the mounts work as well as the camera. I still have the previous generation GoPro HERO in standard definition, but not in the wide field of view lens configuration like the current HD version. I like the wide field of view of this HD model. It is great at giving a very good view of both the trail as will as your handlebar movements while riding both my mountain bike or motorcycle. The quality of the video is fantastic. The files do get large, but that is to be expected with the high resolution of this camera. I have been using a 16GB SDHC card and have filed up about half of it on one battery charge. I would recommend a high speed card reader to improve the download times from the card. A 12 min video was nearly a gigabyte. The battery last I think longer than the previous standard definition camera which ran on AAA batteries. I think that I will buy an additional battery someday for long rides with lots of action.

  The only reason I have not given it a full 5 stars is the difficulty in reading the small status screen with all the various modes it has. The same issue I have with the standard definition HERO. The icons that tell you if you are in burst, still, timed, or video mode are very small across the top of the display. The numbers to tell you the number of pictures or videos taken are much larger. It is just difficult if you have the camera mounted on top of your helmet and you try and look in the mirror on your bike to see if the camera is on and what mode it is. You have to use the select button on the front to both turn the camera on and select the right mode. The shutter button is on top and is easy to operator even with gloves. It is not difficult to read the display if you are holding the camera in front of you, but much more difficult when mounted on top of your helmet. You can unclip the camera from the mount, but that can be difficult when it is on top of your helmet.

  I am looking forward to the expansion port options being available, like the LCD screen to view the videos in the field. I am also thinking of investing in the chest strap mount so I can get different view over the handle bars as will as making it easier to see the small status display. Other than the small icons telling you which mode, this is a very nice camera that takes very high quality action videos. It is very small and light and easy to use when you have it in the right mode. I would highly recommend this camera to anyone wanting action videos of their bicycling, motorcycle, or skiing activities.
  Rating: 4 / 5