Drift Ghost X. It's out of the box & I'm trying to figure it out. Has a clip for mounting into dedicated fixtures. Includes two dedicated fixtures with double-back adhesive. One is flat, one is slightly concave. No clamp-type mounts. Charging & data cord is very short, about 7".

6/7/20 Edit: Powered it up & it seems to work. Want to buy mounts. Waiting for a reply on when the GoPro ('Universal') mount adapter will be available. Will also buy a handlebar mount.

First off: I sympathize with your plight. I obey lights and stop signs and wave to motorists who respect my right of way. Yet every ride, there's something, and on some days it's a really close call. I use the Fly 6 & 12 from CycliQ, and they are not cheap. But they have blinking lights and use the GoPro software from what I can tell. The company is also hosting videos with location of incident on their site to help document the close calls. That said: I have NEVER had the police accept my video evidence to issue a moving violation to a motorist. I don't know of any state where police do use video evidence from a bike or car to issue a ticket, which is odd since police cams are everywhere.

As far as the best price/benefit: I would either recommend the new Fly 6 which is coming out now, and/or the cheapest GoPro for front and back. With this you can prove culpability after the accident happens. Or if you are like me and it'a a commercial vehicle, you can call the company and tell them you have video evidence of the employee with company vehicle and plates #__ who harassed and/or endangered your safety. In each case when I've called, the company has taken action (or so they said). One one occasion they called me back after the reprimand to summarize what they did.

Be well and stay safe.

Still haven't used my new Drift Ghost X. Bought the cam but it didn't come with a handlebar mount. I'd have ordered one, but to save $$ shipping I'd like to also order a 'Universal Mount' that attaches to GoPro style mounts. Drift Innovation universal mount is never in stock, apparently. Have received messages that say, "Check back after date x", and I do, but it's still not in stock. And, the charging cord is so short, about 2-3", that I have to hang the camera by the cord when I charge it. All in all, disappointed.

Edit: They have been good about answering inquiries. 'Be patient, it'll be in soon'.

Edit2: Ordered the handlebar mount, a universal mount, a swivel mount 7/12/20. Intend to try this as an auto dashcam also

Edit 3: Drift says my order can't be fulfilled - universal mount is out of stock. Asking me if I want to wait until/after 12Aug or cancel. Sheesh. Disappointed x2.

The Drift roll bar mount is almost identical to the handlebar mount, but with longer bolts. It's still available as of today. I use one on my road bike stem. The handlebar mount is actually mounted on my seat post for the rear facing camera.

There's also another style handlebar mount, still available. One user review says the rubber grip tape won't hold, but I'm betting an aluminum shim material might work. I'm using a thin aluminum shim on my quill stem/drop bar to prevent rotation due to a slight mismatch in diameters. No problems.

I bought a GoPro 7 for both the car and to mount on my bars when i ride, works great for both.

I've been unable to use it so far. Ordered a bar mount and a 'universal mount' (that attaches to a GoPro mount, which I don't own but since it's the popular one, I want to be able to use). Have been trying to order these since I first received the thing but the universal mount showed out of stock. Then a month & a half ago, it showed as in stock & I went ahead and ordered, and they charged my card. Got an email from them that it was actually out of stock but would you like us to hold your order & ship it when it's available, after August 11, and I replied, 'ok'. So far (August 17), no further communication. I just sent them an email asking for an update. If they don't respond with a tracking number, I'm going to cancel the order, initiate a charge-back on my card. I regret buying this thing. Wasted $100.

I was thinking along the lines of a substitute or overlap for the Garmin Varia RVR315 Rear Radar function, sort of an electronic rear view mirror as well.
Anyone played with some of the $30 alibaba dashcams?
Seeingn it might be a low cost "test of concept" before getting a $$ GoPro or other $$ fancier set up with wifi to bar mount cellphone I use as a GPS

Sorry to hear about the difficulties getting mounts. I lucked out, ordering stuff before the pandemic disrupted the supply chain.

I was planning to order Drift's new GoPro adapter mount, which would open things up to a lot more choices. But user reviews for the adapter indicate the dimensions aren't quite right and the interlocking "legs" don't quite mesh securely with standard GoPro mounts. Hopefully Drift will fix that problem. If so, they won't really need to offer any other mounts since there are already hundreds of mounts for the GoPro standard.

I suspect Drift intended only for its cameras to be mounted on motorcycle helmets and were caught off guard by the demand for more mounts. I've rigged up a standard Drift helmet mount onto the rear rack of my errand bike/hybrid, using Scotch mounting putty, a grayish-white stuff that's similar to Blue Tak gum, very versatile and strong for mounting hard-to-fit stuff. It doesn't look pretty but it works and I can record rear facing videos without any special mount. I've used the same trick to mount to my bicycle helmets, although I prefer to keep the weight off my head.

They replied that they've updated the 'Universal Mount', (Handlebar Mount, not the Universal Mount) so I hope it's addressed the issues you cite. And, that my order is 'being prepared for shipment', but there's been no confirmation of shipment yet.

Update: FedEx is in possession of a package.

I get very good results with a Sony X1000. Software stabilisation and good enough at HD (not 4K) 50/60fps. The battery runs for about 2hrs which is about the same as all action cams.

The Sony X3000 is no good because the optical stabilisation can't deal with the vibration spectrum; it is probably fine on a helmet.

The DJI Osmo Pocket is completely useless because the gimbal system also can't deal with the vibration. This is in the proper bike mount, too. It would be fine helmet mounted. It does produce the most awesome ski videos when handheld :)

If I didn't already have the X1000 I would buy a used Go-Pro Session; it is a nice compact package, has loads of mounting kit options, and does a good HD / 60fps video. You do want 50/60fps for biking; 25/30fps is OK for documenting bad drivers and such but the result is not really watchable. New action cams can do 4K at 60fps but the required data rate (at least 50mbps and ideally 100mbps) fills up CD cards very fast.

I hope these are useful data points for someone.

I just discovered the mount for my old Ion Speed Pro video camera works with my Drift Ghost X. The Ion handlebar/stem mount was better anyway, although one plastic spring clip broke on the shoe mount. I've reinforced the mount with either a zip tie or something similar to keep the shoe from sliding out under pressure.

Unfortunately Ion appears to have discontinued most stock or gone out of business. Too bad, their original form factor was excellent -- solidly built, mostly aluminum cylinders, weather resistant, very simple to operate. The camera bodies just needed updated internals for higher quality and longer run time. And I can't find any mounts or accessories on Amazon now.

I'm going to browse the B&H and Adorama camera catalogs to see if they have similar ball head mounts with universal or generic video camera mounts that might work with the Drift cameras.

Thread is for cameras, not lights.

OP has already purchased their cameras, it would seem.

I run the Sony FDR-X3000 on a helmet mount, and the stabilization is indeed very smooth.* Battery life is only about 60-70 min(GPS on, no Wi-Fi or BT). I'm only running it @ 1080P 60fps (50M) due to card and PC limitations for now.

I skipped the X1000 due to multiple reviews mentioning overheating, but it was otherwise an attractive option at the time.

* The best stabilization action camera I'm running is the Xiaomi Mi Sphere with a 6-axis EIS. But it's not nearly as sharp or detailed as the Sony FDR-X3000, nor may it match its low light capture and color.

I'd say the cycliq fly6 [2nd or 3rd gen] would compliment the varia well. I'm waiting for the gen3 to be released this Nov.

After reviewing the specs on the current Fly6 CE vs the upcoming V3, I decided to jump the gun on the older model. I updated the firmware to the most current version (1.1.26.084). I picked it up second hand, but the sd card/power flap appears to be the CE v2 (model ce601). I'll report back whether or not it lives up to it's bad reputation, or whether it kicks the buck. There were a lot of negative reviews with the occasional positive one. I have a feeling a lot of the negative reviews are due to 1) water incursion 2) user error 3) incongruent software. [fingers crossed]

I've used the fly6 ce a couple times now and in various settings. It seems to lose connection with the headunit often and, upon reconnection, resets to a prior flash setting. This ends up killing the battery faster than with no flashing lights. I read somewhere that the bluetooth connection to the app could also be a culprit. I uninstalled the app. That way there's no communication between devices, yet it still retained the resetting issue. My last effort will be to disconnect/unpair the camera from the headunit. It could be that the camera doesn't play well with my headunit (Garmin Edge 820), or any headunit. Through all the troubles, it does still record most of my ride. I would guesstimate it to record 3-4hrs with flashing light on. It does not record when there are connection dropouts with the headunit. The camera is hot to to touch after continuous flashing/recording of hour+ rides.

Saw this when looking up Cycliq,
TEENTOK Bike Camera with LED Tail Light, Full HD Rear-View WiFi Bike Light Cam
3.9 out of 5 stars 38 on AMZ ratings $109.99
Wifi's to phone. for active display
? any experience. I would imagine power need would be an issue
AMZ and YT reviews not bad but 2/3$ of Cycliq.
https://youtu.be/cCRU4PgFeBY

also https://chilli-tech.com/content/rear-bike-camera-reart-light-for-cycling/

Still needs radar and integration,
Slow appearance of this implies problematic implementation, but with opportunity
but an old iphone would make a good display. still, the whole field is so fragmented

Good info in this thread.
Some white trash MF'r threw a plastic bottle at me yesterday while passing me in his truck. Didn't hit me, but angered me where I wish I could have stopped the driver and have a "chat". Even called the police and filed a report. But, did not have plate numbers since it happened too quickly. So looking to start recording and turning these dumbf***s in.

I certainly hope there is an increasing trend of cyclists recording and reporting bad drivers.

Since I had my camera, I had reported FedEx once and taxis twice to their respective company PR feedback.

My helmet cam is a Campark V30 that costed $99US. It was on a sale. Still is. Probably the Akaso would have been better but there was no sale on that one.

My rear view camera is a Kaiser Baas X300. Not so good. Short battery life.

Can anyone recommend a camera that will fair well in colder climates? Not thinking about riding with it in -20C conditions but the forecast today looks to be a bearable 5C. I’ve heard lower temps will affect stabilization on certain models.

Cold temperatures definately shorten battery life. When you shop around, write to the manufacturers if you can buy extra batteries. And when you're riding around, you may want to keep your spare batteries warm with your own body heat.

Manufacturers' websites usually list their camera's operating temperature range. For all the cameras I have investigated, most go down to -10C and +55C as the hottest. A few have a narrower range.

Thanks for the tips. The camera will serve dual roles on the deck of a seakayak as well as on my bike. I doubt that it will ever see any days where the mercury takes a steep dive but more in the range of -5C to -10C max.

The simple shapes of some video cameras -- the Drift models, older cylindrical Ion and similar cameras -- would make it easy to fabricate warmers from neoprene. Just cut and glue or stitch the edges. The operating heat itself will keep it warmer in winter.

Wow.
I check the A&S forum fairly regularly and I also regularly keep an eye on the news and I cannot understand how I missed all of the recent truck driving homicidal maniacs you referenced.
Also missed all the heartless hit and runs you mentioned.
Based upon your comments I’m guessing there must have been dozens of them in the past month alone :rolleyes:

You really enjoy tempting fate, don't you? :lol:

They're out there. Most aren't as flagrant as this guy, who had a history of assault with a motor vehicle, and was finally sent to prison after a motorcyclist with a camera recorded the driver deliberately striking another motorcycle. And the driver's first response when confronted was "I don't care," before concocting a string of excuses.

There have been several hit and runs against cyclists in my area, most of them fatal. Only one to my knowledge resulted in an arrest, because it was caught by a surveillance video that was better than average quality, and there was a witness to help some with ID. Most such incident are never even reported by the news. We hear about it mostly through social media pages run by folks who monitor police and fire scanners day and night and post summaries of noteworthy incidents. Many victims are lumped into the "homeless, street person, vagrant" category of "nobodies" so their deaths are never investigated.

Several local cycling friends have reported assaults and attempted assaults or menacing by drivers swerving at them. But they still don't carry cameras for some reason.

Without video we'll never know the apparent intent of the many drivers who claimed "The sun was in my eyes!" or "I was distracted by blahblahblah" or "I never saw the cyclist directly in front of me! It came out of nowhere ... on the road ... directly in front of me ... wearing colorful clothing and flashing lights..."

I suspect many of these incidents are spontaneous, drivers with aggression and poor impulse control, who probably didn't set out that day to injury someone but couldn't resist a brush-by pass that went badly, or didn't think of the consequences of even a slow speed strike against someone on a bicycle or motorcycle. When I rode motorcycles I was struck from behind several times, always when stopped at intersections. And the drivers always said the same stupid thing: "I didn't see you!" If I still rode motorcycles I'd never ride without cameras facing front, rear on the bike, and on my helmet for POV shots.

In four years I've ridden without a camera once... the day I was hit by a car. I'd forgotten to recharge the camera battery and left it home. In retrospect I should have stuffed it onto a pocket with a USB battery to recharge so I'd at least have it available later. And some cameras can be run and charged simultaneously (I have a couple of those now).

They don't add much weight or bulk, even to my lightest road bikes. You'd barely even notice them, so they aren't really an effective deterrent to a hostile driver.

The only problem is camera mounts. I like Drift cameras but their bike mounts aren't great. Their primary market is motorcyclists and they supply a good, simple helmet mount with strong 3M adhesive -- but it's not quite right for vented road bike helmets. I tried rigging one to a new-to-me bike with a much thicker diameter seat post, and it expanded the clamp so much the thumbscrews chafed the insides of my thighs raw. So I'm back to wearing a helmet mounted camera on that bike until I can sort out how to mount a rear facing camera.

Other than that, I can't come up with a valid reason not to record every ride for my own safety. I've told family and friends if I'm ever struck and unconscious or killed, ask the police to check my cameras. And if the cameras appear to be missing, check the roadsides or find out whether the person who struck me stole them, because I will always wear a camera on my person or bike. No exceptions since being struck by a driver who denied any responsibility.

Hi,

FWIW I bought two cameras, one for front and one for rear to test out. They are the Crosstour CT7000 cameras. They come with a lot of different mounts, two batteries each and a Micro SD card. They are about $30 USD each. I've been using them for about a year and they work fine for what I do. I did loose one when it fell off the mount while riding and busted. They are plastic but they do come with a water proof case for mounting.

I'm looking for another type (better quality) camera to replace the one I lost. I certainly will use a front and a rear camera as you never know.

I will check out some of the cameras others mention here on this post to see if I find one that will work for my riding.

I use a Rylo 360 degree camera. Excellent resolution (it can capture plate numbers.) And, it really does 'see' in 360 degrees - behind, ahead, beside, above, and below. As someone mentioned, if you have a fixed view camera, and your bike is flying through the air, it may not catch that important bit of info. I have it mounted on the left hand end of my handlebars, so it gets a good view of traffic approaching, passing, and going by. Great for nabbing video of the pickup truck that "rolled coal" as he went past me. (Driver was cited after I showed the tape to the sheriff.)
Battery life is not ideal (about 45 minutes to 1 hour) so I have to bring spare batteries on my ride, but it gives me an excuse to stop, change the battery, grab a snack, and hydrate.
Unfortunately, they aren't made anymore. :notamused: Should mine go bad, I've already decided on a GoPro 360 cam. Pricey, but worth it IMHO.

We are on the same page! I have the GoPro 360 and the pipe mount (AMHSM-001) as it is low-profile and very adjustable. I have used the 360 on several rides and it is simply amazing how much it can get on the lower segment of the LH side. Can make for some good footage on mountain roads for fun, but is critical if a motor vehicle incident happens. I have a second batter as well, but for the longer rides, that isn't enough. The image stabilization from GoPro is also superior. I have thought about using the Hero 9 on the back and run with the 25sec rolling feature (won't record onto chip until you decide to capture event). But then if I'm hit and unable to save, then the critical footage is lost.

I wish that CycleIQ were better with customer service. I also wish that their products were more reliable. That company is really onto something for cyclists' safety and we need more of this from other manufacturers. Perhaps Garmin could buy GoPro and make the ultimate suite of cycling safety products. Covid has put more people on bikes, so the market is certainly more favorable for more cycling safety products.

Stay safe, and be well.

be very careful w Cycliq - their customer service has been awful of late. Still waiting after a week+ of emails, tweets, and requests for service via their website - no response.