Don't worry, I got you bro.

:):thumb:

$26 go pro
 

Mind blowing value - sharing the original post:

For anyone who's been on the fence about trying action cameras, I've got a worthwhile one for you that's cheap enough to be well below most people's "why not" threshold.

Behold the Topjoy TJ-5000: https://www.amazon.com/Topjoy-Sports...eywords=topjoy

As we speak, $26 on Amazon.

I got one of these in the mail yesterday and it is nearly an exact match for the SooCoo C30 cameras I've been using for the last year or so- those being really excellent $80 GoPro alternatives. There's a whole range of these cameras from different OEMs using the Novatech line of firmware and Sony NTK96660 lens and chipset. They're in the same form factor as a Gen-1 GoPro, so all generic "action camera" housings, mountings, and accessories work fine. These cameras supposedly shoot upscaled 4K and 2K at 30, but for my purposes I've always stuck with 1080/60. As mask cameras, these things have two killer features: 1. The lens is gyro-stabilized, which takes out a lot of the wobble and shake when you move, and 2. The camera puts out audible "video start/video stop" voice prompts to let you know when you're recording. When you can't see the buttons, screen, or indicator lights without taking off your mask this prompt is a real godsend.

The one drawback with these cameras is battery life, but I've gotten around this by running mine off a $8 auxiliary cellphone battery back strapped to the back of my goggle strap and connected with a USB cable- one charge of that lasts hours- I've never had it run out.

If you've got a dremel and a drill you can make your own mount out of stuff that comes with the camera.

It's $26. What are you waiting for?

Cameras are similar to bikes. You can’t ask – what bike should I get? Unless you know where / how you want to ride it. For choosing a camera when touring, the top questions I’d ask are:

• Weight
• Cost
• Weatherproofness / robustness
• Ergonomics / feel – do you care?
• Focal length / zoom
• Low light ability

The first four are pretty obvious just from looking online or in a store at camera gear. Focal length is the question of: do you want a go pro type view of being there (about “14mm equivalent”), or general scenery (about 16-35), or mostly people (28-85), or hope to also capture animals / objects in the distance (85+). Low light ability is also kind of obvious – larger, heavier more expensive cameras are generally much better. I didn’t list image quality as a question, I’m of the belief that any recent camera will take awesome photos.

My personal answers are:

I care a lot about weight, will spend several hundred to over a thousand if I think it is worthwhile, want a waterproof option, don’t care about ergonomics when touring because it would add weight, want a go pro view and a focal length for people, and don’t care about low light.

Instead of a Go Pro, I chose a Sony X3000, better stabilization and perhaps slightly better image quality than most Go Pro models for a similar or cheaper price. There are also some Chinese knockoffs which can have great image quality, but not the stabilization.

For people view and some general scenery, I’ll use my phone, OR if I know I’ll want better pictures and more focal length variety – I want a small compact camera that can zoom about 24-75mm equivalent. Or, I might instead invest that money in a new phone with two different focal length cameras. Not sure.

I have a Panasonic LX100, which is just over 400 grams, is a joy to use, has a focal length 24-75, and is probably the best compromise for low light ability and light weight in a camera. So for now, I’d likely just bring that.

Good that you mentioned priorities, but it would be much better to include pros and cons instead of either/or, since as you stated, your camera choice depends on your use and priorities. Yes, the Sony X3000 has superior stabilization because it uses a mechanical system as compared to the GoPro's electronic stabilization. However, that's a benefit most won't notice until you reach the extremes levels of camera shake.

On the other hand, GoPros have moved to a more prosumer level of technology since they now offer the most flexible post-processing of any of the other action camera sold. Also, because they started the action camera popularity, they additionally have the widest variety of accessories (which is why most of the knock-offs have copied their form factor) available.