Vikeonabike
CC Neighbourhood Police Constable
- Location
- Bourne, Lincolnshire
Chilli Technology Action Cam Pro Mini HD
720p HD@ 30 frames per second.
Out of the box: First impressions are good, a very professional looking package in a sturdy box. Open it up and you have the camera on display in its waterproof housing. Underneath this were all the attachments neatly packaged in their individual packets.
Instructions: I was slightly disappointed with the instruction document. Bearing in mind I have had the Action Cam#3 which is not as good a quality camera, it came with a six page booklet that was easy to read and was quite detailed, including instructions on how to set up a date/time stamp. The diagram in the instructions for the Mini Pro HD was incredibly small; the numbers on the diagram relating to functions and parts of the camera were almost illegible. This could certainly be better.
Fixtures and fittings: I was very impressed with the solid camera housing attachments on the head straps and the helmet mounts. I used the curved adhesive helmet mount. First cleaning and degreasing the fitting area (which is not advised in the instructions) to make sure there was a solid clean contact. Once on this is a solid dependable mount. I have even dropped the helmet with it landing directly on the mount (sans camera) and it has not moved. I have no choice but to leave the mount in place when riding because it is an adhesive mount direct to the helmet surface. Aesthetically, if riding without the camera it isn’t that pleasing.
The waterproof housing supplied is great. I have used the camera in an absolute downpour… no issues with waterproofing at all, not surprising as the housing is marketed as being waterproof too 10mts.
Fitting: The camera, as discussed earlier mounts to the helmet by a number of fittings. On a cycle helmet, you have a choice of the head band, which is solid with plenty of adjustment. I found that attaching it semi-permanently with a few small cable ties made it solid enough to use off road. I tend to have other lights on my helmet so it wasn’t the best option for me. This left two choices, either the flat or curved mount. The flat mount would fit nicely on a bar stem, although I feel it would be very susceptible to being knocked off or snapped in the event of a collision. A triple pronged female end receives the double pronged male end from the waterproof housing, which is bolted tightly into position. This mount means that you have nearly 180 degrees of adjustability, very useful indeed.
In use: I used the curved mount on the front of my helmet. I looked at mounting it on top, which would have been ideal for keeping a more neutral balance and I dare say I would not have felt the weight quite so much as I did when I mounted it to the front of the helmet.
The mount, waterproof housing weighs in at 176g, which when worn for the first time felt heavy and I had to tighten the helmet slightly to compensate. It is still more noticeable that the lighter bullet cam I had which was mounted directly to the top of my helmet via a Velcro mounting system but once on the move I soon forgot about the camera being there and it felt comfortable. There was certainly no camera bounce on my usual commute into work.
The camera has a 2inch LCD screen so you can immediately review footage if you need too. Ideal if you need to review an incident immediately or are making action films. This, although useful, undoubtedly lowers battery life. A screen on/off switch may be a good idea on future models. As an out and out commuting tool, where I only review footage if there has been an incident of note. I would happily trade this feature in for longer battery life. On the good side is the fact that the battery is replaceable so you can always carry a spare battery on longer rides. I have found that the battery fully charged gives me about an hour and a half of recording life.
It also has a useful photo option for taking stills
The picture quality is great; I was even impressed with its performance in lower light conditions.
In essence this camera is great value for money, if you don’t want to pay the cost but want many of the features of a “Go-Pro” or similar it is worth bearing in mind!
http://www.chilli-tech.com/index.php/products/mini-cam-pro-hd-720p-sports-action-camera.html
720p HD@ 30 frames per second.
Out of the box: First impressions are good, a very professional looking package in a sturdy box. Open it up and you have the camera on display in its waterproof housing. Underneath this were all the attachments neatly packaged in their individual packets.
Instructions: I was slightly disappointed with the instruction document. Bearing in mind I have had the Action Cam#3 which is not as good a quality camera, it came with a six page booklet that was easy to read and was quite detailed, including instructions on how to set up a date/time stamp. The diagram in the instructions for the Mini Pro HD was incredibly small; the numbers on the diagram relating to functions and parts of the camera were almost illegible. This could certainly be better.
Fixtures and fittings: I was very impressed with the solid camera housing attachments on the head straps and the helmet mounts. I used the curved adhesive helmet mount. First cleaning and degreasing the fitting area (which is not advised in the instructions) to make sure there was a solid clean contact. Once on this is a solid dependable mount. I have even dropped the helmet with it landing directly on the mount (sans camera) and it has not moved. I have no choice but to leave the mount in place when riding because it is an adhesive mount direct to the helmet surface. Aesthetically, if riding without the camera it isn’t that pleasing.
The waterproof housing supplied is great. I have used the camera in an absolute downpour… no issues with waterproofing at all, not surprising as the housing is marketed as being waterproof too 10mts.
Fitting: The camera, as discussed earlier mounts to the helmet by a number of fittings. On a cycle helmet, you have a choice of the head band, which is solid with plenty of adjustment. I found that attaching it semi-permanently with a few small cable ties made it solid enough to use off road. I tend to have other lights on my helmet so it wasn’t the best option for me. This left two choices, either the flat or curved mount. The flat mount would fit nicely on a bar stem, although I feel it would be very susceptible to being knocked off or snapped in the event of a collision. A triple pronged female end receives the double pronged male end from the waterproof housing, which is bolted tightly into position. This mount means that you have nearly 180 degrees of adjustability, very useful indeed.
In use: I used the curved mount on the front of my helmet. I looked at mounting it on top, which would have been ideal for keeping a more neutral balance and I dare say I would not have felt the weight quite so much as I did when I mounted it to the front of the helmet.
The mount, waterproof housing weighs in at 176g, which when worn for the first time felt heavy and I had to tighten the helmet slightly to compensate. It is still more noticeable that the lighter bullet cam I had which was mounted directly to the top of my helmet via a Velcro mounting system but once on the move I soon forgot about the camera being there and it felt comfortable. There was certainly no camera bounce on my usual commute into work.
The camera has a 2inch LCD screen so you can immediately review footage if you need too. Ideal if you need to review an incident immediately or are making action films. This, although useful, undoubtedly lowers battery life. A screen on/off switch may be a good idea on future models. As an out and out commuting tool, where I only review footage if there has been an incident of note. I would happily trade this feature in for longer battery life. On the good side is the fact that the battery is replaceable so you can always carry a spare battery on longer rides. I have found that the battery fully charged gives me about an hour and a half of recording life.
It also has a useful photo option for taking stills
The picture quality is great; I was even impressed with its performance in lower light conditions.
In essence this camera is great value for money, if you don’t want to pay the cost but want many of the features of a “Go-Pro” or similar it is worth bearing in mind!
http://www.chilli-tech.com/index.php/products/mini-cam-pro-hd-720p-sports-action-camera.html
