Action camera intro

I am considering getting a Gopro or other action camera. I know nothing except that some have recomended the Gitup Git2 as a lower cost option. I'd like to hear what people like and don't like about the camera they own. What have you found to be the best setup. Remote? On the body or mounted on the kayak? Pros and cons etc. cost is definitely a consideration, but I also don't want to end up with a hassle because I saved some money. Thanks

I've found that I enjoy the wide angle photos that these cameras can take......more than the videos. For selfies a great feature to have is a camera that can take another picture every few seconds without pressing a shutter button for every shot and can do so until you feel that you probably got a good shot or two. I've been using my GoPro3 Black for this purpose with nice results. I think the Gitup Git2 also has this feature but some of the cheaper cameras on the market don't have this ability.

Wifi is nice to have & I use it to review shots taken with my GoPro on my Samsung S5 to make sure I got a good shot. Otherwise I keep it turned off because of the power drain. I think an lcd on the action camera itself would be nice but not as good as Wifi & a smartphone to review with because with the smartphone you can zoom in to see if the shots are really clear or blurry.

I have the remote but prefer keeping the GoPro turned on, with Wifi off, and then I push the shutter button once when I'm ready to take simultaneous pictures,every 5 seconds, & video. When it takes a picture you can see the pics taken number increase on the screen & the red led blinks.

I guess one advantage of the GoPro over Gitup is the battery backpack available for the Gopro.

I had a GoPro for quite a while but damaged it (my fault). It's good, but pricey. This year, I've been using this (discontinued) Garmin model:

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00EOHUVV8/ref=pd_lpo_sbs_dp_ss_3?pf_rd_p=1944687622&pf_rd_s=lpo-top-stripe-1&pf_rd_t=201&pf_rd_i=B00EOHUVTU&pf_rd_m=ATVPDKIKX0DER&pf_rd_r=E4QT43ZMEFW57DY1X5ZT

They were selling for less than $100 a while back, but seem to have gone up recently. If you can find it for $100, that's a very good deal, IMHO. Not quite a GoPro, but good for kayak fishing.

I don't have any direct experience with this, but the new Xiaomi 4K seems to be up to par with the GoPro Black edition, shoots at true 4k at about $200 less or so compared to the GoPro Black edition. 

https://www.amazon.com/YI-Action-Camera-Night-Black/dp/B01FU9ZIMU/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1470876561&sr=8-1&keywords=xiaomi+4k

I picked up a GoPro hero + on sale a Target for $140 plus the 5% off with my red card. Only 1080p@60fps but its good enough for fishing videos and shots.

It was actual a funny story how I bought it, we started out at target to buy a disposable camera for my daughters last day of 4th grade. Well those disposables have gotten a lot more expensive than I remember, $15 for something you throw away! So right next to them were a few action / compact cameras, so I grab the $30 version and look up the make and model on amazon, meh reviews. So I get the next in line to that at about $60, once again the reviews are pretty poor. We then find one at $90 with decent reviews as its just for one day for her to run around with to get pictures of her friends. We leave the isle and round the end cap  that just happens to be the GoPro display and they have ones on sale for $140 with good specs. So I turn to my supervisor and give her the pros and cons and how I can get more uses from it, sure enough she relents but doesn’t let it go that we came for a disposable and left with a GoPro hero!

Any thoughts on placement? I've heard they aren't very comfortable when worn on your head. I read that leaving the remote off saves the battery but you need to be able to press the button. Some people mount them on poles. I guess that needs the remote on. I wonder how long the battery lasts with remote turned on if you are mostly recording when you hook up.

I got a shoulder mount. Has a strong clip for my pfd.

I got a shoulder mount. Has a strong clip for my pfd.

One of those strap harness things?

No. It clips to my pfd sholder strap. I got it on Amazon I think it says luxesbell on it

I am looking to purchase YI 4K @yakyakyak mentioned myself.

From what I read up on, it's the one to get for now... 

Any thoughts on placement? I've heard they aren't very comfortable when worn on your head. I read that leaving the remote off saves the battery but you need to be able to press the button. Some people mount them on poles. I guess that needs the remote on. I wonder how long the battery lasts with remote turned on if you are mostly recording when you hook up.

One good thing about the Garmin (mentioned above) is that you don't have to leave it on standby. If it's not on standby and you press the record button, it's smart enough to power up and then start recording. In that mode, the battery only drains when you actually use the camera.

For the money and if your not looking for super HD options, the SJCAM is not bad. I use it more to play "Monday morning quarterback" on my dive and to show friends what there missing out on the land. At about $80 with an underwater housing rated @30m it's a nice option that won't break the bank especially if your rough on gear or have mother nature tax you

I am looking to purchase YI 4K @yakyakyak mentioned myself.

From what I read up on, it's the one to get for now... 

i got the yi 4k last week and played with it over the weekend. Its definitely a great camera!! the wifi alone at 5g is awesome. Stream and viewing is quick!!

I have the sjcam 5k as well. The usb port stopped working, probably since I had it charging while I record so after awhile the usb port internal fell apart (most likely the soldering gave way) It still works but i just have to change out the battery. I tried to fix it but its not worth it.

The battery life on the yi 4k is great. Record over 2 hrs with 4k recording. Comparing the video quality from the SJCAM 1080 vs the YI 4k, it tough to tell.

I'm still testing it out. Will hopefully do some action shot this coming weekend.