ActionPro's 1080p HD ActionCam definitely offers some serious competition in today's market of high-end sport/action cams.This little unit offers up to 1080p quality at 30fps or 720p at 60fps and a 170° wide-angle lens that really delivers top-quality results.
What's in the Box?
ActionCam (with 4GB MicroSD card) | LCD Screen | Battery | Remote Control | Waterproof Case | Tray Mount | Helmet Mount |
Helmet Front Mount | Flat Mount | Power Adaptor | AV Cable | USB Cable | User Manual.
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Features & Settings:
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The first most important thing to do when you unpack everything is to charge the ActionCam, you can do this by using the power supply, or connecting it to your PC or laptop via the USB cable, the recommendation is around 3hours to charge.
(Note that you will need to connect the ActionCam to your computer via USB to access the video files).
Once done, I personally recommend attaching the LCD screen onto the ActionCam and then turn it on to toggle the settings, this way you know when the screen is detached, it's recording with all the appropriate settings you want it to have.
Pressing the "M" button will get you to the main "Camcorder" menu, you have the following to select:
*Resolution: 1080p (30fps) | 720p/60 (60fps) | 720p (30fps) | WVGA (60fps).
If you're using the cam for quite fast paced sports such as motorcycling, then I would suggest the 720p/60 as the higher frame rate will give you smoother video footage.
*Video Length: 5min, 10min, 15min, 30min.
This breaks up the video into segments into whatever you have chosen. Shorter video lengths will give you more video segments which will make it easier edit, and longer lengths will give you less segments which are easier to put together if you don't want to edit clips.
*Laser Sync: Off | On.
I would suggest keeping this setting off, because it can easily be toggled when the camera is on by holding the record button for a few seconds.
You can then go into the "Camera" settings by clicking right, here you will have the following options to choose from:
*Single Shot.
*Triple Shot.
*Continuous: 0s | 2s | 3s | 5s | 10s | 20s | 30s | 60s.
*Resolution: 3M | 5M | 8M.
The cam is actually a 5MP sensor, so I would advice using the 5M setting.
The next tab is the "Set-Up" menu, here you can set-up the date/time and whether you want it to be displayed on your video & photos, select power saving options and adjust the TV settings (PAL or NTSC).
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Using the camera:
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Once the camera has been charged up and all the settings have been set, it's time to get the camera mounted.
It's really up to you where you want to stick the provided pads, for example you could stick it to the fairing of your motorcycle, or on your helmet, there are many possible ways to use the mounts, you just need to make sure it's in an appropriate area so you get the best camera view as well as being somewhere that isn't going to vibrate too much which would cause the cam to shake.
The sticky pads are extremely secure, once stuck on properly, it isn't going to come off without a fight, so do make sure your happy with the place it's going to be stuck on. Personally I chose the side of my helmet and used the extenders to give my cam the best angle.
I want to also add that because the cam has a tripod mount at the bottom of it, it widens the usage of what you can use it on.
(Tripods, Camera Pistol Grip, Dolly, etc...)
To mount the cam when it's encased in the waterproof housing, you will need to use the clip connector rather than the screw, this is very easy to swap over (takes seconds). Do note this accessories main purpose is for underwater usage and whilst it will significantly reduce wind noise when on a motorcycle etc... it will steam up when using it out of the water if the weather is too hot.
Once mounted, turn on the cam by holding the power button for a few seconds, to get the best angle, hold down the record button, this will turn on the laser. The laser points to the exact centre of where it will record, this makes the laser one of my most favourite features of this cam as it reduces time setting up and more time to record your action.
On the cam you have to options; on the left you have the record button which will toggle the recording on/off, and to the right is the snap-shot button, or you can use the remote control to wirelessly select the one you want, except with the remote control you will need to press the stop button to stop recording.
Using the cam was a breeze, that was until I wanted to use the waterproof housing... putting the cam into the housing is easy and will completely keep the water away, the problem is whilst there is a button to record and take a picture, there is no button to turn the cam on or off. To get around this, you will need to turn the power saving options off and make sure the camera is on before you encase it, it's easy enough to do this, but it is an annoying hassle that could have been avoiding by adding an extra button.
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Video, Sound & Picture Quality:
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The video quality I personally found to be absolutely amazing, be it in sunny or overcast conditions, the quality was always clear and the frame-rate extremely smooth making it a top choice for those who want something for a wide variety of sport activities.
As for late-evening/night time (with some light source), I wasn't expecting much, though it surprised me, even though the picture had quite a bit amount of noise to it (which is completely understandable), you can still pick out all of your surroundings which makes this cam great for those who want to record their commute from home to work and vice-versa for security purposes.
The sound quality is also very decent, using it for slower speed activities it picks up sound well, though if your going at faster speeds such as when your on a motorcycle understandably you may pick up a bit of wind-noise.
Unfortunately, this cam doesn't have an external mic jack.
Picture quality is reasonable; I've had a mixed bag of results, some good some blury. You're never going to get results equivalent to digital cameras currently available on the market, however you can still get some pretty cool snap-shots.
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Final Opinion:
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This is a fantastic ActionCam which I think many people would appreciate, okay so the waterproof case issue mentioned above is a little annoying, but you can still get around it. The most important part is it's easy to use and delivers outstanding video quality.
Having some experience with action cameras I was really interested in trying this one since it had so many good reviews. Of course before buying I checked YouTube for sample videos to examine the quality. What I saw didn't look bad at all and at half the price of my GoPro cameras. ( I own a Hero 3 Black and Silver edition ). In short after charging the unit overnight and formatting the 32gb sandisk card I tested it out. I was excited that it came with so many accessories that are considered premium accessories with the GoPro units. My test footage was taken while driving. I suction cupped it to the front windshield on a snowy day to test the camera's white balance capability. Unfortunately I didn't get far in my test. A few minutes into the recording the unit shut off on its own. Not only that but it wouldn't turn back on. Attempting to troubleshoot the problem I removed the back cover and extracted the battery for 10 seconds hoping that would help. Returning the battery into the unit still didn't help. I knew the battery was fully charged so I wasn't really sure what the issue was.
Needless to say I wasn't thrilled about the experience up to this point and I can't say it got any better. Once I got back to the house I attempted the above battery removal trick a few more times without success. I decided to plug the camera in as if I was charging it again. Low and behold I received a momentary red light as if to charge and then it turned off signalling a full charge. Wouldn't you know it the camera powered up again. The memory card had a short segment of video of me driving that abruptly shut off during the drive.
At this point I checked the firmware and compared versions on the Astak web site. After researching it a bit I located two web sites. One at and the other at . One site was no help. The other had at least a download section with a latest firmware number. After a quick email to the company to verify the versions I downloaded the firmware. ( I also have to say the email response I received was in broken English. Not too reassuring ) Updating the firmware didn't help as the problem continued. I really hope I received a bad camera otherwise I'm not certain how this could have gotten so many good reviews unless they were fake. I was also disappointed I never received a response back from Astak as to the actual problems I was having with the camera. The single email I received was to verify the latest firmware version only. The camera was returned and I've decided to stick with my GoPro series cameras. Sorry Astak you had your chance.This is probably one of the most amazing cameras I've bought in a price to quality ratio. I almost see no reason to buy a GoPro now.
What advantages does this have over the GoPro?
1. It comes with a remote that allows you to record, stop recording, and take pictures? You have no idea how convenient this is compared to the GoPro (why should I be forced to buy it after paying $300?).
2. It came with an SD Card, I'm really surprised how the company was able to also include an SD card yet the GoPro doesn't.
3. It also includes a LCD screen, something which again isn't included when you buy the GoPro.
4. With the LCD screen, easier setup than the GoPro, especially if you're a first timer with the GoPro (my god that was hell).
All of that was just what was included.
Video/Sound Quality/Picture Quality:
The video is actually pretty nice, it's somewhat more saturated than the GoPro which I personally don't mind. It looks great when you have a light source. Seriously, this offers the same video quality as the GoPro for essentially half its price. Plus the saturation looks amazing anywhere outside.
The picture quality is the same as the GoPro but more saturated. Both cameras can have blurry pictures. Like another person said, a digital camera would be better if you take pictures, but this is an action camera, you're probably going to do more recording that taking pictures. Still good pictures if you can hold the camera still.
It has the fisheye effect for both cameras.
The sound quality isn't any worse or better than the GoPro's sound quality, I personally don't see much difference. While it's not optimal, it's an action camera, it's not going to be something to worry about (at least for me).
The only con for me is that you cannot turn on the camera while it's in the waterproof housing, kind of a bummer since you have to take it out, but it's not too bad.
To summarize, this has the same quality as the HD Hero (I've only owned the first HD Hero, I do not know how this differs in other products) but it includes the remote, LCD screen, and an SD Card. It's also cheaper.Background:
I was in the market for an action camera, so I looked at all of the offerings such as GoPro HD Hero (1,2, &3), Polaroid XS100, Contour 1080p HD, and finally the Drift HD 1080p.
Comparison to others:
GoPro: I was very close to buying the Hero 2, but after researching, I found that none of the GoPros have a 1/4 thread type mounting option and you have to put them in the case in order to have that option. Very annoying. The price of the GoPros with all the mounts, waterproof case, and LCD Backpack is over 300$ Ridiculous! I watched several video comparisons of the ActionPro vs GoPro and to my eyes, the ActionPro was the winner, it had such vivid colors. So for $130 and all the stuff you get with the AcitonPro, why would you not buy it over the GoPro?
Polaroid: Looks pretty decent, price is reasonable, and video quality seemed good, but no LCD screen? No thanks!
Contour & Drift: Pretty expensive! But the real reason I didn't buy them is because after watching several videos on youtube, I just did not like the color contrast from both of these cameras. Contour had a purple tint and Drift just looked dull.
In Conclusion,
The ActionPro is a wonderful camera, that takes very good quality videos (Coming from a guy who uses a DSLR to shoot video), comes with a boat load of add-ons, and costs you $130! Find me a better deal if you can.
Remark:
I took 1 star off because the first ActionPro I received was deffective. It was not charging, so eventually the battery died and I returned it. But I liked the camera a lot and thought I would give it another chance and this time everything worked properly. So, make sure you thoroughly test the camera when you get it to check for any defects.I bought this product because I didn't want to fork out the cash for the Hero3. All my friends have the Hero 2 and 3. Even they are surprised by the quality of this product. Hero adapters do fit on this camera as well. I have been using it for months now on scuba, snorkel, and other trips around the island. The video quality is superb. I can't complain. The pictures are very nice. The lens is a fisheye lens, so you get an all around view of what you are aiming the camera at. The only complaint i have is the lack of a power button when it's in the waterproof casing. I'm not too bothered about taking the camera in and out to turn it on and off, but on long trips it would help to conserve battery life. Overall the product is great. I definitely recommend it to anyone considering a GREAT action camera.
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