For those who don’t know, action cameras are Sony’s answer to GoPro. It’s a Wi-Fi enabled camera that shoots at up to 120fps at 720p and 30fps at 1080p, and of course it comes with a waterproof housing.
Before I get into my review of the new Sony action cam, it’s important to point out that my intended use for the product is very different from most action cam owners. This camera is clearly designed for sports enthusiasts, just like a GoPro. That being said, many filmmakers and content creators have also found uses for the GoPro, as it can fit into tight spaces, serve as an accident camera, and perform other uses that larger cameras can’t. This is essentially what I want from an action camera. I don’t shoot sports, in fact I almost exclusively shoot narrative material. When I bought this little camera, I was looking for something that would fill a shooting gap, allowing me to get an extra lens here and there – maybe underwater, maybe mounted on the side of a car. I mention this again because most of my review involves users who may be interested in using the camera in a similar way to me. If you are using your camera strictly as a sports enthusiast, some of my points may not be relevant.
I’ll start by describing why I bought this camera instead of the GoPro Hero2. The GoPro is a solid little camera that works well in a production environment. I’ve always liked the concept of the camera, but found the design looked a bit clunky. In contrast, after demoing the action camera, I was impressed with its construction. It has a very stylish design and is thinner and longer than the GoPro. I also like the fact that for the same price as the Hero2, I can buy an action camera with Wi-Fi, which of course lowers the overall cost. Also, I like the idea of shooting at 120fps, which is not possible shooting at 720p on a GoPro.
The action camera has a large record button on the back (with a hold option) and a Carl Zeiss lens on the front. The camera itself has a very consistent look and feels great in the hand. The small display on the side has two buttons for navigation (the menu is also easy to use).
All in all, I was prematurely captivated by the camera before actually shooting anything with it. Ultimately, I think the image quality is about the same as the GoPro Hero2, and I do like the physical build better. Plus, knowing that the Zeiss lens is fixed on the end gave me more confidence in my purchase.
I unboxed the camera and started by opening the waterproof case – the construction feels very solid and fits the camera snugly. I was ready to start shooting some test footage, so I put in the battery and microSD card and started shooting. This is the first time I’m a bit disappointed – I prefer the standard SD card size. I know this may not be possible due to camera design, but it would be more convenient for me since I already own so many great class 10 SDHC cards. Anyway, this isn’t a deal breaker for me at all.
Then I continued working through the menus to get the settings right. I immediately ran into screen issues. Some letters on menu items are not displayed correctly, which makes the content difficult to read. I don’t know if I just received a defective device or if they all have this problem, but it’s definitely disappointing.
At this point I just want to start shooting. All quirks aside, in the end what really matters is that the quality of the image meets my standards. So I set it to 720p/120fps mode, installed it in the car and started driving home. I inserted the SD card into my Mac, looked at the footage, and…it was garbage. Complete rubbish. Everything is so grainy, even the completely exposed areas. The image suffers from a severe lack of sharpness, with colors severely washed out and desaturated.
My initial thought was that this might look bad since the 120fps mode has a much lower bitrate. So I tried shooting some test shots at 720p/60fps and the results were pretty much the same. And then at 1080p/30fps, even that’s not much better. Granted, I shot about an hour before sunset, and I’m sure the tiny sensors in these cameras require a lot of light, but it was still bright outside and sunlight should be more than enough in my opinion.
All in all, it quickly became clear to me that I would never use this camera in a professional setting. The image quality is not for me at all. GoPro Hero2 features higher bit rates and better video compression, providing end users with a higher quality end product. I think a lot of people will buy this camera for the same reasons I did – its construction and aesthetics. But for those of you reading this, I highly recommend sticking with a GoPro. Like any camera, they have their quirks – but I firmly believe they have a big advantage over action cameras when it comes to actual image quality.
I mainly want to use this camera for underwater photography on my upcoming feature film. Since seeing the poor image quality, I decided to go in a different direction entirely and purchase an underwater housing for my DSLR. If I had chosen to use a GoPro, I might not have been so dissatisfied with the experience and might have been willing to work around its limitations to make it work. But by this point I was so sick of these little cameras that I stuck with one of my regular cameras for shooting and hoped my new housing would keep it safe!
