The other strap-it-on-and-get-rad cameras out there — the GoPros and the Contours and the Ions — are all pretty sick in their own right. But for ease of use, no camera is sicker than Drift Action’s HD Ghost cam.
It has enough capability and pure oomph to keep up with the competition — it captures 1080p at 30fps and 720p at 60fps, and it can talk to your other devices via Wi-Fi — but it also comes stock with features other cams make you pay extra for: an integrated 2-inch color LCD screen; big, meaty navigation buttons on top of the camera; and a wrist-mounted remote control that lets you start and stop recording from up to 30 feet away. The whole thing’s waterproof up to 9 feet, too, so mountain biking through a rainstorm or snowboarding during a whiteout doesn’t require a separate waterproof case.
Now, 1080p at 30fps isn’t the best in class. The best camera for slow-mo footage is the GoPro Hero3 (also $400), which offers double the frame rate at 1080p. And all those additional features — the remote, the LCD screen, the waterproof case — are available in some form or another with other cams, albeit usually at an extra cost. What makes the HD Ghost stand out is how easy to use it is. Thanks to the clearly labeled buttons and the intuitive menu on the LCD screen, I was able to ditch the user guide and still access the majority of the Ghost’s functions.
The wrist-mounted remote is great, too. The controls can be operated with heavy gloves on, and the buttons make changing settings, swapping functions, and checking out the footage you just captured remarkably easy. Colored LED lights on the watch-sized unit let you know what mode the Ghost is in, as well as the camera’s status.
My favorite feature on the Ghost is the on-the-fly video-tagging capability. When it’s in what Drift calls “Flashback mode,” the camera records video on a continuous loop ranging in length from 10 seconds to five minutes. If something sweet happens on your bike ride, you can press a button and save the last minute of footage (or however long), then immediately start a new loop. Not only does this save precious space on your memory card, but it also saves you from having to wade through hours of boring footage to find the good clips.
During my test trip to Squaw Valley in Northern California’s Lake Tahoe area, I never lost footage due to user error (leaving the camera off and thinking it was recording when it wasn’t, which I usually do all the time), and the rotating lens let me mount it just about anywhere without tweaking my angles. I was satisfied with the footage. It was clear and sharp, and I was able to snag the occasional still photo while I was recording video.
Here’s a highlight reel. This string of clips is made up of raw video straight from the camera.
The GoPro Hero and the new Sony Action Cam are still the wearables to beat for image quality and (especially with the GoPro) capturing slo-mo shots. But I can heartily recommend the HD Ghost, especially for those who’d rather get outside and start recording than spend hours digesting a manual to figure out how it works.
WIRED Simple out-of-box use. Battery lasts about three hours. Waterproof to 9 feet without a case. Intuitive smartphone app interface. Awesome remote you can strap to your wrist, or anywhere. Rotating lens lets you position it pretty much anywhere on your body or board and still find acceptable angles. Can capture 11-megapixel stills while shooting video.
TIRED Heavy. Multicolored LED lights aren’t great for us red/green colorblind folks. Pricey — Sony’s camera is less expensive.
Good Lookin' Out
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