BannedCR500Riders.com

I'm looking at buying a helmet/POV camera.
Seems to be two main contenders in the market.
GoPro and Contour, with each having their own pro's and con's.
Whats your cam of choice for ease of use-picture quality-sound-mounting etc

You REALLY have to make your own choice here. They are both worthy. Sound and picture are pretty much a toss up depending on whether you get a dud. It really comes down to what your personal preferences and needs are... and the cost I would imagine.

My bias is toward the Contour.

I chose the contour for it's low profile and got a low profile helmet mount. The mounts it comes with were worthless to me. I have a couple riding buddies with GoPro's. Theirs seem to get knocked around quite a bit as I was afraid would happen when I made my choice. Where I ride, the tree branches tend to hit them and screw up the aim if not knock them completely off. Mine is tucked in neatly on the side of the helmet out of the way and the aim is never an issue. I set it when I affix the mount to the helmet and that's it, it's not going to change. Other people have better luck though. Again, your call. How are you going to use it?

At the time I chose it, I also thought it seemed like the GoPro had quite a lot more fishbowl than the Contour. I also thought the Contour had a better picture quality. The more I look at vids, the more I realize that seems to have more to do with the protective plastic case than the camera. I have seen some stunning GoPro vids though.

The guys I know with GoPro's are always asking me if their light is blinking to know they are recording. I guess the notification is not so good? The Contour has a slide that you actuate with a loud audible beep code to notify you what is happening. You know it's on. You know it's off. You know it's recording. You know the memory card is full. You know the battery is dead. The downside here is that there is a rubberized cover on the back of the Contour, that tends to pop open exposing the memory card slot when you actuate the slider. I don't know if newer versions have addressed this or not. I simply got used to how to actuate it without putting pressure on the dust cover that will cause it to pop open.

Both technologies have improved considerably since I got mine a little over a year ago. Some people have had terrible luck with the Contour and great luck with the GoPro. Others the opposite.

Your mileage may vary.


I hope Roosty responds. I believe his experience was quite the opposite of mine.

I didn't vote because I know nothing about the gopro.
I have a contour 1080p.
The picture quality is very good if you set it up right.
The sound is another matter and it's one of the top issues in their forum.
I should say wind noise not sound.
Maybe that's why most videos I see have a soundtrack?
Tooling through the woods is good but if you get into an open area and crank up the speed, the wind noise is almost unbearable to me.
Also, I've gotten dust on the inside of the lense and it takes a small jewelers screw driver to get it off and clean it. It's real easy to bugger it up.
They need an "O" ring in there imop.

I do like the chest mount point of view that the gopro offers

Editing is not fun to me.
Maybe if I had a good editor it would be better.
Anyway, here's my youtube channel and you can see some vids from the Contour.

http://www.youtube.com/user/MrTonyharrell?feature=mhee

my go pro has held up great, i like the stupid proof case it comes with

2strokeforever wrote:my go pro has held up great, i like the stupid proof case it comes with

X2 My Go-Pro has help up to some heavy abuse and i can also take it diving with me with a 2 second back plate change.

Gopro now offers an HD2 which has a higher frame rate if you are into some slow motion stuff and supposidly their lens is improved to cut down on the lens flair from the sun, that was my only complaint on the gopro, I don't know if Contour has the same issues.
Roosty has both and has a post reviewing both, might be worth the read.

the last time I used my Contour I set it in the porch and closed the door, using the bluetooth connection i could watch it with the iphone and see what the heck the dog was doing to make all the noise.


I did post some reviews here before, i'll link em.

Check out the newest version of the Drift HD....it has a viewing screen, rotating lens, and has a remote control you attach to triple clamps, wrist, etc., so you start/stop recording whenever you want.



[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4tsmhBlf ... re=related[/youtube]

Awsome footage ,IOM?

Looks like " mad Sunday" to me heaps of good u tube vids floating around.
I recently bought the go pro 2 and love it, only problem is u can't bullshit to your mates no more

Tharrell wrote:The sound is another matter and it's one of the top issues in their forum.
I should say wind noise not sound.
Tooling through the woods is good but if you get into an open area and crank up the speed, the wind noise is almost unbearable to me.

The current versions have a mic jack so you can relocate the mic somewhere impervious to noise.


That drift HD looks pretty nifty. Anybody got one?

mr500 wrote:Awsome footage ,IOM?

yep, Isle of Mann

MojoScojo wrote:
The current versions have a mic jack so you can relocate the mic somewhere impervious to noise.

Is there such a place on a 500?

I ordered a drift a few weeks ago in a stock order from a warehouse we work with, should see it soon.

Roostius_Maximus wrote:I ordered a drift a few weeks ago in a stock order from a warehouse we work with, should see it soon.

New version or old ?

hoofarted wrote:

MojoScojo wrote:
The current versions have a mic jack so you can relocate the mic somewhere impervious to noise.

Is there such a place on a 500?

On your back, in your backpack, inside your helmet....