GoPro Helmet Hero Wide Review

The GoPro Helmet Hero Wide digital video camera is great way for others to "get inside your head". Often I'm asked, "What's the Porcupine Rim bike trail like?" or "What's it like to ski powder?". The answer to those questions can be found on the GoPro Videos I captured below.

GoPro Helmet Hero Wide Specs

• 170 Degree Wide Angle Lens
• 5 Megapixel
• 100' Waterproof/Shockproof polycarbonate housing
• 56 minutes of recording time with 2 GB memory card (memory card & batteries not included)
• Modes: Video, Self Timer, Photo, Triple shot Photo, Photo Every two seconds
• Connects to Mac, PC, or TV; (cable included)

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Sample Video

Here's a sample video I took while Mountain Biking. This video is a bit grainy, so you can watch in high quality on YouTube, to get an idea of the picture quality. The transfer of files to your computer is fairly easy. GoPro doesn't include software, which I think is a good idea. There are so many video editing programs out there. GoPro decided to focus solely on the camera.

GoPro Hero Mounted on Bike Helmet

GoPro Hero Mounted on Bike Handlebars

GoPro Hero Mounted on Ski Helmet

Photograph Taken with GoPro Hero Wide

This is a still picture taken with the GoPro Hero Wide. You may notice the slight "fishbowl" effect in the corners of the picture. Not bad. It's difficult to know where the camera is aiming when it's on top of your helmet. The wide lens helps you capture a larger field. I takes a bit of practice.

GoPro Hero Camera Outside of Waterproof/Shockproof Case

The camera is pictured outside of the polycarbonate housing. You need to remove the camera from the housing to access the memory card and USB port. You can activate the power, shutter, and mode settings while the camera is in the housing. GoPro recommends keeping the white seal free of any debris, so water can't get in the case. We used an eye-glass lens cloth to clean dust out of the inside of the housing.

Go Pro Hero Camera Backside

You can use the batteries and SD memory card to reference the size of the camera. Our tests revealed the batteries lasted a little over two hours of film time.

Mounting Strap with Clip

Here's a close-up of the mount and clip. The camera attaches to the clip (labeled GoPro) and snaps into the mount. This allows for a quick interchange of the camera between different mounts.

Multiple Mounting Devices for the GoPro Hero Camera

The GoPro Hero comes with a head-strap mount, helmet-strap mount, a few sticky mounts, a 3-way pivot arm and an extra clip. I also had the additional bike mount kit, which allows you to mount the camera on any round object.

MORE SAMPLE VIDEOS

Ski Helmet Camera

Watch in high quality

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Watch in high quality  

PROS

This camera givse you a great way to share, with your friends and the world, the sport you're passionate about. The helmet camera gives a first-hand perspective of what it's really like to participate in a sport. I could see these camera's used for training of race car drivers, downhill skiers and freeride mountain bikers. You get to see the terrain in the video, as you'd see it in person.

The mounting devices and the camera are very sturdy. I was concerned that the sticky mounts would my fall off my helmet. That did happen once, only after a face-plant into the snow while skiing. The camera got smashed in the snow and looked like a snowball. No damage, just some fog accumulated on the inside of the housing.

CONS

Take practice photos and videos before hoping to capture your action sport on film. We spent a day skiing and didn't get any video because the default setting somehow got switched to photo from video. Don't ask how this happened. You'll find out, once the camera is on your helmet and you start pushing buttons, settings get changed. We made the mistake of not checking the settings often enough. Also it's good to have someone help you get the camera angle adjusted correctly on your helmet. There is a small view finder on the camera to help with this adjustment.

You can't watch the videos unless you hook the camera up to a computer or television. That said, you never quite know what you're going to get. Sometimes it's really great footage, and sometimes it's terrible. It takes some trial and error to get it dialed in.

BOTTOMLINE: BOMBPROOF CAMERA TO SHARE YOUR PERSPECTIVE

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