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S**C
Best in class for low-cost true 4K
This is one of cheapest TRUE 4k video action cameras on the market right now.Crosstour have not done this by reducing the quality, as I'll demonstrate in a moment, but by stripping a lot of unnecessary features manufacturers use to attract you to lower speced' items. That's things like 10 more add-on floats for the sea, free 8GB SD Card or even "voice output" instead of beeps.Construction:This camera is a tank! It's very well made - consisting of a thick plastic shell, and an integrated battery compartment. As you can see in the pictures, the battery flap is padded, sprung, and attached to the case. Not a separate slip of plastic like in cheaper models. It's a nice touch.The lens and images:The camera offers TRUE 4K - not the interpolated 2K of the very cheap models. Those versions use image enlargement to make smaller video resolutions report as "4K" BUT they are not any greater resolution than 2K. The pixels in effect are just "bigger".I've been able to check this using VLC media player and zooming in at 100% and 200% and reading some roadsign text that is NOT visible by 2K resolution.The field of view is 170 degrees, and the camera does indeed record full 4K at 30 FPS.The picture is sharp across the whole screen, though there's some color fringing in the edges which is not unusual for fisheye lenses.The camera can pick up image detail in shadows when showing bright sunlight - as shown in my photographs, and also performs very well when pointed at my cat's white floof. This tends to "blow out" turning into a white block of light. But the camera was able to capture the highlights in the fur well.A "sun shot" shows the camera performs well, it doesn't flair the image, nor blow it out, and the landscape is still visible.It works ok at twilight, though there's a fair amount of noise - again, not unusual with small lenses like this.It doesn't work for street lighting levels of light - there's just not enough light for the camera to sense through the little lens of an action camera.Overall this camera shines when the lights between overcast and full sunlight. Twilight and night streetlight shooting isn't recommended.The buttons:I'm reviewed quite a few action cameras as their features have evolved.Often I've found that the cases buttons - especially for the deeper-water depth models are very sticky. It makes it hard to feel for the button's "click" leading to damaging the control buttons. It's not like that here - the buttons on the case slide smoothly, and I could feel the "click" of the camera button being pressed. Avoiding the horrible dimple damage to the buttons.The menu controls:The camera because of the expense of a full 4K sensor, isn't packed with rarely used features, and this shows in the menu list.But the camera DOES have all the expected features of a newest model cameras out now.There's a better than the normal "anti shake" even better than that found on the newest models - this works by cropping the sides of the sensor image to keep what you're recording in the center of the recorded picture. The camera records at a little over 4K, and uses the extra pixels to crop the image frame by frame to keep what you are pointed at centralised.Also there's the adjustable "lens angle". This simply crops the sensors side pixels, but means you record a much smaller file size for the video. I'd only use this if my SD card space was low, because all cropping is best done in post-recording for flexibility.The WiFi connection with the phone makes it easier to change the cameras settings, and also view video and pictures on a much bigger screen than the camera offers. You can also start recording when the camera's up a large pole too!Overall this is the best low-price true 4K action camera I've reviewed.I'm happy to recommend this one!The photographs:A: The front of the action camera! Excuse the fingerprint!B: The top showing the large play/record button and mode/power button.C: The micro-HDMI, micro-USB, and micro-SD card plugs.D: The battery compartment. Of note : EXCELLENT construction, with sprung and padded closure.E: The camera with the recording light on.F: The screen preview just before auto-off.G: A part of the control menu.H: All the parts! Of note - 2 batteries, double charger, back screen replcement, USB cable, and lots of mounting brackets.I: The charger. It uses your standard phone power charger, PC or Powerbank USB connector.J: First page of manual - showing parts included.K: Wi-Fi mode - the phones preview of the recording video.L: An "into the sun" shot which it comes with very well.M: 170 degree field, good color, good brightness dynamics.N: Challenging dark/light, close/far image. Good results. 3 feet to infinity focus, detail shown in shadow part of image.O: Focused close up, super bright cat retains detail in floof.P: Good colour reproduction, 170 degree view.
P**E
Image Stabilisation has turned a juddery ride into a smooth ride!
Your browser does not support HTML5 video. I’ve had the camera for nearly a month now and use it daily for my commute to my main job and also in my second job as a delivery driver on a scooter.Firstly, this is a major upgrade on the previous model which I own; mainly to the image stabilisation that has been massively improved upon. Previously, I could not attach the older camera to my scooter / helmet, as the judder made the video unwatchable. With the CT9500, the vibration from the engine and the uneven road is dramatically compensated for, giving a much smoother video. I have added a video to show this, plus please bear in mind that amazon massively deteriorates the quality of the video, so only watch to appreciate the smoothness of the stabilisation. Seriously, just watch my windscreen to see how bumpy this road really is. I have made no adjustments to this video, which was shot in low light, during the twilight hour @ 1080p / 60fps. This is without a doubt a deal breaking feature for someone like me and it is extremely encouraging to see a feature this good at such a relatively low price point.The second huge upgrade I noticed, is the batteries. Firstly, you get a dedicated charger (I had to buy separately for the previous model), which makes swapping out the battery more seamless; particularly as a scooter rider. I can now charge one battery from my glove box, while using the other. More importantly though, they have now increased the batteries from 1050 mah, to 1350 mah. It doesn’t sound like a massive increase, but it really does extend the battery life that much more when out on the road and you don’t have to swap batteries out as regularly any more. Of course, if you are into time lapse photography etc, this will enable you to create much longer videos.There’s also been some more discreet upgrades from my previous model, including a rubber dust cover for the USB and card reader slots, improved microphone (not something I use much), and best of all, it now takes 128gb sd cards. This is a double jump up from the 32gb cards that I was limited to before. Again, as someone who use this camera for a large portion of my day, I can leave the loop recording feature on and not worry about any critical videos being overwritten for 4x longer than before. Excellent!As usual, they have included a plethora of accessories, more than I could ever wish to use. I seriously doubt that there isn’t a piece of equipment included that you would need for every unique mounting situation. I am thrilled with all the options and know that I can mount the camera to pretty much anything.I haven’t tinkered with anything else yet, but I can see they have packed in more options such as customising the white balance, ISO, narrow screen, underwater use etc.All in all, this has been a great purchase so far and a long overdue upgrade.Brilliant!
S**E
Very impressed and much better than the really cheap action cameras
- Amazing image stabilization - as good as my Sony HX-20V.- 1080P @ 60 FPS is silky smooth (60FPS always seems to be less juddery than 50 FPS cameras) with good image quality.- 4K is limited to 30 FPS which is less 'silky' than 60 FPS, but is so sharp and gives amazing detail. I wouldn't bother taking photos; just 'film' the photo' as a short 4K clip and then take a screen shot at the point you want it.... it's THAT good ! And that way, you get a 16:9 photo ( I think the actual photo mode only gives 4:3).- Really nice timelapse quality.- Doesn't wash out/ or 'black spot' when you point it towards the sun ( my really cheap action cams do this).The only slight potential 'worry', is that the waterproof case is bespoke to this camera, and it might be difficult to find a replacement. That's one thing that the really cheap generic action cams do have in their favour - replacement cases are easy to come by.
Trustpilot
2 weeks ago
2 months ago