What is the best camera?

[DEARxHOPE]

Hi.

In the past I bought a Excelvan TC-J6 (Novatek 96655, ON Semiconductor AR0330), but the quality wasn't good, sometimes videos were good, and sometimes there was artefact in there. So I selled it.
Recently, I bought a Excelvan (yes, this brand again, they are available on Amazon and are compatible with premium delivery) Q6H (Allwinner V3, IMX179), but it's a bit out of focus, the 4k and the 60/120fps are not usable at all, and it's unusable on a bike because of shaking. I am selling it !

Now i'm searching for a camera that is better than those at about 100$ !

What are you recommend me to buy ?
Can you do a ranking by price range (<50$, 50$-100$, >100$) ?

Thanks !

[nutsey]

Hi.

<$50 Eken H9 (not H9 SE),
$50-100 GitUp Git2P, XiaoYi,
>$100 Yi 4K.

[akk9793]

Hi.

<$50 Eken H9 (not H9 SE),
$50-100 GitUp Git2P, XiaoYi,
>$100 Yi 4K.

There are Eken H9 with EKEN logo printed under lens and majority are WiFi logo, whats the difference between them?

[nutsey]

They all come from the same factory. No logo = no support.

[Dnv]

Hi.

<$50 Eken H9 (not H9 SE),
$50-100 GitUp Git2P, XiaoYi,
>$100 Yi 4K.

What about new cameras with Sony IMX117+Ambarella A12? Do they still have many problems?

[nutsey]

Yes, they are far from perfect yet. I believe ThiEYE T5 and SJCAM SJ7 A12 cams have more chances to be refined soon.

[skinnie]

nutsey, do you think Gitup and Xiaomi provides better firmware?
I am also in the boat for 90-130 Action Cam, till now I thought Sj7 would be my choice, but I also have seen the Xioami Yi Lite...
I value more the still photos than the video, but as everyone I would want the best bang for the buck (I also have seen that there is H265 in the corner and that SJ7 doesn't support.
Should I wait for something new (Sj8? GIt3?), I don't have rush.

[nutsey]

At the moment I would vote for Hawkeye Firefly 8S with 90-degree lens.
But you should know that Hisilicon Hi3559 cams are alsmost here and they can do 4K30 in H.265.

[DEARxHOPE]

Ok thanks.
Is there any focus problem with this cams (Eken H9, GitUp Git2P, XiaoYi, Yi 4K) ?
What are you thinking about the Firefly 7s, and about ThiEYE T5 and i60 ?

I'm so confused... There's too much cameras in the market...

[nutsey]

I would recommend Git2P by GitUp. It seems to be the best value for the money action camera at the moment.

[DEARxHOPE]

Thanks. But i saw that the Git2P is at more than 100$ and without any accessories (without case).
She also has a 90° FOV, that doesn't correspond to what i'm searching for in a sport camera !
Can you recommend me another camera at 100$ with image stabilization and a 170° FOV ?

[DEARxHOPE]

It's time to do the point !
Some news cameras come on the market and some firmware update come to correct some bugs.
Now, what is the best camera ?

Xiaomi Yi 4k+ I thing ? Ok but at a lower price... Xiaomi Yi ?

[nutsey]

Now the choice became even more complicated as we have a variety of modern 4k SoCs on the market like iCatch V50, upcoming Allwinner V5 and Novatek NT96683... I'd vote for Firefly 8S as its firmware already shows satisfactory results and is being updated frequently, for example the latest FW update brings RAW still shooting.

[petesimon]

I think some good options right now are the Eken H5s Plus, Firefly 8s, the Xiaomi Mijia (mini) and the ThiEYE T5e, maybe even the SJCAM SJ6 and firmware updates are available for all these cams.

*EDIT* Also the Yi Lite (with a HiSilicon chip)

But as nutsey said, the cameras with new tech for around $100 USD, give or take $20, are very nice. I ordered and waiting for a MGCOOL Explorer 3 (iCatch V50). Hm....but I don't yet know if firmware updates are available for this cam.

[nutsey]

Let's name all mid- and low-end action cam brands who provide more or less real user support with frequent and relevant FW updates:
GitUp
Hawkeye Firefly
SJCAM
Xiaomi/Mijia
Yi Tech

ThiEYE or Eken could be listed here as well but they are not making enough efforts yet being followed by marketing strategies.

[petesimon]

nutsey - Eken provides firmware for their new 2018 line of cameras, the H6s and others?