Big Yankee Fan

This may be beyond the purview of this group but am wondering if I can tap into it's collective wisdom and knowledge by asking for recommendations on the purchase of a GoPro or similar small, waterproof mostly video camera. Plan on using it when kayaking and for taking video when placed on board my O-gauge (mostly Lionel) trains. Confess to knowing next to nothing about them. Thanks. Mike

fchretdet

If you "Google" that type of camera you'll find numerous styles, brands, and prices. My experience has been with an SJCAM SJ5000X model. It works adequately, but the battery life is rather short. I used it in my vehicle with a USB power cord and it worked OK. It came with a waterproof (I'm assuming-never tried it in the water) case and some other accessories. Many of the GoPro accessories are compatible with it.
It was also priced noticeably lower than the GoPro.
GoPros, I understand, work very well and have lots of accessories available.
Good luck with whatever you choose.

jcryan Loc: Las Terrenas, Dominican Republic

Go to Amazon and search for Action Camera. There are 4k cameras with waterproof housings for $42. I bought a Yi Lite a couple of years ago but rarely use it. It works quite well and much less expensive than the Go Pro brand.

Red6

I have owned a GoPro Hero 4 Black and was impressed with the stills and video. While the GoPro cameras have been copied, I still think GoPro is probably still the best. The newer ones, the GoPro 8 & 9, have in camera stabilization which may be of interest to you, especially with the train applications.

I recommend that you purchase an older GoPro or even one of the copies and learn about them and their application in your situation. Then once you see how they work, THEN purchase what you really need. If you start out with GoPro, most of the accessories will work with any other GoPro (check this to make sure, I think the newest cameras are slightly larger so some items may not be compatible). I sold my GoPro Hero 4 for less than $30 so the older cameras are available for cheap prices. I am hoping to replace it at some time with a much later model. However, my son does a lot of sports activities and I am thinking of buying him a GoPro 8 or 9 for Christmas.

Good Luck!

traderjohn Loc: New York City

Try YouTube. Punch in GoPro.

bobmcculloch Loc: NYC, NY

I got one from Walmart to play with, same idea, on a kayak, and while on a road trip out the windshield, I want a shot say every 60 seconds, $50.00, tried some still photography with it, not bad , haven't put it to the intended use yet but come summer I'll give it a try, BTW name was van top moment 3, now YMMV, but you get 90 days to return it.

ZtaKED Loc: Lakes Region, New Hampshire & NE Florida

I have a GoPro Hero 7 Black I got as a discounted bundle with a couple attachments. Really good stills and 4k video. Use it at the lake without any issues. The buttons and user interface is hard to get used to and if used infrequently, easy to forget. As with any other camera, once you get the camera, there's the attachments you want to get - floating handle, jaws clamp, tripod mount, head strap, and the list goes on. Peruse all the various attachments and list those out to get a total cost picture. As I recall, the camera comes only with 2 basic attachments. Suggest you might get the Hero 9 as its now usable as a webcam for Zoom, etc. The earlier versions are not.

GLSmith Loc: Tampa, Fl

I have bought 3-4 different "GoPro" clone type. Th eonly one that I continue to work with is the Akaso. I have a specific need to be able to produce slow motion high quality & the Akaso V50 Elite. It offers the typical waterproof case, but also an external microphone, car mode or dashcam as its known.

jerryc41 Loc: Catskill Mts of NY

The GoPro (and cheap imitations) is an amazing little camera. Unfortunately, I haven't used mine to its full potential because I haven't learned it thoroughly. There are very few controls, so you have to know what you're doing. I see more and more of them being used on TV. There are lots of tutorials on YouTube, so take a look and click on "Buy."

I would suggest looking for online comparisons between an actual GoPro and the cheap imitations. Saving money and getting poor results is a waste of money.

https://www.google.com/search?q=real+gopro+vs+imitations&rlz=1C1CHBF_enUS925US925&oq=real+gopro+vs+imitations&aqs=chrome..69i57.7551j1j4&sourceid=chrome&ie=UTF-8

Steve Carlson

I suggest you look at a device that does 360 (Garmin, Insta360). For kayaking and adventure videos I would say a 360 is a must. The quality (stabilization, frame rate, AI) is amazing. I have both a Garmin Hero and an Insta360 One X and saving my money for an Insta360 One X2. The challenge is the technology is advancing quickly adding new features quickly.

PhotogHobbyist Loc: Bradford, PA

I have a GoPro knock off I bought a couple years ago and have used it like a dash cam on my motorcycle. Actually I have purchased two of them, but had three in all. The first had a broken clamp and when I requested a replacement, they sent me another entire camera with accessories, free. The second camera did not work correctly so I used the first camera and combined the accessories. That camera fell while attached to a USB charging cord and the charge connection broke. So, I purchased another and it has worked fine for me. Over all my total cost has been much less than a GoPro. The video and sound from mine is quite adequate and the video is smooth as the cam does have some image stabilization built in. I also purchased a couple after marlet aluminum clamps/mounts to provide better and stronger attachment to my motorcycle so I do not get a repeat of the dropped or falling camera. It has been a procedure but I was not really in "need" of the cam so I was in no hurry for it.

Good luck with your choice. As others have said, there are many out there and some are quite inexpensive.

OKsprat Loc: Oklahoma

I’ve had the GoPro Hero 3+ for 6 years and I’ve used it for mountain biking, skiing, hiking, fishing, and underwater pictures and video. I still use this camera and I have no complaints. It’s never failed me and the best upgrade was when I bought an LED screen to put on the back of it. It looks like all the current models have built in LED screens. I’ve dropped it, smashed it, and kept it underwater for long periods. I bought a set of wasabi batteries for backup.

I bought a Crosstour brand knockoff for my grandson this summer for his 9th birthday for $36.99. (Mine was $399!) All of our mounting accessories are compatible and his works great too. I see where Amazon has a cyber Monday deal on the Crosstour for $29.59. BTW they also have the Hero 7 on sale today for $175.

Lucian Loc: From Wales, living in Ohio

Get the Hero 7 Black because it is now low priced and an excellent camera. I have one and it is great for video or stills. I usually shoot on 2.7K because there is very little difference to the eye on most TV sets, but the file size for storing is much smaller in 2.7K compared to 4K.

The camera itself does not need a housing, it is waterproof as it sits and it also has a small zoom that you can do to change perspective. It has an excellent built in stabilization, though the 8 and onwards are even better, though at a much higher price point. Trust me, you will be fine with what the 7 produces for you. You can run with it and it is still amazingly stable. The Hero 7 Black also has a built in back screen to see what you are shooting and it can be linked to your phone for viewing the shot or controlling the camera. At the current selling (special) price, it is a bargain. It does time lapse, stills, bursts slow motion etc.

Yes 360 cameras are nice but you need special software to do anything with it and they are more work to get all that they offer. So if you don't really need 360, and it sounds like you don't, then stick with the simple GoPro. Yes there are knock offs but I fell that if these knock offs were just as good as, say a GoPro, then GoPro would have gone out of business long ago from the price difference.

I've had GoPros for years and they have never let me down and there are very good low cost after market batteries for them too, some already suggested in these replies. The "Black" versions of each number model from GoPro (4, 5, 6, 7 etc.) are the better models to buy. Take a look on ebay you could probably find a used one for a very good price.

DPFotoZ Loc: Woodruff, SC USA

Just looked at the Crosstour Sports Action Camera 4K 20MP for $40. It doesn't have the zoom feature, is this good or bad, necessary or not? Thanks in advance! Dan

OKsprat Loc: Oklahoma

The perspective on both my GoPro 3+ and the Crosstour are wide angle. I don’t know if it’s necessary to have zoom but it seems like it would be a good thing to have if needed. Having never had it I just can’t say for sure.