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Available for just £25.99 the updated AC400 action camera, the entry-level member of the Victure action camera range shows that now decent quality action cameras really can be had for very little money. In the past budget action cameras were characterised by colour casts, grainy video, and poor build quality but here at least, those days are gone.
The camera and accessories arrived packaged in an attractive upmarket box identical to those higher up the Victure range which shows the increased care now given to the presentation of budget products. A full range of accessories and mounts are included, too many to list here but they are all shown in my video. The only notable omission is that of an SD card, which means the camera cannot be used straight from the box. This is a pity as they are cheap enough these days and would not add greatly to the cost. The printed User Guide is better those usually found, is a decent size, well printed, in good English and easy to read but not as detailed as I would wish.
Physically the 6 x 2.5 x 4.2 cm 63.5g camera is well designed and easy to use although feels cheaper than models higher up the range. All the buttons are semi-recessed and the battery cover is secure but I struggled for some time to remove (and replace) it. The LCD screen is bright and easy to read but is not touch-sensitive. On one side is the unprotected panel housing the micro-SD card, micro-HDMI, USB and microphone ports. On the other are the Down/Wifi and Up buttons. On the front is the Power/Mode button and the top the OK/Shutter release. The camera also comes with two batteries and a full range of mounts and adapters.
The camera has four basic modes of operation accessed by short pressing the power button on the camera front: Video, Photo, Burst, and Time Lapse. It has HDMI video out and so can be connected directly to your TV, although a separate micro-HDMI cable will be needed for this. It can also be connected directly to a PC or video display to view files and function as a webcam. It can also be used as a simple car dashcam since it supports loop recording but lacks the important G-Sensor to detect impacts.
Gone are the days when budget action cameras gave you grainy, low-resolution video with colour casts and artefacts. Video quality is one of the best I have encountered for an action cam in this price range, and a definite step up from the cheaper no-name GoPro clones of the past. Unlike with so many others, here there is no daylight colour cast. The 170° wide-angle lens is great but with the barrel distortion common to all of this type. Unlike the more expensive rivals, there is no option for Image Stabilisation (EIS) or image cropping to adjust the angle of view, not that I would need to use it. The camera does decent quality 1080p@30fps, which is the minimum frame rate for usable video, although for action work I would prefer to reduce image quality to 720 and switch up to 60fps. Basic slow-motion is available at 60ps@720p. Still images were good and free from colour fringing or casts and needed no enhancing on my PC. Remember that the sample footage in my unboxing video will have been heavily compressed during posting and not reflect the true quality. I would say the image quality and features are comparable to those from a mid to high-end phone.
The camera is claimed to be waterproof to 30M and I have no reason to doubt it. It should certainly be fine for all normal swimming and diving use and how many of us dive to the 40M depth of some high-end cameras?
The camera has a settings mode accessed using the rear screen and this is one of the best I have tried so far with multiple and easy to read options large and bright enough to be used outdoors. The camera comes with two 1050mAh batteries but no separate charger so you cannot charge the second battery when the camera is in use.
Like many more upmarket action cameras, it has wifi built in which means the camera generates a mini wifi network of its own which allows an attached phone have basic control of the camera and view live-streamed video. To use it you need to download the “iSmart DV” app from Apple or Android. I did not encounter any of the stutterings often found when streaming video but my testing of the app was limited. Usually action cameras have appalling sound quality but in this case, it was not bad at all, which is just as well as there is no option for an external microphone. One unusual feature it has is a quite sophisticated and very useable Time-Lapse mode which is something I have not seen before in a camera in this price bracket.
This is one of the best action cameras I have used in this budget price range and closely resembles in form factor and build quality those higher up the Victure range. Image quality is excellent, there is a limited but useful range of modes and options available.
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