Camera Caution!

You might remember the blog post I made on my new Sports Camera in September 2015 view article here, but I've recently discovered that you might want to think twice when you're about to buy a specialised sporting camera.

My camera that I use is very reliable for my needs and it came with an accessory pack so I'm not too fussed on the cost; however on the article in September I made, I noticed you can get the same camera which come with accessory packs and WiFi connectivity for up to £5 cheaper on average but for just £5, I don't care because I've got what I wanted and I'm happy it's still working for me. I purchased the camera in July for £45 (which came to $68 USD rounded in September 2015) and when I clicked on the link in that article for the camera on the 21st March 2016, the same product gave me a price of £44 ($63.37 USD & €56.34 EUR as of 21st March 2016) which is only a difference of 1 pound so I don't care.

The camera itself is called the "SJ4000" and if you search for that on Wish, you'll find a range of similar products and the camera bundle itself, it's also important to point out you can find products already included in your accessory bundle which you can use if you need a spare, and you can also find accessories that aren't included in your original pack but become essential once you have them, such as the tripod, suction cup, battery charger, 12 volt charger for cars, and velcro harness for camera placement. From what I've observed, the cameras on Wish are generally in the £40 - £50 region ($58 to $72 USD as of 21st March 2016) for my model with the accessories, however if you want everything the same but just without the WiFi function on the camera, all of the models I saw without WiFi came to £37 each, which isn't bad but if it's the same camera but just another £8 for WiFi connectivity, I'm better off paying the £8 difference as it's the same and WiFi connectivity will just save me time, so it's your choice whether you want to pay for a WiFi enabled camera but keep in mind that you need to download an iPhone app in order to use the WiFi function. Below is an image of what the SJ4000 looks like, just in case you haven't seen one.

Courtesy of: Aykutezer License: CC BY-SA 4.0 Modified: No

I'm happy with what I've got but recently, I found on Wish that you can get a camera with the same specifications and accessories http://www.wish.com/c/5656a5c26a9b4d3233481909 for only £13 ($18.47 USD as of 23rd March 2016), but you don't get WiFi connectivity on the camera; so technically if you compare the £13 cost for a WiFi disabled version and the £45 I paid for my WiFi version, I would have been happy with the version without WiFi as it could technically mean that you pay £32 extra just for a WiFi enabled model, which is an extra 71% on top of the camera's cost; this makes me a little bit annoyed but the way I see it, is if I pay for more I think I might get a more reliable and durable model of the camera, it might be true and it might not but since my camera has worked for over a year, I'm happy overall.

But it's not just Wish, which is a site for bargains and also cheap products which can be faulty so be cautious; it's also big retailers such as UK superstore Argos which sell cameras for good cost too; for instance, Argos are selling a 'Kodak SP360 Action Camera' which can record 360 degrees at 1080p High Definition, up to 160 minutes of recording time, 16 megapixel camera, waterproof up to 60 metres, and many more useful features! As of the 21st March 2016, this item comes to £249.99 ($359.89 USD as of the same date) which is good if you like doing panoramic and 360 degree videos; but if you're a standard camera guy/girl with basic needs then maybe you don't need to go to these lengths.

Courtesy of: Jefferson Graham License: CC BY-SA 4.0 Modified: No

Above is a photo taken by a similar camera which also has a 360 degree lens, it's not the £249.99 Kodak model but it looks just as desirable!

And if high tech sports cameras, 360 degree cameras, those old Flip cameras, or even those sports cameras from Wish are a bit too complicated or even pricey for you, there's always the humble iPhone; notable for it's questionable battery life and for being a very successful product, I used to use my iPhone for personal sandboarding photos and videos prior to starting this blog; you can buy yourself a hard shell and airtight iPhone case for a good price if you look online so you can record, but what I used to do is put my iPhone in a couple of layers of cling film so that the sand wouldn't get in the lens or the electronics of the phone; I wouldn't recommend it now since I've got a camera but even if this was the only thing I had, I still wouldn't recommend it as it's just too risky as sand can be more damaging to a phone than you might initially think.

Finally, since 'Selfie Sticks' are selling well now, you might want to take advantage of those as the extendable arm can go pretty far and get you a good opportunity for some good videos or pictures; If you want to see how good these Selfie Sticks are on Sandboarding, take a look at our Twitter Page where sometimes you can find videos of Sandboarding, you can also look on YouTube for some Sandboarding as well; now I could go on about drones with cameras and the little remote control helicopters with cameras as well but those are articles that I will write soon!