Review Of VholdR ContourHD Wearable Camcorder – A Helmet Mountable Device
Sum and Substance:
Thumbs Up:
Extremely easy to use, has 720 HD recording capabilities.
Thumbs Down:
Expensive, no photography mode.
Inside the Trunk:
Accessories included – goggle strap mount, microSD card included, USB cord, battery pack, rotating lens, flat surface mount
The Whiz Kid Speaks:
VholdR ContourHD 5.0 megapixels camcorder. The videos are stored in H.264 format, with options for resolutions like H.264 – 1280 x 720 and H.264 – 848 x 480.
Maximum viewing angle for the lens is 135 degrees; minimum focus range is 19.7 in
The camcorder is powered by li-ion rechargeable battery; it has battery life of three hours and takes four hours to fully charge itself. Connecting ports on the device include USB port and a slot for microSD card. The unit comes with a 2 GB card and supports up to 16 GB of cards.
The ContourHD comes with a 180 days warranty and supported operating systems are Apple Mac OS X 10.5, MS Windows Vista, Apple Mac OS X 10.4, MS Windows XP.
Razzle Dazzle:
The ContourHD is a tube like device that can be used on helmet for recording videos. The device is 1.34 inches wide, 3.75 inches long, 2 inches tall and weighs 4.3 ounces. The weight is not much when you attach it to your head and it won’t make your head feel heavy. We won’t call the camcorder sexy looking and it seems very little effort has been done to make it beautiful with the aluminum exteriors. The device is a bit fragile so make sure you handle it with care.
Inside Dope:
The ContourHD is designed in such a way that it can be strapped on to your helmet, to record while doing activities on the move. The camcorder doesn’t have a still photo capturer which might be a deal breaker when it comes to competition. It doesn’t have a viewfinder either, digital or optical. On the positive note, the ContourHD is one of the few helmet camcorders which can record in high definition of 720p.
The lens of the ContourHD can be rotated at 192 degrees which gives you a variety of orientations for mounting. The camcorder doesn’t have an optical viewfinder or LCD but there are red laser pointers near the lens which will help you to aim and will also serve as lens orientation’s secondary indicators.
The lens is not that big and gives a viewing angle for 135 degree for HD recording and 90 degrees for standard definition. The reduction is due to the cropped aspect ratio. Operating the camera is very simple; there are not a lot of buttons to confuse you. There is a slider at the top of the device which you will have to slide up to start recording. Slide the switch down and it will stop recording.
On the back of the camcorder there is memory status light, battery status light and power button. There is also toggle button for HD/SD recording, micro-USB port, LED for charging indicator, slot for microSD cards and battery slot.
The camcorder ships with 2 GB memory card, USB cord and rechargeable battery. You can also do the latter by hooking up the camcorder to the USB port of the computer. USB is also used for transferring videos to a computer (both MAC and Windows supported) and if you the device supports up to 16 GB cards in case you are unsatisfied with the 2 GB bundled card. It takes about four hours to recharge the battery and a full charge gives you 3 hours of battery life.
The ContourHD isn’t rich in options, it has just 2 settings of SD and HD and there is no photo mode either.
The ContourHD has 135-degree wide angle lens which are exploited to the fullest when you use the HD recording mode. You get resolution of 1280×720 for video recording at 30 fps. The videos are saved in MOV format. 30 minute videos will take about a gig of space on the card so the two GB card can store an hour of video. In the standard definition mode you get resolution of 854×480 pixels and the frame rate is doubled at 60 fps. For lower resolution you get more space on the memory, the two GB card will be able to store two hours of SD video.
The TRails, (which is ContourHD’s name for mounting rails) have a few mounting options like adhesive mounts and the included strap. There is also an adapter for universal mount which gives a threaded tripod mount and PanaVise manufacturered suction-cup windshield mount.
The tiny lens of the camcorder won’t be much helpful when shooting in dim light conditions. Fortunately the video quality is great in bright light environments. The camera gets confused with exposure and this can be clearly seen when you move the device from outdoors to indoors quickly. But the camera is made for outdoor use and we don’t think this is a serious drawback.
The camcorder bundles with a soft ware called Easy Edit which can be used with both MAC and PC. You will be prompted to download latest version of the software from the internet, when plug in the device for the first time through USB. Other options include clipping of videos and sharing them on the website of VholdR.
The camcorder is extremely easy to use and there are no intimidating buttons or functions that usually take a time to get used to. There is a reference manual included but probably you will never have to use it as you will understand the controls quite easily.
Nitty Gritty:
The ContourHD is easy to use, it has everything that you want (no photography mode, though) and the controls are not confusing at all. Get this if you are looking for such a camera.
