jdpman wrote:There is no comparison in that comparison link. Unless you call both of them in one picture as being a worthy comparison.

Anyway heres a link with some actual review information from that site. Little more helpful than just a pic:

http://maiamedia.co.uk/2012/04/action-camera-review-swann-freestyle-hd/

Very helpful. Thanks. That pushed me over the edge. In for one for my son's birthday.

Amazon actually sent me an email advertising this Woot deal at 5:20 am today. Is Woot really just a pseudo hip corporate subsidiary of the General Motors of Internet retail?

sdutango wrote:Can someone tell me how would I mount this on the side of my car door? I'm a motorsports fan so I video of my driving from the outside of my car, any suggestions? And let's say if i mount this thing on top of my car root, will the angle enough for me to record the hood, the road and the sky? thanks!

This may help...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GAKDkhvjGXE&feature=related

Does it record sound? Does anyone know?

I would have picked this up but I just picked up a GoPro Hero on sale at my local Walmart for $99.

Is the remote control waterproof??

I choked on a digital camera once. Fortunately, someone performed the Kodak maneuver on me.

the description says it includes the helmet mount

but I don't see any straps on the description and pictures

does anybody know if those are included?

$199 at AMAZON.COM with 3 stars out of 5 with 6 reviews.

Complaints about the sound and the fact that the LCD viewer can't be attached while inside the waterproof case.

jayeeyee wrote: I was hitting a corner at 70-75mph

Wow. That's pretty fast for autocross. Wish we had room for courses like that.

I've noticed the video color difference is quite dramatic between this and the GoPros... if you want color quality, GoPro...

But for me... random skate vids and recording the antics of a 4year old, I now have $150 left over for other chit...

Still wondering about purchasing extra batteries though. To the Google!

I'm in for 1. (Pretty sure it's a contractual obligation to post a comment if you wooted. I wooted.)

I'm in the market for an action cam to add another dimension to our Jeep off-roading adventures (we use a cheap dash cam picked up on Woot earlier in the year), but adding a cam on the side or front of the Jeep will produce more fun video.

Almost clicked on the BUY button for the Swann, but after looking over the reviews, video quality, specs, pros/cons, etc., I'm going to pass on this one. I like the Contour product line - two versions have WiFi and you can use your Android phone to control the cam - what a neat feature!

I don't know why, but I've always wanted a GoPro or camera like this. Then I think about it and realize I don't do anything very interesting. :s Nobody wants to see a video of my perspective sitting on the couch.

adriansouki wrote:Will it work for dirt bike riding?

Only if you turn off anti dirt bike mode. Sorry, I had to...

I have a couple of GoPros and I love them. They are awesome. The lenses are wide angle and I never miss the shot. I have mounted them to just about everything you can think of. However, this seems fairly (almost)comparable to the Hero 1 at a cheaper price. If you just want something that will be a close comparison and much less money, I'd say get it. You can always upgrade cameras later if you feel the need to. I just have too many cams as it is or I might have tried it.

I will stay with my GoPro Hero 2...

Looks like GoPro has better depth of field. Could be due to wider angle lens. The Swann does not seem to have good optics.

If it has variable focus, I'll get one. If it is fixed focus, it seems to be fixed and fuzzy which is bad. Variable focus, might just have problems in that it chose to focus on the handlebars in this demo, which could be avoided.

I went ahead and ordered one. I already have a Drift HD170 Stealth I use when riding my Can-Am Spyder Roadster and I love it. I am getting this one for my wife to use on her Spyder so we can film each other on the road. Looking forward to good times mashing videos together.

The Swan goes under water? So you can do a Swan Dive?

I have a few GoPros and the biggest difference is that the Go's are wide angle lens's and the Swann is not.

Actually this is wrong. You just need to switch to 720p mode for the wide angle lens. You should be doing 60fps instead of 30fps anyway :-/

abitterwoman wrote:...I don't do anything very interesting. :s Nobody wants to see a video of my perspective sitting on the couch.

I'll be the judge of that! Post a current pic please.

forget the camera, I'm going to buy one of these just for the 1 megawatt laser!

If I hadn't just bought a Hero2 about a month ago, I'd be all over this.

JirafaBo wrote:I didn't even know they made GoPro knockoffs!

Anyone know if it takes the same mount as the GoPro? It looks the same but hard to tell, would be nice if the clip where it slides into the mount is the same so you could use all the mounts I already have for my GoPro. Wish I'd of had this instead of the GoPro, real pain having to ask everyone if the camera is on/off all the time and reaching up to turn it on/off!

rickkuhn wrote:Anyone know if it takes the same mount as the GoPro? It looks the same but hard to tell, would be nice if the clip where it slides into the mount is the same so you could use all the mounts I already have for my GoPro. Wish I'd of had this instead of the GoPro, real pain having to ask everyone if the camera is on/off all the time and reaching up to turn it on/off!

Found answer in the review! It uses the same mounts as GoPro!!!!
Availability of more mounts would also be a very welcome addition. Action cameras are versatile and creative because of the mounts available and it was sad that I had to use GoPro accessories to make the best use of the camera. That said it’s good that the various action cameras are using the same mounting system so users can mix and match their cameras with mounts and accessories from other manufacturers. Swann have also told us that more mounts will be coming available soon which is great news.

gjpjmp wrote:Okay, so can it use go-pro housings??? And ho does it stack up against a Hero 1 or 2. Seems kind of.. cheap..

I LOVE YOUR SIG PIC!! LOL......

Bought this camera and for the life of me can't record audio.. All video with no sound. The instructions are very limited. Video quality is good. The camera to display pict is OK..better on my MAC. May return it if unable to solve audio problem.

ThunderThighs wrote:From the specifications on the main page:

Microphone: Yes - Built In

Can't get it to work on mine. Customer service sucks too.

TazoWolf wrote:My old 720p Epic HD cam was destroyed when my bicycle and I went over a cliff, falling 30 ft.[/url]

Video taken with the old 720p cam:
Adrenaline Rush: Descending Independence Pass Just B4 USA Pro Cycling Challenge Stage 2

I hope you fared better than your cam in the fall.

That is a great descent.

I'm in for one. Going to mount it to my kayak for when I shark fish. Cant wait to see the results. I was going to get a GoPro but with the accessories it was just too much. For this price I wont be too upset if something happens.

I don't see that it comes with an armchair attachment to record my woot-off action. I am afraid it would fly off when I swivel of joy on my computer chair after shooting at a Bird of Costa rica.

Anyone know what battery this takes and if spares are available inexpensively?

I auto race and so these are handy dandy.

I used to own 2 gopro hero motorsport wide angles. 20% of the time you would think they would be recording and nope...no footage. Also can't tell what they are actually viewing. Sucked waiting to get to pc to see what was recorded. Sold those two to get 1 hero 2 HD motorsport wide angle. Gopro is a quality piece, but you pay for it. And the accessories. I hate not being able to view what we are shooting. I ran a few laps and we found out the camera shut itself off or was not a good angle, very irritating.

This swan from the reviews seems to be a decent camera for the price. If you don't have a gopro or want to use multiple cameras (we use 3+ on our car) totally scoop one up. If you don't like it, resell it for more than what you paid.

Also make sure to get a Class 10 micro sdhc card. HD recording can/will stutter on slow write speed cards.

http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/search?Ntt=GoPro&N=0

B&h photo has the original hero's on sale right now

roadcoach wrote:Anyone know what battery this takes and if spares are available inexpensively?

Battery Type Rechargeable Lithium-ion (1000mAh)

Not a standard battery.

northp wrote:I auto race and so these are handy dandy.

I used to own 2 gopro hero motorsport wide angles. 20% of the time you would think they would be recording and nope...no footage. Also can't tell what they are actually viewing. Sucked waiting to get to pc to see what was recorded. Sold those two to get 1 hero 2 HD motorsport wide angle. Gopro is a quality piece, but you pay for it. And the accessories. I hate not being able to view what we are shooting. I ran a few laps and we found out the camera shut itself off or was not a good angle, very irritating.

This swan from the reviews seems to be a decent camera for the price. If you don't have a gopro or want to use multiple cameras (we use 3+ on our car) totally scoop one up. If you don't like it, resell it for more than what you paid.

Also make sure to get a Class 10 micro sdhc card. HD recording can/will stutter on slow write speed cards.

http://gopro.com/hd-hero-accessories/lcd-bacpac/

micheal0484 wrote:http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/search?Ntt=GoPro&N=0

B&h photo has the original hero's on sale right now

what sucks is that camera does not come with all the mounts. So you have to buy mounts still.

micheal0484 wrote:http://gopro.com/hd-hero-accessories/lcd-bacpac/

Oh I saw that recently, but another large sum of money to drop to get that ;)

northp wrote:Oh I saw that recently, but another large sum of money to drop to get that ;)

lol GoPro is expensive but I was just letting you know the options were there.