Is Xiaomi’s Go Pro Competitor Worth $200?
Being an avid videographer, I’ve tested and played around with plenty Go Pro competitors and all of them seem to have poor camera quality or lack in more than one feature. Now after using the Xiaomi Yi 4k Action Camera for a couple of months I finally found an action camera that does what it says. Read on to find out why.
Features
The Yi 4k Action Camera has some insane video quality thanks to its Sony IMX377 image sensor. Don’t underestimate the small form factor because you’ll be impressed with the quality of video/photo that this produces. Xiaomi went for a rectangular form factor for their camera with it measuring at 65x42x30mm. On paper, you’ll note that is really small!
Key Features
- 4K Video @ 30fps
- 1080p Video @ 120fps
- Touch Screen
- 12MP Images
- Compact Design
The display has a 640×360 resolution which is adequate enough to view your photos and videos. My favorite feature is the touchscreen due to it saving me a lot of time. My previous gripe with these “Go Pro Killers” is that they rarely feature a touch screen so I always found myself fiddling with the buttons – but Xiaomi included a touch screen making it easy to navigate through the settings etc. Just note that you can’t utilize the touch screen when the waterproof casing is on.
Inside the settings you have a lot of options. Here is a list of some of them:
- Adjust Lens Distortion
- ISO Adjustment
- File Format (Jpeg+Raw)
- Color Options
- Brightness
- Video Standard
Camera Quality
Like I mentioned before the video and photo quality this produces is insane. Here’s a sample photo of an indoor shot. Bearing in mind the lighting conditions were somewhat bad, I think it handled it pretty well.
Accessories & Battery
The only downside about the Yi 4K Action Camera is the fact that no accessories are included with it except for the waterproof casing. Fair enough — you do get the waterproof casing which makes it compatible with most Go Pro accessories but you will have to go out and order this separately.
For the battery, this thing has a 1400mAh battery which manages to last a very long time compared to its competitors. I was able to get around 2hrs 30minutes of 1080p at 30fps recording. This is plenty for the average consumer because you won’t exactly be recording for that long in one go, and if you do then there is always the option to carry around spares due to it being removable.
Conclusion
If you don’t fancy paying the hefty price tag on Go Pro’s cameras and are in the market for an action camera then you can’t go wrong with Yi’s 4K Action Camera. It’s currently on sale on Amazon for only $189.96 compared to the Go Pro Hero 5 at $400. The Yi 4K Action Camera has great image quality and not to mention the touchscreen makes it much easier to use and navigate through. Overall its a very good offer for the price and I would definitely recommend it.