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Not Impressed With My GoPro, at All.

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CCampbell-A1
Posts: 264 - Karma: 13
So I bought the GoPro HD Helmet Hero MegaPack from PointOfViewCameras.ca, what follows is a warning/tale for anyone interested in this camera.

Props to POVC, even with free shipping the camera arrived a week earlier than the Canada post estimated date, and it was undamaged. There were a few mounting nuts missing, is this normal?

I got my GoPro about a week ago, and couldn't be happier. The HD is flat out AMAZING for a 300$, tiny camera like this, I expected much worse. The slow motion (720p60) is sweet, really great for action shots (the whole point of the camera), and the waterproof housing seems legitimately bomber. Now for the bad.

I used the camera for a day or so cliff jumping with some friends= and I quickly realized:

The mounting system sucks. Absolutely incapable of holding the camera straight under any sort of strain, even torquing it tight with a screwdriver wasn't foolproof. it kept flopping over on our pole mount, and while it's not a big problem, it seems like a waterproof camera like this should float.

I had the camera at another cliff-filled area a few days ago, decided to jump off of a 60 foot or so bridge (Indian Brook in Cape Breton, for the 0.5 people who would know/care). I had it ghetto-strapped to my wrist using the helmet strap, which is already ripping, facing my head. I jumped feet-first. The "shock-proof" camera decided to spit out the memory card on water impact, ruining my video. I'm probably gonna return it to POVC, I'm pretty disappointed.

Just a cautionary tale for anyone interested in the GoPro, keep in mind that I might have a defective camera, or that I may be pushing it too hard, but it seems to me that an "action sports camera" should hold up to the pretty unimpressive abuse I've thrown at it.

P.S. Did I format my title correctly? :P
Jul 23 2010 9:21PM
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MrLarsen
Posts: 583 - Karma: 16
I'm not really sure you can find any cameras that you can jump 60 feet of stuff into water and expect them to not get some kinda malfunction if you catch a bad landing with the camera or something. Atleast not even remotely close to the gopro in price.

That being said, I'm pretty happy with my GoPro. But then again I haven't jumped of anything higher than approx. 15 feet or so with it. But I've seen shots from a 10 meter (32 feet) diving tower into a pool, and the gopro seemed to hold up fine from that height..
Jul 23 2010 9:43PM
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MAC.D
Posts: 5654 - Karma: 344
I'm pretty sure gopro hasn't advertised their camera as "shock proof", ever.
Jul 23 2010 10:09PM
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BWalmer
Posts: 9141 - Karma: 12,883
I'm assuming you didn't use all the parts that come with the "pole mount" (bike mount), cause it's really much more than necessary, just use the part that goes around the pole and attach that straight to the housing. As far as floating, go to a place that sells boating supplies, they'll have these keychain things for boat keys that are meant to float, they work really well with the GoPro to keep it from sinking. As far as 60' cliff jumping...I'm pretty sure they never advertised that it could do that, so that's probably why it didn't hold up.
Jul 23 2010 10:29PM
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Juice.Doctor
Posts: 2791 - Karma: 293
yeah you probs shouldnt have taken it off 60 feet. it might have been how you landed in the water or something.
Jul 24 2010 10:15AM
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Dustin.
Posts: 13839 - Karma: 7,704
Yes, your standards are monumental for most cameras, not even just a $300 camera. Mine has been skydiving, biking, skiing, rafting and more and it has performed very well. A 60 foot jump with that is asking way too much.
Jul 24 2010 4:14PM
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Balto
Posts: 25985 - Karma: 4,398
this

think of it like this, a 60ft cliff is almost the equivalent of landing on concreate, really think the gopro is meant to do that?
Jul 24 2010 4:36PM
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nickyp
Posts: 5673 - Karma: 215
You're an idiot.

If you want to pole mount it, but the pole mount. I attached it to my bars when riding DH, and it doesn't move.

Also, the camera is not designed to be, or advertised as shock proof. Just looking at, and feeling the plastic case should tell you that.

You should definitely not get a refund for this. It has performed exactly as it's supposed to, it's you that is in the wrong.

I abuse my GoPro massively, and it still churns out high quality video.


Also, to add insult to injury, pics or it didn't happen on the 60' bridge.
Jul 24 2010 4:46PM
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Otter.
Posts: 1161 - Karma: 84
Hey guys im gonna go run over my gopro with a car. U think it will makeit ????
Jul 24 2010 5:14PM
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nickyp
Posts: 5673 - Karma: 215
I'm going to throw mine in a fire, because GoPro definitely advertises it as fire proof.
Jul 24 2010 5:54PM
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Drew.C
Posts: 1757 - Karma: 39
Im going to use my gopro to film myself banging the OP's mom. Do you think it will break?
Jul 24 2010 6:52PM
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Canadianfreeride
Posts: 281 - Karma: 227
I am going to cut up my goPro with a chain saw!!1 Ringgnnnnnnnn rnnnnnn
Jul 24 2010 8:18PM
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alexat955
Posts: 2732 - Karma: 112
hahahahahaha
Jul 24 2010 9:33PM
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salomonkid4
Posts: 325 - Karma: 11
sound affects were deffinitly needed. made it sound so much better
Jul 24 2010 9:41PM
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B_Reid
Posts: 311 - Karma: 2,301
you either mounted it wrong, or you have a defective mounting system, because mine is near bombproof. the only way mine flops over is if you take a hard bail on a big jump.
Jul 24 2010 10:08PM
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alexat955
Posts: 2732 - Karma: 112
you obviously didnt get it
Jul 24 2010 10:41PM
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CCampbell-A1
Posts: 264 - Karma: 13
From the GoPro HD Helmet Hero page, on GoProCamera.com:

"Shockproof, Bombproof, Waterproof to 180’ / 60m"

I believe you were saying something?

My point is that the camera was above my wrist, which should have protected it from most of the shock.

As for the part about the pole mount, I don't know which mysterious part I left out. (note the sarcasm) I put the round parts of the clamp onto the pole, screwed both thumbscrews tight, and attached the camera directly to the mount. Any vibration (Think riding a bike) loosens the screw. This is inherent to the mount, but GoPro could do better with their system.

I get that it's a 300$ camera. I get that it's not gonna be perfect. Just doesn't seem like what I did should have dislodged the memory card. But whatever, I'll work around it. And believe me, you would NOT want to have sex with my mother.

As for a video, whenever I find my sister's camera, she got one as well.

Why so much hate? Sure, I might be expecting a bit much from my camera, but Jesus, I spent time writing an objective review. Tryin' to help.
Jul 24 2010 11:31PM
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MAC.D
Posts: 5654 - Karma: 344
Just went to the GoPro page to look that up. What you quoted is the header for a paragraph. The only thing pertaining to "shockproof" is "Waterproof to 180’ / 60m and tough enough to take a spin across the asphalt".
Jul 25 2010 9:31AM
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Billek
Posts: 5665 - Karma: 98
You just sound stupid.
Jul 25 2010 2:41PM
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CCampbell-A1
Posts: 264 - Karma: 13
How, exactly?
Jul 25 2010 3:00PM
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s.erickson
Posts: 504 - Karma: 992
Haha you sound like a fucking retard. Your standards are waaay too high. If the GoPro kept flopping over

you did something wrong, mine was attached to my handlebars when I was Downhill mtn biking and it

didn't budge. And of course the card released from 60 feet it's no build to keep recording during major

impact, the card is going to release if it gets hit that hard. GoPro is way better than any other action cam

and you are stupid.

Jul 25 2010 3:54PM
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Billek
Posts: 5665 - Karma: 98
You clearly don't know how to mount it properly. Do you think everyone else just puts up with what you're experiencing, then lies about it on the internet?

-as well-

Yes, it is waterproof, and it is constructed to take some abuse. People do incredible things with their cameras, but all within reason. Mountain biking, kayaking, skiing BC lines... those can be considered rough activities, and if GoPros stand up to things like that, damn right they can be considered bombproof, and their claims are justified.

I can think of few things that would be worse for a GoPro than jumping 60' into water with it. I don't care where you position it, there is some serious force being applied by that water, and I am not even taking about being it waterproof.

I say you stop expecting such things from a camera and focus on the incredible amount of other events that you are able to capture with it.
Jul 25 2010 4:03PM
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Billek
Posts: 5665 - Karma: 98
Sorry for any errors, I didn't even read my post over after I typed it.
Jul 25 2010 4:05PM
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SweatyBallShack
Posts: 2857 - Karma: 58
I had a problem with the gopro falling and facing the top of my helmet when I would land even the tinyest of airs but we put an extra washer in it and havent had a problem since. As for the cliff jumping thing, maybe you didnt have the latch all the way down on the top of the cam? That thing is damn near impossible to get open sometimes. And I would really like to see you try to find a camera that "floats". I'm not sure that they exist.
Jul 25 2010 4:30PM
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followCam
Posts: 1907 - Karma: 446
Did you see the video of the guys that used 2 go pros on a weather balloon and sent it into the stratosphere? well the balloon bursts and the go pro's hit the ground and are intact.
if that isnt shockproof then i dont know what is.
im getting one this week.

Jul 25 2010 6:34PM
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MAC.D
Posts: 5654 - Karma: 344
Hahhahahhaha. You really think the gopros fell from that high and didn't get destroyed......they had a parachute..
Jul 25 2010 8:34PM
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Funnel
Posts: 7808 - Karma: 1,414
You stupid.
Jul 25 2010 9:53PM
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CCampbell-A1
Posts: 264 - Karma: 13
Dude, I'm just going by experience,  a lot of the reason I posted this is because a lot of what I've been experiencing seems contrary to what most people have seen with their GoPro. Sure, a 60 footer was a stupidly high expectation, but as far as mounting goes, I never said I was doing it right, I just assumed that the round peg went into the round hole, so to speak. I've herd of other people having mounting problems (I read a bunch of reviews today), especially when doing high-vibration activities, like mountain biking without suspension. I figured that the mount wouldn't hold up, which is why I stated it in my post.

I shouldn't have said that I'm not happy at all, I was just saying that there is/are improvement(s) that could be made (mounting). I think it's a kickass little camera, damn near perfect and an amazing deal, I guess I just expected too much.
Jul 25 2010 11:31PM
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followCam
Posts: 1907 - Karma: 446
i forgot to explain that bit i guess. but it was still travelling pretty fast and hit the ground pretty hard
Jul 26 2010 9:26AM
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Da_CONK
Posts: 528 - Karma: 93
I posted a thread in the Gopro cult about a video series I found on mounting tips and tricks. It shows how each of the mounts works.
Here's the link:
https://newschoolers.com/web/members/cultforumthread/thread_id/545298/
Hopefully that helps you out a little.
Jul 26 2010 9:27AM
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grambo
Posts: 1125 - Karma: 93
60 foot cliff jump into water is the problem. The camera can handle big air on skis because the landing is smooth so there is not a jarring impact (watch footage when people fall on landings, sometimes the video will scramble or black out). Jumping 60' to water is a jarring impact on the camera, not surprised it failed to be honest, not sure what POV system could handle that (and be waterproof, and only cost $300).
Jul 26 2010 1:02PM
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Brock.
Posts: 5698 - Karma: 1,327

Near Space Balloon Flight, shot with HD HERO cameras from GoPro from Kevin Macko on Vimeo.

if it can survive this, im pretty sure it could survive a 60 foot fall to water... unless they used somekind of shock absorbing housing.

Jul 26 2010 1:45PM
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quixotic
Posts: 6937 - Karma: 2,978
that was dope.
Jul 26 2010 5:27PM
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MAC.D
Posts: 5654 - Karma: 344
They used parachutes.....
Jul 27 2010 7:00AM
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Laurent.
Posts: 10054 - Karma: 25,277
Have you seen what it's attached to?

Click for larger image

And I qoute from those guys:
"Yeah, we had no damage to any of the equipment. The styrofoam capsule didn't even have any cracks, so I would say the parachute did its job :)"

The parachute slowed it down, and the sytofoam capsule landed first taking most of the impact.

It's not like a GoPro plunged down to earth at terminal velocity and landed on concrete.

A 60-foot fall in the water is actually a far harder impact then this.
Jul 27 2010 7:37AM
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SweatyBallShack
Posts: 2857 - Karma: 58
Even then terminal velocity really wouldnt be the worst possible thing that could happen. What is it? Like 60 or 70mph?
Jul 27 2010 7:02PM
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family_vacation
Posts: 6200 - Karma: 7,841
So there is this advanced concept called surface tension......
Jul 28 2010 3:51AM
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grambo
Posts: 1125 - Karma: 93
Hahah win
Jul 28 2010 12:53PM
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Backyard.Skier
Posts: 5397 - Karma: 1,497
i am really impressed with mine i have taken some big falls on my mountain bike and the only thing is the case gets mashed up and you have to buy a new one, but its only 40$
Jul 28 2010 5:54PM
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Mr_pretzel
Posts: 4616 - Karma: 1,289
That was great.
Jul 29 2010 2:43AM
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smile=]
Posts: 1858 - Karma: 86
sell me it??
Jul 29 2010 3:40AM
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I_Am_Mod
Posts: 13214 - Karma: 3,753
op fails horribly and should try and find another 300$ camera that delivers as much as the GoPro does....
Jul 29 2010 9:11AM
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Myfirstname.
Posts: 1581 - Karma: 312
Haha^^^ Well I can see where the OP would be upset and i think he argued his side pretty well, although i do agree with the majority of NS. My GoPro is Sick.

I would like to submit this video of Mike Records to show the GoPros not-move-even-on-big-impacts-ness.

Front Flip POV Uncut from Mike Records on Vimeo.


Jul 29 2010 1:55PM
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Fischer-Addicted
Posts: 1064 - Karma: 30
I can see your disapointment. I don't own a gopro so i dont know too much about them but when you think about it. 60 feet into water is an incredible impact. you decelerate very very fast once you hit water. i wouldnt trust any camera mount to work to its full potential for things like that.
Jul 29 2010 2:00PM
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SethLangbauer
Posts: 1119 - Karma: 74
i hate to be with the OP after all this. i have never owned a gopro, probably never will, its too expensive even at 300. has anyone here who says that it should be able to survive a 60' jump ever jumped that? it wouldnt be thaaaaaaaat hard on the camera.... i am sure a crash on skis or a DH bike could do way worse
Jul 29 2010 7:41PM
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CCampbell-A1
Posts: 264 - Karma: 13
After watching the footage (which I'll post tomorrow), It looks like the bridge was only 38-42 feet. i suck at estimating. Much less impact than at 60, given acceleration.

And it wasn't the mount that failed on the jump, the memory card popped out.
Jul 30 2010 12:16AM
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Myfirstname.
Posts: 1581 - Karma: 312
How did the memory card pop out if the camera was in the waterproof housing? It waaas in the waterproof case right?
Jul 30 2010 12:31AM
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I_Am_Mod
Posts: 13214 - Karma: 3,753
did the card pop on one jump? or on every single impact?

if it would pop out due to a very specific blow on the housing it's not that special, those things happen...
but if it would pop out on every impact it might be something with your card slot....


Jul 30 2010 6:00AM
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I_Am_Mod
Posts: 13214 - Karma: 3,753
just saw this on facebook and it confirms that GoPros are actually really badass cameras!


Click for larger image

i quote:

"a GoPro survival story: This GoPro was lost in freefall and found again 4 weeks later in the swamp next to the runway. Just for fun we plugged into a USB and the red light came on! We waited 2 hours for the battery to charge and pressed the power button... It turned on!!! It still works!!! Amazing!! :-)"

" It's a demo we loaned out to a fellow skydiver. She lost it in freefall somewhere between 12.500 and 3000 feet. The camera was found 4 weeks later in the swamp by a skydiver going for a hike. All videos and photos was on the card and after recharge the camera is working! :-) The plastic has lost some of the colour, but otherwise it looks ok..."

"The latch opened sometime in freefall and the camera fell out. So the GoPro survived the impact after thousands of feet in freefall and 4 weeks of Norwegian weather without the protection of the housing."



and before someone starts being the negative nancy; there's also a comment from a guy who dropped his from 3ft and it broke ....
quite a bummer, but GoPro immediately replaced his, so imho GoPro has a really badass customer service... :)
Jul 30 2010 7:19AM
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CCampbell-A1
Posts: 264 - Karma: 13
There's enough room in the casing for the card to dislodge, and yes, it probably was just a fluke. I'm just hoping it doesn't happen again.
Jul 30 2010 9:31AM
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MichSteeze
Posts: 536 - Karma: 12
this.is.awesome.
Jul 30 2010 9:41AM
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