CamPark V40 Action Camera

CamPark V40 Action Camera

More Info and Purchase: https://tinyurl.com/yaszrj2e
https://www.campark.net

Blog:
https://marcoscucom.wordpress.com/2022/03/19/campark-v40-action-camera/

Currently available direct from Campark for a remarkable $129.99 the Campark V40 action camera shows just how much action cameras have developed over the years. This is the only budget priced action camera I have tried which really does bear comparison to the market leading GoPro range and in some respects exceeds it.

The camera and accessories arrived packaged in an attractive mid market branded product box. A good range of accessories and mounts are included, too many to list here but they are all shown in my video. Notably, these include two batteries, an external charger, and a wrist-mounted remote control all very welcome additions to the kit. The printed User Guide, much superior to those usually found, is a decent size, well printed, and easy to read. The only notable omissions are an SD card and a carry case.

Physically the camera has a more rounded and modern design than most of the older rivals and with the addition of the front facing screen, it has a distinct look of the GoPro about it. It feels more weighty and substantial than the lesser rivals with a genuinely premium feel to it. The 2″ rear LCD screen is above average in quality and brightness with a touch screen that is responsive and easy to use. The front facing 1.4" screen is less bright but allows you to easily check you are in frame when addressing the camera. On the front are the lens and secondary LCD screen, on the top, are the microphone, OK/Shutter and Mode buttons. On one side is the Power/On button and on the other the speaker and grommet protected micro USB and micro HDMI ports. On the underside is the grommet protected battery bay and micro-SD card slot (max 128GB). At last here is a battery port that is secure but easy to open and a shout out must be given for that. The camera itself is waterproof to 10M without using the supplied diving case which then extends it to 40M.

The camera comes with two large capacity 1350mAh batteries and an external charger although the camera itself will charge the battery when plugged in. One three hour charge should give you around a realistic 90 minutes of use.

Operating the camera is easy enough. Power on and then swipe the rear screen to select either Photo or Video modes and then swipe up to see the quick launch screen for that mode containing touch button shortcuts for the commonly used options. Swipe down for quick access power off and screen lock Long pressing the Mode button switches between front and rear screens, short pressing switches between modes and quick settings. Access to the full settings menu is done from the main rear screen cog icon and once in settings, a full range of touch screen options can be found for Photo and Video modes as well as general system settings. The settings are too many to go into here but there is not much that is not available and the settings can also be changed in the excellent iSmart DV phone app, of which more later.

There was a time when mid-range action cameras gave you grainy, low-resolution video with colour casts and artefacts, but those days are gone at least as regards this camera. Video quality, using the MP4 H.264 codec, is by far the best I have encountered for an action cam in this price range, and a definite step up from the cheaper no-name GoPro clones of the past. Unlike with so many others, here there is no substantive daylight colour cast. The 170° wide-angle lens is great and largely free of the barrel distortion commonly found but can reduce it for this in the settings by reducing the field of view, but I suspect this may be achieved by simply electronically cropping the image. Electronic Image Stabilisation is available and although not perfect makes a real difference and bears comparison to that found in cameras costing several times the price asked here. The camera does an excellent quality 4K@30fps ( 3840×2160), better by far than any I have tested in this price range. I find a good quality 1080@60fps to be far more useful and consumes far less card space. Night video quality is far less impressive but then I have yet to find decent low light recording on any action camera. Slow-motion is restricted to 720p@60 or 120fps, which is a pity, but it works well enough. It also does loop recording allowing the camera to serve as a dashcam and with HDMI and USB out it will also work nicely as a webcam. Still images were excellent for the price and free from colour fringing or casts. Remember that the sample footage in my unboxing video will have been heavily compressed during posting and not reflect the true quality. I would say the image quality and features are comparable to those from a mid to high-end phone.

Audio quality is pretty good too and greatly enhanced when using the supplied external microphone. The microphone attaches to the micro-USB port, rather than the standard 3.5mm jack, and so far I have failed to find a suitable adapter to allow me to use my RODE radio mic with it.

Like many more upmarket action cameras, it has wifi built in which means the camera generates a mini wifi network of its own which allows an attached phone have basic control of the camera and view live-streamed video. To use it you need to download the “iSmart DV” app. The Android app, which I tested, is once again considerably better than most and will act as a remote control, configure camera settings, play recorded videos, stream video, and save images and video from the camera to the app. I did not encounter any stuttering when streaming video unlike with almost every rival camera app I have tried. Certainly using the app is the easiest way to change the camera settings.

This is certainly the best action camera I have used in this price range. It may lack a few of the high-end specs and more arcane features of high-end rivals (none of which any importance to me) but the most important thing, the image quality, is the first-rate and for me, that is the key point of any camera.

For the price, this is a remarkable buy.

The Good
Great price
Good video quality
Excellent Image Stabilisation
170° Angle of view
Tripod Screw Mount
External Microphone
Wifi App
Wide range of accessories included
Two batteries + External Charger

The Bad
No SD card included
No Carry Case
Non-Standard Microphone Port

Music: YouTube Audio Library: Sunrise Drive - South London HiFi