By Whether you’re capturing the thrill of the ride, or safety is more of a concern for you, there are lots of options to think about when trying to choose a video camera to use on your bike. But what is the best camcorder for motorcycle riders? Let’s get into it…
Use cases for motorcycle camcorders
There are probably a few different reasons you might want to film your motorcycle ride, and this going to determine where you want to spend money.
Safety cameras/dash cams
If safety is your main concern, there are a couple of different routes you can go down.
The key features you’ll need for this type of use, include a way to power the camera directly from your bike, as well as power up and down when you switch your bike on and off.
You’ll also want the camera to be able to record on a loop and discard the footage as you go, to avoid the camera’s memory being full at that critical time
These types of cameras record all the time on a loop and you can capture just the footage you need in case of an incident you need to provide evidence for insurance purposes etc.
A popular system seems to be the Innov range of bike-specific dashcams. These cameras aren’t focused on publishable video quality – but are designed to tuck away nicely on your bike to provide an always-available safety cam setup.
Filming your ride
If your needs lean more towards wanting to just film your rides, either to share online or just for your own memories then there are a lot more exciting options available to you.
Best motorcycle video camera to capture the scenery
One of my favourite video cameras to have on the bike is the Insta 360 one x2 (x3 also now available) The reason is it is absolutely fantastic for capturing your whole surroundings. The other benefit is that you can get multiple viewpoints for the same shot on just one camera. If you want a rear view and front view at the same time with just one click of the record button this is a great option.
The other great thing about 360 cameras for recording your rides is that they are always recording in all directions. Once you have your camera in a good position you can catch pretty much everything going on around you.
The downside is that there is an extra step to go through to edit and reframe your footage. If you aren’t too hot with video editing and technology, or you just have no interest in the extra effort involved. This may not be the option for you.
Best lightweight motorcycle helmet camera
I’ve always hated having cameras on my helmet, maybe it’s just the kind of helmet I buy, or maybe I just already have a very heavy head – but having a camera on my helmet has always been something I can only do for a short period of time before getting a tired neck. I can just feel the extra weight instantly when I attach the camera and equally I feel relief straight away when I take it away.
The best solution to this that I’ve found so far is the Insta 360 Go 2. The camera itself is tiny and lightweight enough that you really don’t notice it at all when it’s mounted to your helmet.
The downsides are its short battery life – about 20-25 minutes of recording, and inbuilt memory of either 32 or 64 GB. If you’re ok with just clicking the record button when there’s something interesting to record, this works just fine – but if you want to record a longer rider, this might not be the option for you.
Best camera for moto vlogging
The go-to favourite for Motovloggers for many years has been a GoPro, in on of its many versions, but typically version 7 of the Hero black range for best video quality and results.
That being said, GoPro in recent years has started to get a reputation for having buggy cameras that freeze up, and sometimes even lose footage. This has started the trend away from these cameras to start looking for better options.
One to take a look at is the Insta 360 One RS. This is a modular camera that allows for interchangeable lenses for either 360 shooting or a lens that gives a normal action cam type set-up. The advantage of the Insta 360 one RS is that the base action model comes in around £250 at the moment, (without the 360 attachment) The other huge advantage is that of consistent reliable audio, through an affordable (and also small!) adapter.
While other cameras from GoPro and DJI provide similar offerings, the adapter for the GoPro will set you back around £50 just for an adapter, or around £70 for the ‘media mod’. The sound management with a go pro is good, but it will cost you and both are pretty cumbersome add-ons for a Moto vlogging setup.
The other tangible option is the DJI Osmo Action 3. Easily attaching a mic is possible, but many users report additional controllers needed to manually control the incoming audio when using external mics for Moto vlogging.
