Noob with a Sony X1000V 4K Action Cam!

[marcella]

Hey guys and girls,

Just purchased my first action cam, after looking long and hard (and not really knowing much about cameras) I settled on the X1000V. I chose this as I felt it suited my needs and was cheaper than the GoPro Hero 4 Black. But being a noob to this, I would like some advice on where to start. Can anyone point me onto good forums for beginners like myself?

Basically I am wanting to do review videos of cars and bikes using the camera, so I am going to need mounts such as a suction cup and a head mount. I want to get a tripod for panning shots, am I right in thinking any basic tripod should work with my cam that has a 1/4 fitting?

Other question is for video editing software. I don't want anything too in depth to start with just a basic one which will allow my to edit and collate my video files as well as the sounds I've recorded. Which then takes me onto another query regarding microphone's. I want to stand in front of the car with the cam on a tripod and be able to talk but I suspect the cam won't be good enough so will need an external mic, but I don't know how this is set-up to match the video?? My cam has a 3.5 port for a mic but surely I can't have a long wire attached to me? How is this normally achieved?

Final question is SD cards! I got advised in store where I bought my cam to buy a certain micro SD card but it does not work with the HD/4K abilities of the cam, I think I need an SDXC card?

Sorry for the long list of questions and as you have gathered I am a proper noob! But like I asked if there is a forum that would be better suited then please share!

Thanks!

[rich888]

marcella said:

Hey guys and girls,

Just purchased my first action cam, after looking long and hard (and not really knowing much about cameras) I settled on the X1000V. I chose this as I felt it suited my needs and was cheaper than the GoPro Hero 4 Black. But being a noob to this, I would like some advice on where to start. Can anyone point me onto good forums for beginners like myself?

Basically I am wanting to do review videos of cars and bikes using the camera, so I am going to need mounts such as a suction cup and a head mount. I want to get a tripod for panning shots, am I right in thinking any basic tripod should work with my cam that has a 1/4 fitting?

Other question is for video editing software. I don't want anything too in depth to start with just a basic one which will allow my to edit and collate my video files as well as the sounds I've recorded. Which then takes me onto another query regarding microphone's. I want to stand in front of the car with the cam on a tripod and be able to talk but I suspect the cam won't be good enough so will need an external mic, but I don't know how this is set-up to match the video?? My cam has a 3.5 port for a mic but surely I can't have a long wire attached to me? How is this normally achieved?

Final question is SD cards! I got advised in store where I bought my cam to buy a certain micro SD card but it does not work with the HD/4K abilities of the cam, I think I need an SDXC card?

Sorry for the long list of questions and as you have gathered I am a proper noob! But like I asked if there is a forum that would be better suited then please share!

Thanks!

Can't help you with regard to using the Sony X1000V, but would suggest you take a look at the www.dashcamtalk.com forum which has some very knowledgeable guys and gals on it who may be able to help you.

Suction mounts and other stuff can be purchased from your local Jessops store, I purchased a Fat Gecko mini camera mount which was a rubber suction mount and reckon the glass would have broken before it let go, the spec sheet says it can hold cameras up to 1.81kg so was a bit over-kill for my purpose of holding the Mobius Action Cam to the windscreen!

Basic video editing on a Mac can be done using iMovie which is installed on all desktop, laptop and even on iPhones so won't cost you a penny and the latest versions are very user friendly. but for more professional features iMovie 6 is still regarded as one of the very best and is still available for free download from Apple: https://support.apple.com/downloads/iMovie_HD_6 You can install this even if you have the latest version.

For more high end video editing use Final Cut Pro which really is the business: http://www.apple.com/uk/final-cut-pro/whats-new/ it's available for download from the Apple Store and costs £229.99 though you download a free trial version.

Action Cams and SD cards can be somewhat problematic and sometimes class 10 cards aren't recommended, so it might be a good idea to read the Sony manual to see what they recommend. Buy from a reputable shop like PC World, SD cards aren't that expensive nowadays so why risk buying a cheap fake from eBay, if you insist on buying from Amazon ensure it is supplied and fulfilled by Amazon and not a reseller.

One more thing, dashcams and action cams eat loads of memory so perhaps look at buying a larger capacity SD card, 32, 64 and 128GB cards may be a good idea. I currently use 64GB Kingston class 10 cards and also use a 128GB class 10 Sandisk in the Mobius which records at 1080p and uses approx 415MB per 3 minute video clip.