SJCAM, best known for accessibly-priced alternatives to GoPro and the like, has just launched a new "3-in-1 Handheld Action Camera", the C400, which looks like it has the potential to worry DJI, with it's gimbal-based Osmo Pocket cameras, Insta360 – with it's detachable Go series – and GoPro! That's quite the achievement.
At first glance the C400 seems to have a lot in common with the massively popular DJI Osmo Pocket 3 because of that rotating preview screen:
The C400 does not, however, offer the true signature feature of DJI's popular vlogging camera, a rotating gimbal. What made the Pocket series unique (at first, anyway) was the inclusion of a physical gimbal which stabilized the camera just like the gimbals on DJI's market-leading drones.
Instead, at the top of the C400's feature list is a 'detachable design' which has more in common with today's big new release from DJI's arch-rival Insta360, the Go Ultra. That camera comes in an 'ActionHub' about the size of a GoPro, but a square camera housing the size of an Oreo or an Apple Watch can pop out of it and keep recording from even more tricky locations.
The C400 also features a detachable camera element, though it seems to include a small monitor too (unlike the Insta360 Go series). Like the Go series, though, wearing a magnetic pendant for POV video seems to be an option.
The user can then position the camera in one place and use the handle to view the video from another, ideal for solo shooting of vlogs and the like. Just rotating the screen is enough to turn the device on.
In terms of image stabilization, there might not be a physical gimbal, but SJCAM promises a 6-axis gyroscope to assist the electronic image stabilization. It includes a Horizon Steady feature.
The camera can record at 4K and will launch at a price of $249. The C400 Pocket (the small camera only without the handle / remote control element) sells for $159. Using the handle to top the battery up will bring the power up to 7 hours, according to SJCAM.
Optional accessories include a small tripod and the magnetic pendant.
You can learn more about the device at the SJCAM store, or check out its predecessor, the C300.
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Check our guide to the best GoPro alternatives and the best action cameras.
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