You can find several reviews of SJ CAM 4000 Wifi on youtube and else where on the internet where information such as specs, video and image quality, features etc are detailed. But my review is not about the camera itself, but about using this camera as a rider.

When I purchased this camera, my main aim was to have a video camera which can be used to make basic videos of our rides. I already have a camera for photos, but video obviously gives a hugely different medium to document rides. I had been looking to an action camera for a few months, but hesitated because of my lack of knowledge. Lets look at the things I needed from the camera first :

  1. Battery Life : During rides, battery life matters a lot. As the camera is going to be in its housing I am not going to be able to charge it on the go. Poor battery life would mean a useless camera.
  2. Video Quality : Video and image quality are two different things. I already have a camera for images, so I needed reasonable video quality.
  3. Durability : The camera should survive weather, shocks, wind pressure and dirt.
  4. Price : Sub 10k price would be a great deal
  5. Parts : Parts like mounts, battery and other things should be available and cheap.

Now lets see how the SJ CAM 4000 wifi fared on these parameters :

  1. Battery Life : This was single most important thing for me. I purchased the camera with only one battery initially, just to test out ways to survive with the limited juice in hand. And the camera turned out really well in this aspect. When smartly used, the battery easily lasts through the day. I have two one day rides and a 4 day ride with it till now and have never run out of battery on the road. I have used the gopro hero 2 before and this much better than that.
  2. Video Quality : The output is 1080p HD and thus there are details, sharps details from edge to edge. Although, the color reproduction and low light performance is slightly odd. I am not saying its bad, because at this price, its great output. But the colors and dark areas do look a bit unrealistic and this can be improved with better firmware.
  3. Durability : I have used this camera on road, off road and it still is as good as new. It survives the shocks of off roading and the wind pressure of riding at 120kmph, which is good. I have mounted the camera on my helmet to reduce the vibrations and it stays in its place without any issues.
  4. Price : For around Rs.8000 its a great deal. There are a few other cameras available in this price range, but none of those give you such a wide range of accessories. The mounts, casing, sockets etc that you get in the package made me wonder how the manufacturer manages to even to fit all of these things inside the price tag. No beating the SJCAM on the package content aspect, it has everything that you need.
  5. Parts : Battery, charger, mounts etc are available from the seller at great prices.


Lets look at some specific plus points which I want to point out as a motorcycle user :

  1. It as a great screen, which is helpful in operating the camera on the go. Even in broad day light, I can see the screen and operate the camera all while riding.
  2. The videolapse feature makes timelapse video-making very easy. In other cameras, the timelapse outputs in the form of photos, which you have put together on the computer, which is time taking.
  3. Wifi is great and the official phone app works well on android(Havent used on ios) The connect is fast and this helps me copy photos, videos to my phone on the go and post to the internet
  4. Charging of battery is fast via the additional charger. The charger is sold separately and can charge two batteries at once. So, I while I am using on battery, I set the other to charge via my motorcycle usb charger.
  5. Charging can be done with powerbank. Any powerbank with strong USB output works well. This helps me charge the camera on the go. Suppose I stop for lunch etc, I can just set the camera to charge. Plus the battery on the camera is 900 mAh so a 10000 mAh powerbank which costs Rs.1000-1500 can charge the camera 5-6 times easily.
  6. Works with gopro parts like mounts and sockets, which is great if you have to borrow or lend things on the go, which happens at times.
  7. Comes with an open casing for shooting longer timelapse like sunrise, sunset etc. Basically, when shooting timelapses in which shooting time runs into hours, you have to keep the camera charging as well as fixed on the tripod. The open mount is useful for that.

 

Overall, for the price, I think this is a great deal. The whole package with the camera and lots of parts if good value for money, plus very useful for a rider.