Contour GPS review

Contour’s GPS is a hands-free action camera that can capture video at 1,920×1,080 at 30fps and has a built-in GPS receiver so can overlay video with a map of your route, plus speed and elevation. There’s also built-in Bluetooth, which means you can use your iOS or Android smartphone’s screen as a wireless viewfinder. Unfortunately, you’ll need to buy the optional ConnectView card (around £25) to use an iOS device such as an iPhone 4, and the Android app isn’t finished yet.

Without using an app, you can orient the camera using the pair of lasers which shines briefly when you turn the camera on to help you work out if it’s pointing in the right direction. However, these are all but invisible in broad daylight so take some test footage before heading out.

The smartphone app is useful as it lets you adjust the camera’s exposure and microphone sensitivity. The only other way to do this is by installing the free Storyteller application on your PC. You can choose from image presets, but there’s also manual control over contrast, sharpness and exposure. A switch at the back of the camera lets you change between two recording modes, which are configurable in the software. One could be set to Contour’s recommended ‘action’ setting, which is 720p at 60fps, while the other could be configured to shoot 5-megapixel still images every few seconds or every minute.

A 2GB card is included in the box (enough for a little over 20 minutes’ footage at the highest quality), but up to 32GB cards are supported. The battery lasts around two to two and a half hours, but you can buy additional batteries for under £10; Nokia’s BL-5C is compatible, but not officially supported. You also get two adhesive flat-surface mounts and a goggle mount – a helmet mount is optional and costs £17.