Contour ROAM2 Waterproof Video Camera (Black)
Description
- Locking Instant On-Record Switch No power button, no problem. Simply slide the Instant On-Record switch into its locking position to ensure you shoot exactly when you’re ready.
- Vibrant color options We understand that style matters and color can make or break a look. Match your kit, or bring in a little contrast by adding a ContourROAM2 in one of four colors: Contour green, red, blue or traditional black.
- 60fps As requested by our users, we’ve bumped up the frames per second to 60, meaning you can now get that smooth video quality you’ve come to expect from Contour cameras.
- Waterproof without a case Good things come in small packages. The ContourROAM2 sheds bulk by working underwater without an extra case.
Reviews (9)
9 reviews for Contour ROAM2 Waterproof Video Camera (Black)
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Robert J. Frost –
Bought this camera to record bike commuting after a previous one packed in. This is a good camera.
Plus points:
* simple to operate. Slider switch on top of unit turns camera on and records and off again. Loud beep (can be turned on or off in settings) confirms the action plus LED red light (can be turned on / off in settings) shows unit is recording.
* Good battery life. Get a good 3+ hours out of this. Will record all of my 56 mile loop round these parts. Will record most of the 72 mile one.
* Can be charged while filming. By taking out the a USB battery charging pack (one of those big ones for charging phones several times at festivals etc) the camera will record for a lot longer. Can capture all my 72 mile spin with this on.
* Good picture quality and choice of resolutions. I mainly use this in tall HD which is basically the same as 720p HD with the tops and bottoms left on producing a 4:3 aspect video. I prefer 4:3 aspect ratio for bike video anyway as 16:9 doesn’t really give as good all round coverage. The 170 degree angle is pretty standard with these type of action cameras. Whilst being quite useful in getting all the surrounding detail into the frame (at the expense of fish eye distortion) the 170 degree angle does make things in the centre of the shot look *much* further away than they are. This is quite obvious considering how much extra “view” it’s capturing at the edges of the frame. 1080p mode is 130 degree which is far more sensible for a lot of shooting. I’d say 170 degree best when the camera is mounted on the stem (as it will capture both sides of the handle bars and the speedo etc on the road bike from there) and 130 degree for on the helmet (as the camera is then directional, due to being on your head).
* Lens Cap : Useful for when camera in transit.
* Locks : Both the back panel for charging, inserting SD card etc and the record slider switch on the top of the unit have sliding lock switches to prevent them being opened or moved by accident. This is very handy for when your not using the camera and it’s in transit in your bag and when you’re filming to stop accidentally knocking it off.
* Software: The software is easy to use and will let you do things like sync the video with a gpx file from say a garmin or strava export. You can then save the video with the embedded gps data which will then let you see your speed and location in sync with the video when viewed with the contour software. Products like DashWare which will embed speedo and other gauges to video will automatically see the GPS data and use it then, so you don’t have to worry about syncing gps data up in other products. Useful.
* Build quality : Aluminium casing to the camera itself. Makes for a rugged shell. However see negative points.
Negative points:
* Build quality. The buid quality of the camera itself is good. However, compromises have been made which let it down. The bit at the bottom of the camera where the mounts connect to it is actually plastic. Seems strong enough to deal with the contour mounts though so I can’t see it going too wrong, however the tripod mount at the bottom is plastic, yes, plastic threaded. If you’re using a tripod screw mount that isn’t that long, any kind of knock to the camera when mounted will risk damaging the thread of the tripod mount. My Contour has already got broken thread on the first few screw rotations due to this where the plastic has simply crumbled away after it fell over whilst tripod mounted. If this had been metal threading like on 90% of other cameras this wouldn’t have been a problem.
* Settings: All the settings are controlled by the installed software on your computer. This means that to make changes to resolution etc you need to connect to a computer making changes to settings out in the field quite tricky. The settings saved from the software live in a text file which is fairly self explanatory so it is possible to either edit it on an android phone etc, maybe, or even just keep multiple copies the text file and either copy them on / off the card with a phone or just keep a separate micro SD for each type of setting you might need whilst out and about (although this adds to the expense).
* Mounts: You get 2 mounts with it. Both are useless for vented bike helmets. There’s one flat mount and one curved mount for attaching to ski type helmets included. That’s it. This does keep the price down (why should you pay for a million bundled mount options when you’re likely just to use one)… however, take a look at the price of Contour mounts on Amazon. They’re not cheap. The vented helmet mount is about £15 and the stretchy flex mount is £25 which in my opinion is vastly overpriced. You can always use the tripod mount and go for third party cheaper mounts but then beware of the plastic threading to the tripod mount in the camera!
* Video : The quality of the video *is* superb however, the 920p HD and 720p options in 720 degrees do have a slightly pixelated look to them which isn’t there in the 1080p 130 degree mode. This is most noticeable with sharp edges of things which will look slightly blocky, almost as if it’s a lower resolution image scaled up slightly. It’s still good though.
* Size : You’re not going to look quite as “tellytubby” as a GoPro user (when stuck to helmet etc) but it’s still quite sizable. I don’t think there is a camera available that will make your recording unnoticeable (the 720p Eye Of Mine Eye-View Sunglasses are the other end of the spectrum but they record 720p 16:9 for 90 mins tops!). Smaller bullet cameras exist and look a bit less obvious, so do keep this in mind if you’re worried about the camera standing out like a sore thumb. This doesn’t stop most people from using them though and I often just keep this mounted on the handlebar stem so it’s hardly noticeable there.
Hope this review helps you out in your choices…
Alistair –
Use this on my daily motorcycle commute and have used it to record a video of a tour around Europe and create a video memento from it. It fits well to the side of my helmet and I prefer the slimline design to that of the GoPro. The quality of the picture is high, battery life is around 3 hours and if I remember right, it can take a 32gb SD card. The camera can also be set to take pictures at regular intervals. Unfortunately, you cannot switch between video and photograph mode without connecting the ROAM2 to a computer. No problem if you are set on what you want, but could be a turn off for those that want to do this on the move. In low light or darkness the picture quality is poor and not fit for purpose. For the price, you get a nice looking camera that films HD video well in daylight but not darkness. If that suits your needs then this is a great value product.
tartantyger –
I would really like to rate this 5 stars, and I probably should, It is an absurdly small, easy-to-operate camera that in 720p mode produces very high quality motion video; I can’t imagine what it would do in 1080p, and I’ll probably never find out – I don’t need that much detail. I’ve used others, and the only drawback I’ve found with the Roam 2 is that the battery won’t charge when camera is recording – when you’re doing a 14-hour ride and the battery only lasts 8 hours of it, that puts you at a disadvantage – you have to choose when not to record, and that means that the camera may be off when an incident you wish to document happens (a car cuts you off, or rear-ends you, or there’s an accident on the road ahead and you have a good view of the circumstances). That doesn’t mean that I’m going to abandon the camera – it’s proven useful when I’m doing shorter “sightseeing” rides, which is probably in excess of 90% of the time I’m using a camera. For the long days on the road, though, I’m acquiring a Contour+ 2 camera, with a replaceable battery that will permit, with a quick battery change, as much recording as I do riding. It also just happens to fit the same mount – how good can it get?
P.S. – Had a “conversation” with Mr. Mr (see comments) – picked up a Contour Battery Charging Kit (Model 2950) locally, and the camera was still going after 9 hours, 25 minutes, much better than the power cable (Model 2900) had been able to do. I also discovered that the 2900 had been charging the battery slowly, but for some reason it wasn’t indicating it was; there’s no such problem with the 2950; both the charge and record lights are on when you’re underway. I don’t know just how long the kit would keep the battery alive, but I’ll be riding up to Washington, D.C. for Rolling Thunder toward the end of May; 1,410 miles and about 22 hours in transit should reveal just how much I can get out of the Roam 2/2950 combination.
C-Toph –
I rarely review products, but this is a product I feel is widely underrated and deserves positive feedback. I previously had a Hero2 and there was a period of time when there was firmware issues with the product and I turned to the ROAM2 as the market alternative. I mainly wear the camera snowboarding via either the flush helmet mount or the goggle mount – I prefer the helmet mount but I don’t always wear one. My specific reasons for favoring this product to the other POV cameras on the market: 1) Form factor: The tube design just makes more sense and I honestly have no idea how GoPro’s bulky brick style camera became the go-to. The Roam2 is light and can be mounted on the side of your head OR the top, so it won’t absorb the wind and jar your helmet around. It simply doesn’t effect my riding to wear this camera all day and that’s the most important thing. 2) Rotating lens: You mount the camera once at the beginning of the day and level the lens with a laser that is projected from the front of the camera. Once it’s set up, you don’t have to think about it again. 3) Slide to record: For snowboarding, I’m wearing gloves and I sometimes like to turn the camera on and off as I’m moving down a run and encounter things worth filming. The simplistic nature of the sliding record switch allows me to simply slide to begin recording without stopping, without removing gloves, and without thinking. When I come into something worth capturing, the last thing I want to do is stop and kill my momentum. 4) Durability: With the ROAM2, you don’t need a waterproof case or anti-fog inserts. This reduces bulk and eliminates the chance that your lens will fog up due to moisture getting into the case which ruins your whole day of footage. Also, I’ve slammed directly on the camera to the point the the rails on the mount snapped off but the camera had no issue – it even captured the impact perfectly. I will say that the simplistic design means it lacks some features like a viewfinder, the ability to switch modes on the fly (you need to be hooked up to a computer to change the shooting mode, video resolution FPS, etc), however as I’ve said throughout my review I prefer simplicity to features if it allows me to focus more on the action and less on capturing it.
CP –
Good camera… but it only lasted 1 year before it stopped working.
I used this on my motorcycle helmet. I really like everything about this camera. Low profile mount. Rotating lens. Nice PC interface and configurable device (turn on and off leds, beeps, manually set contrast, adjust fps, etc.,).
The initial bad thing I had to say about it was the lens EASILY SCRATCHES. I would’ve been fine with that, but after 1 year, the battery crapped out and it just no longer charges. I tried all the troubleshooting fixes (try different USB cable, try USB power adapter plug, reformat card, try different card, reset device, etc.,), but none worked. It just no longer charges. I’d work it out to about 10 dollars a month for the cost I paid, eh. At least I got some decent footage out of it, but since I use the camera as more or less for safety/insurance reasons, I need to purchase a new camera.
Also I could be wrong but the company went under, so that could possibly mean not warranty on these things.
Mike W –
Great little camera. Much more compact than the competition such as GoPro’s and at a fraction of the price. Very lightweight too; I have it fixed to my motorcycle helmet and I don’t even notice it’s there. The picture is great, especially on the highest 1080p setting. It does fairly well at night except for in the lowest of light situations.
Bad points.
1. Make sure that you line up the mounting strip properly before sticking it on, because once it’s on, it sure as hell isn’t coming off again.
2. The sound capture isn’t great. Anything above 10 mph is just wind noise for me. I’ve tried things like putting electrical tape over the mic but it doesn’t really make a lot of difference. Locating the microphone on the front of the camera doesn’t seem like a great design choice in my opinion.
3. My camera developed a fault after about a week and started recording entire videos without sound or picture. I’ve contacted Surfdome and they’ve been very good an offered a replacement without any fuss.
Overall a great little camera, especially at this price. I would recommend getting a larger SD card though as on the highest settings, you’ll only get about an hour of video.
Tony –
I bought this camera in 2014 for £157 it is now just scrap it won’t do anything it won’t even show up on the Mac, I contacted contour and they gave all the standard reply’s try this and that, I’d already done all of it, I looked on the internet still no joy.
Last reply from contour.
Currently we do not offer repair services for our cameras as repair costs often exceed the value of a replacement camera, and your warranty has also expired. Sorry to be the bearer of bad news. I would also look in to updating your firmware. Here is a link on how to do that:
So thats about it i’m left with scrap.
Bad show Contour. I will not be buying one of these pieces of _rap.
Joseph –
I’ve never given a negative review on amazon before, but congrats, this is my first time. Your piece of crap camera is so unreliable and absolutely useless that it has died 7 times so far just before a major incident has occurred while on my journey. I have to recharge this crappy thing every day, and my journey in total per day never exceeds 1 hr or 1hr and half max. I always check the status button and it says Green Battery and either ORANGE or GREEn SD.. yet to my amazement, this crap dies less than a minute later, and most times, the SD is FULL when the status says GREEN. My nearest fatal accident today, your piece of crap camera, after only checking the status and telling me GREEN Battery, it dies 3 seconds later, after checking the footage once I got home. All my trips never exceed 30 mins each, WHAT IS THE POINT OF A CAMERA IF IT DOES NOT RECORD THE MOMENTS I NEED THE MOST ?!? Had something happened during one of those 7 times your lousy camera failed to do its job and after displaying false information about its battery or SD status, I would have taken a law suit to you and your product. I bought this less than a year ago. The easiest way to verify my claims is to record this the next time and use it as proof.
Kerry Bertrand –
Does great. Video is clear and plays smoothly. This is a good camera for bicycle riding and atv riding. Since it doesn’t zoom in it isn’t really good for big open spaces.
I mounted it to my rear view mirror post to see how it would look in a vehicle, not worth replacing my dash cam. Can’t see anything outside of the headlamps at night.
Don’t really like the inability to change the battery out with a fresh one either. When we are out on bicycles we brought our little solar panel to recharge it with but it takes too long to charge. The 20 minutes we spent eating only added an hour to the record time, totaling about 4 hours and15 minutes. Since we knew this up front we brought two 32 gb scan disc cards with us hoping to get all 8 hours of riding on video.
We will be upgrading to the newer model that allows the use of extra batteries.