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August 18, 2008

Oregon Scientific ATC3K Action Camera review

A budget device for recording various action sport antics, the Oregon Scientific ATC3K Action Camera is waterproof up to 3m, and comes supplied with all the attachments required to mount the camera in a variety of locations.

The Oregon Scientific ATC3K Action Camera features a wider angle lens than that of its predecessor, the ATC 2K, is capable of recording up to two hours of footage on one 4GB SD card, sports an improved CMOS sensor that promises better quality recordings, and can now be used as a webcam. A promising package for the price.

Being a self-contained unit, setting up and configuring the Oregon Scientific ATC3K Action Camera is quick and simple. Unscrew the back, put in two AA batteries, insert your SD card, screw the back on, and you're ready to go.

All that's left is to decide upon a mounting position for the Oregon Scientific ATC3K Action Camera and to select one of two recording resolution settings. The screen display used to achieve this is extremely hard to read and we had to clarify if we had the correct settings by cross-referencing where the little pictures appeared on the screen with those in the diagrams in the manual.

Secondly, the Oregon Scientific ATC3K Action Camera itself is big and relatively heavy (about 200g). Therefore we decided not to mount the camera on a helmet, and instead opted for the handlebar-mounting option.

The brackets are well designed, and allow you not only to quickly mount the Oregon Scientific ATC3K Action Camera securely, but also to rotate the camera to the desired recording angle whilst in situ.

The Oregon Scientific ATC3K Action Camera itself lacks a viewing screen, and therefore it is a little tricky to select the optimum recording angle without first downloading your attempts to your computer. However, future set-up and 'out-the-door' times are extremely quick. This would not be the case with a set-up requiring a separate recording device, where a secure home must be found for your recording device, and cables must be tidied so as not to hinder your movement. A self-contained, wireless unit such as the Oregon Scientific ATC3K Action Camera is far more convenient.

Downloading a recording is a simple case of squeezing the Oregon Scientific ATC3K Action Camera out of it's bracket, and connecting the supplied USB cable from your camera to your computer. The USB 1.1 interface built into the ATC3K however is slow, and you will have to wait quite some time for even an average length recording to download.

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Oregon Scientific ATC3K Action Camera

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