Test Apeman Actioncam A79
For this post I got the Apeman Actioncam A79. The price is very cheap at the moment and the many touted features and the large accessory package were reason enough to take a closer look at this camera.
Technical values:
Video | HD 60fps / 4K 30fps |
Photo | 20 MP |
Lens | 170° wide angle |
Image stabilization | electronic EIS |
Wireless | 2.4Ghz |
Exposure compensation | +2/-2 |
Unboxing – Apeman A79
The accessory package you get to the Apeman A79 is really impressive. In addition to all sorts of mounting adapters, e.g. for the bike handlebars, you also get an underwater housing and what interested me most, a simple remote control with which you can take a photo and start and stop a video. Another useful accessory is the additional external microphone, which can be clamped to the T-shirt, for example
Insert the battery and switch on first
The complete package of the Apeman A79 also includes two removable batteries. You can either charge them in the camera, or you can buy an additional double charger* with which you can charge both batteries at the same time. In the video clip below, I filmed how to put a battery into the camera. I found the insertion quite fiddly and hope that you can do better with the video clip.
After inserting the battery, the A79 starts within approx. 2s and is ready for use. The battery life I tested at HD with 60fps is about 30min. Therefore, the changeable battery is already a good thing and you should always have it full loaded with it.
Operation of the Apeman A79
As with most other action cams, the Apeman doesn’t have many controls. Some have a double occupancy, but this is not a problem.
When using the water- or dust-tight housing, all controls work perfectly. With the housing, you can replace the shutter flap depending on whether you need the housing waterproof or only dustproof.
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Operation of the Apeman A79 via smartphone or tablet
In addition to the simple remote control for starting and stopping videos or triggering a snapshot, you also have the possibility to control the camera via the app Live DV. Via the app you then have a live image and can control the camera.
Especially if you can’t see the camera screen, because you have mounted the camera on the bike helmet, the app is of course very helpful. The app is available for Android and iOS via the respective app store. In my test, the app worked well. However, it is more optimized for a smartphone, but displays at least a full screen in landscape mode on the tablet. What struck me is that the live image is not quite syncron with the camera.
Testing image and video quality
Now we come to the most important point, the image and video quality of the Apeman A79. Because what good is all accessories and a reasonable price if the camera takes bad pictures or videos. To better compare the quality, I took reference photos and videos with an iPhone 11.
Photo quality of the Apeman A79
If you compare the two images, it immediately falls on the fact that the color representation of the Apeman Actioncam has a strong blue tinge. The display of the iPhone, on the other hand, is very balanced and corresponds to the lighting conditions. The image resolution or sharpness of the Apeman, on the other hand, is quite OK. The photo was taken with 16MP.
Video quality of the Apeman A79
The recording of videos, e.g. while cycling, is the main purpose, for which you buy a small action cam. Sure, you can’t expect the same video quality as a professional photo or video camera, but a video quality like a current smartphone should be possible.
Unfortunately, the Apeman A79 could not convince me in this discipline. The color representation differs very much and also the image sharpness is rather poor, although this should be possible from the image sensor. In the video below, I inserted a short video sequence from the iPhone. The differences in quality are already serious here. The videos were recorded in HD at 60fps.
Actually I wanted to write down the video quality in 4K here. I also took test shots, since they were no better than with the HD resolution I left it then. Normally I still take a video recording with the camera on the bike helmet, which I also spared myself. If the video quality is not good without movement, then it won’t get any better with movement.
Die obigen Videos werden über einen speziellen Server mit der originalen Videodatei ohne zusätzliche serverseitige Komprimierung gestreamt. Es entspricht dem Ergebnis, dass ihr mit der originalen Videodatei sehen würdet. Bei 4K Inhalten kann es ein paar Sekunden dauern bis das Video startet, da der Player Daten puffert. Es kann auch gerade am Anfang noch etwas ruckeln. Alternativ könnt ihr die Datei auch über das drei Punkte Menü im Player downloaden.
Conclusion
Unfortunately, the conclusion is somewhat sobering. Where the photo quality of the Apeman A79 is just acceptable, I find the video quality very disappointing. I also checked the Apeman website to see if there might be a software update that might improve video quality, but unfortunately there was nothing to find there.
Sure, you can use the camera for one or the other purpose, but as an action cam for great sports shooting it is not recommended in my opinion.
Letzte Aktualisierung am 8.09.2024 / Affiliate Links / Bilder von der Amazon Product Advertising API