5 action cams for the slopes

Over the past decade, the GoPro has come to be seen by many skiers and snowboarders as an essential piece of equipment. These days, however, there are plenty of alternatives that let you record your exploits on the slopes in Full HD (1080p). Here is a selection of five point-of-view action cams that can be attached to a helmet or directly to your skis or snowboard.

Over the past decade, the GoPro has come to be seen by many skiers and snowboarders as an essential piece of equipment. These days, however, there are plenty of alternatives that let you record your exploits on the slopes in Full HD (1080p). Here is a selection of five point-of-view action cams that can be attached to a helmet or directly to your skis or snowboard.

GoPro HERO4

To stand up to increasing competition, the American manufacturer launched its new HERO4 Silver and Black, both able to shoot in 4K resolution, in October 2014. The HERO4 Black is now the most advanced GoPro available, equipped with a processor twice as fast as that of the HERO3+ and capable of filming in 4K at 30fps in all circumstances. The action cam can also film at 50fps in 2.7K or at 120fps in HD (1080p). For its part, the new HERO4 Silver is the first GoPro with a built-in touch screen, a feature that should help users to better frame their shots and view their footage.

HTC RE
The Taiwanese manufacturer launched a spectacular offensive when it unveiled its first action cam earlier this month. With its unconventional shape, the RE offers a brand new, more comfortable way of holding an action cam. The trigger button is pressed once to take a photograph, or pressed and held to start recording video. The RE is waterproof on its own (30 minutes at up to one meter), without requiring a special case. Equipped with a 16MP optical sensor and a 146° wide-angle lens, the device can film 1080p HD video at 30fps and is also capable of shooting in slow motion or time lapse mode.

Sony Action Cam HDR-AS100V

Introduced at CES in Las Vegas in January 2014, the latest version of the Sony Action Cam films in Full HD and is shockproof, dustproof and waterproof at depths of up to 60m when used with its underwater case. This model rivals the GoPro thanks to its very thorough feature set, including a Zeiss lens designed specifically for the Action Cam. WiFi and NFC compatible, the camera can also be controlled through a smartphone.

Toshiba Camileo X-Sports

This little rectangular camera comes with a waterproof case that allows it to shoot scenes at up to 60 meters underwater. A remote control is provided, but the device can also be controlled through a smartphone with a dedicated app. As a photo camera, the device supports burst shooting, and a simultaneous video-photo mode allows users to take stills while continuing to film video. Of course, Toshiba offers a range of mounts for attaching the Camileo X-Sports to your helmet, your bike, your surfboard or yourself.

JVC GC-XA2BEU

Designed as an all-terrain device, this action cam from JVC is dustproof, shockproof, freezeproof and waterproof up to 5 meters, all without the need for a separate case. The camera comes with a wide-angle lens with a 5X digital zoom and a gyroscope-based image stabilizer designed to better film fast-moving action scenes. Footage can be transferred to other devices using WiFi.