YI has stormed into the action camera market with a real and present rival to previous market leader GoPro's Hero4 Black - at half the price!
You'll need some spare change to buy the non-included essentials like memory cards, the waterproof housing and all-important bike or helmet mounts. These aren't expensive though, with the well-made waterproof housing, for example, only coming in at £20.
The camera shoots excellent quality 4K video and impressive 12MP stills from its fixed 155-degree wide field of view lens and Sony sensor, with image distortion correction. A 1400mAh battery means you can shoot over two hours of 4K/30fps video - much longer than the GoPro.
All the functions are accessible via the 2.19in 330ppi touch screen on the back, which we found to be clear and easy to use. The only other control is the single shutter button on the top of the YI 4K, which you hold down to power on or off, or press briefly to take photos or start/stop recording.
In practice this single control button was our only gripe: having to switch shooting mode by accessing the touch screen meant that not only did we miss out on a few video opportunities but also a few photos when in video mode. It also meant that once in the waterproof casing, with the touch screen covered and only the shutter button accessible, the functionality of the YI Action Camera was severely limited. Unless...
You pair it with the YI Action Camera app on your smartphone (Android or iOS) using its in-built 5GHz WiFi module, in which case you can leave the camera on your helmet and fully control what it captures, and all its functions from the screen of your phone. Saving you the bother of having to go through your computer, the app has surprisingly good in-built editing functions as well as ways to share your action shots and videos, including on YI's own YI Community video and image sharing media community website.
All said, the YI 4K Action Camera is a well-built, top specced, and high performing 4K POV action camera with the kind of aggressively competitive pricing that can't help but shake up the whole action camera industry.
