Camera recommendations please

And yet... according to the 'West Yorkshire decriminalising bad driving' topic, which is confirming my own experience of being hit by vehicles in Lancashire, the police are sniggering behind the No-Bloody-Bikes-Here Sheds because they're refusing to investigate until you're properly smashed up, when there's a good chance the camera will be smashed as well (Magic, Sarge!- insufficient evidence!). So, at first sight, all this camera stuff is a waste of time and money- as long as you let the police get away with doing nothing. In the words of Thin Lizzie (showing my age!) Fightttt!!!

Similar to others - I run a Cycliq Fly6CE at the back, and a Go Pro Hero (just Hero, no number - their basic entry level one from 2018) on the front. In terms of picture, there's no discernible difference to me. But for me the Cycliq wins on usability for my usage, which is (or was!) primarily commuting. The fact that it overwrites in a loop is really useful (whereas on the GoPro I have to delete footage manually when full), and the battery life is better (the Cycliq tended to last for 5 legs of my commute, versus 2 -3 legs for the Go Pro. NB: I used a separate light, so wasn't using the light function on the Cycliq). Also much easier to remove from its mount. But the software updating on the Cycliq has been a bit flaky. The date / time stamp went wildly wrong, and for a while I found it difficult to get it to connect to my PC to update the settings / firmware to fix that. And I've just noticed that this week it appears to have decided to stop recording sound - haven't tried fixing that yet.         

I've had various cameras over the years and Fly 6 (rear) and Fly 12 (front) is by far the best; combo lights, loop recording and easy to shift between bikes.  GoPro for recording footage of a classic ride, for example, but as a safety camera they're a hassle; battery life (you need to carry a spare) and deleting footage if the memory is full.

I use a gopro hero6 on the front ( carry an extra battery and make sure screen is off/timeout after short delay). Quality is great.
I use a Cycliq Fly6 CE on rear. Quality is OK, but sound really only picks up road buzz and drivetrain noise. It also has a mind of its own when paired with the app. Light sequence is random, can stop mid ride on record, or not even start at all, so getting back from a ride can leave you frustrated when you think you should have caught something and there is no footage....

At the moment I'm running a go-pro on the front and a Cycliq Fly6 (Gen 3) on the rear. The Go-pro footage is significantly clearer, especially in low light and/or on bumpy roads. However, the battery life isn't great - I get about an hour and a half. That might be long enough for you, but something to be aware of for longer rides.

The Fly6 is generally OK. Battery life is longer, but maximised by not using the light at the same time (which slightly defeats the point IMHO). I have also had one experience when I was riding early in the morning (i.e. dark) and the Cycliq decided just to shut off all the lights (whilst still recording video) which didn't impress me, and Cycliq's support response was also lacklustre. Luckily I had a spare rear light!

In terms of putting the videos side by side etc., that all comes down to your video editing software. The cameras all record standard video files and so can be opened by any standard programme. I currently use Garmin's video editor, which is fine for basic tasks - although I haven't tried anything complicated!

Ha! My son has told me to join this forum as I had another near miss yesterday which ill post when I find where to...

I decided to take up cycling every day after a 40-year break. Maybe I did a bit when the boys were around growing up, but I was keen in the late 70's and skint- so I used to cycle to London from Welling each day on my Raleigh Medale. Anyway, I now cycle on assisted MTBS and both have DRAGON TECH  go pro cameras that give you about an hr and a half battery life (they come with 2 batteries each and a dual-charger) My first was a present from my eldest son, the 2nd was off ebay 2nd-hand for £25. I never go out without the camera on and in a year, I’ve had some near-misses, despite during lockdown- no one’s supposed to be out except for exercise of essential, blah blah. The Dragon tech gets my vote and it’s in its waterproof housing and has been soaked a few timers (I’m out for an hour each day, usually about 10-12 miles depending on the route)- Camera battery lasts well provided the screen timeout is limited.

Damn! I must have missed that Aldi- I would have bought it! The other article contains a lot of useful information. GoPro Hero 7 Black good as a camera, but the PC software is dire and getting worse as they have abandoned it. It will now not recognise the camera so getting the videos off is even more of a pain. You need that GPS timing and location data.

I have a couple of https://www.flyingtech.co.uk/fpv-camera-gimbals/mobius-actioncam-1080p-h... that have a couple of hours worth of filming per charge.

I also have an Aldi rear light which is a copy of the Cycliq rear light which works very well.

I have the Shimano CM2000 and it lives in a drawer... useless battery life, and the app/interface is a joke. Once the card is full recording stops and to clear the card you either need to connect via app which is a PITA, or remove the card and use a PC etc. Complete waste of money....

The Cyliq ones have my interest now, just trying to justify the price to myself  That, and they seem to be out of stock everywhere atm... is that because of Brexit/Corona/a ship being stuck in the Suez, or is a new model around the corner? Who knows...

I also have a Go-Pro style "Action Cam" from Aldi somewhere that I might dig out in the meantime...

Genunine question though, is there a point to having cameras? I mean other than adding to the "near miss" videos on here, what do you do with the footage? Sending to the Police seems to give negligable results and in some cases comes back on the cyclist should they have dared touch a pavement/shared use pathway. 

I used to commute with the Shimano cam strapped to my helmet, it's quite big, therefore visible and between that and the hi-viz  winter jersey I noticed drivers gave me a wide berth... probably to avoid the weirdo, but if it works, it works! 

Depends on the average length of your rides.  If mostly commuting then Go Pro or a knockoff should suffice.

If wanted for longer/weekend riding with a tea stop, then the pretty much the only things that can hit or exceed the 4hr mark are the Cycliq's.   Downsides may include expensive extra mounts (look for 3d printed ones on ebay) and there's been quite a few complains about the older models rear charging flap letting in water.   Neither of which has impacted mine, and they were both 2nd hard off of ebay.

If price isn't a factor then Cycliq or GoPro are probably your best options. Have a look at this article (and the comments on it) - https://road.cc/content/buyers-guide/how-buy-best-bike-camera-255982