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the best motorcycle riding cameras

Acton Cameras

Suitable for bike or helmet mounting.

Helmet Mounted

Designed to mount on a helmet.

Motorcycle Mounted

Designed to mount on your motorcycle.

GoPro Hero 12

More Hero12 Black Details

The Hero12 Black is capable of up to 5.3K video, with a huge variety of different shooting modes we can almost guarantee the Hero12 will get the job done for nearly any video you have in mind, whether it be urban cruising or tearing up the track.

The GoPro is renowned for its extreme durability and now features waterproofing up to 33 ft, and a hydrophobic lens, which should keep shots nice and clear during rainy rides, or if you intend to use your camera for activities besides biking.

GoPro’s image stabilization software is so advanced and impressive it’s won an Emmy Award for “In Camera Sensor and Sofware Stabilization” - a category we didn't even know existed, that said, we're sure that if the software is award-winning, it should be able to take whatever you throw at it, no matter how hard you ride.

DJI OSMO ACtion 4

More Osmo Action 4 Details

A 1/1.3-inch sensor allows every adventure to be caught in great detail, no matter the lighting you’re filming in. The camera can operate properly at as low as -4°F (-20°C), which is a little chilly for riding in our opinion, but it’s good to know you can repurpose the camera for other sports during the colder months. DJI says the battery is good for up to 160 minutes, and claims it can even achieve 150 minutes at -4°F

For mounting, the Action 4 uses a strong magnetic quick-release system, which is widely considered to be comparable to a solid GoPro mounting system, but with fewer moving parts to keep track of. The camera uses dual full-colour touch screens which make it a breeze to review footage on the fly.

INSTA 360 ONE RS

More Insta 360 One RS Details

The starter kit for this camera comes with a 4K regular Lens & a 5.7K 360 Lens, both of which provide stunning visuals and can be swapped easily to accommodate whatever filming scenario you have. Insta360 also sells a wide-angle lens to help diversify the shots even further. The camera comes with built-in stabilization to ensure all of your videos come out crisp and clean.

With the right lens & setting combination the ONE RS is capable of up to 6K footage, and has a plethora of other modes and settings below that. 48MP pixel still photos are also possible on this camera - meaning this thing can hang with cameras much larger and much more expensive - if you want it to that is.

Insta360 says the ONE RS has an average battery life of about 80 minutes, and batteries can be changed out just as quickly as lenses can be.

More PT10 Prism Details

As evidenced in the name, the camera can connect via WiFi to your smartphone (Android and iOS) to play back recordings, start and stop recording, or help you get the camera angled just right before you set off. All of this is done via the SENA App—a decently useful app that is quite basic, just like this camera.

One thing the PT10 is quite famous for is its “One Touch Recording” button, something all SENA cameras have included since the Prism’s first release. A button on the top of the tube—textured and easy to find with a gloved finger—is all you need to press to start recording at 1080P 60FPS or 1440P 30FPS (aka 2K).

With a rechargeable, built-in battery, and when using it just in the recording mode with WiFi off, you can realistically expect 60 to 90 minutes of recording time—more than enough for a fairly decent ride to and/or from your destination. As well, at 100g (including the mounting mechanism), you will barely even notice that it’s there on your helmet.

SENA 50c

More 50C Details

The Sena 50C is a class-leading comms system in every sense of the word. Features like Harman Kardon Premium Speakers, Integrated Mesh & Bluetooth Intercom systems,and Voice-Activated Digital Assistant Access (Google, Siri, etc) make it extremely easy to see how this piece of equipment would be an excellent addition to any riding setup.

The integrated camera is capable of shooting video in 4K @ 30FPS - not the best specs on this list, but absolutely nothing to scoff at. When shooting in 1080P the camera has digital image stabilization capabilities to keep your shots clean. The camera can also take 12MP still images.

More M1 Details

It is not a cheap kit. The plastics and metals used are high quality and durable, both camera units are fully IP66 certified waterproof, and ThinkWare themselves advertise the camera on an ATV going full-send through a deep puddle. The usage of Sony’s lenses and sensors also mean their excellent image stabilization system is included, which reduces vibrations and shudders so that the capture is nearly glass smooth.

It also comes with built-in GPS for speed and travel logging, has two 140-degrees fields of capture (front and back) so all that is missing is side to side (which can be covered with a helmet cam and turning your head), and takes only about two hours to install if you’re wanting a nice early afternoon project for your bike.

The only downfall of the kit—and it really doesn’t make that much difference for a dedicated dashcam unit—is that it only records at 1080P 30FPS. But keep in mind it’s also recording from two cameras, performing image stabilization on both feeds, and writing it to a MicroSD card, while tracking GPS data and using only 12V of power (and maybe half an amp of current).

Which is better, a motorcycle camera or a helmet camera?

That really depends on what you’re doing. If you’re an aspiring moto-vlogger, you will almost by default need to use a helmet camera. If you’re wanting to just have a camera for insurance purposes, a motorcycle camera is more than enough. You could also use both, the motorcycle camera and helmet camera both recording your ride showing what’s happening around the bike and where your helmet is pointed.

How do I attach something like a GoPro to my helmet?

Action cameras like GoPros usually have an accessory kit that comes with them, and quite often there is an adhesive backed helmet mount. If you want something a bit more robust, companies such as Chin Mounts exist that make accessories that allow you to attach your camera without affecting your helmet’s functionality and safety. Also, do read up on your local laws, as in some States it is illegal to modify or otherwise change the profile of a motorcycle helmet.

Do these cameras support night riding, i.e. have night vision or a night mode?

Most motorcycle mounted cameras do support low light and nighttime recording. Helmet cameras depend on what you’re using, as some like GoPros do have a night capture mode, while some of the cameras that are built into Bluetooth intercom units don’t capture as well as action cameras. 

Can helmet cameras be used to livestream my ride?

While you should be focused on your ride, a very rare few helmet cameras do support live streaming, often through either a Bluetooth or short range WiFi connection to your smartphone which will be the streaming control device. This is not to be confused with streaming playback, which is when you use the camera manufacturer’s app to playback video from the unit directly. 

How is a motorcycle camera powered?

A motorcycle mounted unit such as the Thinkware M1 ties into the accessory power fuse of your bike. This is done with a ground wire to the negative terminal of your battery or touching the frame of your bike, with a power wire being wound around one of the pins of your accessories fuse. This way, when your bike is off, the camera is off and doesn’t drain the battery. There a few that are USB powered if your bike has a USB 5V port built in, but the best ones tied directly into bike power so the moment you start up the bike, it’s recording.

Do motorcycle cameras support loop recording?

Most helmet and motorcycle cameras both support loop recording. For those not familiar with the term, it means that once the microSD card is full, instead of stopping recording, it starts overwriting the oldest capture, “looping” the video. Depending on capture resolution, frames per second, size of microSD card,  and the length of rides you go on, you can get usually get a couple of days to a week’s worth of video before the looping starts overwriting the oldest videos.

Do helmet cameras have built-in microphones?

Almost every action camera has a built-in microphone, while cameras integrated into Bluetooth intercoms use the helmet mounted microphone you use for the intercom to capture your voice. GoPro units also commonly have an external microphone jack if you want to mount a microphone in your helmet to provide commentary or to do moto-vlogging.

Do any of these cameras have image stabilization?

Pretty much every action camera worth buying these days has automatic image stabilization, while motorcycle mounted cameras generally have image stabilization on by default due to the vibrations through the frame from the engine. For whatever camera you decide to end up using, it is often outlined in the manual how to turn image stabilization on and off.