Before our much awaited summer trip, I was fortunate enough to get this little guy to road test. Don’t be fooled by its pint size, it’s actually a camera. It’s China’s version of the GoPro, the Xiaomi Yi Action Camera.
It’s small, it’s lightweight, it can fit in the palm of my hand, it can fit in the pocket of my pants. It does not have a viewfinder, only buttons, 3 buttons in fact – one to turn it on and off (or toggle photo and video), another one to press the shutter, and another to turn on/off the WiFi. Super simple, huh?
It pairs with your smartphone through an app, which can be downloaded here. Through it, you can see what the camera sees, press the shutter, toggle between video and stills, alter photo quality, and tinker with other camera settings.
It has a Micro SD slot, a USB, and an HDMI port. It also came with a handheld monopod, perfect for taking selfies!
These are some of the photos from our trip taken with the Yi Action Camera. Note that some photos have been cropped and colour corrected.
What I Love about the Yi:
- 155 Degree Wide Angle Lens captures the whole breathtaking view!
- Compact and lightweight
- Good photo quality under bright light
- Easy to Use
- Very affordable relative to the GoPro (around P6K/$100+ vs P15K/$300+)
- 16MP, 1080P, 60FPS
But…
- Connecting to my smartphone usually takes more than one try
- I wish there was a shutter button on the monopod
- Photo quality degrades when scene gets dark
Despite the buts, I’m still happy that I was able to try the Yi Action Camera for our trip. I have yet to try taking real action videos with it though. That would mean getting some accessories for it.
Till next time then.
Wowww! Great photos! And very interesting gadget.. I guess photography skills and a hi-tech cam like this really could go hand-in-hand! And it’s more than half the price of the real thing! Where can we buy it?
Thanks, Jennifer. 🙂 I checked Kimstore and saw that it’s available there. 🙂
Very nice photos!(: same level and “effects” as the GoPro!(;
ganda ng quality ha, it can give gopro a run for its money
Shiver me timbers, them’s some great inrtimaofon.
does it have time lapse? if so, this could give GoPro a run for its money! i want to try!!
Based on what I’ve read online, it has but I haven’t figured how to use it yet haha
Nice gadget! Although not evident in my photos, I also like clouds!
xoxo
MrsMartinez
It is indeed. 🙂
Lovely photos! I like that it’s small and very handy, and it does take great photos! 🙂
Thanks, Kittymama! 🙂
Great photos you got there mommy 🙂
Thanks, Ayi! 🙂
What a nice gadget! So cute (coz of its cute size) and compact. The photos under natural light are great. However the indoor shots and the darker photos are a little grainy, but hey, good thing there’s photoshop. 🙂
Yeah, the natural lught shots are great. 🙂
Wow! Works just like my GoPro 😀
Cool! 🙂 I have yet to try the GoPro.
love, love the photos! I will definitely get one of that!
Thanks! 🙂
Those are excellent shots! Would love to have something as handy as that.
Hi! Is that a chinese or international version of xiaomi yi?
I think it’s the Chinese version.