This camera is no “GoPro wannabe”. The CM 1000 weighs 2.8 oz with the 950mAh battery, micro SD/SDHC card (class 6 or higher (max of 32GB)), and the lens cover. Note that the GoPro “Hero 3+” Black Edition weighs 4.4 oz. The CM 1000 is about the size of a deck of cards.
The camera has an F2.0 lens, ideal for low-light conditions, which is adjustable from 135° to a super wide angle of 180°. The camera has a 16-megapixel back-illuminated CMOS sensor that allows recording in the following formats: 640 x 360/240fps, 1280 x 720/120fps, and 1920 x 1080/30fps. Videos are recorded in MPEG4/H.24 format with stereo sound.
The CM 1000 will also provide high quality 6MP stills for those hero shots of you and your fish. It will also capture stills in ten, twenty, thirty, or sixty second intervals in 3MP.
There is no camera display, except for three status LEDs. Live viewing, playback, and remote camera adjustments is available through the smartphone app.
The CM 1000 has an auto leveling feature, keeping the shot horizontal when capturing video. This means that the camera will rotate to the closest 90 degree increment.
The battery is manufacturing by Xataka. They report that the battery’s life is approximately two hours, and requires four hours to charge. This seems pretty close to the battery life cycle of most of the action cameras on the market. Note that the battery is built into the camera.
The Shimano CM 1000 camera is supplied with a helmet mount, an adhesive mount, and a lens cover. Currently available optional mounts include a chest mount, headset mount, a flexible type of mount, and a handlebar mount. There might be other accessories available from Shimano in the near future. The mount that attaches to the CM 1000 is unique to that camera. However, it will connect to other “standard” fixtures and mounting accessories that kayak anglers use to capture their experiences on the water.
While the Shimano CM 1000 Sport Camera may find a niche in the fishing environment, the main audience appears to be the cycling market. It will be available in May, 2014 for around $300. The camera also comes with PM/MAC video editing software, which includes fish eye correction. To help you to decide if this camera is for you, here is a short video on the versatility for fishing.
