Action cameras have been around for quite some time. In fact, I’ve been planning on getting one for my mini adventures for some time now. A few weeks ago, we received the SJCAM C300 action camera for testing. Since it’s an action camera, we tested it on our trip to one of the seven wonders of the world, the Taj Mahal in Agra, India. We packed our bags and purposely left the Sony A6400 setup behind. The entire camera setup of the C300 weighed less than a water bottle and was packed in a bag smaller than my Sony XM4 headphone case.
SJCAM has been known for some of the most budget-friendly action cameras in the past years. The C300, a modular action camera is their latest addition to their lineup. Read on to find out how this pocket action camera performs in real life.
SJCAM C300 Action Camera: What comes in the box
The SJCAM C300 comes with a lot of accessories. I was honestly surprised at how they managed to fit all this stuff in such a small box. The pocket combo comes with the following items (left to right):
- Waterproof case
- A flat helmet mount with 3M stickers & screw
- A back clip mount
- A frame mount
- A base mount
- Lanyard
- USB-C to USB-A cable
- Quick start manual
- A microfiber cloth
- SJCAM Stickers
- C300 Pocket action camera
- C300 extended battery grip
We reviewed the modular battery combo. The extended handle battery costs an extra $20 and it’s absolutely worth the extra bucks. It basically doubles the battery life from 3 hours to 6 hours and gives you an extra display. The ergonomic handle with a 1/20-inch threaded insert allows you to mount the camera on a selfie stick, tripod, or a Gorillapod.
Along with these, we also received some extra accessories like a helmet strap mount, a selfie stick, a remote control, a microSD card, and a magnetic lanyard with a back clip.
SJCAM C300 Action Camera: Design
The SJCAM C300 is a super small action camera with a modular design. The pictures on the internet don’t do justice to its actual size. I was surprised when I held it in my hand. It’s super lightweight and tiny. It’s almost as small as an
AirPods Pro case. Here’s a picture for size comparison.
On the front, it’s got a 154 degrees FOV lens with a 1.3-inch OLED touchscreen. There’s a power/recording button at the bottom that lights up.
On the back, you’ll find a mono microphone, a lanyard hole, and a magnetic three-pin interface for more accessories.
On the bottom, you’ll find a USB-C port and a button that opens up the battery slot.
What’s really interesting is its modular design. You can quickly swap the battery or add more accessories and access the microSD slot. The microSD supports a maximum of 128GB storage. Initially, I found it to be somewhat low but H.265 encoding makes 128GB good enough for most use cases. For the uninitiated, H.265 encoding reduces the video storage bandwidth by half in comparison to H.264 (used on older cameras) while keeping the visual quality superior.
Let’s talk more about the modular design of the C300 action camera. You can take out the battery and insert the battery grip in seconds. It extends the battery life up to 6 hours and also gives you a better grip. You can further add more accessories like using the 1/20-inch thread mount. When the extended battery is attached, the back screen becomes the primary display. This allows you to view the screen without having to turn the device around. It is super useful when shooting handheld videos.
Did I mention it supports USB-C? You can also charge the camera while using it. No more swapping batteries while shooting time lapses. It’s small things like these that make products like these versatile.
SJCAM C300 Action Camera: Specs & Features
Moving on to specs, the SJCAM C300 sports a 20MP Sony IMX355 sensor which is powered by the NTK96660 chipset. It supports Wi-Fi streaming and data transfer using the SJCAM app for iOS and Android.
In terms of pictures, the C300 can shoot 20MP stills with support for burst mode, timed shooting, and photo lapse. It offers basic features like exposure, and white balance adjustment (six pre-set modes only).
Moving on to video shooting capabilities, the SJCAM C300 can shoot videos in:
- 4K (3840*2160) @ 30FPS
- 2K (2560*1440) @ 60/30FPS
- 1080P @ 120/60/30FPS
- 720P @ 120/60/30FPS
Apart from this, the C300 offers a motion detection mode, video lapse, and car mode. You can use all those features seamlessly using the smartphone app.
SJCAM C300 Action Camera: Picture Quality
The image quality of the SJ Cam C300 is fairly respectable. It’s not overly sharp or blurry. At the same time, the super wide 154-degree field of view is spectacular when you’re trying to capture a landscape picture. During my testing period, I used this to capture the beautiful Taj Mahal and it seamlessly captured the facade without much distortions or chromatic aberrations. Please note, these pictures were taken during the early morning hours. Also, the pictures might look a bit flat as I manually adjusted the image profile to increase the dynamic range instead of capturing contrasty pictures with punchy colors.
In simple terms, I prefer pictures with more details instead of a picture that looks good straight out of the camera. This lets me gauge how good the sensor of the camera is. As a result, I have more autonomy in post-production to edit the image to make it more contrasty or make the colors more punchy.
I was not expecting the dynamic range to be this good. Dynamic range is basically how a camera sensor captures details in the brightest and the darkest parts of an image. You can see how the SJCAM C300’s 20MP sensor managed to capture details in all these images.
When it comes to shooting indoors, it just needs the right amount of light to capture a really good picture.
Low light performance is somewhat average and needs stabilization. You need a stable hand or else you’ll have to adjust the shutter speed and ISO to get a sharp image.
Unlike a smartphone camera’s night mode, this action camera does not process the captured images to look super bright and full of details.
The final images in some lighting scenes are grainy. I don’t blame the camera in these cases. It’s an action camera with a fixed focus at a very competitive price. Overall, I’m satisfied with the image quality.
My only caveat with this is the user experience while capturing pictures. If I’m using the manual mode, I need to change the camera settings like ISO, and shutter speed quite frequently. I can use the Android and iOS apps to change settings quickly but that means I’ll be holding the C300 camera in one hand and my phone in the other. That’s not really an optimum workflow. I suggest a custom-made accessory that could hold my phone along with the C300 camera would be perfect for vlogging and capturing pictures in such scenarios.
SJCAM C300 Action Camera: Video Quality
Video quality is where the SJCAM C300 performs well. I tested the C300 action camera in different scenarios, be it riding a Tuk-Tuk or walking through a park on a cloudy day, the overall video quality is fairly good.
Just like the picture quality section, I changed the image profile to optimize the final image for better dynamic range than punchy colors. This lets me tinker with the footage in Davinci Resolve’s color panel to see much details I can squeeze out of this tiny sensor. Honestly, it’s impressive for a product at this price point and size.
It comes with built-in electronic image stabilization and it does an okayish job. For those walking and riding in car shots, you can see the crispy text and adverts. I personally feel that there’s not much difference between the 4K and 2K footage. You’re better off shooting in 2K. Plus, you also get 60fps support in 2K resolution. I also shot a few time lapses and they look fine and offer plenty of details in post-production.
I feel that they could have added OIS. At the same time, you can’t deny the super wide shots and overall details.
Given its price tag and the number of accessories that comes in the box, the C300 is probably the best value-for-money action camera out there.
SJCAM C300 Action Camera: User Experience
I tested the C300 action camera for quite a while and in a lot of different shooting conditions. My overall experience using this budget-friendly action camera has been good. I did not expect this many features to be packed in such a small form factor, that too at such an affordable price tag.
The menu and settings offer plenty of options to play with. I like that. The user interface is super simple and can be operated by almost everyone including your not-so-tech-friendly dad. Yes, we tested that as well.
There are a few things that a user should know beforehand:
- If you’ve got big fingers then getting used to that 1.3-inch OLED touchscreen might take some extra time
- The user interface, although very simple and easy to use does not work that well on apps. The smartphone apps could use a little boost in terms of aesthetics and overall user experience.
SJCAM C300 Action Camera: Should you buy it?
Before buying any camera, a user must consider their usage, workflow, and most importantly their budget. Given the overall video and image quality and the plethora of accessories that come in the box and that are available separately, the SJCAM C300 is one of the best value-for-money action cameras out there.
If you want something to complement your professional camera setup or you want to jump out of an airplane or perform professional stunts, an expensive GoPro or Insta360 One will make more sense for that kind of workflow.
On the flip side, if you’re someone who just wants to explore what it’s like vlogging your adventures or family trips and daily nuances using an action camera without spending a substantial amount, the C300 makes perfect sense.
Considering its modular design and availability of accessories, respectable performance, and image quality, the SJCAM C300 is the perfect bang for your buck action camera for people who are just getting started with cameras.
