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Drift Ghost 4K - failed


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After a promising start I have to give the Drift Ghost 4K the thumbs down. When it works the video quality is good although the sound recording is pretty awful. However the first downside is the ridiculously small screen which is really difficult to work through the menu program. Following from this is the fact that for some reason my particular device keeps re-setting the date to September 1st 2016. No idea why.

The final nail in its coffin though is that since riding in the rain last week it has gone completely tits up. Bear in mind that this is a sports camera specifically aimed at motorbiking, sailing, cycling, skiing etc so the ability to withstand some rain should be a given. Now though if I plug it into any computer there is apparently nothing there. I can switch it on but it complains there's an issue with the SD card. However any other device can read the SD card without any problems so the issue is with the Ghost.

In summary it's finicky, difficult to

set up and not fit for purpose in wet weather. Something we have quite a bit of here. I'll be looking at a Go Pro or something else in the future.

A shame as I really liked the slim line design of the Ghost but there's too many issues as it stands.

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Screen is certainly fidly, only the xl is waterproof, I've had mine in very light rain and it survived, I could live with the other issues but I didn't upgrade to the 4k because of that risk, sorry to hear yours is playing up.



Did you try a factory re set, or another card, I have a dash cam that's very picky over sd cards, is it still under warranty.


I tend to use phone app to set mine as screen is fine on phone

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Have you updated the firmware? That can help. Also, they are particular about memory cards, SanDisk work best for me. Its a shame to hear that you've had that experience, I've had my Drift Ghost S HD for 5 years and it's still going strong, recording video in 1080p/60fps.


edit. Just read the post again, seen that it's waterlogged.

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The SD card is a SanDisk one and reads absolutely fine on other devices. The camera is out of warranty and I got it in Singapore anyway. If you look on various websites the Ghost S is actually considered more reliable than the 4K which I wished I had seen earlier. As to the waterproofing I just expect something designed for sporting use to be at least water resistant. It doesn't need to be submersible. Not a happy camper. Will try and faff about with it through the app but at the moment I can't get it to work at all so it's an expensive desk ornament.

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After a promising start I have to give the Drift Ghost 4K the thumbs down. When it works the video quality is good although the sound recording is pretty awful. However the first downside is the ridiculously small screen which is really difficult to work through the menu program. Following from this is the fact that for some reason my particular device keeps re-setting the date to September 1st 2016. No idea why.

The final nail in its coffin though is that since riding in the rain last week it has gone completely tits up. Bear in mind that this is a sports camera specifically aimed at motorbiking, sailing, cycling, skiing etc so the ability to withstand some rain should be a given. Now though if I plug it into any computer there is apparently nothing there. I can switch it on but it complains there's an issue with the SD card. However any other device can read the SD card without any problems so the issue is with the Ghost.

In summary it's finicky, difficult to

set up and not fit for purpose in wet weather. Something we have quite a bit of here. I'll be looking at a Go Pro or something else in the future.

A shame as I really liked the slim line design of the Ghost but there's too many issues as it stands.

 

I have a ghost 4K and had a similar problem, have you tried reformatting the SD card? I did that with mine, worked for a while and stopped again, I contacted the supplier and he directed me to a firmware update, I did this and he also replaced the SD card for me, its worked OK since .... As for the sound, yes its crap! It shoots nice video but the wind. noise on the film is terrible. I've turned of the front microphone leaving just the rear mike to pick sound up, but TBH I usually just edit the sound out, I've now gone back to using a GoPro mounted to the bike, I use the Ghost mainly for paragliding. This is the sort of sound I'm getting, absolutely useless....

Edited by manxie49
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I agree, the sound is crap on action cameras but we're riding motorbikes into the wind, it's not likely to be good. On my Drift I have a small piece of foam over the mic which helps a bit, other wise I've got an external mic that I sometimes place under the seat and get great engine/exhaust sounds.

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I managed to kill my drift in heavy rain. Loved the camera so i bought another one. Was unfortunate to be caught in another heavy rain shower and ended up killing that one too so I opened them up and was lucky enough to be able to figure our what was damaged and swapped parts over to get one working. Then bought a waterproof case for it. Didnt know about the fully waterproof version till afterwards.

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I agree, the sound is crap on action cameras but we're riding motorbikes into the wind, it's not likely to be good. On my Drift I have a small piece of foam over the mic which helps a bit, other wise I've got an external mic that I sometimes place under the seat and get great engine/exhaust sounds.

 

I hear what you're saying, but I still think, as its marketed as a sports camera, the sound should be better, I still get pretty crap sound when paragliding and that doesn't involve hardly any speed. Compare the sound to the GoPro, I had it mounted rear of the bike, it had the skeleton rear door and no modifications to the camera.

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Sound quality is exactly the same as mine - rubbish. Tried an external mike which I mounted behind my wind screen. Marginally better but still not exactly brilliant. I still think that a camera pushed for sports should be at least rain proof. My son in law's has also gone tits up due to rain. He got nowhere with his supplier and as my supplier is in Singapore I'm not even bothering. On the credit side I did get mine in a sale so it cost me half of the UK MRP. Wish I'd spent a tad more as I could have got the GoPro 7 for not much more. Live and learn. :crybaby:

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I hear what you're saying, but I still think, as its marketed as a sports camera, the sound should be better, I still get pretty crap sound when paragliding and that doesn't involve hardly any speed. Compare the sound to the GoPro, I had it mounted rear of the bike, it had the skeleton rear door and no modifications to the camera.

 

That's impressive. Was the mic facing into the wind? This is what I get with a foam mic under the seat:


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I hear what you're saying, but I still think, as its marketed as a sports camera, the sound should be better, I still get pretty crap sound when paragliding and that doesn't involve hardly any speed. Compare the sound to the GoPro, I had it mounted rear of the bike, it had the skeleton rear door and no modifications to the camera.

 

That's impressive. Was the mic facing into the wind? This is what I get with a foam mic under the seat:


 

That sounds much better the way you have it rigged up, what sort of mike are you using? Do you connect it via blue tooth? The mic on the GoPro is on the side, the camera was in a standard housing with an open back door so the mic was protected from the wind but the open back door meant it could pick all other sounds up. I do like the way you've worked around the Ghost sound issue though, sounds spot on :thumb:

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That sounds much better the way you have it rigged up, what sort of mike are you using? Do you connect it via blue tooth? The mic on the GoPro is on the side, the camera was in a standard housing with an open back door so the mic was protected from the wind but the open back door meant it could pick all other sounds up. I do like the way you've worked around the Ghost sound issue though, sounds spot on :thumb:

 

Cheers, it's a good old 3mm jack mic plugged into the drift at the back. The camera is old by today's standards, 2015 tech but still films 1080p/60fps no problem. The mic has a long lead so I have to be careful how I trail it under the seat. Its not really that practical and I'm sure with the latest tech it'd be easier but under the seat gets the best sound for me. I bought the mic off ebay years ago for about a £5, rather than pay £15 for the Drift one.

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That sounds much better the way you have it rigged up, what sort of mike are you using? Do you connect it via blue tooth? The mic on the GoPro is on the side, the camera was in a standard housing with an open back door so the mic was protected from the wind but the open back door meant it could pick all other sounds up. I do like the way you've worked around the Ghost sound issue though, sounds spot on :thumb:

 

Cheers, it's a good old 3mm jack mic plugged into the drift at the back. The camera is old by today's standards, 2015 tech but still films 1080p/60fps no problem. The mic has a long lead so I have to be careful how I trail it under the seat. Its not really that practical and I'm sure with the latest tech it'd be easier but under the seat gets the best sound for me. I bought the mic off ebay years ago for about a £5, rather than pay £15 for the Drift one.

 

Thanks rob, gonna look into that because I really like the ghost camera, it was only the sound I hated :thumb:

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I did like the ghost and if it hadn't gone tits up on me I'd have been happy with it. Now thinking of the TomTom camera which has a similar profile. Just don't fancy the GoPro shape hanging off my lid.

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Thanks rob, gonna look into that because I really like the ghost camera, it was only the sound I hated :thumb:

 

No worries man, the fact that I've owned this one for so many years is an endorsement I reckon.


For the record, if having the latest Drift camera is not a priority , a used Ghost S HD can be had on Ebay for £80 upwards. When I bought mine it was £300.

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I did like the ghost and if it hadn't gone tits up on me I'd have been happy with it. Now thinking of the TomTom camera which has a similar profile. Just don't fancy the GoPro shape hanging off my lid.

 

I tried the GoPro on the lid of my off road helmet .... Not good! IMO it's just totally the wrong size and shape, that was where the Ghost came in to its own, perfect for helmet mounting. I've never seen the tom tom camera.

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The TomTom camera is a similar shape to the Ghost and has a similar kind of mount I think. About £200 so not as pricy as the GoPro. Not sure what the battery life is though as the Ghost with extended battery pack lasted for a full day.

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The TomTom camera is a similar shape to the Ghost and has a similar kind of mount I think. About £200 so not as pricy as the GoPro. Not sure what the battery life is though as the Ghost with extended battery pack lasted for a full day.

 

I've just been watching the bike magazine review on you tube, looks pretty impressive. 1080 and 4k video options and settings can be accessed via the app which I like, be interested to know how you get on if you decide to buy one :thumb:

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Still not sure why GoPro stopped producing the Hero Session. Completely different shape and fully waterproof without a case.

 

Did they not have issues with the battery? I'm sure I read that they were failing and the battery in the session wasn't changeable which meant the camera was scrap once the battery died....

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TomTom's a no go as they've stopped making it or supporting the software. 😠

Various other small profile cameras are either no longer in production or have a worse reputation than the Drift. I'm still doing research but right now it looks like I either stick with Drift and get a waterproof case or version or go down the GoPro route. The problem is I just don't fancy sticking a GoPro on my helmet which means trying to find somewhere to attach it on the bike or on a chest harness. The latter may be the way to go.

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Still not sure why GoPro stopped producing the Hero Session. Completely different shape and fully waterproof without a case.

 

Did they not have issues with the battery? I'm sure I read that they were failing and the battery in the session wasn't changeable which meant the camera was scrap once the battery died....

 

I only have a sample size of one, my trusty first gen that I've had for over four years. The battery life has definitely reduced but it still works.

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