Tackle Tuesday... Shimano Sports Camera

This entry was posted on 1st July, 2014

Shimano Sports Camera Review

Amateur videographers pay attention, Shimano has released a new toy into the action-camera market – a miniature device that’s perfect for anglers!

Shimano’s entry into the increasingly popular action-camera market is the new CM-1000 Sport Camera. This nifty little device has a lot in common with other market-leading action camera’s, including the biggest brand, Go-Pro, but it also has a few unique features to set it apart.

The first is definitely appealing to the angler, in mind of the fact we spend lots of time by the waterside and the types of things we are likely to want to film. The compact, fully sealed body is merely the size of a matchbox, but it’s also waterproof and is rated to 10 metres into the drink. It’s seriously lightweight too – just 86g including its battery and memory card. It really is a tiny item that is about as portable as things get.



The waterproof feature will make it possible to take brilliant underwater footage and saves you a few blushes if you happen to drop it in the margins by accident. Imagine strapping this up to a new handle and filming the carp being played and landed in the edge!

Shimano claims that the CM-1000 is capable of excellent HD movies in all conditions, while still images can also be captured at an effective resolution of six megapixels. Inside the camera is an f2.0 lens, which should enable it to produce good results in low light conditions.

The 16 megapixel back-illuminated CMOS image sensor provides full 1080p HD capability. Recording is adjustable between three models: 1920 x 1080 at 30fps, 1280 x 720 at 120fps, or 640 x 360 at 240fps, using either a 135 or 180-degree viewing angle. This means that, essentially, there are three quality settings that control the resolution and frames per second, which all have bearings of the quality of the video and how much footage can be stored.

The device doesn’t have an internal memory; instead it takes micro SD cards up to 32GB, which is plenty for recording several high-quality, lengthy videos.



The camera is also equipped with WiFim which should unlock a whole host of useful features when paired with a laptop/smartphone, as well the ability to upload content quickly to social media platforms.

A two-button interface ensures that the controls are simple to adjust and the added LEDs and audio cues used confirm your chosen settings.

The camera is also powered by a lithium-ion battery – Shimano claims that the battery life is two hours and that full charging will take four hours. That’s not bad at all, again considering the light, compact unit.

It comes supplied with two mounts as well, one designed for helmet use and the other to attach it to random objects such as tree branches and storm poles. Other mounting options, including a chest mount, will be available accessories.

This is a seriously good bit of video equipment that suits us anglers down to the ground!

Buy The Shimano Sports Camera