INTRODUCTION
Action cameras are just about the only gadget available to Xtreme sports enthusiasts that allow them to keep a record of their achievements with ease thanks to their tiny sizes and quite impressive capabilities (always for their size). It's no wonder many people refer to these portable devices as the future of video recording/streaming and although i don't think we will be around (hope I’m wrong) to witness the "extinction" of full sized camcorders i think that no one can deny that they have evolved quite a bit over the years both in features and specifications. A few weeks ago we received the very first pair of glasses packing a Full HD action camera by Rollei and although in the end we found them lacking in some areas we were quite impressed with the innovative path manufacturers are taking as of late. Well it seems that Oregon Scientific has also something to offer since they are the first manufacturer to release a dual lens action camera called the ATC Chameleon.
Oregon Scientific is a global brand and creator of electronic products for today’s lifestyles. Its innovative products are the combination of cutting-edge US technology and stylish European design that build a bridge between people and technology, helping them understand their environment and enhance their daily lives. Established in the US in 1989, Oregon Scientific is both the inventor and market leader for Smart Clocks and Home Weather Stations. These two principal areas of expertise remain at the center of Oregon Scientific’s core competencies. Besides the award-winning Time and Weather collection, Oregon Scientific has successfully developed four other lifestyle enhancing product collections : Sports and Fitness, Telecommunications, Digital Media and Electronic Learning collections.
The ATC Chameleon features a splash-proof rugged casing housing two individual lens capable of recording video up to 720p resolution (1280x720) at 30fps with a 180 degree pan/tilt function and a quite remarkable horizontal FOV of 170 degrees for each. For your recordings the ATC Chameleon features an card slot with which you can use micro SD cards up to 32GB in capacity, an 1000mAh lithium-polymer rechargeable batter giving it up to 2 hours of recording and to make things even more interesting Oregon Scientific has also implemented an switch that allows the recording to be split in two screens either horizontally or vertically according to the total resolution one may want for both screens. Unfortunately the ATC Chameleon lacks built-in Wi-Fi and GPS (nor does it have a mounting space for a GPS transmitter like the ATC9K we reviewed in the past) something which we were hoping to see (the GPS mostly). Image quality however is the number 1 thing we always care most when testing and using action cameras so let’s see what the ATC Chameleon is capable of.
SPECIFICATIONS AND FEATURES
PACKAGING AND CONTENTS
Oregon Scientific ships the ATC Chameleon inside a very nice looking package part of which is made out of clear plastic that allows you to see the camera.
The various mounting options (not all included in the bundle) are showcased at the left side of the package.
On the opposite side we see the 180 degrees pan/tilt feature of the two lenses.
At the rear we see the features list printed in 10 languages right next to contact information for Oregon Scientific.
The bundle consists from the ATC Chameleon action camera, helmet mount, tripod mount, micro USB cable, quickstart guide and the warranty paper.
THE ATC CHAMELEON
The ATC Chameleon features a hard plastic splash-proof body that measures 117mm in length, 40mm in width and 38mm in height with a weight of 120g (without the base).
To showcase the size of the ATC Chameleon we placed it right next to the Plantronics Voyager Legend UC and the ATC9K.
The product name and the company logo are placed on the sides and top of the camera.
At the top we also see a large on/off switch (the moment you turn the camera on it starts recording) along with the on/off, battery life and card activity LEDs.
A small door is placed on the right side of the ATC Chameleon.
Behind that door we find the micro SD card slot, microUSB port, status button and the switch which adjust the recording screens horizontally of vertically.
The front lens can tilt up to 180 degrees while the rear lens can pan again up to 180 degrees.
Once you slide the top button the device will check the battery life and whether or not there's a card mounted.
A removable base used to mount the various accessories/mounts is placed at the base of the device right next to its electrical requirements.
For all our tests we used the tripod mount which is also ideal for car use.
USING THE ATC CHAMELEON
The very first thing you should do is head over to the official Oregon Scientific support page to download the latest PC/MAC software version (unfortunately Oregon Scientific hasn't updated either the FW or the PC/MAC software till this day).
As you can see from the above pictures the software is very simple and easy to use since it just playbacks the files found in the ATC Chameleon. However to be completely fair it does allow you to switch between streams and setup the screen according to your preference.
AUDIO/VIDEO QUALITY
Although we received the ATC Chameleon several months ago we only recently acquired a tripod suction cup mount for the car so we ended up testing it for no more than 14 days in total. Unfortunately night results were very bad in places with low light so we found no reason to waste bandwidth and space for those clips. However as always instead of using YouTube (and thus reducing quality in the process) we chose to upload our clips (one with the device recording horizontally and one vertically) to our server so to download them directly just click on the above images (click and save as).
CONCLUSION
Right from the get go although the ATC Chameleon really did impress us with its dual lens and splash-proof housing it had a serious downside so since having already reviewed the previous ATC9K waterproof action camera again by Oregon Scientific which featured an single 1080p capable lens we couldn't figure out why they would choose to use two 720p lens (8000kbps bitrate total) instead with the ATC Chameleon. We do have a theory that they did so to reduce recording size since two high bitrate 1080p lens would probably eat an 8GB microSD card for breakfast but still with microSD prices at an all-time low currently we don't think that's a valid argument. However the result is what really matters and so the ATC Chameleon remains an impressive product as far as innovation goes but nothing more than that since the two HD capable lens produce inferior image quality compared to pretty much every single one of the 1080p capable action cameras we have tested and used so far. Some extreme sports athletes may choose the ATC Chameleon because of its dual rotating lens, splash-proof casing, low profile design and impressive horizontal FOV but we'd strongly recommend against it if image quality is really important for them.
Compared with when we received the ATC Chameleon its price tag has taken a huge dive and so as we speak Oregon Scientific offers it for just USD44.99 inside the USA (Amazon.com) and for 60Euros inside the EU (Amazon.co.uk). When i first started writing this review my mind was set on its previous price tag of USD149.99/160Euros so between the image/audio quality and features of the ATC Chameleon i really had very few good things to say about it. However price plays a very important role when picking the right gadget and/or tool for the job and although the ATC Chameleon really falls short to win any of our awards still it's an innovative product that offers mediocre image & audio quality for a very tempting price tag so if you're in the market for an action camera and you could use the dual lens system along with the splash-proof housing then we really suggest taking a look since it just might be good enough.
PROS
- Splash-Proof Housing
- Dual Lens (HD 720p)
- 180 Degrees Pan/Tilt For The Lens
- 170 Degrees Horizontal FOV
- Horizontal/Vertical Recording Feature
- Price (For Some)
CONS
- Mediocre Image & Audio Quality
- No LCD/Wi-Fi