Sony HDR-AS15K Action Cam

Sony HDR-AS15K Action Cam
(29/09/2013 update at end of article)

The HDRAS15 is a compact and ruggedised digital video camera designed to take video of action events from a POV perspective. It sits in the same category of other well known action camcorders such as the GoPro Hero line, the Drift Contour+ line, and the Drift HD line of cameras.
I recently picked one up on sale from DickSmith as I plan to do a bit of snowboarding in the near future. The K in the title represents the 'kit' version which comes with a dedicated battery charger, spare battery, a mount adapter (I'll explain later), and some other tidbits which I don't think you get in the regular AS15 package.
There are already a number of reviews of all the aforementioned cameras on YouTube but this review will touch on the aspects that I personally encountered within the first (half) day of using it.
NOTE: Please note that I don't own any of the other competing cameras so any statements about those that are incorrect I apologise up front, so please let me know in the comments below.


The camera itself is quite light and compact but it isn't rugged on its own. It needs to be placed within a waterproof housing to protect it from damage and the weather. Once in the housing it weighs quite a bit more and isn't so compact anymore. Still, it's smaller than most current point and shoot cameras and definitely inspires more confidence when mounted to the side of a car or a helmet.
There is a big button on the back, and two very small buttons on the side next to a non-lit LCD used for status and menu options.
The lens sits on the smaller edge of the device so in normal operation the camera looks like a standard handheld camcorder with the screen folded away. This is in contrast to way the GoPro is designed which looks more like a standard point and shoot with the lens on the largest side.
Immediately, this design lends itself to being mounted to the side of things, rather then above and central, which presents both pros and cons.
Being streamlined along the axis of view presents a much smaller area pointed at the action. As action cameras are usually meant to give a similar point of view that a person would have looking at the action, this equates to less chance of being hit by stones, debris, various sports balls, water splashes, etc.
Conversely it means mounting the camera in small tight corners such as along the A-pillar of a car's interior (as seen in shows like Top Gear) is trickier. Not to mention the main record start button is on the back (opposite side to the lens) which makes it hard to activate when the camera is pointed back at you.

The image processing path drops some pretty big names along the way. The lens is Carl Zeiss which should be familiar to anyone who has used a sony camera or other photographic equipment. The sensor is a custom version of Sony's recent Back Side Illuminated (BSI) Exmor R 1:2/3" CMOS sensor, which apparently only accesses 12MP of the 16MP area, of which I can't figure out if it even uses any more than 2.1MP in operation. More on this later. All the grunt work is done by Sony's Bionz image processing chip. I haven't been able to find out any more about what else is in the camera, as no-one has done a tear-down of the camera at this point in time, apart from the fact that it takes two different types of common Sony batteries and microSD cards up to 32GB. It also takes those tiny Memory Stick cards but I've never met anyone who owns any of those.

While most of the controls on the device are simple and intuitive (owing to there only being three buttons in total), one of the first things you notice is that once the camera is in the protective housing, functionality appears to be limited to the single button on the back of the case. It's basically a big on/off toggle for however you set the camera up before you seal it up.
This is probably the biggest drawback to this camera and housing setup, and while the AS15 version gets around this with wi-fi operation, the cheaper AS10 is out of luck. Even with wi-fi, I found the operation still limited, and constrained by the fact you need an Apple device or android based device handy to make setting changes when there isn't access to the other two buttons.
Other devices on the market seem to have been designed with this in mind and incorporate buttons on the outside of their weatherproofing.

The other thing you notice is that the standard tripod mount hole is only on the housing. There isn't one on the actual camera itself and the bottom of the camera is curved so you can't stand the camera up on it's own. This would probably be the next biggest drawback of the camera, but considering the target audience there isn't much need for use of the camera outside the housing.

This leads onto a third problem. One which isn't so apparent. To secure the device in the housing and protect the lens and make it water proof, requires the front door to be locked in place. The front door covers the built in stereo microphones and also adds another layer of medium the light needs to pass through before the lens. This results in muffled audio and major lens flaring when a bright light source is in the scene. This flaring can confuse the auto metering done by the camera.
Sony have a three piece front door package which resolves the audio issue and allows better image capture underwater, with two interchangeable front doors, and also includes a spare standard door for if (when) your original door gets damaged.

Image quality is better than average in this class of camera and a lot of people are of the opinion it is better 'straight out of the camera' than all but GoPro's latest Hero3 camera. Editing the footage on a PC is less flexible though due to all the upfront processing. You also get image stabilisation which none of the other camera's have but you sacrifice 50degrees of wideness in the viewing angle and there is also a small loss in image detail when it's turned on. You can record in 1080p/i @ 30fps, 720p/i @ 30/60/120fps, and VGA, although in anything other than 30fps you lose sound. 60/120fps is used for slow motion and you get this straight out of the camera again and doesn't require post processing like all the other cameras.
It appears Sony wanted the simplest operation with as little post processing needed as possible.

I had no issues getting the wi-fi working with my android phone (SGS2) running android 4.0.4 (ICS). The app is called PlayMemories mobile. With it you can change most of the shooting settings and also get a monitor style view so you can frame the shot and also start and stop the recording. When you set the camera to SEND mode, you can transfer everything to your phone wirelessly and it's quite fast.

Battery life is great, and doesn't appear to use any juice when not recording or using the wi-fi. The second battery and the charger in the kit is awesome.

The good:
- Sleek design. The profile and design of the camera and housing looks really good and also functional. It wouldn't look out of place snapped to the goggle straps of a snow skier, or suction-cupped to the side panel or a race-car. It's very light and small which is good.
- Interchangeable front door. This is great for when Sony brings out new door designs for different environments.
- Simple operation. One button. It can't get much simpler than that.
- Waterproofing. It is rated at 60m, which is probably deep enough for most underwater activities.
- The price. This camera kit cost me about $200 less than the top-end GoPro, and is (in my opinion) better than then competing GoPro at the same price bracket.
- Built-in Image processing features. Image Stabilisation, slow motion, auto-metering. These are all done very well on this camera and footage doesn't need post-processing.
- Stereo microphones. As far as I know and can tell, this camera has the best built-in microphone system of all current action cameras.
- Mount options. As it uses a standard tripod mount threat you can use the camera anywhere a normal camera can be mounted, and with the adapter I mentioned at the start of this review, it can also be fitted to any standard GoPro hinge. This (somewhat) gets around being restricted to a propretary mounting system.
- Battery life. I got some decent play time with the semi-charged battery that came in the box.
- Surprise port. There is an additional port on the botton of the camera that apparently allows an accessory to transform it into a sort of handy cam complete with LCD flipout display. Pretty cool.

The bad: (you might notice how these correlate to the good points above)
- Orientation. Being designed lengthwise along the view axis prevents some mounting and control option.
- Interchangeable front door. The standard door isn't bad. It just isn't as good as it could/should be. The kit should have come with all three door types. Currently you have to shell out AU$50 for this pack from the Sony store.
- Simple operation. Having only one button available when in the housing limits your in-field options. You can't even turn on the device to activate the wi-fi if it's gone to sleep. You actually have to record something (however small) just to wake it up.
- Waterproofing. Having the housing so thick and made of clear plastic adds to the weight and interferes with the camera operation (compared to the camera outside the case).
- No raw mode. You cannot change ANY of the image processing settings other than turning off IS.
- Accessory overload. There are so many accessories for this which should have been in the kit. An angle joint to adjust tilt. A suction cup for automobile mounting. A tube mount for attaching to bike handlebars or a ski-pole. As none of these are in the kit, you have to buy them and they aren't cheap (even though they should be). You could probably make your own metal versions or buy them off eBay for a lot less.
- Housing. The housing setup has some fundamental flaws in the way Sony have implemented it. Loss of button access, added weight, interference. There's also no access to any of the ports or extrenal mic jack while inside the housing and modding the housing to get access isn't really possible do to the amount of room to play with. You also cannot mount or even just stand the camera upright outside the case.
- Lack of features. There are some imaging options which should be possible on this camera but just aren't there. Image rotation, finer granularity with time lapse delays, higher resolution still images, an actual still image button or long press on the start button.
- Wi-fi controls. For some reason, the app doens't let you switch between capture and playback over wi-fi. I assume this is because it treats each as a separate connection type to the remote device but to me that is a software/firmware drawback and really should be addressed. Otherwise, as it is now you have to remove the camera from the housing to transfer files which can be tedious or risky while in the field.
- No sound in slow motion (60/120fps) modes. Other lesser cameras can do it. C'mon Sony. This should be fixable with a firmware update.
- Rattle and build quality. Under heavy vibrations such as on a mountain bike, there is a rattle. I think this is from the plastic rail the camera slides on when inserting into the housing. You can hear it if you shake the device vigorously and it gets picked up in the audio. A simple wad of tissue or sponge should fix this but this should have been picked up during testing.
- Battery charger should have a USB option. You have to plug the desktop charger into mains. There should be an option to charge by USB which doesn't involve the camera body. No doubt Sony will make something, but it will be expensive.

Overall:
There are a lot of negatives with this camera, but most are balanced out with positives or might just require a change in your approach to get the most out of the device. Some flaws are definitely insurmountable and probably have, and do, turn people to competing products.
You can get something with less flaws and more options for more money, of something with other compromises and different advantages for similar or less. But for the price I got mine, I don't think you can find a competing product which is overall better than the HDRAS15 at this time.

Suggestions to Sony for the followup device:
- Update the app and or firmware to allow the image to be rotated in 90degree steps.
- Allow switching from record and playback/transfer via wi-fi without having to take the camera out of the housing.
- Supply rubber o-rings for separate purchase. I don't want to have to purchase the three door pack just because the rubber ring on the original door developed a leak. While on the subject of the door pack, just include all three in the original or maybe combine the microphone fix into the other doors. There shouldn't be a need to compromise on one or the other.
- For the next iteration of this device, replace all buttons on the external housing with spring loaded magnetic actioning slide controls. What I mean by this is, on the external housing you have a spring loaded sliding 'button' with a magnet on the tip. When you slide the magnet over the internal 'button' it actions the function for that button, then springs back. That solves the issue of waterproofing while retaining functionality in-field. Put ridges on wide sliders and you can operate with gloves on.
- Make a dedicated 'wi-fi ON' switch to wake the wi-fi for remote operation or syncing but can turn it off when not needed without having to remove the camera from the housing. This would also save battery and stop forcing a movie capture just to turn the unit on.
- Set the mic socket on the camera on the side entering the housing first. Expose the external mic socket and have a male plug hard-set into the inside of the case, which is wired via a ribbon cable through the body of the housing to a corresponding socket on the exterior of the housing. If epoxied in place the ribbon wont interfere with weather-proofing and you get an external mic port which you can also use while the device is mounted on a tripod. Just slide the camera into the housing to complete the connection. Audio options via the sliders I mentioned above.
(I'm actually thinking of doing something similar to the above using a salvaged stereo plug, the wire end filed down and soldered/epoxied to a flat ribbon cable with a right angle turn found on most floppy disk drive PCBs from old computers. The audio will only need three traces at least and the ribbon is waterproof as far as I know. Being so thin it should be able to squeeze past the o-ring and connect to an external socket. If I can do it, I'll post something for others to copy.)

Score:
6.5/10 (score might increase if Sony take on my above suggestions with a software/firmware update)


Some footer notes: I live in Australia so this model or kit combination may not be available where you live. The camera kit was purchased for $318 down from $398. This is the cheapest I could find from a bricks and mortar store and the savings will offest the ridiculous Sony asking price of a goggle-strap mounting clip. The place where I am going to ski/snowboard will require some anti-fogging arrangement. I've decided to MacGuiver a solution rather than purchase the $20 anti-fog stips from Sony. This solution will also probably have the side-effect of fixing or at least muting the rattle noise. (UPDATE: I've been able to retrofit some chamois cloth strips into the housing to remove moisture and prevent fog, and I'll test this out somehow, however I haven't been able to remove the rattle. It's actually within the camera itself, somewhere behind the lens assembly. This needs to be addressed in the next version as I can foresee attaching to bicycle handlebars being really rattley.)
(UP-update: I've found this video:
http://youtu.be/Lm7rUsqQF8A
and managed to do a similar thing but using tiny adhesive cushion pads and some blu-tac for securing the screen. It works! I also added a pad in between the battery and the battery cradle. No more rattles, but there is still some low pitch muffled noise when vibrating, but now it's no more than any other cam.)

UPDATE (29/09/2013):
I've recently just updated the firmware on the camera to v3 from the original v1.2(?).
The update now removes the PLAY function that you had to select on the camera to switch between playback and record. The function is now taken care of in the mobile app for your smartphone. This addresses the 2nd gripe I listed above in the suggestions section. The update also adds 1080p@60fps in a non-slowmotion mode. This brings the shooting capabilities closer to what the GoPro H3BE is capable of. I have tested the 60fps and it works quite well but my smartphone (SGS2) and VLC (on mid spec PC from 2009) both stutter now with the increased bitrate requirements. The PlayMemoriesHome software on my PC doesn't stutter for some reason so it could just be VLC. Video movement is now a lot smoother and this will also translate to smoother end results downsampling to 30fps such as for youtube, or if you want to slow the video in post processing.
Sony also added a WATER whitebalance mode for when shooting underwater. The difference is subtle but noticeable for those who shoot lots of underwater.

The mobile app has also been updated for better response and WiFi connection performance. I can verify it is faster.

Since I made the initial review, Sony have refreshed the AS15 model as the AS30V and it now comes with an enclosure which is ~25% lighter and smaller than the original. I don't believe the actual camera has had any physical changes made to it. But now it sports GPS, NFC, more PAL compatible shooting modes, and options like 180degree rotate and the latest firmware. I really hope the new camera has fixed the rattle that was present in the original. The price stays about the same, while the outgoing model has dropeed to about $200.

The number of accessories have increased and the helmet mounts seems to have been updated for tilt adjustment. All in all, it looks like Sony have actually listened to a lot of the feedback users have been giving. While I'm not so keen on spending an additional $150 on the SmartRemote that overcomes some of the shortcomings of the device, I can understand the direction Sony have taken and the business model they have to follow.

I would really like to see a major revision to their action cam lineup with a completely revamped camera design, hopefully incorporating something along the lines of the suggestions I had above in terms of microphone jack placement and pairing it with an enclosure with electrically connected controls rather than physical interfaces to the camera inside, as this would address the biggest complaint I see from motorbike riders regarding access to the mic jack while retaining weather sealing. As of yet, I haven't attempted the I/O port hack I mentioned when I first wrote this review.

As I also mentioned in the first write up, after the firmware update, I'm updating my score to 7.5/10