Review: Techalogic HC-1 2K Helmet Camera

NOTE: This review is not compensated and I received no free products or other reward for writing it.

Review: Techalogic HC-1 2K Helmet Camera

The GoPros have 45-50 minute battery lives and who stops in a cycle to change batteries? My Penny-Farthing cycles are usually over an hour, averaging around 1hr 15min – 1hr 45 min. And being England, all too frequently it will be raining. So stopping to change batteries and open up the camera in the rain, erm, no thanks. And as a company, GoPro just sucks, so I had to find an alternative.

And here it is: the Techalogic HC-1. The “HC” I’m guessing stands for “Helmet Camera“. It’s a fraction of the price (£150 at the time of this writing), with a 2+ hour battery life, and unlike GoPro, they give you a pile of accessories and don’t nickel-and-dime their customers. They even bung you a memory card. It captures license plates quite clearly- a key requirement for me ;-> , and I can finish a complete cycle on a single battery. And it weighs next to nothing. If you’re racing, having extra weight strapped to your head is really not ideal. So lightweight is a nice plus. Another feature it has the GoPro doesn’t is a time-stamp watermark. I could never believe GoPro never implemented this very essential function for producing evidence when menaced by aggressive drivers.One small- but often neglected- feature the HC-1 has is haptic feedback. You get audible and buzzing feedback to validate the camera has been switched on- or off. Without this, you can’t be sure and have to stop and visually check.

Now the downsides, and there are a few: 1) No video stabilisation. However it’s not that much of a problem from reviewing the video it takes. Not perfect video, but still pretty damn good. 2) No removable batteries: if your cycle goes longer than about 2hrs 15-30-ish minutes, you can’t just pop another battery in. 3) Rain– you can’t easily wipe the sense like a GoPro. The HC-1 has a tiny lens and if a drop of water gets on it, it will obscure the video until it slides off. And it will eventually slide off, but not ideal. 4) Rubber protective USB port cover. It doesn’t stay in place and eventually will come off, potentially damaging your camera if it happens in a soaking rain. 5) the App: it’s crap. However, I just turn it on and it records, so I don’t really need- nor care- about the app.

The price is a fraction of the GoPro’s, it has a time-date watermark feature, sports a really chunky battery life and is very lightweight. Sure there are a few downsides, but for the price you can’t expect perfect. But it is nonetheless a pretty decent camera.

For specimen video quality, look at the Oudenburg Euro Penny-Farthing Championships 2023 video where it captured a fellow Penny-Farthing racer taking out a steel barricade

I also video’ed the 2023 Knutsford Great Race with the HC-1, as well as Techalogic’s RC-1– which I’m guessing stands for “Rear Camera“