FuriBee Q6 Action Camera review

The "FuriBee Q6 WiFi 4K Ultra HD Action Sport Camera" is a low-cost action camera with a good software and decent performance.






Like all the cheap action cameras, this one claims to be 4K capable; result that is only achieved artificially by interpolation.
I guess when one start advertising that, the others feel obliged to follow, never mind the impact on their credibility.

Anyway, nobody seriously expects a true 4K below 200$ (and certainly not below 40€!) but that doesn't mean the camera is not at least good in its normal operating range.

So what is it really?
The Furibee Q6 uses the OV4689 which is really a 4-megapixel (2688x1520) sensor.
At least the 30fps is achieved without duplicating frames...
An Allwinner V-3 chipset in charge of the video encoding and the power is provided by a standard 900mAh Li-Ion battery.

What it is not:

Unlike the claims on the box, there's no 16MP CMOS Sensor, and setting anything higher than 4MP is just a waste of pixels.

Software:
The firmware 20161019V2.3 is stable and offers a good choice of features (time lapse, slo-mo, timer, burst...). It just lacks an option to turn off the interface clicks and the loud FuriBee jingles.
The default video resolution is 1080P60fp and that probably the most reasonable choice with this camera.



Connecting to the camera via Wi-Fi is straightforward
and the XDV app is a good surprise compared to the many ugly apps I've tried in the past (AIT WiFi Cam Viewer, AMK-ICAM, iSmart DV). while perfectible, this one has a clean and easy to use interface and worked properly during my tests.




Picture and sound quality:
I've read complains about the sound quality and that's the first thing I checked. The audio recorded with the video is absolutely fine. Of course, don't judge by playing back on the camera itself as the embedded speaker is not terrific and don't bother recording the audio from inside the waterproof case!

The picture is a different story though. While the overall quality is good, the chromatic aberrations combined to the compression translate as blurry patches when filmed in motion (look at the tree in the close-up below). The camera also needs good light condition and certainly not meant to be used indoor. This weakness is betrayed by the presence of a front LED light, which hardly helps in any way.

Conclusion: Fully functional but modest performer

The FuriBee Q6 performs reasonably well for a low-cost action camera in this price range as long as the it operates outdoor under good lighting conditions. 

It is very similar to the previously reviewed SJ6000, but with a better built quality and software. However the video compression and chromatic aberrations can negatively affect the final result despite some interesting creative options available. 

You can currently get it from Gearbest for ~€32. and it's probably a better deal than the ElecamExplorer 4K based on the same specifications.

Pros: 

● overall good product quality 

● good set of camera features available (time lapse, slo-mo, timer, burst...)

● good audio quality

● car mode and PC webcam mode

● Mini HDMI works for both live recording and playback

Cons:

● no option to disable jingle and clicks.

● embedded speaker not very loud (except for the jingles) and no volume adjustment.

● dull colour rendering and chromatic aberrations. 

● poor results under low light conditions

Special thanks to David @ GearBest for providing this sample.