Transcend Drive Pro 200 Wi-Fi Car Video Recorder Review
While Transcend is a global leader in flash memory technologies, today we take a look at a product that has them moving into an emerging market.
The Drive Pro 200 is a small form factor action camera featuring a 2.4" LCD screen. The image sensor used is a 3 mega-pixel CMOS, while the lense carries a 7-layer glass design with a 160-degree viewing angle.
Resolution support includes 720p at 30FPS and 1080p at 30FPS. In addition to those specifications, the DP200 carries a G-sensor that can enable recording in the event of a crash. Encoding is done with H.264 with the .MOV file format.
MSRP of the Transcend Drive Pro 200 is set at $164.99 with a one-year warranty.
Scope of delivery for the DP200 includes a quick start guide, car power adapter, and video out cable.
The front of the camera houses both the microphone and speaker on opposing ends.
The left side of the camera houses the micro SD slot, along with the emergency record button.
On the top of the unit, we have the mounting tab for the camera.
On the right side of the camera, we have the video out connection, along with the mini USB power input.
With the Transcend Drive Pro 200 supporting Wi-Fi, we connected our iPhone 5s and loaded up the app. While the Drive Pro App does allow you to view the live camera feed, a warning is issued first thing when you load up the application.
The Drive Pro carries quite a few options within its menu. Here we have everything from resolution settings to adjusting the exposure and video length.
In the second image of the settings, we have options for the G-sensor and Wi-Fi, among a few others.
Resolution options include both 720p and 1080p both at 30FPS.
Within the G-sensor menu, you can choose how sensitive you would like it to be before recording automatically.
Wi-Fi options are pretty basic; here you can edit the SSID and password.
The last menu item is the information tab. Within this menu, you can see how much free space you have left on your SD card, along with the IP, if you have it connected via Wi-Fi.
With the few weeks I have spent using the Drive Pro 200, I have come away quite surprised at how well the camera performs. The build quality seems to be pretty good, though I do have some concerns on how well it would handle a drop from any reasonable height. The LCD screen, while being a great option to have on any camera, doesn't have the best resolution, but is enough to playback videos. The menu options are plentiful, but basic at the same time, and the G-Sensor while being a great feature to have was a bit too sensitive for me even at the lowest setting.
While having the Drive Pro 200, I did get the chance to shoot some video while driving and I can say the video clarity is quite amazing to be honest. The downfall is the microphone on the camera is extremely too sensitive and had some sort of buzzing noise throughout the entire video. Low light shooting with the DP200 does redeem some of the downfalls of the unit, as it's actually much better than my Mobius ActionCam I've used previously to this.
Overall, with my only previous experience with action cameras being the Mobius, the Transcend DP200 is a great device, with very minor flaws that could be fixed with a firmware update.
PRICING: You can find the Transcend TS16GDP200 16GB Drive Pro 200 Car Video Recorder with Built-In Wi-Fi for sale below. The prices listed are valid at the time of writing but can change at any time. Click the link to see the very latest pricing for the best deal.
United States: The Transcend TS16GDP200 16GB Drive Pro 200 Car Video Recorder with Built-In Wi-Fi retails for $126.19 at Amazon.
Product Summary Breakdown
| Performance | 85% |
| Quality including Design and Build | 80% |
| General Features | 85% |
| Bundle and Packaging | 90% |
| Value for Money | 90% |
| Overall TweakTown Rating | 86% |
The Bottom Line: Transcend's Drive Pro 200 is a great solution for anyone wanting a low-cost option for filming 1080p video on the road. The additional features of having emergency recording if you get into an accident and Wi-Fi access via your smartphone add to the overall package, and make it one of the best car cams in terms of features.
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