Akaso EK7000 Pro action camera review

If you fancy a GoPro but are put off by the price, the Akaso EK7000 Pro action camera may be a good alternative. It’s under half the price of GoPro’s entry level Hero7 White model although, unlike the GoPro, it doesn’t come with a MicroSD card or voice control.

It shoots in 4k/25fps, 2.7k/30fps or 1080P/60fps modes as well as shooting 16Mpixel stills. That’s better video performance than the GoPro Hero7 White, but a bit less than the £280 Hero7 Silver. In 18=080P/60fps mode, it offers image stabilisation too. If you plan to attach the camera below a Garmin mount, you can set it to record images upside down. Plus there are options like burst photo (taking three stills per second), time lapse photos and loop recording.

Image-wise, the Akaso EK7000 Pro action camera includes image stabilisation like many of the best bike and helmet cameras. There’s the option to select four different fields of view, so you can have a narrowed image of the view ahead as well as one taking in more peripheral action. The images are bright and clear, although they look a little oversaturated. You can, however, alter the image colour balance via the camera’s settings menu.

The Akaso EK7000 Pro action camera comes with a waterproof case that’s compatible with GoPro mounts, so you can set it up on your bike or take it underwater (where there’s a mode to rebalance the colours to compensate for the different colour balance in water). You can operate the four main controls easily via the large silver buttons on the case. When out of its case, the Akaso EK7000 Pro action camera has a 2in rear touchscreen that I found easy to use to select camera features and play back video.

Connectivity is via micro USB and micro HDMI ports as well as using WiFi. As you’d expect, Akaso has an app which you can link to the camera and which lets you control the camera, as well as play back and share content and update the camera software. You can also use it to download 1080P content directly from the camera; otherwise, you need to remove the SD card to transfer images and video to an external device.

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What Akaso also does well is to package with the EK7000 all those mounts and other bits and pieces that GoPro charges a lot extra for – £25 and up for most options. So in the pack with the camera is a remote control that can be attached to your bars or elsewhere, allowing you to start and stop the camera without starting and stopping your ride.

Plus there’s a helmet mount, a range of seven different mounts to glue, strap, clip or screw the Akaso EK7000 Pro action camera to just about anything, a frame to attach the helmet to a GoPro mount without its case and a whole load of Velcro straps and zip ties.

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Battery life is around 90 minutes, but Akaso includes two batteries with the camera, along with a USB charging cradle, so you can take a second battery along and swap it out mid-ride if you want. The battery compartment door is a bit fiddly to open, however.

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So I’ve been impressed by the Akaso EK7000 Pro action camera’s ability to provide pretty much everything you need to shoot videos and stills on the road, without needing to pay a huge price.