SJCAM C400 Handheld Action Camera (Review)

SJCAM has recently launched the next generation of its C-series with the new SJCAM C400 Handheld Action Camera, which hit stores this summer. An action camera that seeks to deliver as much modular support as possible, along with plenty of features, while keeping the price reasonable.

Like its sibling, the C300, the SJCAM C400 comes with much of the gear you’d need to get started. Not only that, its unique design includes a handle that can be combined with it to increase its battery life and provide even further customization. All in all, it makes for an interesting camera.

The box it comes in can be deceiving since it doesn’t look like there is much to it. The camera already comes tucked into its expandable handle accessory, with all of the accessories in the other half of the space. A very compact approach that makes it easy to ship (versus using an exaggerated design to show off).

You get some documentation, which pretty much just walks you through turning it on and the various accessories it comes with. It doesn’t really tell you anything about the settings or menus since the camera itself will do this the first time you power it up. It will walk you through the various menus so you know how to find everything (it is always important to pay attention to the bottom-left of the screen so you know what mode you are in at any given time).

When it comes to those accessories, it becomes impressive that they were able to fit everything into that little box. It does help that the camera is small, thus so are the accessories (so there is that).

Inside, you’d find a wrist strap, your basic adapters for mounting with extra double-sided sticky pads, as well as a case to clip the camera to something (such as your clothes), two types of cases to mount it to the adapters, and a water-resistant case, which gains you up to 30 meters (just under 100ft) of water-resistance.

Plenty of accessories, as I mentioned, to get you started. As well as multiple mount adapters, so that you can easily swap from one mount position to another while you are capturing content.

The company has additional accessories that one can use to extend things even further. We got our hands on three of these, including a tiny tripod, a magnetic lanyard case, and an expansion adapter that allows you either to attach accessories (like lights) or to mount the camera and handle combined to something, instead of taking the camera out to mount it.

So they are in no lack of options when it comes to the many ways that you can mount or use this action camera. Which checks one of the most important boxes, as without options, an action cam won’t be able to see so much action.

That camera portion is small and better designed than the C300 was when it comes to its shape. It maintains a normal rectangular shape that makes it easy to mount and make use of. There is a small camera on the front so that you can see yourself as you make use of it for recording yourself (or so others can see themselves as you record them). At least, until it times out to save battery as you record. Helping you to line up the right shot before you run with things.

There is a microSD slot on the side that supports up to 512GB cards, providing more than enough space for more people (unless you are one of those who never clear out their card after transferring their content to a computer).

You also have a singular button that is used for both power and capture (start/stop record, or take picture, depending on what mode you are in). Everything else is handled using the 1.3″ touchscreen to browse and control the various menus/settings.

What also makes it easy to mount is its overall size. The camera is only 2.68 inches top to bottom, 1.26 inches side to side, and 1 inch front to back. Which reminds you of most of the smaller stand-alone action cams that have achieved a tiny footprint over the years.

By itself, it is capable of up to 172 minutes of record time while using the maximum resolution of 4K@30. You may be able to score additional battery life if you drop it down to 1080p@60, with likely exceptions if you take the 1080p refresh to 120.

Need additional battery life? Who doesn’t? Affordable action cams are typically limited in this area, and this is where the handle comes into play. The camera easily slides in and out of the handle using a latch system. It then increases the battery life of the camera to up to 437 minutes when recording in 4k@30. This adds an impressive boost, so you never have to worry about swapping out batteries (which you can’t anyway, as it is embedded inside).

The size of the handle is just right for the average hand, and this also gives you additional ways of mounting the camera. Such as the optional tripod you can purchase (really, you can use any tripod), since the handle has threads on the bottom, where the camera (by itself) does not, due to size.

The benefits don’t end there, as the handle comes with a 2.29-inch rotating screen, providing you with a much larger image as you shoot, and allowing you to see the content from behind the camera, instead of in front of it. And you can still choose to swap over to the other screen instead if you still prefer to see it from the front (you just can’t have both going at the same time).

The camera has a USB-C connection, which can be used to charge the camera. But it is also used for connecting to the handle so that the two pieces can communicate. Then, there is another USB-C connection in the handle (as you can see in the above image) that can charge both of them.

It also has two separate buttons for both power and capture. Although you won’t have to use the power button if you are looking to capture in normal 16×9 widescreen, since the camera powers on and off when you rotate the screen out (the power button is for when you want to record in portrait view).

Even better, the handle also works with the camera while they are separated. Allowing you to monitor the content from the handle and use it as a remote. This is an impressive feature, since most modern action cams come with some kind of remote, but few of them can be viewed from it (just controlled). Usually, you have to make use of an app on your smartphone for that kind of thing (which, oh yes, it does that too so that you can live-stream to YouTube from this camera).

So you can strap this to a drone or RC car and monitor the video from the handle as someone else controls the drone/RC. Or mount the handle to your controller so that you can easily do both. You just have to make use of either the expansion adapter (optional accessory) or the threads at the bottom of the handle.

It has a long list of features that allow it to live up to a decent price point. Many of these we have already discussed. So what have we missed thus far? Well, one good one to mention is image stabilization. It isn’t going to be the industry’s best image stabilization, so just know that now. But it does feature some basic stabilization nonetheless. Not only that, but it has Horizon Steady, which helps to keep the view within the horizon so you don’t get motion sick if the view tilts around too much side to side.

The above video allows you to see what the camera looks like as someone walks around holding it. It focuses on plants, grass, and the general landscape within a park during the day. This was shot with a 4K@30 resolution, allowing you to see its max resolution.

Not only does it focus on landscape, but we also took it through the grass on a stroll to see how it handles a busy image with things whipping by, and get close and comfortable with the lens.

We really wanted to take it out and test its stabilization via a bike ride in the desert and hills, but once we were able to organize something, Mother Nature decided to dump rain everywhere, and those plans came to a halt. So we may come back later on with something if we come back to that.

Looking at some of the other features, you’ll also find support for time-lapse, slow motion, car mode, loop recording, as well as using it as a webcam for your computer. Giving you a little extra use out of the product and one less product to buy elsewhere.

Although it does take pictures as well, we found it best to stick to video. But then again, if you have nothing else to take images with, it gets you something. It supports resolutions up to 16MP (for some reason, less than the C300, which supports up to 20MP).

It also promises great night vision, so let’s take a look at some additional footage to see how it performs there.

The above video focuses on driving. It was shot both in the day and in the night to show you the difference between the two. Even though it doesn’t exactly excel at this, it is important to remind you of the price point, which can vary depending on where you buy it. The original MSRP is $249, but you can find it on sale already at times, and you can use the discount code “pocnetwork” to gain a little extra if bought directly from SJCAM’s website.

We’ve seen plenty of action cameras and dashboard cameras that can do better, but you are usually talking $300-$500 range as well. So there is some balance to consider when it comes to this.

In this video, we are just having a little fun at this point. Another example of shooting at night, but while inside a contactless car wash. Why? Well, because it sounded interesting. It also provides a good example of when things suddenly get close to the camera, while it is focused on the rest of the space.

It’s also strangely amusing watching a car wash through the view of an action camera. That, and I can be easily entertained at times. Either way, I had to wash off the dirt from the rainstorm earlier that day. That same storm that stopped us from riding.

And finally, here is another random yet fun clip we did, focusing on rapid movement while close-up to something. We dove back and forth along a Yamaha QL1 soundboard to see how clear everything would be in the final video.

This also helps to show the difference between the 4k@30 refresh and the speed of LED lights and screens nearby. You will see blinking in the content if you don’t match the same refresh rate of lights and screens. Thus, this will be noticeable at night while walking through a large city filled with buildings and lights.

Our Conclusion

Simply put, this is a powerful action cam for the price. It is incredibly modular through the use of its handle and the many accessories already available to it. Of course, if you have made use of action cameras before, you likely know that with a little ingenuity, you can get them to work with the accessories and adapters of other models/brands as well (in case you have them lying around). With the number of accessories, including the ability to use the handle as a separate remote control while detached, you find that you can save a little cash by not having to buy all of that separately.

It has an excellent battery life while using the handle. The option of the two screens is great (again, even better when you need to use the handle separately). It comes with many modes to select from and features some entry-level image stabilization.

It isn’t perfect, but again, it is at somewhat of an entry-level price point. So the resolution could be better, but then the price would likely go up. So that only leaves a few things we wish we had. Like 4K@60 for less motion trail at 4K. Thankfully, you can dumb it down to lower resolutions to gain a better refresh rate. So maybe 2K will work better for you if you need this. There is no external mic support, so when it comes to audio, you only have the internal mic. There is no option to digitally remove selfie sticks from the image (which has become popular), and again, it maxes with photos at 16MP instead of the 20MP that the previous generation offered. That’s about it. Leaving the company with plenty of selling points to guide some users (who need more) to their next big flagship when it drops.

Again, you can score a little discount from SJCAM’s website if you use the code “pocnetwork”.

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