This article exists as part of the online archive for HuffPost India, which closed in 2020. Some features are no longer enabled. If you have questions or concerns about this article, please contact indiasupport@huffpost.com.

Indian 'Frodo' Could Be The Action Camera That Takes On The GoPro

Indian 'Frodo' Could Be The Action Camera That Takes On The GoPro
Frodo

When people say action camera, GoPro is the first word that comes to the mind. After launching the first model of their famous Hero series in 2005, the company has launched numerous cameras and accessories for them. But now an Indian company called Nexgear is aiming to beat them with a more flexible camera and smart editing software.

Nexgear is developing an action camera called Frodo which is a module that can be strapped anywhere. The company is presenting the camera by default comes with a watch strap which you can tie on your wrist. It also has a Nike Fuel+ like LED display where it shows time or other details of the photograph or the video.

We got to test the device for a while. Frodo is able to capture 8 MP photos with a tap of a button in the module with 120 degrees wide field of view. The camera is able to capture full HD videos at 30 frames per second. Technically the camera is of f/2.6 aperture. This is comparable with GoPro's cheapest offering Hero Session.

"The module itself is detachable, we are providing extensions in the package as well so you can attach it to a helmet or wear it around your arm. As an adventurer myself I felt that there is too much gear to carry around for an action cam. So there was a need for a cam which was easy for use to everyone," said Amardeep Singh, co-founder of the company.

Singh has worked on drone technology for Indian army. So he has had experience with how to handle footage from a moving camera. Also, he has been to a lot of biking and adventure trips.

"There is always so much footage to handle from the trip. We either just share the photos or a part of a clip we shot because we are lazy enough to edit. The adventure footage common people hardly gets shared on the social media," he added.

The idea that sets apart Frodo from the other action cams is to have an app which would handle the editing for you. The iOS and Android apps are capable of auto editing long footages picking the best action with the help of multiple sensors and a proprietary algorithm. The startup has even shot a promo biking video with a riding group call Road Stallions from Mumbai.

"We understand that every adventurer is not a video editor. We wanted to take the editing hassle from the people. Frodo app will reduce a 10-minute footage to one-minute action packed clip with background music in a social media shareable format," Rahul Vats a co-founder said while talking to us.

In our hands-on with the app, we found that the interface was very clean and the app was easily usable. The users would understand the options easily. The app allows you to live stream, take photos or even put the clip in a time-lapse mode.

Regarding the editing options, there are five modes namely action, people, calm (slow and casual mode), genius and Instagram (which clips the video to under 15 seconds). You can add music, titles and credits as well to make it look like a movie.

Right now Frodo has an Indiegogo page and the company is partnering with a bunch of adventurers from a biker to Austria to an Indian Kayak expert to test various scenarios. Right now they are planning to release two versions with 16 GB and 32 GB capacity.

The company has an Indiegogo campaign which is now funded. The final price of the product is not decided but It can be in the range of ₹12000-₹₹₹₹₹15000.

Contact HuffPost India

Close
This article exists as part of the online archive for HuffPost India, which closed in 2020. Some features are no longer enabled. If you have questions or concerns about this article, please contact indiasupport@huffpost.com.