GitUp F1 4K - Sports Camera Review | Pevly (2023)

In this review I’m going to introduce you to one of the latest cameras released by a comparatively less known action camera brand GitUp. The company has been around for a while now, and they have produced some surprisingly good sports cameras.

Recently, they announced a new model – GitUp F1. We have already reviewed their Git 1 and Git 2 which performed well in our tests. And just a while ago, we did a review of their G3 Duo which ended up on our best action cameras list.

Those are a few reasons that got me quite pumped up about the F1. In this review, I will test this uniquely shaped camera. Will it perform as good as its predecessors? Let’s find out.

The Gitup F1 has a completely different shape, compared to the other cameras we covered so far. It is long and flat, with the lens on the front, looking more like a flashlight. This kind of shape could prove to be better in some situations but maybe somewhat worse in other. The camera can be easily mounted on the helmet – but not that easily to a chest mount. As always, it all depends upon the way you need to use the camera.

Specifications

Unboxing & Accessories

The F1 arrives in a cardboard box with just a few accessories included. Take a look at the video below, to see what’s inside the box.

Well, there is not much to show with this camera. In its box there is a clip mount that’s essential to make the camera compatible with any other accessory. There are some cables to use with remotely controlled vehicles, one charging cable, two stickers, and a Manual.

There are no other accessories so… How do I mount this camera on my helmet? Or anywhere in my car? Or elsewhere I’d desire? Simply: I can’t. I’m forced to buy other mounts separately off their website or a kit like this.

The camera has no chance to go underwater because it is not waterproof, and a waterproof case for it doesn’t exist. Equally, this camera is not usable in the rain, in the mud, or in any other wet situation, since it’s not splash-proof either. I honestly think it is a huge disadvantage. It is supposed to be an ACTION CAMERA, and yet, I can’t use it in situations where it gets wet.

Design and Build quality

The design is quite unique but very functional. You have everything at your thumb tip. This camera conveys a good sensation to the touch, because it is compact and very well made, also appears to be very stout.

The three buttons have a great click/beep feedback, impossible to ignore or misunderstand. I usually complain about cameras with a lean choice of buttons since these are most times quite difficult to use, but with this camera GitUp has made a good job. We will dissect it deeper in the Menu section.

Both ports situated on the bottom of the camera are super accessible and functional. The two LEDs over the buttons are very visible, especially the red one that indicates when the camera is ON and whether it is recording or not. Its blue colored LEDs that indicate when the camera is charging have a lower brightness level.

If I wanted to find a flaw, I’d notice that the screen is not particularly bright in direct sunlight, and sometimes you will want to hold the camera at a different angle to read the numbers on the screen. Another little LED next to the two ports would have been great, but I always have a problem with LEDs… so it’s not a real problem!

Menu Overview

As I said before, this camera has only three buttons; same as many other cameras, but GitUp has developed a good software, and you’ll be able to easily manage all with only 3 commands. So overall user navigation is very slick. The functions of those buttons are:

• Power Button – Turns camera On/Off + Switches among Modes + Scrolls Menu pages
• Settings Button – Opens Settings in selected Mode + does Back function
• Rec Button – Starts/Stops the recording + Selects the voices in the Menu

This camera is one among those that offer a lot of settings for each mode! Let’s see:

First we encounter the traditional top menu. On this camera, the top menu is the only place where you can change the Video/Photo settings. It contains:

• Video Mode
• Photo Mode
• Settings

In the Video Mode we can find these settings:

• Mode – Loop/Normal/TimeLapse/SloMo/Vid+Photo – Each of these modes has its own particular subset of options, but I will not list all of them, only the main points.
• Resolution – [emailprotected] – [emailprotected] – [emailprotected]/60fps – [emailprotected]/60/120fps – [emailprotected]
• Quality – Fine/Normal/Super Fine
• Interval – 1min/3min/5min/Max
• Stamp – On/Off
• Meter – Spot/Average/Center
• WB – Auto/Incandescent/Sunny/Cloudy/Fluorescent/Outdoor/
• Color – GitUp/Art/Sepia/Negative/B&W/Vivid/70film/PopArt/
• Sharpness – Low/Med/High
• Ev – +-0/+-0.3/+- 0.7/+- 1.0/+- 1.3/+- 1.7/+- 2.0
• EIS – On/Off
• Audio – On/Off

In the Photo Mode we can find these settings:

• Mode – Normal/Burst/Timer/Time Lapse – Each of these modes has its own particular subset.
• Resolution – 8Mp
• Shutter – Auto / 1/30s / 1s / 2s / 5s / 10s / 30s/ 60s
• Stamp – On/Off
• Zoom – Off/1.1x/1.2x/1.3x/1.4x/1.5x/2x
• Meter – Center/Average/Spot
• WB – Auto/Incandescent/Sunny/Cloudy/Fluorescent/Outdoor
• Color – GitUp/Art/Sepia/Negative/B&W/Vivid/70film/PopArt
• ISO – Auto/100/200/400/800/1600/3200/6400
• Sharpness – Low/Med/High
• Ev – +-0/+-0.3/+- 0.7/+- 1.0/+- 1.3/+- 1.7/+- 2.0
• No Fisheye – On/Off
• DNG – On/Off

In the Settings section we can find all the general settings for the camera:

• Quick Rec – On/Off
• WiFi – On/Off
• WiFi – 2.4G/5G
• Bluetooth – On/Off
• System – NTSC/PAL
• Def Mode – Video/Mode
• OSD – On/Off
• Led – On/Off
• Flip – On/Off
• Beeps – On/Off
• Auto Off – Off/3min/5min/10min
• Time Setup – Setting up your local time
• Date Setup – Setting up your local date
• Model Stamp – On/Off
• Logo Stamp – On/Off
• Exit Power – Power on/Charge/Record
• BT Boot – On/Off
• Frequency – Auto/50Hz/60Hz
• Format – Format your MicroSD card
• Default Settings –Turn all the settings to default values
• Version – (current) F1- V1.0-20171010

Video Quality

This is my first GitUp camera and honestly I was pleasantly surprised about its video performance. I don’t want to beat about the bush. The camera has a really good video quality with great sharpness and depth of colors, it is also able to balance the light in contre-jour conditions. Its Field of View is wide, but it doesn’t distort the image too much. What really amazed me is this cam’s EIS stabilization – it has one of the best stabilizations I have seen, ever since I’m reviewing the action cameras!

A random driving video follows, and I’m inviting you to concentrate on the bonnet of my car. You will notice how my car jumps up and down, but the image remains perfectly stable.

Now you might say “Good, but the car has a suspension, so in a way, the camera is already stabilized!”

OK, then check this video. The camera was mounted on my helmet like this:

If you are not yet satisfied, here is the most “extreme” example I could make: the handlebar stress:

Now you have no more wiggling space! This camera can perfectly handle the shaking in any action scene, and this is what we prefer in an action camera. Sorry if I didn’t use my usual test path, but I won’t go through the mud without a waterproof case! That’s why I decided to use asphalt roads.

During my tests, I had some fun with my dog. and I want to show you a little walk, the biggest resolution this camera has, and some slow motion.

To my own surprise, all the resolutions and frame-rates are correct- everything is as it should be! The reason I was surprised is that it’s not uncommon for Chinese brands to “fake” the resolutions for the sake of marketing.

This camera can show its best during the night, too. It can gather an incredible amount of light. While a little bit noisy, it still allows you to see everything!

The performance in daylight, low-light, and stabilization are more than satisfying.

Photo Quality

The quality of still images is good too. These could always be a little bit better, but they are really well balanced. You know, it’s not a DSLR, so we can’t rightly pretend to expect super quality!

Audio Quality

It seems incredible but this camera has a good audio quality too. Mike sensibility is not the highest, but it is able to record sharp frequencies and it’s near impossible to distort with the high volume.

WiFi and App

WiFi and the App are perfectly stable with this camera, without any crashing or slowdowns. The WiFi can be turned on in the Setting menu with its specific voice and the camera will connect with the phone when the default initial password is typed in: 1234567890

In the App we can find every important setting, not just the resolution and a few other settings – as opposed to many other camera apps.

Battery Performance

The results of my battery tests:

• 4K 30fps – 76 minutes (18,4Gb)
• 2.7K 30fps – 75 minutes (17Gb)
• 1440p 60fps – 71 minutes (17Gb)
• 1440p 302fps – 67 minutes (13,2Gb)
• 1080p 120fps – 75minutes (20,2Gb)
• 1080p 60fps – 71 minutes (25,6Gb)
• 1080p 30fps – 91 minutes (17,2Gb)
• 720p 240fps – 80 minutes (19,5Gb)

The battery life of this camera is a little bit shorter than some of its contenders.

Summary

This is one great little camera. Its shape could be seen as a double-edged sword, but all will depend on what you need to do. All the things were made right: video, photo, audio and build quality. I was only sorry to discover that this camera actually has no range of usual accessories. If GitUp decides to make a waterproof version of this camera and scare up some basic accessories, it could be one of the best affordable cameras of 2017.

Pros

Cons