New Release: RunCam 3S First Look/Review

The RunCam 3 was incredibly popular when it was first released a little over two years ago, but was discontinued after being found too similar to the GoPro Session, which has now also been discontinued. The FPV community adopted these cubic form factor cameras in a big way, with frames, 3D printed mounts and accessories all designed around them. To have the two most popular options discontinued clearly left a gap in the market, which is where the new RunCam 3S comes in! RunCam have been teasing about the 3S for the past month, but have finally released it. Read on for my RunCam 3S Review/First Look to see why this could become the camera of choice for the FPV community!

You can find the RunCam 3S now on Banggood.

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A post shared by @ runcam on Jul 29, 2018 at 9:31pm PDT

RunCam 3S release date

The 3S release date is currently expected to be 4th September, and as normal pre-orders will ship first, so make sure you grab one here to avoid a long wait. These are expected to fly off the shelves, but hopefully won’t be out of stock for long. If they’re sold out, you can pre-order or click the alert on arrival button so that you don’t miss out.

RunCam 3S Review – Features & Specifications

I’ve had a look at the specifications and provided my thoughts below. The features include:

• Incredibly light weight at only 69 grams. Considering the alternative GoPro Hero5 Session is 74 grams, (and the Caddx Turtles is only 57 grams lighter) the RunCam is seriously light! This is great for FPV pilots, as when flying you’ll notice much less of a change in your flight characteristics when strapping the camera on. It also won’t massively affect flight times, which is usually a concern when adding weight.
• Same cube form factor we are used to, meaning the 3S should fit most of your existing mounts, particularly if they are flexible or use a strap.
• 60 FPS recording in 1080P means you can get nice smooth slow motion footage by simply playing back at 30 FPS.
• Removable battery, allowing you to fly long sessions using multiple batteries without recharging (the battery will last about an hour, so this should be plenty of footage for most sessions).
• 5-15V DC micro USB input, so you can ditch the battery (and associated weight) entirely and run from your flight LiPo battery. The package comes with the cable for this, making it very easy.
• Wide dynamic range provides great image clarity even in mixed lighting.
• 160° wide angle means you will capture practically the same image you see on your FPV camera.
• Gorilla Glass lens cover, meaning the RunCam 3S can take a beating without leaving you with a cracked/scratched image.
• Accepts standard microSD cards

RunCam 3S Review – Cons

The only real downside of the 3S is that the maximum resolution it supports is 1080P, so there is no 4K option. While most devices can only handle 1080P anyway, this is a nice to have as it gives you options in editing, allowing you to crop or smooth shots. This likely makes the 3S a no-go for serious film makers, but for the vast majority of FPV pilots, the 3S is great for racing or capturing some freestyle.

RunCam 3S price

RunCam are always competitive when it comes to pricing, so it is good to see that the 3S can be picked up for roughly half of what you can get a discontinued GoPro Session for.

You can find the RunCam 3S now on Banggood.

RunCam 3S – Verdict

If you fly freestyle or race and want something light weight that is compatible with your existing hardware, it’s hard to go wrong with the RunCam 3S. It should slot in nicely where your previous busted up Session was and will do so at slightly less weight! This makes racing with an HD camera more appealing and means we could be seeing more HD footage rather than grainy DVR!

If you fly a micro quad using 3″ props rather than the standard 5″ racers, then it may be better to take a look at the Caddx Turtles.

You can find the RunCam 3S now on Banggood.

RunCam 3S Full Specifications