ThiEYE T5e (T5) Review – Real 4K Action Cam

First impression of the ThiEYE T5e

What's in the box

Since the ThiEYE V5e, which we have already been able to test, the manufacturer has significantly reduced the accessories provided. Nevertheless, the scope of delivery for the ThiEYE T5e should not be underestimated. In addition to a waterproof housing, 2 batteries are included. You only have to do without an extensive set of brackets. All that is included is a housing holder with a matching clip and adhesive pad. The scope of delivery also includes two additional loose adhesive pads, a cleaning cloth, a micro-USB charging cable and a multilingual operating manual.

The Action Cam is available under two product names. In addition to the ThiEYE T5e, there is also the ThiEYE T5 model. There are only differences in the packaging. The entire scope of delivery and the camera are identical!

Design and workmanship

ThiEYE remains true to the typical "SJ4000 design", which has just prevailed at China Action Cams. Due to slight design adjustments such as the shimmering front with manufacturer logo, ThiEYE T5e can stand out from other manufacturers' products.

The power button and two indicator LEDs are located on the front. To the right is the 170 ° wide-angle lens with F2.8 lens. The housing frame is rubberized. The illuminated confirmation button is located on the top. The exposed connection options, consisting of a micro-USB socket, a micro-HDMI socket and a micro-SD memory card slot are located on one of the sides of the housing. The opposite side of the housing is equipped with two additional control buttons. These are used for menu navigation. On the back there is a 2 inch LCD color display and two additional indicator LEDs. The battery bay was placed on the underside of the case. This can be opened via a spring mechanism, which at the same time prevents the battery cover from being lost. The battery compartment is protected against unintentional opening by a locking function. Another interesting addition is the ¼ inch tripod thread, which is located directly next to the battery compartment. An additional indicator LED has also been placed on the underside of the housing.

The processing of the ThiEYE T5e, as well as the accessories is not to be criticized. The camera body is clean and without gaps. The same applies to the enclosed waterproof housing.

Commissioning and user interface

To use the camera, you only need to insert one of the batteries and a micro SD memory card. The manufacturer recommends memory cards with a maximum 64GB capacity. In the test, an 128GB U3 memory card was easily detected.

The Action Cam's user interface is clearly laid out. After switching on the ThiEYE T5e you are already in video mode. The live image output provides extensive information on the recording settings. In addition to the resolution, the aspect ratio and the number of images per second, you also get information about the charge level of the battery, whether the microphone is active, how much storage capacity is available, and information about the date and time.

Use the power button to change the recording mode. In addition to the video mode, there is also a photo mode, which also includes the information already mentioned above. One click further and you land in the gallery. The captured video and image recordings can be played back directly on the 2-inch display. In addition, recordings can be deleted via the gallery.

Settings can be made in the settings menu down to the smallest detail. In addition to specific recording settings, such as resolution, image stabilization, AWB, exposure or ISO, there are also setting options for further recording modes, such as scene modes, a time-lapse mode or burst mode.

But there are also general settings for WiFi, Bluetooth, the microphone, the language or the date and time. Here is an overview of the possible resolutions that can be selected. This alone shows how extensive the settings menu is.

 Video resolution: 3840x2160@30p - 16:9, 3840x2160@25p - SuperView, 2880x2160@30p - 4:3, 2704x2028@30p - 4:3, 2704x1520@30p - SuperView, 2704x1520@30p - 16:9 , 2560x1440p@ 60p - 16:9, 2560x1440p@30p - 16:9, 1920x1440@60p - 4:3, 1920x1440@30p - 4:3, 1920x1080@120p - 16:9, 1920x1080@100p - 16:9, 1920 x1080@60p - 16:9, 1920x1080@30p - 16:9, 1920x1080@60p – SuperView, 1920x1080@30p SuperView, 1280x960@120p - 4:3, 1280x960@60p - 4:3, 1280x960@30p - 4:3, 1280 720x240@16p -9: 1280, 720x200@16p - 9: 1280, 720x120@16p - 9: 1280, 720x60@16p - 9: 1280, 720x30@16p - 9: 1280, 720x120@1280p - SuperView, 720x30@XNUMXP - SuperView

 Image resolution: 16M (4608x3456 - 4:3), 14M (4254x3264 - 4:3), 12M (4000x3000 - 4:3), 8.3M (3840x2160 - 16:9), 5M (2560x1920 - 4:3), 3M (2048x1536 - 4:3)

ThiEYE HD App

The ThiEYE T5e is equipped with Bluetooth and WiFi for wireless connection. The connection to the ThiEYE HD app is established via the camera's WiFi. This can be activated via the settings menu. For the sake of security, the SSID and password of the camera can be set individually.

Before you can use the app, you have to connect to the camera's WiFi using your smartphone or tablet. If you start the app, a connection to the Action Cam is automatically established. The live image from the camera should now be displayed via the app. In the test, it was not possible to display the live image from the camera despite the stable connection. The live image output did not work even with a connection to another Android smartphone.

Camera settings made via the app are detected by the camera. It is also possible to access the inserted SD memory card. The different recording modes can be selected directly via the app. Overall, the app is clearly designed and would be a working feature with live live image output a nice feature for remote recordings.

Video, picture and sound quality

Let's get to what is probably the most important point - the recording quality. The ThiEYE T5e is equipped with a 12 megapixel Sony IMX117 image sensor and an Ambarella A12LS75 image processor. The image sensor used here is also used in the GoPro Hero 4, among others. The camera records videos natively with a maximum of 4K resolution.

The video quality can be described as good in a few words and comes close to the quality of a GoPro Hero 4. Compared to a GoPro Hero 5 or Yi 4K, the ThiEYE T5e lags a little behind in terms of equipment and recording quality. Recorded video material impresses with strong colors, pleasant sharpness and a high degree of detail. The sound quality, however, is less convincing. Although the microphone is well tuned, which means that distant noises can also be captured well, all sound recordings are covered by a slight background noise.

Again, the selection of effect filters that can be placed directly over the image is positive. In addition to various art filters, there is also the option of recording videos and pictures in black and white and as a negative. Videos are recorded in MP4 format with the h.264 codec (LV4.2). The image quality is also convincing. A loss of detail can only be seen in poor lighting conditions.

Battery

The battery of the ThiEYE T5e has a capacity of 1100 mAh. Unfortunately, the battery does not have a typical size, which is why, for example, a SJCAM battery does not fit into the ThiEYE Action Cam. Buying batteries not directly from the manufacturer could be difficult! However, it is gratifying that ThiEYE includes two batteries in the scope of delivery.

The battery life is average. With a 4K resolution, the battery lasted exactly 58 minutes. A recording time of 1080 minutes was possible on 83p. The charging time is 2 ½ hours.