It's a shame that after two iterations nobody makes a proper underwater housing +100m like this

https://www.golemgear.com/p-730-gopro4-housing-for-gopro-hero4-camera-rated-to-500ft.aspx

My take(s) on and experience with the Yi 4K+:

The Yi 4K+ uses a new processor. It has four advantages due to its being more powerful and more energy efficient:

1. One can now shoot UHD (4K) video at 60 fps.
2. One can shoot UHD at 30 fps with EIS that is very sophisticated.
3. Battery life is longer.
4. No overheating.

Why do we care about 60 fps? Actually, I can never detect the difference between video shot at 30p and 60p. The key advantage is that you can slow down the video and still have 4K, using 30p as the rendered video.

Why is slowing down useful? You can smooth out camera moves - it smooths out pans and, most importantly, smooths moving with the camera (on a gimbal) - and subject action slowed down makes that action more interesting.

I decided to test out this new camera, taking advantage of its 60p in 4K. I had a gimbal, so I could move with the camera (it also produces motorized pans). To achieve the minimum weight (125 grams) for the gimbal (Feiyu Crane M) I put the camera in its waterproof case. So, I was going to shoot on the beach, temperature over 80 degrees (F) sealed in an airtight case! Will it overheat?

The results:

1. I shot for a period of 1 hour 31 minutes, never turning off the camera in the hot sun, until the battery ran out (first charge). This is longer than I have ever experienced with any small camera.

2. I shot 50 minutes of 135 Mbps “footage” taking up 51 GBs on the micro sd card during that time.

3. No overheating - again, the camera was on the whole time, and 55% of the time the camera was recording. No other small camera I have used (Sony RX100 IV, GoPro Hero 4 Black and Hero 5, Samsung 360 Gear, Kodak 360 4K) could do that, not even close. Now, overheating can shut the camera down or it can cook the sensor (hello, GoPro and Kodak and Samsung), resulting in low-resolution results. Neither happened.

And here is the edited video, shot on the gimbal - with smooth slowed pans, and slowed moving with the camera and static shots, some slowed. You are seeing 4K (30p), a dynamic video and slow motion!

Now, what about using the camera without a gimbal? How good is the EIS in 4K (30p) in eliminating shakes? Here is the 4K test video, all handheld (static shoots).

Pretty amazing, and I do not see much loss (if any) in resolution. Handheld, 4K, tiny camera - better than the Sony BOSS.

@markr041 nice shots, nice colors, may I ask which gimbal you used?

@markr041

Mark, can you write short opinion about Zhiyun Evolution gimbal? With video samples where you used it.

Yi 4K+ on a the Zhiyun Evolution gimbal at the end of the day. Can be viewed in 4K 60p.

On a gimbal with external mic.

@RRRilla Some people evidently just do not value resolution as much as others - EIS and distortion removal are resolution robbers. Note that in shooting at 2.7k and adjusting lens "distortion"' and shooting in medium fov you are just cropping the sensor; with both on it's not even clear you are getting the full 2.7K. You could shoot 4K 60p (with the Yi 4K+) and accomplish the same things in post, and you might have more flexibility in framing.

The EIS is very limited in ability if you want to move with the camera. A gimbal does a better job and does not result in soft video. But it is less convenient. Just depends on whether you value real stability and high resolution over a little more compactness.

And this video shows that there is a Samsung 256GB microsd card that works fine on the Yi 4K+, though maybe not the one you may have. I trust you have the latest Yi firmware - it has been updated numerous times, with special attention to card compatibility.

Kid Fun and the Acela Express in 4K60P

Note the dynamic range of the audio at the end, when the real train comes.

Runners in Slow Motion

The Yi 4K+ is hacked. You can increase the bitrate, and the max and min bitrate ratios! Just an autoexec file on the sd card.

https://github.com/irungentoo/Xiaomi_Yi_4k_Camera/tree/master/4k%2B

@DrDave I don't know. But as I have learned that the autoexec file that changes the bitrates just writes to RAM I may try upping the 4K60P bitrate beyond the default 135Mbps to see if it matters. On the other hand, I do not see that the current bitrates are limiting quality.

To get back to normal one just turns off the camera and removes the file from the micro-sd card.

It could be of course that beyond 135Mbps the thing just halts. In that case, the hack is useful for upping the bitrate for the lower-resolution settings, which are all below 135Mbps.

YI 4K+/60fps Action Camera with Waterproof Case, Plus Voice Control gold box sale today

Will go on sale later today.

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01CW4B2P8/