Top critical review
3.0 out of 5 starsPretty good camera, awful software.
Reviewed in the United States on January 3, 2018
I've been using my Virb Ultra 30 for nearly a year now. The camera itself is pretty good. It's almost apples to apples with it's major competitor, but the simple mechanical switch to turn it on and take pictures is freakin' fantastic! It's a little slow to actually start recording when you flip the switch, but it's very reliable - unlike many of the alternative products which require careful button-pressing to make them work.
Battery life is hugely exaggerated. It's much improved if you turn off the GPS, but still not great. That's typical of a product like this, so again; apples to apples. Long battery life means big batteries inside big cameras - but it's a small camera, so there you go. The mini-USB jack is at least reasonably easy to plug charging cords into and it's not terribly fiddly or fragile like those awful micro-USB plugs. My biggest complaint is that there's no way to simultaneously charge while using an external microphone plugged into the USB jack. It'd also be nice if there was a way to charge or record audio with the camera inside the case. This last point seems so painfully obvious that I can only imagine this is a feature they're saving for a future model.
Finally, this is my big beef with Garmin: The VirbEdit software. It's junk. I'd avoid using it entirely, except it's necessary for integrating all the nifty G-Metrix data into the video. First, even with the dozens and dozens of gauges available, there's no way to create a half-decent six-pack. Seriously? There's an aviation bundle, but no six-pack? Dumb, dumb, dumb. Secondly, the G-meter often doesn't orient itself correctly. One would think this would be tied to the video orientation, but it's not. Further, using the "flip 180" option often does nothing - though this changes between software updates. And about those software updates: None of them have fixed any problems I've had with the software and the "update" feature has never worked for me; I've always had to reinstall with the new version. The software interface is sluggish and it's difficult to tell what's a button and what's a label. Sure, it's fancy-looking, but it's a bear to use. My typical editing process is to export all my video with the G-Metrix data overlay, then use something else to do the actual editing - and nothing about my editing requires anything fancy.
All in all, I generally like the camera. It could be better, but it has one less weakness than the alternatives (the record switch) and it was a pretty big weakness I'm glad to be rid of. If you plan to use the G-Metrix data, prepare for a headache. If you're hoping to use their editing software, give up all hope; Even at free, it's hugely overpriced.
