Ricoh Launches a Shot at GoPro with its New WG-M1 Action Camera

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Ricoh has announced its new WG-M1 action camera, a contender in a booming market currently dominated by GoPro. While the company isn’t new to making rugged cameras geared at outdoorsy types, the WG-M1 brings a new GoPro-style form factor to the WG line that had previous just contained weatherproof compact cameras (e.g. the WG-4 and the WG-20).

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The M1 packs a 14-megapixel CMOS sensor, an f/2.8 160-degree field-of-view wide-angle lens, 10FPS still shooting speeds, and a 1.5-inch LCD screen on top. Large controls on the body make it easier for owners to operate the camera while in harsh environments.

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In terms of its durability, the camera is waterproof to 10 meters (~32.8 feet), dustproof, shockproof when dropped from heights of up to 2m (~6.5ft), and coldproof down to -10°C (14°F). And, unlike other action cameras on the market, the WG-M1 doesn’t require a special housing in order to have this ruggedness.

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Other features of the camera include high-quality stereo sound recording, built-in Wi-Fi and 1080 (h.264) HD video recording at 30FPS.

Here’s a sample video captured using the camera:

The WG-M1 will be available starting in October 2014 in black or orange at a cost of $300 alongside a bevy of accessories (e.g. grips, straps, and mounts).

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