An Abundance of Robot Cameras

I always said that I wish I had the money to pay someone to follow me around on my horse videoing me the whole time. And now that technology has caught up with this vision, I have a lot of robot cameras following me around.

Soloshot

I bought my Soloshot 3 in August 2018, it was on sale (it's like $800 now! I looked it up in my 2018 budget and I paid $427.93 for it, including tax and shipping) and much cheaper than the only other option at the time (the Pixio, especially because I don't/didn't have a video camera). I've gotten a lot out of it over the last two years and still really love using it. My main complaints are that it's a bit unreliable, it's hard to get videos onto my phone for IG, I can't do remote lessons with it, the battery isn't the best anymore, and I can't use it indoors despite them promising over and over again that they were going to get that done.

When I realized I wanted more lessons than one a month back in early April, I looked up what it was going to take. I could haul to Tanya's... it's probably a 2+ hour haul one way, meaning I'd have to go on a weekend only (and coordinate her show and clinic schedule with my show and clinic schedule) and probably stay overnight. Then the Pixem came out, and without needing the video camera, it was way more affordable, like, still expensive obviously, just not as bad as it was. But, all it'd take is a single clinic for me not to be able to do, plus the gas money and wear/tear on my rig, to make getting the Pixem worth it. So I ordered it. It was backordered, so I waited several months and it finally arrived in early July.

Pixem

I started seeing the Pivo everywhere and it looked really cute! I ended up buying it just on a whim before the Pixem arrived. Even if it didn't work at my busy barn, I'd love to have something super portable to have at the ranch when I'm riding horses there. And omg when my niece starts riding, it'll be so great to have while I'm teaching her.

So, that's how I ended up with three cameras. I feel really weirdly guilty about it, so I need to say this: I can't remember the last saddle pad I bought, I have only taken one lesson a month for YEARS until very recently, and I don't drink alcohol (so therefore never spend $8+ a drink at a bar) or go on vacations other than camping. I haven't even been out of the country as an adult. Different people spend money on different things, apparently robot cameras are my weakness. Okay, enough explanations.

Pivo

Here's my list of pros and cons for each.

Soloshot 3
Price: ~ $800 (I paid far less because apparently it was on a major sale)

Pros:
- doesn't take too long to set up
- only have to charge the one device
- can work on the edge of the arena
- lots of range, can follow you when you're very far away
- can work on hills (it will go up and down, not just side to side)

Cons:
- only works outside
- video quality isn't great
- tricky to get video onto my phone
- sometimes videos trees/loses you way easier than the Pixem
- takes a long time to charge
- doesn't hold a charge that well
- no ability to do live lessons
- terrible customer service

Soloshot

Pixem (I bought it here)
Price: ~ $900 including shipping (I got a discount, the SO works at a company that infuriatingly gives him a lot of discounts)

Pros:
- works inside and outside
- extremely accurate
- video is in phone (so therefore phone determines quality, and I have a decent phone)
- remote lessons are possible
- can work on the edge of the arena

Cons:
- takes a while to set up
- doesn't have a ton of range (fine for a dressage court though)
- everything needs to charge (beacons, watch, camera, phone)
- my phone isn't always charged all the way
- can't listen to music/etc while it is videoing
- remote lessons need either a ceecoach or a second phone

Pixem

Pivo Silver
Price: $150 shipped (I paid that amount)

Pros:
- super fast to set up
- great customer service
- way cheaper than everything
- video is in phone (so therefore phone determines quality, and I have a decent phone)
- works with software so it theoretically should get better over time (it already has been improved)
- quick charging, I can just charge it a bit at the barn each day (vs bringing it home)

Cons:
- struggles with multiple horses
- works best in the middle of the ring (disruptive)
- is definitely the worst at following you of the three
- not reliable enough for remote lessons
- my phone isn't always charged all the way
- can't listen to music/etc while it is videoing

FYI, none of them come with a tripod, so I picked one up at Best Buy. That one lives at the barn.

Pivo, I was right at the edge of the screen lol

So my thoughts are: if you just want something fun to snag some videos of you while you ride mostly on your own, grab the Pivo. If you want remote lessons or if you only ride indoors or if money isn't a big deal, get the Pixem. If you mostly ride outside and want something more accurate than the Pivo but without the price point of the Pixem (though man they're about the same price now), get the Soloshot.

As for now, I'm keeping all of mine. I know it's really overkill, but I have a good reason to hoard the cameras for now. The Pixem is great for remote lessons and for videoing accurately in the covered arena during the winter when we're stuck in there, but it takes a long time to set up and is just generally more of a pain in the ass to lug around, plus I fuck it up frequently unfortunately. The Pivo is super fast to set up and I get videos right on my phone that I can check as I'm riding (I LOVE that), but it sucks in group settings so I'm looking forward to using it when I barely have time in the mornings because it's fast and I'm basically guaranteed to be alone riding that early. I can also easily bring it to my parents' place to play with their horses with. The Soloshot doesn't work inside and doesn't do live video, but it's great for a quick setup in a busy outdoor arena where I don't want to take the time to set up beacons and when the Pivo is going to get confused.

Despite the overkill, neither the Pivo nor the Soloshot are worth enough to sell anyway right now, I think my plan is to keep them long enough to know which one(s) I find the most value in and then decide later.

But hopefully this post helps people figure out which one is best for them! Even if it makes me feel like I have a problem.