Bushnell Trophy Cam Review

I received the Bushnell Trophy Cam for testing this past week, and I am honestly kicking myself for not picking this game camera up sooner.  Overall it is a very good camera, with just a few drawbacks.  I'll elaborate on these details, but for a complete review of the Bushnell Trophy Cam, see the link to my YouTube video at the bottom of this post.

I love the compact size, at just over 3" x 5".  I also love the fact that they step right out there with claims of a 1 year battery life.  While this remains to be seen, since I have only had this camera for a short time now, I am excited at the possibility of owning a game camera that doesn't chew through batteries.  One caveat with this battery life though, is that you must use lithium AA batteries to get the one year battery life.  If you use alkaline batteries, the standby operation time drops to 6 months.  That is still a lot longer than any other game camera I have owned recently.

I also like the ease of programming.  One thing that took me by surprise is that the LCD panel and programmable options are very similar to the Scoutguard SG550.  So similar, that I think they are using the same components.  What is different though is the series of buttons on the inside of the game camera's housing used to program the camera.  The Scoutguard requires the use of a programming remote control that you connect to the camera.  Without that remote, you cannot change any of the camera's options.  The Bushnell Trophy Cam has these buttons and LCD embedded in the camera.  The use of the Up/Down, Left/Right, and OK buttons makes this programming a breeze.  The picture quality is decent, and the video quality is acceptable.

A couple of things that I don't like about the Trophy Cam are the lack of added security measures.  The lock hole is small, requiring the use of a small gauge lock.  It is recommended that you pick up a security lock box to protect your Trophy Cam.  I'd also like to see the ability to add a master password and owner identification.  As game cameras become more expensive, theft becomes more of a concern.

I don't like the weak buckle that came with the mounting strap.  I broke mine as I was hanging it, so don't cinch it too tighly to the tree.  This wasn't a big deal for me though, because I have accumulated numerous camouflage straps through years of hunting.  I plan to have a lock box for this game camera soon, so I won't need the strap at that point.

I also thought that the videos appeared to be a bit grainy.  It's too early to tell, and I need to collect a few more samples under different lighting conditions.  Video on game cameras is one of the features that I desire the most, so I may be a little picky when it comes to this.  I get a lot more out of studying an animal via video that I do out of a still pic.  While I say the video was a bit grainy, it wasn't bad enough to where I would complain about it.

After testing the Bushnell Trophy Cam, I can tell you that I'll be keeping this one, and maybe picking up another (to two).  I was a little leary about purchasing the Trophy Cam after hearing about some comrade's past experiences with Bushnell game cameras, but I think that Bushnell hit the mark with this one.