Gardepro A3 (Non-Cellular) Review

Trailcampro Comprehensive Score:

89/100

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This camera DOES NOT come with a micro USB cord

Trailcampro Note: We test hundreds of cameras from established manufacturers every year. We also constantly search for new products and technology, but rarely find anything that excites us. That is, until this year. During one of my web scouring sessions, I came across the Garde Pro A3. I recognized its case design and almost dismissed it immediately. Fortunately, I continued to dig down and found several quality images which caused me to order one anonymously.

Our initial testing of the A3 surprised us all. The Garde Pro A3 is a sub $70 trail camera that outperforms cameras costing twice as much. Although it's not the fastest camera, it has 1st class battery life and captures some of the best images and videos we've seen. In fact, it won our latest Flash Range Shootout. The design is simple but has proven to be durable. It's the only sub $100 camera we have ever backed with our exclusive No-Hassle 90-day returns & 2-year warranty. We have been pleasantly surprised and think you will be too - We Guarantee It!

Gardepro A3 Trail Camera Review

The Gardepro A3 is in uncharted territory for us as it is the first sub-$99 trail camera we have ever recommended. This camera shocked us when it won our 2022 Flash Range Shootout and continued to impress with 18 month projected battery life, excellent day + night photos and easy setup. The 1 second trigger speed is slow by modern standards, but if trigger speed isn't at the top of your needs list, the A3 delivers on all other fronts. - TCP Staff

Model # A3

FAQ's

Trailcampro Comprehensive Score:

89/100

Picture Quality:91/100

Mpxl Photos (interpolated) | Video Resolution

Battery Life:18+ Months (pics) | 5.7 Months (videos)

Using 35 pics day + night | Using 15 vids day + night

Trigger Speed & Detection:81/100

Trigger & Recovery: 1.04 s. - 1.4 s. (Pictures) | 0.86 s. - 2.6 s. (Videos) | 100 ft. Range

Quality of Design:85/100

8 AA Batteries | 12-volt External Battery Jack | 2.4" Internal Viewer


Gardepro A3 Trail Camera Review

Pros

  • Impressive photo and video quality
  • Incredible battery life in picture and video mode
  • 100 ft. detection range
  • Easy setup with a large internal viewer

Cons

  • Slow trigger speed

 

Picture Quality: 91/100

Photo resolution: 32 mpxl (interpolated)

Video resolution: 1920x1080 (30 fps)

Video coding format: MP4 or MOV

Flash Type: No glow IR

For such an inexpensive trail camera, the Gardepro A3 really delivers fantastic picture quality. Day pictures have solid color and clarity, but the A3 really stands out in the night picture category. The night photos are exceptionally bright, as evidenced by the 1st place showing in our 2022 Flash Range Test, and have good clarity. We have seen some blurring on moving animals at night, but not a concerning amount.

Videos might be even better than the photos. These aren't top of the line videos, but they are really impressive for the price. Night videos have massive flash range. Both day and night videos have great audio, as displayed in the sample videos below.

 

 

What if you purchase from us and aren't happy with the image quality?

This is a common question and we have a very simple solution. Call, email, or chat with us and we can take a look at the images and offer suggestions or immediately tell if something is wrong with the Gardepro A3 trail and game camera. If so, we will warranty the camera for you (with the free 2-Year warranty you receive from us) or return the camera for a full refund (within 90 days of purchase). You have control of the process, remember, we work for you.

Megapixel Ratings:

In the past, many people get confused with the megapixel rating trail camera manufacturers advertise. Companies inflate the mpxl rating to attract eyes to their products. They do this through interpolation, which digitally adds megapixels to a photo without actually improving the picture.

The best way to judge picture quality is to look at actual pictures. You will notice this the most when you zoom in on a full-size image that a camera has taken. The details of the photo will appear hazy or even digitized. This is normal, and to be expected.


Battery Life: 100/100

Picture & Video Resting Power (on): 0.67 mW

Picture Daytime/Nighttime Power Consumption: 1.9 Ws | 3.0 Ws

Video Daytime/Nighttime Power Consumption: 15.7 Ws | 30.7 Ws

Picture Mode

If this camera were to take 35-day and 35-night pictures every 24 hours, the Gardepro A3 trail camera would last 18.9 months in the field on a set of 8 AA lithium batteries. This is extremely impressive.

Video Mode

If this camera were to take 15-day and 15-night videos (10-second videos) every 24 hours, it would last 5.7 months in the field on a set of lithium batteries. This is absolutely outstanding as video battery life is normally hard to come by.


Detection Circuit: 81/100

Picture Trigger & Recovery Speed: 1.04 s. | 2.0 s.

Video Trigger & Recovery Speed: 1.39 s. | 2.5 s.

Detection Range & Angle: 100 ft. @ 44.6° detection angle (53.9°)

Trigger speed is slow but the recovery is moderately fast. Video trigger is even a bit slower than trigger speed but not by much. The detection range is outstanding and the detection angle and field of view are both more than adequate. This camera did outstanding in our 2022 Detection Shootout.


Quality of Design: 85/100

Dimensions: 6" x 4.5" x 3"

Battery Type: 8 AA (we recommend Lithium, it will work with nimh rechargeable)

External Battery Jack: 12-volt

SD Card: Up to 512GB

This camera DOES NOT come with a micro USB cord

Case Design

The Gardepro has a bit of an old school case design with two small wire frame latches that open and close the camera. The latches flare out at the ends to make them fairly easy to open/close. The camera has a tripod mount on the bottom of the case but it does not have a built-in python bracket, so, you can only lock the camera with a security case.

The batteries are snuggly held in a covered battery compartment on the inside of the camera. The camera has a super handy internal viewer that allows for picture viewing and for easy programming.

Camera Setup

Programming is done on the internal picture viewer and the screen makes reading all the options incredibly easy. It has all the popular options like hybrid mode, photo burst, pir sensitivity, timelapse, and programmable start/stop time. Overall, the set up is very easy and intuitive.

Durability

We have no current concerns over durability and expect the Gardepro A3 to last 2-3 years in the field. As this is a new camera for us, we will keep a close eye on warranty rates and update this review if anything changes.

Keep in mind, our 2-year warranty program is your free insurance program in case something goes wrong with a camera you purchase from us. This warranty protects you from any manufacturing defect the camera might experience for two years.

Since 2005, our mission has to been to provide consumers with unbeatable value, advice you can trust, and customer service that exceeds expectations. There are plenty of places you can choose to do business with, if we are lucky enough to earn your support, we promise to give you our undivided attention. Trailcampro has grown each year not only by relying on your happiness but on the assumption that if we blow you away with customer service, you will brag about us to your friends (have you seen our referral/reward program?).

As always, if you have additional questions, feel free to call, email or chat with us. We look forward to helping you find your next trail camera!

Enjoy our reviews? Please consider purchasing your next trail camera from us.


FAQ's: Trail Camera

Q: Will this trail camera trigger on small animals (birds, rodents, etc.)?

A: Trail cameras detect on a combination of heat and movement, so, yes, small mammals will trigger the camera. However, if you are going after smaller warm-blooded mammals, we recommend getting the camera closer to your target. For best performance, place the camera in an area that would enable picture detection from 3 - 20 ft.

Q: Can animals see the infrared flash on this camera?

A: This is somewhat controversial. Humans can't see the flash as the nanometer spectrum is above what the human eye can detect. It's also much harder for an animal to see, but that could depend on the species of animal as different species see in different light spectrums.

Q: Where can I purchase this camera?

A: From us! We hope to woo you with our incredible charm, two-year warranty, 90-day returns, free continental U.S. shipping, and technical expertise.

Seriously, though, we know you have plenty of options of where to spend your hard-earned money. The internet can be the wild, wild, west of too-good-to-be-true deals. If you choose to do business with us, we will go out of our way to make sure you are happy with the camera you select and the service we provide you.

We are passionate about testing and reviewing trail cameras, but most importantly, we are passionate about treating our customers the right way. We do things differently from what you have come to expect from other internet retailers and we hope you give us the opportunity to prove that to you.

 All test results are achieved through the use of proprietary equipment used exclusively by Trailcampro.  Any re-publication of this data without prior written consent is strictly prohibited by law. COPYRIGHT TRAILCAMPRO, L.L.C. 2023, ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. 

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