GoPro still recommended?

bl0at3r

bl0at3r

Messages
3,738
Name
Alan
Edit My Images
Yes
Have had a few GoPros in the past - a Hero, an HD Hero and an HD Hero 2.

No idea what the newer models are like?

How is battery life with the Wi-Fi features?

Anyone got any tips or recommendations please - I want to create a few YouTube videos mainly on, in and around cars.
 
The 2 is the best value for money & best battery life.
The 3+ has a better sensor & better overall really except for price (& batt life to the 2),
3+ only has a 40m depth rated case
The 3 will take the 3+ battery but I wouldn't get this model...too many issues with it..

I have 2 2's & am looking to get a 3+(black)
 
Last edited:
Diving Pete said:
The 3 will take the 3+ battery but I wouldn't get this model...too many issues with it..
(black)
Click to expand...

Must say I've not experienced any problems with mine, and I know plenty other happy users of this model, I think those with problems maybe haven't done the software updates.
 
I'm about to get my first go-pro mainly for shooting some weddings.

Should I be looking at the 2 or 3? I think the idea is that I'd use it for ceremony and maybe to provide additional angle for speeches. But is the low light performance THAT much better on the 3?
 
ive got the hero 3 black edition and its fine if you do everything your ment to ie software update etc, I paid £300 for mine from argos with the accessory bundle well worth it
 
Bought my hero 3 black in March. since then i've not really had anything that good come out of it. extremely unreliable despite updating! the footage will never look like what it shows on their promo video.. but obviously they must have spent a lot of time with professional editing software to help make the footage look fantastic.
I do think the concept of a GoPro is fantastic.. if you are ACTUALLY going to use it in the correct way. Also, if you go for a 3 or 3+, make sure you buy a micro SD that can handle the data size that the GoPro outputs. An every day class 10 isn't enough.. GoPro have a list of recommended class 10 SD cards that can handle a GoPro.

Having said some negative comments about this camera, I do still enjoy trying to get something good out of it! I think it works best on a helmet cam which works well for me when wakeboarding (that's when the camera decided to keep freezing and wouldn't turn on again for about 12 hours).. the wifi is completely useless from distance and the app is extremely delayed and uses about a bar of your battery until it finally decides to connect! Which brings me onto the battery life... not great. Worth buying spare batteries especially if you're half way up a mountain on skis where electrical sockets aren't easy to find...

And finally, if you do happen to have problems with your GoPro, don't bother contacting the support team because you won't receive a response for about a week (possibly due to the amount of complaints they have to deal with)..

Might just be a bad copy of this camera but for the amount of money I paid for it.. not good enough at all! :thumbsdown:

Hope this has helped!
 
The main thing you need with a GoPro is good light.

The company used to be great but they've expanded so fast, customer support hasn't kept up. Last I spoke to them, they were hiring a cargo plane shuttling product to the US from China. Something like 40k units per day.
 
Just bought a 3+ black. Never used a GoPro or any video really, so its bit of a steep learning curve. I have the GoPro app on my iPhone and iPad, makes using it so much easier, I don't like button pressing to scroll through loads of menus.
Cant seem to preview or playback anything over 1080 on them though, it will record fine and I have used GoPro studio to convert the files to a .mov file. 4K video plays back after converting, but it isn't smooth. I guess its my 4 year old Macbook Pro that isn't up to the task.
Nice bit of kit though.
Allan
 
The thing people don't understand, and it's been this way ever since the first gopro(haven't tried the film gopro but the sd one after that), is that you need GOOD light for it, as it's got very little room to play with in post and has very low dynamic range, You'll see that from the GoPro videos, although in the bike footage from this video its' still lit terribly, though people are focussing on the rider because it's cool.

 
use my GoPro 2 mainly for Scuba diving in places like the Red Sea, excellent video, much better than my Sony HDR camera in a big heavy dive housing.
 
There have been a number of firmware updates recently that fixed most if not all of Hero 3 issues. Having said that alot of problems were caused by the recommended SanDisk cards not being upto spec. GoPro have since stopped recommending the Ultra and now recommend the Extreme along with cards from Lexar and Delkin. Hero 3+ battery life is much much better than the older Hero 3.
 
allanm said:
4K video plays back after converting, but it isn't smooth.
Click to expand...


It never will be, it's not your Mac. 4k at 12.5 fps will never be anything other than jerky - it isn't sampling fast enough.

If you read the technical blogs of various broadcasters, you'll see they're aiming for 100 fps plus for 4k.
 
So are there any decent alternatives to a GoPro?

I'm doing a few big bike rides soon an it would be good to have something handlebar mounted that is easily removable for still shots.

Or, do I just get a GoPro?
 
If you're not limited by budget, then I would recommend getting the GoPro. The range of mounts available is second to none. Having said that, there are some good alternatives out there but I still think GoPro has the edge.

Forum discount available from us if you're in the UK, just drop me a message.
 
Thanks folks, I think, on reflection a GoPro isn't really what I'm after.

Basically I'm cycling London-Edinburgh and the third day is meant to be absolutely stunning and I'd like to be able to stop and take photos without wasting too much time. I wondered if a GoPro mounted to the handlebars would be a good option but I think probably not (I'd need to get the screen back for a start).
 
There are a few cameras out there that have the LCD screen as part of the camera but the quality is down on what the GoPro offers.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top