It’s that time of year again, for the iPhone vs GoPro test, focused on action. Or, video scenarios in all sorts of fun ways. As always, the reality of 2024 (or the last numbers of years), is the line between action camera and phone camera continues to blur. This year, Apple added 4K @ 120FPS (used for slow-motion footage) to match GoPro’s existing 4K/120. Of course, GoPro added 5.3K @ 120FPS (although, in a more limited custom mode for just 5 seconds).
And that’s all in addition to the previous Action Mode that Apple has had, that stabilizes the image with impressive results. Thus I put the cameras side-by-side through a slate of different tests, including:
0:00 Quick Intro
0:41 Cannonball Test (4K/120FPS)
1:56 Running Sprint (Stabilization Test)
3:26 Underwater Footage Comparison
4:22 Mountain Biking Comparison
5:35 Driving & Vehicle Comparison
6:15 Flying atop a drone Test!
8:35 Night footage Comparison
9:04 Final Comparison Thoughts
As always, the camera you have on you is your best camera. But as these tests show, the winner depends a little bit on how you judge each bit of footage, and the use cases. In many scenarios, the results are incredibly similar, but facts like mounting and durability become more critical.
Anyway, just enjoy and have fun watching!
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Any comparison of ease of editing GPS info into the videos? I see the GoPro records GPS data and the GoPro Quik app has some tools for it, does Apple have something similar to record & visualize GPS info?
I have a GoPro Hero 4 (old, I know), and each time I want to make a video with GPS info (recorded by my Garmin since the Hero 4 doesn’t have built-in GPS), it’s a pain to sync up the video and GPX, and the editing software leaves much to be desired…
Most people use Telemetry Overlay for this. But it is expensive.
Will you be reviewing the new DJI Action 5? I’d love to hear your thoughts and an unbiased comparison to the Hero 13
2nd this! Action 5 is closest we have every got to a VIRB Ultra 30 replacement with their direct Garmin import!
I am working on it.
In short, DJI is now requiring (if they want early access):
A) Reviewers submit their reviews to DJI prior to release, for approval
B) Reviewers agree to a 90-day non-compete on action cameras and drones (where they won’t review other products in the space)
C) Reviewers not talk about the footage in comparisons of the Action 5 (e.g. head to head footage comparison, not discussing the footage quality).
Obviously, I’m not agreeing to any of that garbage. Thus, no early access unit for me. Instead, I went out and bought one, and have already started to work my way through it.
RE: VIRB Replacement
Actually, the ACE Pro is probably the best there (minus the not-so-wide FOV). DJI doesn’t have direct import of Garmin workouts, they have import of .FIT files (which, is still more functional than what GoPro has today). However, Insta360 actually syncs in your Garmin/Apple/COROS/a few others files directly, akin to what Strava does, and does the overlays directly – including cycling power/etc… It’s incredibly cool.
Will there be something about the Insta360 X4?
No, probably not. I generally find 360* cameras kinda finicky (and unfortunately, also super low-demand unfortunately interest-wise).
Why is Insta360 X4 type cameras “low demand?” . Wouldn’t they be good in capturing video from angles that would be missed?
As the owner and still user of a Garmin VIRB 360 (released 7 years ago), I can say something about this. It’s true that you “get all the angles”. But the primary problem with 360 video is that it’s hard to share. You can’t assume that someone you send a 360 file to will have the software to view it properly. It’s not that such software is hard to find (the free VLC can do it), but something like the macOS QuickTime Player can’t. So basically you’re going to do post processing to either frame some flat clips from the 360 file, or you can send it to YouTube and have it show in a browser/tablet/phone but you have to preprocess it with the “Spatial Media Injector” app that YouTube provides (or at least you did the last time I uploaded 360 a few years ago). The other problem is that the resolution of the chip is spread over (almost) a sphere, so the resolution in any direction is lower than a flat frame video using the same chip. These days if I use the VIRB 360 I always also record with my GoPro Hero 11. The flat video from the Hero 11 is for sharing, the 360 video is for me.
With regard to TC’s point. I’m sort of surprised that there is no app that will pick up the BLE feed of data fields to overlay onto a video.