Insta360 has just launched their latest action cam, the Ace Pro 2. This unit adds an absolute boatload of smaller tweaks: Some hardware, some software depending on said new hardware. The headline feature is the 8K functionality, though that’s more of a spec bump from 8K/24FPS to 8/30FPS. Instead, I’d argue the headline features is the collection of just ‘darn useful stuff’ that’s there for daily usage.
Things like the ability to charge your phone using reverse charging, from the Ace Pro 2. Or, the ability to use your smartphone instead of a GPS watch, to get speed/etc data overlays. Or for athletes, a notably wider field of view than the Ace Pro 1. There’s a lot to like here, and I’m thankful it’s not just a new chipset internally that nobody cares about (though, they have that too). Instead, it’s a slate of things that their competitors could probably learn from.
Of course, that doesn’t mean it’s all perfect. In the above video, I dive into what works well (night modes), and what very much doesn’t (underwater modes). And everything in between.
Thanks for watching!
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Great video. Is there a plan to make an in depth comparison of the 3 cameras?
Do you think they have kind of peaked enough to satisfy the needs of 90% of users and it just comes to personal preference now?
Yup, definitely.
I’ve been gathering footage across every scenario I can think of for basically a month now. Just need to finish sorting my thougths.
Great review, looks like the most compelling option of the 3 sports cameras even with the price difference to the action 5. DJI has that mandatory activation thru the app so no taking it out & using it out of the box which is BS, and the GoPro is simply behind in terms of sensor technology and overall usability. One of the features I’m interested in is that LOG mode but I didn’t find the link to the raw file you mentioned @ 13:19 in the video. Where could I find that dropbox link?
Wow, I was waiting for a Wahoo like this. Premiere coming soon ;)
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HI!
Can you tell us what are the bit rates for:
4k/30fps
4k/60fps
8k/30fps
based on your recorded footage?
Hi, you mentioned using as a a dash cam in a car, but would you recommend it as a bike dashcam, for commuting, especially in the dark?
Did you try the Ace Pro 2 underwater with the underwater mode disabled?
This, I’ve been curious about this as well. I have not yet seen any of the reviews on YouTube cover it.
I’ll give it a whirl. I’ve gotta head back out for an openwater swim in the next few days.
Someone also suggested trying low light mode as well.
Hey Ray,
ty for the detailled review. Iw as dead set on the action 5 but the telemetry features are really perfect for me. But what i havent seen on your review: On lots of other videos I could see that the insta really seems to struggle in quality-wise standards. Especially on some forest settings the action 5 seems way sharper and better.
have you noticed somthing similar?
Hmm, I don’t really see that in my testing. Here’s a random snippet from my review video, in overcast conditions (dark clouds actually) late in the day, with some forest above me.
Hi Bastian, it’s worth noting that DJI has the exact same dashboard functions as the Insta360. You can add data overlays from .FIT files in the Mimo app and connect the app directly to a Garmin account. Not sure why DJI doesn’t advertise this.
You can overlay map, speed, power, heart rate, etc.
Actually, that DJI connection to Garmin (and Apple) is super new. It wasn’t there a month ago, just the manual .FIT file import.
(Though, the only bummer is it appears they don’t do a 30-day pull, so it seems like it’s only good for data from that moment forward of establishing the connection).
Always such an excellent job doing these reviews! Wondering if you’ll be doing a full on head to head that includes the Action 5? I see a ton of comparison videos with Insta360 vs GoPro, with no DJI comparison. Keep up the great work!!!
Yup, working on it as we speak! (Hero 13 vs Action 5 vs Insta360 Ace Pro 2)
Which one would you recommend for road bike and filming my family?
When will this video come out? I have searched your channel but I still haven’t found anything.
Would it be possible to attach some sample photos in full resolution (ideally raws) to the review?
Is there a recall because of fogging issues in cold whether ?
If my plan is to overlay my Garmin edge’s data using their app, can I do this with the camera’s GPS set to Off? My thought is to save battery and turn off the GPS setting because it may be redundant to run the camera GPS, in addition to, running the Garmin Edge where the final overlay data will actually come from.
Ray, you brushed over this…horizon lock….tell us more, I can’t foind any table listing what settings/modes alloew for horizon lock….I’ve been able to work out only 4k below 30fps and only in standard video….how does this compare with GoPro’s horizon lock with and without the Lens Mod?