Specs + Price

My particular model is the GoPro Hero 5 Black. The going rate is approximately the same as what I paid at around 400$ Canadian, plus the gear you can buy for it, which is extensive.

Its waterproof up to 10m (33 feet), takes 4K Video and 12MP Photo and has a few cool add-ons like the ability to start and stop recording using the shoot button, which came in handy more than once.

Its also got video stabilization, voice command options, Geotagging location to the image or video, all on a 2-inch tactile display that now allows you to see the photos and videos you have on the camera and even watch them back and edit them on the device.

They also have the apps that you can edit on and post from, making it easy to share your travels or just family days out. You can also control the camera from your phone and change some settings using the connectivity feature, which can be much easier to see than the small screen.

One thing I really was expecting better of was the battery. The battery life is so, so short. I bring chargers and have contemplated buying additional batteries because on a day out a battery dying in less than a quarter of the way through the day at times is frustrating, to say the least. I can understand memory on cards running out, but battery life should way longer than an hour or two.

Facility of use

There were a few moments where I tried to figure out the features, and some it didn’t get right away.

It doesn’t have the buttons I’m used to, so it did take a while to adjust for me. Eventually, I did get it and have been able to use it more easily the more time I spend with it.

I love the feature that allows you to turn the camera on and start recording right away.

Quality of video and images

So far, the quality of the photos has been decent. The video has been a little rough at times, especially when the camera gets hot in water, I found the video to be hard to see at times. This would be where I would insert a video I took, except the ones I had were on an external hard drive that crashed and I lost everything. (Thanks, Western Digital, I really appreciate that.)

One place I do find it lacking is in the clarity category. I am really into photography (amateur level), I am still learning to use it, but I’ve found that the photos and videos are good quality, you can make out what they are without it being pointed out, but I feel like the image could be crisper and sharper. For what I paid for the camera and accessories I thought the quality would be higher, though you can always edit them afterwards.

Additional features (apps, gear, etc.)

The app feature is fantastic, though the size of the images and videos can be quite large and is likely to take up most of the space on the phone you use, it also lets you post to social media directly. The speed at which they do these can be slow due in large part to the size of the images, which even though it is a small camera is roughly the same size as my Canon Rebel T6i, despite being visibly lower quality.

The gear you can buy for the camera is endless. I was even able to get a hand strap that is supposed to be for surfing, which seems like it may fall off, but my hands are quite small.

Overall Thoughts & Would I Recommend It?

I would absolutely recommend this camera. Specifically, for people who don’t want a big bulky camera, which is much more delicate than the GoPro is.

The camera does take good pictures and videos and is similarly priced to most ‘semi-professional’ cameras on the market with great add-ons, apps and sharing features.

If you’re used to traditional cameras like I am, there is a bit of a learning curve, especially since the screen is much smaller.

All in all, I love my GoPro, and while I hope to have it for many, many years to come, I cannot wait to see what they have in store for the future versions.