GoPro purchasing advice

[Argyll Andy]

As per title I’m looking to buy a GoPro between now and the first Z4 runs of next year to use in the car but mainly for the Pyrenees trip.

These are completely new to me so looking on advice on anything relevant. I have done a fair bit of research and seen multiple comments that an 8 will do, a 9 will be even better but not great advantages over the 8 and the 10 while cutting edge is maybe unnecessary for what I think I need.

I’m not saying money is no object but I’m aware of what a 8/9/10 costs and would be happy with the 8/9 but would stretch to the 10 if it was a hand down winner for my purposes

The main points are

1. What model number would you recommend?
2. Is there much difference between what I’ll refer to as the trim (black/pro etc)?
3. Do I need multiple batteries/SD cards if driving for a whole day?
4. Is it worth getting an external mic? And if so any recommend and are these hard wired?
5. Best type of mount for both internally and externally.

Any help with any of the points above would be greatly appreciated and any further advice anyone thinks is relevant would also be fantastic

TIA Andy

 

[Roberltd2]

An external mic would be well worth considering I would think as the built-in ones are probably a bit limited in quality in comparison. Rode are good. From what I've read, you'll need a 3.5mm to USB-C adaptor. A wind sock will help cut down on unwanted noise as well.

 

[Ole gits rule]

Hero 9 is the latest I think but the 7 or 8 should also be pretty good - just depends on the money you want to spend

 

[Argyll Andy]

An external mic would be well worth considering I would think as the built-in ones are probably a bit limited in quality in comparison. Rode are good. From what I've read, you'll need a 3.5mm to USB-C adaptor. A wind sock will help cut down on unwanted noise as well.

Thanks for that, I’ll have a look at them

Again on my ignorance of the subject is that adapter required because the mic has a usb-c? As the camera is stating a 3.5mm

 

[Argyll Andy]

Hero 9 is the latest I think but the 7 or 8 should also be pretty good - just depends on the money you want to spend

Sean, this is from the GoPro site so there may be different/better offers from different retailers. Also Black Friday may throw up some options.

The newest is a 10 and from what I can see it’s got much better stabilisation, which may be better for use on the car, and a new processor. You can also get a bundle with an extra battery and SD card which formed part of my question so I could work out if I’d need them or if it’s a sales gimmick with unnecessary additional spend. Or do I take the base pack with the spare battery and buy one/two much higher capacity SD cards

GoPro HERO10 £379.98 was £584.97 Save £205 on HERO10 Black with 1-year GoPro Subscription¹. Includes Free Dual Battery Charger + Spare Battery.

Bundle price £429.98 was £649.94 Save £220 in value savings on HERO10 Black Bundle with 1-year GoPro Subscription¹ The Accessories Bundle includes: Magnetic Swivel Clip, Spare battery, Shorty stand, 32GB SD card and Camera case

GoPro HERO9 329.98 was £429.98
Save £100 on HERO9 Black with 1-year GoPro Subscription¹

No bundle available

GoPro HERO8 £259.98 was £329.98
Save £70 on HERO8 Black with 1-year GoPro Subscription¹

No bundle available

 

[Roberltd2]

An external mic would be well worth considering I would think as the built-in ones are probably a bit limited in quality in comparison. Rode are good. From what I've read, you'll need a 3.5mm to USB-C adaptor. A wind sock will help cut down on unwanted noise as well.

Thanks for that, I’ll have a look at them

Again on my ignorance of the subject is that adapter required because the mic has a usb-c? As the camera is stating a 3.5mm

From what I read, the latest versions of the GoPro only have a USB-C socket and will need an adapter if the mic has a 3.5mm jack plug. I think laptops are going that way now as well, one less connector equals cheaper to make and more profit.

 

[Argyll Andy]

An external mic would be well worth considering I would think as the built-in ones are probably a bit limited in quality in comparison. Rode are good. From what I've read, you'll need a 3.5mm to USB-C adaptor. A wind sock will help cut down on unwanted noise as well.

Thanks for that, I’ll have a look at them

Again on my ignorance of the subject is that adapter required because the mic has a usb-c? As the camera is stating a 3.5mm

From what I read, the latest versions of the GoPro only have a USB-C socket and will need an adapter if the mic has a 3.5mm jack plug. I think laptops are going that way now as well, one less connector equals cheaper to make and more profit.

You’re correct, I must’ve been recalling that from one of the other models. Spec breakdown on GoPro site shows usb-c

 

[B21]

Andy, I think you will need stabilisation!

 

[Argyll Andy]

Andy, I think you will need stabilisation!

:lol: That’s what I was thinking too and that alone has me leaning towards the 10. As you’ve pointed out before OH stabilisation hasn’t been top notch at times, especially when you hear the phone hitting the windscreen

 

[B21]

Well you could try a sports bra (for the GoPro)

 

[Argyll Andy]

Well you could try a sports bra (for the GoPro)

I’m glad you added the last bit

My next quandary is if an external mount will keep hold of the camera or whether it’s safer to mount it inside the cabin :lol:

 

[B21]

Well you could try a sports bra (for the GoPro)

I’m glad you added the last bit

My next quandary is if an external mount will keep hold of the camera or whether it’s safer to mount it inside the cabin :lol:

Always remember a Tyre Reviews video where you see the Go-Pro tumbling off at speed…

Driving around a circuit maybe you would see it..on the road…

Personally I would have thought an eye level shot through the windscreen / facing backwards would be a good starting point..

External shots subject to bugs / road grime etc..

What lens are you getting ?

The wide angle I think gives an unhelpful perspective…

 

[Ole gits rule]

Hero 9 is the latest I think but the 7 or 8 should also be pretty good - just depends on the money you want to spend

Sean, this is from the GoPro site so there may be different/better offers from different retailers. Also Black Friday may throw up some options.

The newest is a 10 and from what I can see it’s got much better stabilisation, which may be better for use on the car, and a new processor. You can also get a bundle with an extra battery and SD card which formed part of my question so I could work out if I’d need them or if it’s a sales gimmick with unnecessary additional spend. Or do I take the base pack with the spare battery and buy one/two much higher capacity SD cards

GoPro HERO10 £379.98 was £584.97 Save £205 on HERO10 Black with 1-year GoPro Subscription¹. Includes Free Dual Battery Charger + Spare Battery.

Bundle price £429.98 was £649.94 Save £220 in value savings on HERO10 Black Bundle with 1-year GoPro Subscription¹ The Accessories Bundle includes: Magnetic Swivel Clip, Spare battery, Shorty stand, 32GB SD card and Camera case

GoPro HERO9 329.98 was £429.98
Save £100 on HERO9 Black with 1-year GoPro Subscription¹

No bundle available

GoPro HERO8 £259.98 was £329.98
Save £70 on HERO8 Black with 1-year GoPro Subscription¹

No bundle available

I am a little out of touch with go pros as Ihave not used mine for a few years - have not used the quid for ages.

Bloody expensive these days but worth buying for the car for certain

 

[AndyBeech]

Depends what resolution you want to shoot in, FPS etc. Maybe do a search on YouTube for comparisons of image quality for the different models and see what you can live with.

I've got a 7 black and use it in 1080p 60fps mode. Quality is good enough for me at that res and bit rate (use mine for track days). Bear in mind that shooting in 4K res and high FPS results in huge file sizes so I don't use that mode personally, would need another hard drive to store all the videos but it's down to personal preference.

The batteries are pretty useless for any kind of extended recording. Half an hour does for them so I just run a USB cable from the cig lighter to the GoPro so don't have to worry about it. I would consider this if you value your sanity changing batteries all the time.

Hyper smooth is good but bear in mind it can do a slightly strange panning effect in corners (it acts a bit like a gimble). Works well enough though and doesn't bother me.

I use the external mic mod personally with a 3.5mm jack. It's a bit clumsy in design but again works fine for me. If you've got a drop top the standard mics just pic up a load of wind noise, even with a dead cat and aren't great but then does depend on camera placement.

Good camera's overall, once it's set up it's a decent bit of kit. Editing software for it though is trash so make sure you have an editor on a PC or Mac if you'll need to do any.

 

[Argyll Andy]

What lens are you getting ?

The wide angle I think gives an unhelpful perspective…

Haven’t seen anything about different lenses, hopefully not something else I’m going to try to get my head around

 

[Argyll Andy]

Depends what resolution you want to shoot in, FPS etc. Maybe do a search on YouTube for comparisons of image quality for the different models and see what you can live with.

I've got a 7 black and use it in 1080p 60fps mode. Quality is good enough for me at that res and bit rate (use mine for track days). Bear in mind that shooting in 4K res and high FPS results in huge file sizes so I don't use that mode personally, would need another hard drive to store all the videos but it's down to personal preference.

The batteries are pretty useless for any kind of extended recording. Half an hour does for them so I just run a USB cable from the cig lighter to the GoPro so don't have to worry about it. I would consider this if you value your sanity changing batteries all the time.

Hyper smooth is good but bear in mind it can do a slightly strange panning effect in corners (it acts a bit like a gimble). Works well enough though and doesn't bother me.

I use the external mic mod personally with a 3.5mm jack. It's a bit clumsy in design but again works fine for me. If you've got a drop top the standard mics just pic up a load of wind noise, even with a dead cat and aren't great but then does depend on camera placement.

Good camera's overall, once it's set up it's a decent bit of kit. Editing software for it though is trash so make sure you have an editor on a PC or Mac if you'll need to do any.

Thanks Andy, I’ll do a bit of YouTube searching. Good point about the battery/usb. I’ve got access to some reasonably decent editing software so hopefully that’ll do

 

[Roberltd2]

May also be worth checking the recording settings on the device before hand. I'm no "Stephen Spielbert", but I've had problems with editing content recorded on mobiles at "30fps" when it is in fact 29.97 (I think) fps US NTSC standard. Default setting on Apple devices I think?
If options allow, I think I would go for "25 fps PAL progressive". Then hopefully it will be more editing friendly, speaking from personal experience anyway.

 

[Roberltd2]

Happy birthday by the way!

 

[Argyll Andy]

Happy birthday by the way!

Cheers bud