Australian T3 - May 2018

$299.95

gopro.com

WE’RE IMPRESSEDMany

acefeaturesforthecash:

WRXFKVFUHHQ P ZDWHUSURRĆQJ

digital video stabilisation...

WE’D IMPROVEVoice control

is less effective in noisy

environments; we’d have liked

4K and slow-mo video.

THELASTWORDIt might not

shoot4K,butforthepriceit’sthe

ideal adventure companion.

VERDICT

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Discover more at techradar.com/au WINTER 2018T3 87

GoPro Hero

oProhasdominatedtheaction

camera world for years, providing

adrenaline sports legends and

enthusiasts alike with the tools to

confidently capture wild footage from unique

angles. Aiming to extend their authority into

the budget market, the entry-level Hero

borrows premium features from GoPro’s

flagshipHero6andwrapsthemina

streamlined, wallet-friendly package.

he Hero’s design is identical to the Hero 5

and6,makingitcompatiblewithGoPro’s

extensivemountandhousingrange.hecamera

is also shockproof and waterproof (to 10 metres).

he responsive, sunlight-friendly two-inch

touchscreen provides rapid access to playback

and settings, with the replaceable battery

dishing out around two hours of use per charge.

Voice control first appeared on the Hero 5 and

it’sincludedhere.IftheGoProismountedto

yourcrashhelmetoryou’redoinganactivity

thatlimitscameraaccess,locatingtheshutter

buttoncanbeapain.Filmingisnowaseasyas

saying, “GoPro, start recording” and waiting for

CanGoPro’snewsub-$300

action camera meet the

demands of adrenaline

junkies, or will it bow out

when the going gets rough?

GoPro Hero

INTO THE WILD

G

the beep. Voice recognition is, on the whole,

incredibly responsive, though our Hero

wouldn’t pick up commands over the sound

ofcrashingwaveswhenwewentsurfing.

Keepingthingssimple,theHerooffersjust

two filming resolutions: 1440 or 1080p at 30 or

60fps, as well as 10MP stills. Granted, most

cameras and smartphones now offer 4K as

standard,butwewouldrathertakeaGoPro

skydiving. From board to bike, footage is crisp

and vibrant, and Video Stabilisation mode helps

keepclipssmoothwhenthingsgetturbulent.

AutoLowLightmodeworksincrediblywell

when shooting in darker situations, like under

atreecanopy;switchthesemodesoffandyou’ll

quickly realise the difference they make. Audio

reproduction is nothing to get excited about but

itdoesthejob.hebudgetpricetagalsomeans

GoProhadtocutafewcorners,soyouwon’t

findaslow-motionvideooptioninthemenu.

Ifyouliveforcliffdivingorbasejumpingand

need to make banging edits to share publicly,

you’ll probably find the Hero’s lack of 4K

resolutionatadlimiting.However,ifyou’rea

part-time adrenaline junkie needing a reliable

HD camera to shoot YouTube-ready footage of

your adventures (easily edited into shape using

GoPro’sQuikStoriesapp),theGoProHeroisthe

big-name budget action shooter to beat.