You’ve probably heard about the GoPro Hero 8, 9, 10, and 11. Tiny action cameras that can go anywhere.
The GoPro HERO12 action camera has been out since September 2023 and I’m sure the 13 is on its way (probably September 2024). If you are buying a GoPro for the first time which one should you buy? If you have an 8 or 9 should you be upgrading to a 10, 11, or 12?
Price is always going to be a factor. Prices are falling and sales happen all the time, you can usually pick up a GoPro for a good price somewhere online.
In this post:
- Feature comparison of 8, 9, 10, 11 and 12
- GoPro Subscription: Should you get it?
- Best GoPro prices online
- Explanation of every GoPro feature
- Other GoPro cameras
GoPro HERO 8, 9, 10, 11, and 12 Features Compared
Check out the bottom of the post for explanations of each of these features.
| Feature | GoPro HERO12 | GoPro HERO11 | GoPro HERO10 | GoPro HERO9 | GoPro HERO8 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Release Date | Sept 13, 2023 | Sept 14, 2022 | Sept 16, 2021 | Sept 16, 2020 | Oct 15, 2019 |
| Processor | GP2 | GP2 | GP2 | GP1 | GP1 |
| Sensor | 1/1.9″ CMOS 8:7 | 1/1.9″ CMOS 8:7 | 1/2.3″ CMOS 4:3 | 1/2.3″ CMOS 4:3 | 1/2.3″ CMOS 4:3 |
| Max Video Modes | 5.3K60 4K120 2.7K240 1080p240 | 5.3K60 4K120 2.7K240 1080p240 | 5.3K60 4K120 2.7K240 1080p240 | 5K30 4K60 2.7K120 1080p240 | 4K60 2.7K120 1080p240 |
| Slo-mo | 2x at 5.3K 4x at 4K 8x at 2.7K 8x at 1080p | 2x at 5.3K 3x at 4K 8x at 2.7K 8x at 1080p | 2x at 5.3K 3x at 4K 8x at 2.7K 8x at 1080p | 2x at 4K 4x at 2.7K 8x at 1080p | 2x at 4K 4x at 2.7K 8x at 1080p |
| Back screen | 2.27″ touchscreen | 2.27″ touchscreen | 2.27″ touchscreen | 2.27″ touchscreen | 1.95″ touchscreen |
| Front screen | 1.4″ with live preview | 1.4″ with live preview | 1.4″ with live preview | 1.4″ with live preview | black and white status |
| Waterproof | 33ft | 33ft | 33ft | 33ft | 33ft |
| HyperSmooth | 6.0 with AutoBoost | 5.0 with AutoBoost | 4.0 | 3.0 | 2.0 |
| Horizon Lock | 360° Rotation, up to 5.3K30, 4K60, and 2.7K120 | 360° Rotation, up to 5.3K30, 4K60, and 2.7K120 | – | – | – |
| Horizon Levelling | Up to 27°, 5.3K60, 4K120, 2.7K240 and 1080/240 | Up to 27°, 5.3K60, 4K120, 2.7K240 and 1080/240 | 27-45° All Resolution | 27-45° All Resolution | In Quik app |
| Photo Size | 27MP | 27MP | 23MP | 20MP | 12MP |
| Video Screen Grab Size | 24.7MP | 24.7MP | 19.6MP | 14.75MP | |
| TimeWarp | 3.0 Auto, 2x, 5x, 10x, 15x, 30x up to 5.3k | 3.0 Auto, 2x, 5x, 10x, 15x, 30x up to 5.3k | 3.0 | 3.0 | 2.0 |
| Color Depth | 10-bit | 10-bit | 8-bit | 8-bit | 8-bit |
| HindSight |  | | | |  |
| Scheduled Capture | | | | | |
| LiveBurst | | | | | |
| Duration Capture | | | | | |
| Webcam | | | | | |
| Removeable Lens Cover | | | | | |
| Livestream | 1080p30 with HyperSmooth + 1080p60 recording | 1080p30 with HyperSmooth 4.0 + 1080p60 recording | 1080p with HyperSmooth | 1080p | 1080p |
| Wired Transfer | | | | | (android only) |
| Mods | Media Mod Max Lens Mod 2.0/1.0 | Media Mod Max Lens Mod 1.0 | Media Mod Max Lens Mod 1.0 | Media Mod Max Lens Mod 1.0 | Media Mod |
| Price (USD, Dec 2023, GoPro.com) | $349.99 | $299.99 | $249.99 | $199.99 | $149.99 |
| Shop | GoPro Amazon | GoPro Amazon | GoPro Amazon | Amazon | Amazon |
| Review | Coming soon | Hero11 Review | Hero10 Review | Hero9 review | Hero8 Review |
GoPro Subscription
The GoPro subscription changed a bit in 2023. Where there used to be one subscription that got you:
- Discount on your camera
- unlimited cloud backup and auto-uploads
- 50% off accessories from GoPro.com
- Up to 2 discounted camera replacements
Now there is a Premium and Premium+ tiers to the subscription:
Premium ($59.99 USD/year, half price for first year)
- Unlimited cloud storage
- 25gb storage for non-GoPro footage
- Synced mobile and desktop editing
- camera replacement
- 50% off accessories at GoPro.com
- $100 off 1 GoPro per year
- Auto upload
- Automatic Highlight videos
- Live Streaming
Premium+ ($129.99 USD/year)
- All Premium features
- 500gb cloud storage for non-GoPro footage
- HyperSmooth Pro stabilization
GoPro Features
GoPro’s have a lot of different features. Here’s what they all mean.
Processor
Cameras have a processor, or brain, just like in your computer and phone. They run process the images, control each function and run the touch screen.
The GP1 processor was getting a bit slow in the HERO 9 camera and was upgraded to the GP2 in the HERO 10. The performance difference is noticeable.
Video modes
Video modes are all the different resolutions and frame rates each camera has like 4K60 or 1080p240.
Resolution is the size of the picture and how many pixels you are recording. The standard aspect ratio (pixels across vs down) of 16:9 in a 5.3K video on a GoPro 10 is 5312 pixels across by 2988 pixels down. A lot of pixels!
Frame rate is how many frames are recorded each second. Movies on TV will be 24 frames per second or fps. If you film at a higher frame rate you can slow it down a bit so 60, 120, or 240 fps can be slowed down a bit for a slow motion effect.
Back screen
GoPro have a touch screen on the back where you control each of the functions and see what you are recording. They got a back screen back in the Hero 3 days with an optional, detachable touch screen. The 1.95″ screen on the GoPro 8 got upgraded in the 9 and 10 to 2.27″ as the camera body got bigger.
Front screen
Up until the Hero 8, GoPro’s had a small front screen that showed how many images or video you had taken. In the GoPro 9 it got upgrade to an actual video screen showing what a preview of the video.
WaterProof
GoPro got famous because they came with a waterproof housing. To mount it to anything the fully waterproof housing had to be on.
Starting with the GoPro 5, they whole camera was waterproof, no case needed. Hero 5 and 6 still needed a frame to mount it to anything and then the Hero 8 got built-in mounts.
No waterproof case is required for the 8, 9 and 10 to go down to 33 ft. Past 33 ft though they still require a thicker waterproof housing.
HyperSmooth
Most video is a jittery mess if you start moving. Even worse if you are mountain biking and constantly hitting bumps and rocks.
HyperSmooth is GoPro’s image stabilization technology. It automatically takes out the bumps and jitters resulting in smoother video.
Horizon Levelling
HyperSmooth takes out the bumps but sometimes the camera will rotate when you don’t want it to. Horizon Levelling automatically keeps the horizon in the shot level. This is only available in certain modes because it has to clip the corners of the video to do this.
This option can be disabled if you want the horizon to rotate with the camera.
Photo Size
GoPro’s can take still images too and they are getting better and better. Mirrorless or DSLR camera will still take better still images but GoPro are starting to be the only camera you need to take on adventures.
Hero 10 takes 23 megapixel photos.
SuperPhoto
SuperPhoto can be enabled for your photos and does a few things when it’s on auto:
- High Dynamic Range (HDR)
- Local Tone Mapping
- Multi-Frame Noise Reduction
- Or, no processing
These are each explained below. SuperPhoto can be disabled if you want.
High Dynamic Range (HDR)
Cameras still aren’t very good at capturing very bright and very dark in one image. What they can do is capture multiple images and put them together. Some are taken for the bright areas, some for the dark areas and they quickly merged for your final photo.
Local Tone Mapping
GoPros have adjusted your photos and videos in the camera globally, meaning they add contrast or increase saturation across the whole image. What they can now do is make these changes for one spot on the photo like just on your subject and not the sky behind. Different adjustments are made in photos than in video but both use local tone mapping with the Hero 10.
3D (Multi-Frame) Noise Reduction
GoPro’s, like all other cameras, increase the ISO (sensitivity) of the sensor when the light gets low. This introduces noise in the picture. It looks like a grain or static on the video.
Cameras and computers can run through each image of a video and smooth out pixels. They blend noisy pixels with the pixels around them and things look better. It can also make it look a lot less sharp.
With the faster GP2 processor, the GoPro 10 can look at multiple frames of an image and copy information from the others, reducing the noise without making the image look soft.
This applies to all the resolutions and frame-rates except for the highest so 4k30/24, 2.7K60, 1080p120 and below. The processing is just too much to do the highest resolutions and frame-rates.
Video Screen Grab Size
Through the GoPro Quik app there are 2 ways to get a photo. You can take a normal photo with the camera, or you can just save a frame (screen grab) from a video. With the videos becoming such high resolution, the photos from a video clip are getting better as well. Just remember that it will have whatever blur in the image from moving as the video clip did.
Time Lapse Photo
Time Lapse Photo makes a time-lapse series of photos. You can pick your interval you’d like the photos to be taken at. Each of the photos are saved separately on the camera letting you do something with them after.
Time Lapse Video
Time Lapse Video is the same as Time Lapse Photos, except the camera puts them into a video file for you. If that’s what you are going to do, then it’ll save you time.
Night Lapse Photo
Night Lapse Photos are just like a Time Lapse Photo except with a longer exposure time. This lets more light into the camera when it’s dark at night. On the photo mode it will save a bunch of photos to the card
Night Lapse Video
Just like a Night Lapse Photo but saves a video instead of a series of photos.
TimeWarp
TimeWarp is a time lapse video with the HyperSmooth stabilization turned on. It can be used for walking around a city, driving a pretty road, or running down a trail. There are different speeds that can be used. Higher speeds are better for recording bumpier activities.
HindSight
HindSight captures 15 or 30 seconds of video before you press the shutter button. This gets added to whatever you record after the shutter is pressed. It’s handy if getting the timing on a shot is hard. Because the camera is recording the whole time just like a car dashcam, it uses up the battery faster.
Scheduled Capture
The GoPro can start recording at a specified time in the next 24 hours. You can record time lapse or video and the camera will turn on by itself. Great for sunrise time lapse shots when you don’t want to get out of bed!
This feature can be used with Duration Capture.
Duration Capture
Duration Capture will let the GoPro shoot a time lapse or video for a set amount of time. Set the amount of time to capture for and let the camera go.
This can be used with Scheduled Capture as well to capture at a set time and then run for the set duration.
LiveBurst
LiveBurst records a burst of photos and then saves them to a video file. It’s always recording so it records 1.5 seconds of photos before and after you press the shutter button. With the Quik app you can view and share the whole video or save one photo from it.
Color Profile
In older GoPro’s they were set by default to a GoPro colour setting which had very saturated colours. In the 9 they defaulted to that punchy GoPro colour setting but also had a Flat colour setting which left every desaturated but much easier for colour grading afterwards.
In the 10 they’ve extended the GoPros even further. Vibrant is still the punch, saturated GoPro colours from the old cameras. Flat is the desaturated colours great for grading after. Natural is in between the 2 others and makes for a great everyday filming profile.
Webcam
GoPros can now be used as webcams. Theres a small program to download from the GoPro website. The Webcam app can be used with GoPro 8, 9 and 10.
Removable Lens Cover
GoPro 9 and 10 both have removeable lens covers. To replace a scratched lens cover or add a Max Lens Mod, you can unscrew the lens cover and screw on the new one. Careful with the versions as the Max Lens Mod 2.0 is only compatible with HERO12.
Livestream
Through the smartphone app, GoPro 7 and up can livestream directly to Facebook, Youtube, Vimeo and others. GoPro 10 adds the ability to add HyperSmooth to the livestream as well. Livestream your next the big mountain bike descent?
Wired transfer
With a recent firmware update, GoPro 5 and up can connect to your phone with a cable and transfer your photos and videos much faster. GoPro 5, 6, 7 and 8 are Android only at the moment. 9 and 10 support iPhone but the cable has to be Apple’s lightning to USB-C cable for some reason.
How to set up the wired transfer.
Battery Life
Battery life is how long the GoPro batteries last on each camera. This can vary wildly depending on what you’re doing. Recording at 4K60 is going to drain your batteries much faster than taking a still image once in a while. On average GoPro batteries last about 30 to 60 minutes. We highly recommend taking extras!
The GoPro 9 and 10 batteries got larger going from 1220 mAh to 1720 mAh. Running the front screen takes more juice so the battery life doesn’t usually get longer. A new Enduro battery from GoPro last longer than the standard batteries and does better in the cold.
Other GoPro Cameras
GoPro also have some other cameras out aside from the Hero line.
Max
The GoPro Max is their 360 degree camera. It can take 360 video and you can choose what shots you want afterwards.
Not in this chart. That camera is here.
Hero10 Black Bones
The new Bones camera is a Hero10 stripped down to just a lens and processor for use on FPV drones. It’s smaller and lighter than a normal GoPro, not having a battery or any screens. It requires power from the drone to work.
GoPro Hero11
Cleary not a feature of one of the GoPros, the GoPro Hero11 is expected to be released September 2022. We’re excited to see what features GoPro will pack into the latest camera.
Which is your favourite GoPro?
Do you have a GoPro? Do you like it? Which one is your favourite?
I’ve had an original Hero Wide, 3+, 5 and more recently the 8, 9 and 10. The 10 is clearly the best you can get and has every feature we could imagine.
For the right price anything from the 5 up are amazing cameras that can do so many things.