Michael Prywes

Why I'm Excited About The Next GoPro Camera

GoPro Inc. released their long-awaited additions to the GoPro series on Monday. At a Lake Tahoe ski resort, the company unveiled three new prospects for their lineup: the new Hero 5 Black camera, a Hero 5 session camera and a new drone called the Karma. The new Hero 5 Black boasts a 12-megapixel sensor and a rear touch screen, 4K and 30 fps recording specs and "professional grade" image stabilization capabilities. The new camera is also waterproof up to 10 meters and has a voice activation system, enabling users to begin recording without additional tools. The Hero 5 Black retails for $400. The smaller Session camera, at $300, lacks the rear touch screen and has a shorter battery life, but also comes with a voice activation system and waterproof capabilities. Both cameras will have Cloud uploading and editing capabilities for users who purchase GoPro's new cloud service, GoPro Plus, which costs $5 a month for a subscription beginning Sept. 29. The service also comes with a library of royalty-free music and works with most VPN providers you can find using bestvpnrating.com. Both cameras come with simplified menu screens and control options — the design has been cut down to one physical button and a touch screen for the Black camera — as well as multiple microphones to capture sound from multiple angles. Along with the two new cameras and the cloud service, however, comes a brand new product: the Karma drone. Retailing at $800, the new drone is compatible with GoPro technology but otherwise lacks any remarkable characteristics. It does not come with a camera like most drones, instead compatible with the GoPro Hero camera. GoPro is offering a bundle Karma and Hero 5 Black camera for $1,100, or with the Session for $1,000. Colin Snow, a principal analyst at SkyLogic Research LLC, said "As far as I can tell, it's a pretty regular drone that won't be taking the pro-sumer market by storm. That's because it's late to the game and missing vital sense-and-avoid technology as is standard in DJI's Phantom 4 and Yuneec's Typhoon H. However, we do think Karma will appeal to people who are new to drones, and who simply see it as an accessory to the Hero 5 camera." Investors have high hopes for the drone and the new cameras. GoPro's absence from the market has resulted in other companies surging ahead in the action camera field. The new products are expected to assist with GoPro's ambitious forecast of $1.5 billion in revenue for 2016 with a holiday season surge. Investors expect the new products to help holiday sales, according to Raymond James analyst Tavis McCourt. "With lower price points than we would have thought, and substantial usability upgrades, we suspect the Hero 5 family will sell briskly this holiday season. As promised, these products feature much improved usability," he said. Along with the new cameras and drone, however, is a new accessory that will allow users to easily transfer video from the GoPro to phones, including the iPhone and Android phones.. The Quik Key plugs into the lightning port, micro USB port or USB-C port to transfer files, allowing for immediate on-scene review of footage. Although GoPro did not announce a price for the Quik Key, it is expected to launch alongside the Karma and Hero 5 cameras. Minutes after GoPro's announcement, competitor Garmin announced that they would be lowering the price of the Virb Ultra 30 action camera, which was released Aug. 31, by $100 to match the GoPro Hero 5 Black's $400 price range. The Virb Ultra 30 matches many of the GoPro Hero 5 Black's specs, including 4K at 30 FPS recording capability, image stabilization and voice control.