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GoPro wants you to make short videos on your action camera
So you want to put your latest action camera footage on Instagram or Vine, but you'd rather not transfer the entire video to your computer or phone just to produce a seconds-long highlight. What to do? As of today, GoPro has an easy answer. It's rolling out a trimming feature that produces short, share-worthy clips, whether you're editing in the mobile app or on the camera itself -- you could post a video of your mountain bike adventures while you're still taking a breather. You'll need a full-size Hero4 to trim on-camera, but the Hero4 Session and any other WiFi-capable GoPro cam will play nicely with app-based trimming.
Gnarbox puts a video editing suite in your back pocket
Gnarbox is a modern solution to a modern problem. Right now, if you're shooting video outdoors, you'll either need your laptop with you, or (more likely) have to wait until you get back to base to make an edit. By which time, the moment has gone, and your footage risks ending up stockpiled on a memory card or hard drive. Gnarbox tackles this issue by bundling a WiFi hard drive with a quad-core processor, 4GB of RAM, a dedicated GPU, about seven hours battery life and a comprehensive mobile app. With just the paperback-sized device and a phone you can make decent edits, even with 4K video, and share them right after the wave/ride/moment.
Livestream your GoPro adventures with Meerkat
In its ongoing war with Periscope for the hearts and screens of mobile users, Meerkat announced a new feature on Thursday. Users can now livestream their adventures from select GoPro cameras. Right now, only GoPro Hero3's offer the feature. Users will also need an iPhone with a wireless connection to the camera in order for everything to work. Meerkat is reportedly working to add support for both the Hero4 camera series and the Android platform in the near future. This announcement follows the recent Meerkat additions of the "cameo" feature that allows your friends to hop onto broadcasts with you and an embeddable web player.
The 2016 Toyota Tacoma has a GoPro mount as a standard feature
Considering a new truck for your next off-road excursion? Well, if you also fancy chronicling your adventures with a GoPro camera, Toyota is hoping a new feature on its 2016 Tacoma will help entice you to buy one. The automaker is including a mount for GoPro's line of action cameras as a standard feature, so if you spend tens of thousands on a new truck, you can pocket the $40 you'd spend on an extra accessory. "We're not in the business of selling cameras, and we're not in the business of dictating to our customers what they have to use," Tacoma chief engineer Michael Sweers told Bloomberg. "It just made sense to try to team up with GoPro because that's what our customer base is using." Of course, the new Tacoma won't arrive with a camera already in the cab, but surely more than a few dealers will offer one as an extra if you buy a new truck. [Image credit: Raymond Boyd/Getty Images]
Action camera shootout: Which GoPro is best for you?
Last week, GoPro announced the Hero4 Session, a small, square camera that doesn't need a waterproof housing. The diminutive size and simple controls (one press turns it on and starts it recording) gave the Hero4 Session unique character, but its price -- $400 -- caused a few double-takes. Why? Because that makes this 1080p camera (with 8-megapixel stills) just as expensive as the Hero4 Silver, a camera that shoots in higher resolution (2.7K and low frame rate 4K) has an LCD touchscreen, among other flagship features. Then there's the Hero+ LCD, which costs $100 less than the Session, but has similar shooting modes (1080p at 60fps video, and 8MP stills). You may be wondering exactly where the Hero4 Session fits in, and which one might suit you best. I did a little image comparison to help you with that.
Meet the GoPro Hero4 Session: a tiny camera with big shoes to fill
That camera you see above is the GoPro Hero4 Session, the fifth and newest member to the company's current line-up. You can't have avoided noticing that the Hero4 Session is a small black square, and not the traditional silver matchbox, or gray lump we're used to. It's the most striking update in design we've seen from GoPro for, well, ever. The smaller, lighter form factor is the most obvious talking point, but the feature set is interesting too, for a mix of reasons.
Polaroid's tiny Cube camera now packs WiFi
The Polaroid Cube, released last year, is nowhere near matching the quality of a GoPro. Still, this pocketable camera can be a good accessory for those times you can't, or won't, use a smartphone to take pictures. Today, Polaroid is announcing Cube+, the successor to its tiny, square-shaped camera, featuring an 8-megapixel sensor, compared to the 6 megapixels found on the original model. Most notably, however, is the addition of WiFi support, which lets users control the camera from an iOS or Android device -- you can use the companion app as a viewfinder, or to edit and share photos. It will be available in August for $150 in a variety of colors, including hot pink and a green that glows in the dark.
AirDog's auto-following camera drone launches on August 31st
It's been several months since AirDog's namesake tag-along camera drone was originally expected to ship, but the award-winning robotic flyer is finally close to reaching your doorstep. The company has confirmed that its sports-oriented companion will officially launch on August 31st for $1,295, with crowdfunding backers getting the first batch. There are still some tweaks left (AirDog wants to improve the connection to the wearable "leash" that makes following work, for one thing), but it should otherwise be good to go. You will have to wait a bit longer if you want to check out the competition, though. The rival Hexo+ drone doesn't ship until the fall, so you might want to postpone making that epic biking movie if you're not sure which unmanned vehicle will deliver the best footage.
GoPro's Hero+ LCD puts a touchscreen on its entry-level camera
Last week, GoPro unveiled some advanced tools for the more ambitious content creator. Today, for the folk that just want to snorkel in the Bahamas, or jump off a cliff there's a new member of the GoPro camera family to consider: the Hero+ LCD. If you're familiar with the company's naming conventions, you've probably figured out that this is a revision of the bare bones Hero that was introduced last fall (and that yes, it has an LCD). The new camera has a few significant revisions over the original Hero though, including a decent bump in the price.
GoPro is working on a spherical camera rig for VR, and a drone
In case you were wondering what the next move is for GoPro as it keeps its action cameras one step ahead of cellphones and DSLRs, we have answers: virtual reality and drones. CEO Nick Woodman announced both projects tonight during an interview at the Code Conference. GoPro showed off a spherical camera rig after it acquired Kolor last month, a company that specializes in stiching together the resulting footage so it can be experience in VR. The Six-camera Spherical Array should arrive later this year, and a GoPro-branded quadcopter is planned for next year. There's fewer details available about that, but rumors late last year pointed to a model priced between $500 and $1,000.
TomTom put its navigation know-how to work in an action cam
TomTom, a company best known for its GPS gadgets and a line of watches for runners and athletes, is diving deeper into action sports. Meet the Bandit camera: a GPS action cam that'll beam footage to a connected smartphone. If you're in a hurry, and don't want to futz with proper edits on a computer, TomTom's app will pull videos from the camera so you can share them quickly -- all you have to do is give your phone a shake. The company claims that its device is the first of its kind to pack a built-in media server, capable of processing files before sending them to your phone. That's where the phone shaking comes in: doing so will alert the camera/app duo to automatically compile a video for you. In addition to that bit of heavy lifting, the Bandit's on-board motion and GPS automatically tag highlights based on speed, altitude, acceleration, G-force and heart rate -- the last of which is likely tracked with one of TomTom's fitness watches. Don't worry, you can manually pick those spots, too.
Xiaomi's affordable Yi action camera versus the GoPro Hero
The first thing my Spanish mother-in-law asked me when she saw the Xiaomi Yi was, "Is that a toy camera?" With its lime-and-aqua-marine color scheme, it's not hard to see why she might think that. But no, it is not. In fact, Xiaomi's Yi camera raised a few eyebrows when it was announced recently. Here was yet another action camera that looked suspiciously like a GoPro -- but, at the equivalent of about $65, it was almost half the price of the market-leader's cheapest offering (the $130 Hero edition), with a spec-sheet that bested it on many key features. Importantly (perhaps more so for GoPro), the Yi camera has the backing of Xiaomi, a brand that's gaining traction in China. A market everyone wants a slice of. But does it really best a GoPro?
GoPro acquired a virtual reality company
GoPro is expanding its horizons... in a very literal sense. The action camera maker has just acquired Kolor, a French outfit that specializes in videos for virtual reality and 360-degree viewers. It doesn't take much divination to figure out what GoPro wants to do with its new team, as you might imagine. The company hopes to develop new ways for "capturing, creating and sharing" spherical media -- it may not take as much effort to cobble together a 360-degree GoPro clip as it does today. As an example of what's possible, GoPro has posted an interactive video (below) showing how multiple cameras can immerse you in sports footage.
GoPro transmitter puts action cameras on live TV
Your favorite extreme sports events are about to get a little more interesting... or at least, the camera angles will. As promised, GoPro has launched the HEROCast, a wireless transmitter that sends footage from the company's action cameras to broadcast TV. The relatively tiny add-on hooks on to existing mounts and delivers a 1080p, 60 frames per second live feed with a minimum of lag and bulk -- that death-defying jump will hopefully come across without a hitch. You probably won't be buying one yourself when it costs $7,500 before you factor in the necessary Hero3+ Black or Hero4 camera, but it's nice to know that you don't have to settle for distant, uninvolved shots in the future.
Garmin's latest action cameras track more of your performance
How is Garmin going to convince you to buy one of its ViRB action cameras instead of a GoPro? By making them work anywhere and talk to anything, apparently. The company's new ViRB X and ViRB XE cams have a brand new design that lets them work underwater without a case, more choices for mounts and easier controls. They're also chock-full of sensors and connections that track your activities with more detail -- they combine the built-in accelerometer, GPS and gyroscope with compatible wireless gear (such as Garmin's heart rate monitor and Fenix sports watches) to gauge your performance. You can even overlay this data when you're working with footage in Garmin's mobile app, so it's easier to brag about your adventures when you post them online.
Patent reveals GoPro's working on a 'square profile' camera design
GoPro doesn't make square, cube-like cameras, but if it did, the picture (after the break) is probably what they'd look like. The image comes from a patent granted to GoPro today. The protection covers a "Camera housing for a square-profile camera," rather than a camera itself (makers of square cameras, your time to check is now). Sifting through the claims, the patent mentions how the square housing would allow a camera to be mounted in numerous orientations (thanks, geometry!) regardless of how you mount it. There are identical openings on three of the sides also, to provide access to ports (like you can with the current "Frame" mount) in any orientation.
GoPro deal brings action cameras to live TV
Action cameras like the GoPro Hero line are great for immersing you in sports and other thrilling events, but there's a catch -- TV broadcasters can't easily use them live, which means you're either left watching a not-so-reliable internet stream or waiting for video released after the fact. Thankfully, you won't have to deal with these compromises quite so often this year. GoPro is teaming up with Vislink to craft a wearable wireless transmitter that athletes and others can wear to show their adventures on live TV. You won't get more details until the spring, but you'll see it in action at the Winter X Games in Aspen, some AMA Monster Energy Supercross races and other thrill-a-minute sports events in the near future. One thing's already certain: you won't always have to settle for old-school broadcast camera footage for much longer. [Image credit: Mark, Fang & Ming Bourne, Flickr]
GoPro is reportedly making camera-equipped drones
It's not enough to simply strap an action camera on your helmet these days; now that you can mount a camera on a drone or get one built-in, aerial sports footage is the way to go. And GoPro knows it, apparently. The Wall Street Journal hears that GoPro is creating its own line of camera-equipped multirotor drones. Details are scarce at this early stage, but the range is meant to cost between $500 to $1,000 and should ship by the end of 2015. The company isn't confirming the rumor, although it's not too worried about being late to the party -- as a spokesman tells the Journal, plenty of people are already capturing footage with GoPro cams strapped to unmanned aircraft. With that said, it's likely eager to have its own airborne robotic camera before DJI, Parrot and other drone makers become too powerful.
Drift's latest action camera is half the size of its ancestor
Drift Innovation is a seasoned veteran of the action camera world, but there's no question that it's facing a lot of pressure lately; models like the Ghost S are huge next to rivals like the GoPro Hero4. The company's newly launched Stealth 2 camera might just come to the rescue, though. While it captures 1080p video at 30 frames per second instead of 60 like its Ghost S predecessor, it's also just half the size and 40 percent lighter -- rather important when you may be strapping this device to your head. However you use it, the new Stealth should last for a respectable three hours of recording. It also comes with modern conveniences like WiFi remote control and a 300-degree rotatable lens that adapts to difficult shooting positions. This shooter doesn't tout 4K video or other luxuries, but you're also paying $249. That's a solid bargain for a tiny adventure cam that makes relatively few compromises.
Kodak's new action cam offers 360-degree views of your stunts
Kodak has already thrown its hat into the action cam fray, but its new gadget offers a much wider view of the goings-on. The company's PIXPRO SP360 effort captures footage with 360-degree views in full HD (1080p), which it says is capable of creating "fully immersive images" without having to employ a fleet of cameras. With a dome-shaped fixed lens up top, the diminutive device records the aforementioned video at 30 fps with a 16-megapixel MO sensor, while offering Front (212 degrees), Split (180-degree front and rear views at the same time), Dome (214 degrees) and Sphere (360 degrees) modes for alternative vantage points.
