GoPro Hero9 Black Camera

GoPro: “Be a HERO.” Catchy isn’t it? GoPro, a camera that attaches to your body and sports equipment, has advertisements that are mesmerizing, even for those outside of the action-sports world. In the ads, the camera and the editing place you in the athlete's shoes. Viewers get to see the sport in the first person. This is powerful. Their advertisements work. When I was young, I saw GoPros on the heads, limbs, and equipment of my favorite athletes: mountain bikers like Brandon Semenuk, Sam Pilgrim, and Emil Johanson; surfers like John Florence, Noa Deane, and Mick Fanning; and Skiers like JP Auclair, Seth Morrison, and Tanner Hall. These athletes have risen to the top of their respective sports, truly masters of their chosen art. GoPro recognized their influence ... MoreGoPro: “Be a HERO.” Catchy isn’t it? GoPro, a camera that attaches to your body and sports equipment, has advertisements that are mesmerizing, even for those outside of the action-sports world. In the ads, the camera and the editing place you in the athlete's shoes. Viewers get to see the sport in the first person. This is powerful. Their advertisements work. When I was young, I saw GoPros on the heads, limbs, and equipment of my favorite athletes: mountain bikers like Brandon Semenuk, Sam Pilgrim, and Emil Johanson; surfers like John Florence, Noa Deane, and Mick Fanning; and Skiers like JP Auclair, Seth Morrison, and Tanner Hall. These athletes have risen to the top of their respective sports, truly masters of their chosen art. GoPro recognized their influence and the control these athletes could have over the market. The company decided to use lifestyle branding to connect these action cameras to the abilities that suchathletes have. I was enthralled and convinced that my videos would turn out like theirs.Twelve-year-old Nick saved up for a month by doing odd jobs. Then he went out and bought a used GoPro Hero 4 black. After my first mountain bike ride, I ran inside to watch the footage I had just recorded, and it was grainy, shaky, and frankly nauseating to watch for any length of time. I was disappointed, to say the least. I ran to the Internet to see what I had done wrong. I watched videos on what frame rate and shutter speed to use, and I spent yet more money on a bundle of attachments to mount the camera in different locations. After playing with the settings and moving the camera around, I was still disappointed. This is because the marketing worked. No matter what setting I used or where I placed the camera, it wouldn’t look like the advertisements. This is because I wasn’t as skilled as the athletes I watched growing up, but also because GoPro ads are shot using thousands of dollars in peripheral equipment, gimbals, lenses, and drones. Most importantly they are edited professionally, so the colors pop, the video is stable, and the location looks even more appealing. This means that the videos shown in their ads are unachievable because of user skill. This is even more so because of the camera’s real abilities. The consumer-level products just aren’t that great. I have since purchased newer GoPros in hopes that they have improved. They have, but only marginally with slightly better stabilization and picture. So I stand by my position that the look of those ads is unachievable for a day-to-day consumer, like me.

Camera is great, very difficult and expensive to be able to actually use the footage. Look before you leap.

The GoPro 9 is a very good camera, I have taken some nice footage so far. I would give the camera itself 5 stars, what is my issue is trying to find a way of editing the footage that doesn't entail signing up and paying for the privilege. Especially since you can't even try the prospective packages to see if they work or are easy to use or not. All of the 'free' software packages are only free trials... then you have to sign up and pay, pay pay! I would have thought, buying a camera, you would be able to at least use the footage, simple cutting and trimming, without having to pay a yearly subscription. Had I known, I wouldn't have made the purchase. Phones are so much easier to use and use the footage. So, my view is that the camera is awesome, but using the ... MoreThe GoPro 9 is a very good camera, I have taken some nice footage so far. I would give the camera itself 5 stars, what is my issue is trying to find a way of editing the footage that doesn't entail signing up and paying for the privilege. Especially since you can't even try the prospective packages to see if they work or are easy to use or not. All of the 'free' software packages are only free trials... then you have to sign up and pay, pay pay! I would have thought, buying a camera, you would be able to at least use the footage, simple cutting and trimming, without having to pay a yearly subscription. Had I known, I wouldn't have made the purchase. Phones are so much easier to use and use the footage. So, my view is that the camera is awesome, but using the resulting footage, if you are not experienced with post production and the costs of being able to do it, is a terrible experience without any sort of guidance and everywhere you look to be able to achieve results are just ad after ad for subscribing and paying. Very disappointing. Even the GoPro app isn't supported on PC any more? I just want a simple means of cutting out the unnecessary bits of the footage, or joining desired scenes together... nothing fancy. Unless you are a teenager or very cluey on technology (or willingto learn), and not worried about handing out money hand over fist to purchase subscriptions to different editing suites until you find one you can use, I would steer clear of these cameras. Research the post production costs before you buy, otherwise, you will likely be left disappointed like myself. Unless I can work out how to edit and use the footage, I fear the camera, as great as it is, will be just a technologically advanced... paperweight.

Failed Attempt

Really wanna love this Hero 9’s, but I feel so duped buying it to replace my 8’s and honestly feel like GoPro as a company is going to lose my business in the future to other action camera options.The LCD screen on the front is really the only big change and it is embarrassing. The quality of the image on the front screen is from 1990 it is awful the pixels and colors and honestly it just looks awful and serves zero purpose.Then while they pitch it as more battery life and sensor resolution I don’t see it in the video comparisons enough to warrant replacing my 8’s and honestly if I was not already set to shoot on a project requiring these I would have returned then.I get it though, like Apple and the iPhone they need to continue to market and sell products ... MoreReally wanna love this Hero 9’s, but I feel so duped buying it to replace my 8’s and honestly feel like GoPro as a company is going to lose my business in the future to other action camera options.The LCD screen on the front is really the only big change and it is embarrassing. The quality of the image on the front screen is from 1990 it is awful the pixels and colors and honestly it just looks awful and serves zero purpose.Then while they pitch it as more battery life and sensor resolution I don’t see it in the video comparisons enough to warrant replacing my 8’s and honestly if I was not already set to shoot on a project requiring these I would have returned then.I get it though, like Apple and the iPhone they need to continue to market and sell products over and over to people so they can rebuy the same tool for the sake of consumerism or the fake new features we all think we want until we become very disappointed once we use them. I would expect at least making worthwhile or better camera each time, or better yet bring back an HDMI option. It confuses me how they have that option on the 7, but not the 8 or 9? Is it a license thing or just poor product development which when I see the front LCD I think it a more realistic excuseI also use to like their software but it is really not getting better but worse and a ploy to get people to pay for another service. Last design gripe is the fact that the metal door on the side has changed from 8 to 9 but it’s only wider so no ability to flip it with the custom cut out to power then and no ability to had an upgrade on it as a better door it is just depressing.Have an 8, don’t need to buy the 9 and honestly just wait for the 10 in Q4 which I am sure will surpass the quality and features of this one.

Great 5k camera,requires patience

Havent used any of the "mods" yet.Have put a lot of use into this durable little camera,mostly suberging it in water,clean pool or murky river water. And water is probably the only thing keeping it from catching on fire.It heats up like a handwarmer. Battery charges very slow,unless you use a 45 watt or higher c type charger,its charges very fast,from 0 to 100% in about 20 minutes.As far as video quality it is great,but what camera can you find for $400 that has 5k video.The video is incredible,if there is enough light.If it is dim or dark,forget it,its like recording with a potato.The auto shutter and iso setting is not the best adaptable for night,or day sometimes.The time lapse for sky views is amazing,they are decent,but at night in the city even if it seems ... MoreHavent used any of the "mods" yet.Have put a lot of use into this durable little camera,mostly suberging it in water,clean pool or murky river water. And water is probably the only thing keeping it from catching on fire.It heats up like a handwarmer. Battery charges very slow,unless you use a 45 watt or higher c type charger,its charges very fast,from 0 to 100% in about 20 minutes.As far as video quality it is great,but what camera can you find for $400 that has 5k video.The video is incredible,if there is enough light.If it is dim or dark,forget it,its like recording with a potato.The auto shutter and iso setting is not the best adaptable for night,or day sometimes.The time lapse for sky views is amazing,they are decent,but at night in the city even if it seems dark,its not dark enough,can get some stars and clear view of the trees nearby,still is amazing nights shots with the time lapse,but oddly not great at all for normal night video.As far as the remote app features,it needs work.The app screen is not integrated with the sites,you just have to take the apps word that it IS streaming,and a LOT of patience,as the streaming options on the app are outdated and you have to work around and troubleshoot to even be able to stream,very broken and nothing on google pertaining on the issues but unresolved questions.It's just not consumer friendly,in addition to poor connenction if farther 3ft from phone,the streaming is far from reliable. I have tried using the gopro for twitch streaming but the connection is bad. I bought a galaxy s22 ultra for faster processing speeds to compensate for lag,but its doesnt matter,since it only uses wifi or the phones data plan "hotspot",it eats through data. I have Gigabit speed home internet with 2 asus ax3000 routers,but even so,the gopro barely recieves wifi signal.With the phones hotspot as wifi,unlimited data plan,it slightly impoves,but not much,as there is a signal bar screen for streaming with wifi or hotspot,it never goes past 4 bars,and it has a total of about 25 bars to show signal strength. For twitch it keeps bugging out on the "start stream" button with an almost inescable error,about not having the correct "game catergory",which is usally just the title of the game your playing or whatever title you want,there shouldnt be any restriction but if you dont use a video game title,letter for letter,it will keep giving the error,and when you do have a right working title,you have to use the same title on the actual Twitch app FIRST by starting a stream on the twitch app,while having open the GoPro app open,and praying it hasnt exited you from the "start stream" page ,starting the stream from your phone on the twitch app then switching over to the gopro app while streaming,to avoid the error that will eneavitable delay you another 20 minutes,as you have to enter the wifi password on the app,everytime.

Lots of features lots of fun!

The GoPro Hero 9I'm very much a novice photographer, but if you point a camera long enough, even a novice will get a great shot. The GoPro Hero 9, or just the Hero 9, is a fantastic piece of technology. With a 20 megapixel camera and the capability to record in 6k resolution, it is bleeding edge. I've read the reviews where it had a bit of a rocky start, but subsequent firmware updates have addressed most of the issues. In the past, when my wife and I planned a vacation, I would go to the local electronics store and get a new camcorder. My latest was a Handycam by Sony. It's antiquated by today's standard as my High eight and the several behind it to include a VHS recorder the price was getting restrictive. There are many new developing technologies, and Hero 9 has ... MoreThe GoPro Hero 9I'm very much a novice photographer, but if you point a camera long enough, even a novice will get a great shot. The GoPro Hero 9, or just the Hero 9, is a fantastic piece of technology. With a 20 megapixel camera and the capability to record in 6k resolution, it is bleeding edge. I've read the reviews where it had a bit of a rocky start, but subsequent firmware updates have addressed most of the issues. In the past, when my wife and I planned a vacation, I would go to the local electronics store and get a new camcorder. My latest was a Handycam by Sony. It's antiquated by today's standard as my High eight and the several behind it to include a VHS recorder the price was getting restrictive. There are many new developing technologies, and Hero 9 has taken advantage of them.As a still shot camera, it is good, not great but good. It has a 20-megapixel camera that can do many things. At the time of this article, the latest version of the iPhone is 12 megapixels, but Samsung has the S20 and S21, sporting 108 megapixels. I have a computer loaded with RGB LEDs, and the difference in the pictures between the two cameras is staggering. I know that this is likely my error, but many people who don't want just to read the manual will find this annoying. The Hero 9 has a front-facing monitor. My computer has a glass wall, and when filming it, the front camera is clearly visible, reflecting off the glass. In museum settings and other times when filming through glass, this is not good. I guess I will have to learn to turn it off.Another problem is that when filming inside under artificial light, less is more. I did a test video in the house, and it flickered so bad I thought the camera had malfunctioned. After several YouTube videos, I found out that filming with a high frame rate and top-level hertz was the problem. The flickering was eliminated by going from 60 frames per second or FPS to 30 FPS and reducing from 60HZ to 50 HZ. Higher frame rates are more for outside filming and making slow-motion videos.I'm still learning, but in about 20 minutes of use, including about 10 minutes of filming, it pulled 55% of the battery. I was filming in 1K resolution, and the first set at 60HZ at 60FPS with GPS enabled along with both the front and rear monitors running. I suppose I will have to disable a few options. When I purchased the GoPro, I also bought two battery chargers and two additional batteries as the chargers come with one battery—giving me a total of 5 batteries. I also purchased a four-slot USB extender which allows me to charge all five batteries at once, leaving another slot to charge the battery pack to recharge batteries on the go.The batteries take a very long time to recharge fully. Several hours are required to take one from 0 to 100. Make sure you have a giant SD card in your phone, as the app will transfer the data from the camera to your phone when you log in. I recommend you bring a laptop on your vacation to store your priceless treasures and memories. Don't edit until you get home or your wife will become vexed with you. (Not from personal experience, just heard from friends)The camera is small, in fact tiny; Maxwell Smart would love to have one of these. If someone knows the number to his shoe, give him a call soon. It will easily fit into your pocket, and with the stabilization feature, even someone suffering from tremors can use this camera to get good shots and videos. You can slowly turn the camera upside down, and the viewer won't even know it. You can, of course, disable this feature and show the world upside down. The Hero 9 is a fun camera and paired with a few accessories and some good editing software, you have a winner, but it will take some getting used to. Yes, I recommend this device, but it will require several hours of YouTube videos if you aren't tech-savvy.

Pretty good action camera for my motorcycle

Ive had this for about 2-3 weeks now I believe, &have used it each time I have gone for ride on my motorcycle. The video quality is wicked good for the price, the app is user friendly for me&I can navigate it no problem. Being able to sync the camera to my phone to get a preview of what the lens will pick up while I adjust the placement is a great feature. Being able to edit videos on the app is pretty good as well, but you obviously have much better results&control using a PC or laptop, but the app will make a short edit on its own if you let it, then you can add or take away from there. It has a decent amount of music available that is unlicensed so you dont have to worry about any copyright strikes if you use it for social media. I highly recommend also getting ... MoreIve had this for about 2-3 weeks now I believe, &have used it each time I have gone for ride on my motorcycle. The video quality is wicked good for the price, the app is user friendly for me&I can navigate it no problem. Being able to sync the camera to my phone to get a preview of what the lens will pick up while I adjust the placement is a great feature. Being able to edit videos on the app is pretty good as well, but you obviously have much better results&control using a PC or laptop, but the app will make a short edit on its own if you let it, then you can add or take away from there. It has a decent amount of music available that is unlicensed so you dont have to worry about any copyright strikes if you use it for social media. I highly recommend also getting the gopro subscription, which will give you unlimited cloud storage, no questions asked replacement/repair of your GoPro should anything happen to it; only thing is you must send one to them to receive the replacement, &I believe it is limited to 2 per year(from the date you start your subscription). You will also receive discounts on the website. Overall, for 300 bucks, this is a good action camera be it your first one, or an additional one to expand your view points.

Randomly deleted videos, not waterproof.

The GoPro Hero 9 Black has been a real pain. The camera struggles very hard to update, I’ve had to restart updates many times when they havent gone all the way through wasting hours of my time. Downloading pictures and videos to my phone also takes hours and you cant leave the app not to mention the gopro’s screen will randomly go black if you dont touch it every so often(yes I turned the screen darking off in the settings it still does it) and then you have to start the download over. I’ve tried to setup the “auto upload” feature many times and have never had success. And recently the gopro just randomly deleted over half of the videos and pictures I took while diving. Considering I make money off the videos it was quite devastating. And “waterproof” is just a flat ... MoreThe GoPro Hero 9 Black has been a real pain. The camera struggles very hard to update, I’ve had to restart updates many times when they havent gone all the way through wasting hours of my time. Downloading pictures and videos to my phone also takes hours and you cant leave the app not to mention the gopro’s screen will randomly go black if you dont touch it every so often(yes I turned the screen darking off in the settings it still does it) and then you have to start the download over. I’ve tried to setup the “auto upload” feature many times and have never had success. And recently the gopro just randomly deleted over half of the videos and pictures I took while diving. Considering I make money off the videos it was quite devastating. And “waterproof” is just a flat out lie I had mine break in a couple feet of water and it took months and a horribly long process to get a replacement. If you plan to use it underwater at all you need a waterproof case. You also need to prepare to spend good money on extra batteries and chargers because it dies ridiculously fast. I’m not impressed when I’ve paid $500+ for this camera and accessories.

So far so good

First time GoPro user. Bought when it was on sale for $329.99 and am getting my money’s worth. Opted to not get the extra waterproof case because I wasn’t planning on doing any snorkeling beyond just a few feet under water. After a week of snorkeling, battery and memory card ports remain completely dry. Took on a family trip to Maui and everyone is sure glad I bought it! Underwater video is amazing. Takes great wide angle photos. I haven’t had time to try out all the features but the stabilization is great. Mainly recording in 4k and not having any issues. Averaging a couple hours of run time with off and on recording and photo taking.The only thing I’d like to point out is that I have to set the screen to lock when recording underwater, otherwise it thinks I’m ... MoreFirst time GoPro user. Bought when it was on sale for $329.99 and am getting my money’s worth. Opted to not get the extra waterproof case because I wasn’t planning on doing any snorkeling beyond just a few feet under water. After a week of snorkeling, battery and memory card ports remain completely dry. Took on a family trip to Maui and everyone is sure glad I bought it! Underwater video is amazing. Takes great wide angle photos. I haven’t had time to try out all the features but the stabilization is great. Mainly recording in 4k and not having any issues. Averaging a couple hours of run time with off and on recording and photo taking.The only thing I’d like to point out is that I have to set the screen to lock when recording underwater, otherwise it thinks I’m constantly tapping the screen leading to the settings changing over and over again.

Somewhat satisfied

I recently bought this camera for use during an upcoming trip where I’ll be scuba diving as it advertised everything that I wanted. The Hero9, extra batteries, the waterproof case, and the action flotation handle. Upon opening the package, I was disappointed to find that the action flotation handle was not provided, but rather a long metal telescoping handle. (That’s not what is advertised). You really need the floating handle for the underwater use. I had to go back online and buy the correct handle as a separate purchase. Also the instructions for opening the waterproof case do not exist. No instructions in the box or anywhere that I could find online. I found a picture of what appeared to be the same case online and it helped me figure it out. Not what I ... MoreI recently bought this camera for use during an upcoming trip where I’ll be scuba diving as it advertised everything that I wanted. The Hero9, extra batteries, the waterproof case, and the action flotation handle. Upon opening the package, I was disappointed to find that the action flotation handle was not provided, but rather a long metal telescoping handle. (That’s not what is advertised). You really need the floating handle for the underwater use. I had to go back online and buy the correct handle as a separate purchase. Also the instructions for opening the waterproof case do not exist. No instructions in the box or anywhere that I could find online. I found a picture of what appeared to be the same case online and it helped me figure it out. Not what I expected; however I have all that I need now after making another purchase and digging online. Good luck!

They should be The

It’s an amazing camera from a hardware pov. Features are solid. Even with the overdue July 2021 FW update the menus and touch screen are sluggish. It overheats recording for long periods. And GoPro is determined to nickel and dime everyone left and right. The Free GoPro app to download videos to your phone from the camera can’t do anything except cut the video length. Any other editing including just slowing it down or speeding it up is “advanced” and you won’t be able to save your video like that unless you pay a subscription to unlock the features of the app….which aren’t remotely worth paying for. You can’t use an external mic without paying more. You can’t use an external mic without losing water proof seal unless you lay even more yet again, because the wired ... MoreIt’s an amazing camera from a hardware pov. Features are solid. Even with the overdue July 2021 FW update the menus and touch screen are sluggish. It overheats recording for long periods. And GoPro is determined to nickel and dime everyone left and right. The Free GoPro app to download videos to your phone from the camera can’t do anything except cut the video length. Any other editing including just slowing it down or speeding it up is “advanced” and you won’t be able to save your video like that unless you pay a subscription to unlock the features of the app….which aren’t remotely worth paying for. You can’t use an external mic without paying more. You can’t use an external mic without losing water proof seal unless you lay even more yet again, because the wired mic adapter required the battery tray to be open. There is Not even a QR code or even a URL in the user manual or quick start guide that tells you the name of the App needed to set up your camera. It just says “Download GoPro App”. Guess what. There is no “GoPro App”. The official app is called “Quik”. You won’t find that anywhere unless you search Google to find the name of the app. There’s tons of apps with GoPro in the name, but none of them are the official GoPro app and none are made by them. Desktop software: same problem, the Quik app for desktop is useless for editing unless you pay a subscription at which point it’s features are crazy inadequate. You have to pay for a Seperate piece of software to truly unlock the maximum GoPro image stabilization. It’s called ReelSteady and comes in two forms, a standalone PC version Called ReelSteady Go, for $99 or a ReelSteady Adobe AfterEffects Plugin that costs $400. That’s not a typo. It’s insanity. They should own this market forever, but as it stands nobody will have any brand loyalty as they haven’t earned it, so I’m looking forward to the next DJI Osmo Action, as right now the 3 year old Osmo Action competes or beats the Hero 9 in most every way.