If your idea of fun involves throwing yourself off a cliff or jumping off an airplane mid-flight or riding out class 5 rapids while holding on for dear life or even speeding down virgin hills on your mountain bike, you need a camera that will accompany you to the places your phone wouldn’t dare.
Heck, even if you are not the extreme sports-type, a good action camera finds itself equally as often thrown into holiday backpacks and wedding celebrations, thanks to the holy trifecta of insane video quality, legendary durability and the simplicity of a point-and-shoot.
Till a few years ago, choosing the right action camera used to be rather simple. You would pick up as new a GoPro as your budget would allow. That is still solid advice. But there is some healthy competition of late, some of which go further than the latest GoPro.
With the end of year upon us and vacations within sniffing distance, your best bets for an action camera are but a scroll away.
Most feature-packed: Insta360 Ace Pro 2 (Approximately ₹45,000)
Eye-watering specs, including 8K video and Leica lens? Check. Excellent battery life and low-light capabilities? Check. The Insta360 Ace Pro 2, a follow-up to the already excellent Ace Pro from earlier this year, does it all, with little to no caveats to consider. It delivers smooth, stabilized 8K footage at up to 30 frames per second (and 4K @ 60fps and 120fps), is as rugged as the rest, diving up to 12m down under water, and impresses in low-light conditions better than any other camera I have tested.
The real star is the 2.5-inch screen, which flips up to record yourself in action whenever needed, with no faffing around with a measly smaller second screen – manna from heaven if you are a solo traveler! It is yet to launch in India officially. But you can pick up the Ace Pro (₹44,999) and not lose out on much.
Most versatile: GoPro Hero 13 Black (₹44,990, mods extra)
The eponymous GoPro Hero series had been coasting for the past few years, adding in incremental upgrades to battery life and video resolution. Prima facie, the Hero 13 Black looks much like the Hero 12 Black before it, with hyper-stabilized 5.3K resolution video, 27-megapixel photos all in a rugged form factor that now mounts magnetically (finally!).
Where it does shake things up is with a new interchangeable lens system that takes inspiration from digital SLR-style cameras, opening your trusty GoPro to a wider audience. In addition to the standard lens, you can pick up an ultra-wide lens mod for that crazy 177-degree field of view, or a macro lens mod that, for the first time, allows you to shoot objects as close as 4.33-inches away – 4x closer than the standard Hero 13 lens. This is great for herpetologists, vloggers and food influencers alike!
If you know what a neutral density filter (this reduces the amount of light entering the lens) is and just how handy they can be for experimenting with tricky lighting conditions, you can pick up the set of four ND filters, and no matter which ‘mod’ you slap on, the camera auto-detects which lens is attached and changes settings on the fly.
The versatility does not come cheap – the mods vary between ₹6,990 and ₹12,990 – bumping up the cost of getting the headliner upgrade.
Best for capturing 360-degree views: Insta360 X4 (₹54,990)
“Shoot first, frame later”. A deceptively simple premise, which starts to make a lot of sense when you use a 360-degree camera. You set the camera to record, and the two fisheye style ultra-wide-angle cameras on opposite sides combine their footage to shoot 360-degree videos. All you need to do is pick what frame/perspective you want to keep when you export the video - you never miss a shot when everything is in the frame.
The Insta360 X4 is the king of the hill for 360-degree cameras, pushing out 8K 360-degree footage. When you switch to single-lens mode, it is rugged enough to use as a 4K action camera. Coupled with a helmet or a motorcycle mount, it's perfect for capturing long weekend rides when #wanderlust strikes.
But the X4’s biggest weapon is the exceptional app, which makes the camera a formidable shooting companion, one that is equally at home with families and vacation setups as it is with solo drives and extreme adventure. You could also consider the one-generation old Insta360 X3 for all that 360-degree goodness, albeit with slightly lower shooting specs.
Most extreme: DJI Osmo Action 5 Pro (₹36,990)
Is extreme adventure your jam? While all action cameras are built rugged, resisting not only water but sand and dust, the DJI Osmo Action 5 Pro is the most badass of the lot, literally going further and coming out unscathed.
Waterproof to 20m depths under water without a specialized waterproof case – that’s double that of the GoPro and Insta360 – and with a wider window of operating temperatures, the DJI is the best pick for shooting in extreme conditions. The 4K video it produces is no pushover either, with strong details and dynamic range and a category-leading SuperNight mode for low-light shooting. Strong battery life and compatibility with DJI wireless microphones boost its appeal with pros.
Most fun: Insta360 Go 3S (₹40,990)
Docked into the Go-Pro shaped Action Pod, the Insta360 Go 3S behaves like any other action camera, with 4K@30fps recording and up to 200fps slow-mo video at full HD 1080p resolution, plus the flip-up rear screen inspired by the Ace Pro.
It is not fully waterproof and that comes down to its modular design – pop the release button and the pill-shaped camera pops out, ready to be attached magnetically to car doors, motorcycle handles or just about any magnetic surface. The Go 3S is capable of instantly transforming any structure into a stabilized hands-free tripod, no accessories needed. Or you could clip it onto your diving suit and go all the way down to 10m without worries, while the Action Pod can stay at the surface for remote control and live preview.
There’s more. Clip it onto your hat or your shirt for POV-style videos or attach it via an optional mount onto a “fetch stick” to see the world from your pet’s “paw-spective”. Bottomline: if your needs aren’t that extreme, this is the most fun you will have with an action camera. I guarantee you’ll be searching for creative ways to use this thumb-sized camera.