GoPro has been making cameras for a few years now, and they seem to have gotten it down with the HD Hero2. With a versatile shape and sharper glass than last years popular HD Hero, this camera packs a lot of features into a tiny package.
The low light recording on this camera is fantastic to say the least. I’ve found that if you’re within 25 meters of a street light you can get adequate lighting to make out what’s going on, faces are a little hard to recognize but you can make due.
The photo feature of this camera is definitely a handy addition, giving you the capability of shooting 11, 8, or 5 megapixel shots, in a variety of field of views. Having this camera on you all the time is a little bulky compared to some of the smaller point and shoots on the market, but it almost gives you a ‘lomo’ experience when shooting. You can’t see the photos until you’re at home on the computer, which adds to the fun of shooting with this small camera. The timelapse mode is great for capturing the long road trips to and from the ski hill. Using VirtualDUB I was able to quickly put together some timelapse video of road trips, which makes for great filler footage when making edits.
Another thing they’ve added to the Hero2 is the ability to chose your field of view in certain video modes. This can give you a more realistic angle in some situations, and adds another level of versatility to the camera: almost allowing you to use it as a standard camera.
1080p – Narrow:90 , Medium:127 , wide:170
720p – Narrow:90 , Medium:127 , wide:170
Along with the updated sensor in the Hero2, comes updated framerates. New ones include 48fps in 960p, and 120fps in WVGA! We’re definitely going to see some really cool shots with that 120fps, I can say first hand it’s really fun to mess around with.
With a new user interface, you no longer have to remember what 3 digit code means what. It’s really straight forward to use, still with the same two buttons as the Hero, switching through menus is a breeze. An addition of a home button would be really nice though, once you miss the ‘EXIT’ menu in settings, the seven clicks to get back around is a little annoying.
LED lights now cover 4 out of six sides, which makes it really easy to tell when it’s recording, and rids you of the typical GoPro face shot. With options in the menus to use only 2 or all 4 of these LED’s you can save some battery as well.
Other new additions to the Hero2 include a Mini HDMI port, fantastic for sharing video while away from the computer, or putting it on a big screen. A 3.5mm microphone input has been added as well, which is a great addition as the pinhole mic has something to be desired. One thing I have noticed is to be able to use the mic input you need to acquire one of their Skeleton cases, or drill a hole in the side and use a grommet to keep it watertight.
The battery life on the 2 has something to be desired, it’s the same as the 1: 2.5 hours. I’d recommend buying the extra battery backpack, because you can then charge your second battery separately, and not have to swap batteries half way through.
Other backpacks to look out for would be the WiFi backpack coming out soon, which enables you to remotely control up to 50 GoPros, and also view what you’re seeing on a separate screen, such as an iPhone.
All in all it’s a fun camera that makes shooting really easy. The quality of the footage you get out of it is fantastic, with a better contrast between light and dark, and colors that are a little better represented than the Hero 1. I’d highly recommend the Hero 2 to anybody looking for a simple way to get an interesting angle on whatever it is you’re doing.