GoPro Hero HD

Head cameras come in all shapes and sizes nowadays but back when I was filming a lot, the bullet cam attached via battery and av cables to your ‘AV in” enabled camcorder was dirigour for the film maker then. How things have changed!

A few years back a little camera was introduced which seemed to me at the time a little gimmicky. Then mounted via a wrist strap…I couldn’t see the use for downhiller’s or riders as the movement would have been excessive and well, look a bit crap mounted on your wrist…and to be frank I did completely dismiss it as one for the base jumpers.

How wrong was I?

The first few generations of the Hero camera became the small camera of choice for anyone who wanted to mount a camera in a place where either the sun didn’t shine too much or that the man in the street wouldn’t even consider. Front bumpers of cars, suspension components on rally cars, head cameras (that was a given), bar mounts…in fact just about anywhere and GoPro helped us all out by providing more mounts than a Dog kennel during any time with numerous bitches in season!

When I heard about the introduction of the new Hero HD last year I was definitely up for having one or two within descent-world’s arsenal of cameras. I mean being able to shot HD and ride at the same time, was that even possible?

Out of the box the Hero HD is encased in it’s familiar water proof housing…they surf with these things so there was no point in dunking it to test it as I don’t plan on submerging it any time soon…although I have crashed into a river, once. It’s water proof up to 60m, so at a guess I should be okay.

First off the camera can shoot SD (Standard Definition) 848×480…which is perfect if your just wanting some footage which is quick and easy to edit, share and of course watch but it shoots at 60fps (that’s 60 frames per second as compared with 25fps which most normal PAL cameras shoot at), this frame rate is perfect for slomo’s.

HD is shoot at 720p, 960p and 1080p and is available at 30fps which should be plenty for most of us…60fps is great if you want super smooth slomo’s and is available in HD at only 720p. Therefore the best setting I’ve found to be the 720p HD at 60fps…but editing/exporting creates big demands on your system…and all from a camera smaller than most folks phones!

I don’t want to keep boring you all with the techy details, if you’re into video you’ll know what I’m on about, plus you’ll need to be pretty savvy when it comes to getting the best results out of the full HD at 60fps. It admittedly took me a while but I got there in the end.

So how did we test it?

We rode, simply really…having opted for the Hero HD in Naked form, we had to get sorted with a few mounts.

First up was the Chesty mount…fits like a bra I’m told with a neat chest plate which holds the Hero HD in what seems to be the perfect spot. The view when riding is perfect with it pushed back, flush to the chest.

Then the next mount was of course the “Ride” bar and seat post mount….with a few different places to mount it, I thought I’d go for the reverse bar look, pointing back at my good looks for some PIP action, not my preferred view but definitely a good test for the exposure quality of the unit. With it pointing skyway up at the trees and the bright sky…I think it handled the tricky bright light with no problems.

Next mission was to find somewhere to ride…not a problem down here and I choose Nant Yr Arian to be the venue because it’s pretty close and you can do a few loops of the red pretty quickly which has some mellow single-track to entertain and test the cameras abilities in the trees.

Check the results below…

Please excuse the splodge of mud but that’s what happens…you’ll have to get used to it when filming in the mud. All in all I think it looks excellent, the footage above was straight from the camera only edited in Premiere and exported to MPEG4 before uploading to You Tube…which takes an age before it’s available to view in HD.

Lessons learnt?

Well, mounting the chesty is easy, but test it before you leave the house…I found the camera right back flush with the back plate to be perfect but I’m a shorty so you might have to experiment with the angle you set it up with.

Remember if you’re riding with a back pack to tidy up any lose straps on the front, otherwise it’ll spoil your footage…I learnt that to my peril.

The “Ride” bar mount was also excellent, it hardly moved…I did have a small piece of rubber underneath it from the exposure lights which seemed to hold it steady with zero slippage. Again test this before you leave the house as you know the Hero has no viewing screen to check once you’re out on the bike and I doubt very much you ride with a laptop in your back pack!!

So who needs one of these in HD?

Well I know I do…if you’re one of those riders who has trouble visualising a downhill track even after a days practice…wear one of these and record each run…then replay over and over before the race…I guarantee you that you will spot lines on the HD version better than the SD Hero 5. The trail is that clear.

For the budding or even experienced film maker it sets up a whole load of possibilities…from on bike shots to putting a camera somewhere where you would never stand hand-holding a camcorder…the possibilities are endless.

With expansion packs available soon, expect the Hero HD to get even better!!

Price wise, the Naked Hero HD is around £265. The “Chesty” and “Ride” bar mounts are of course extra but well worth the money. Hero have a few packages available as well with various mounts and there might well be one for you.

Our camera was sourced from Actioncameras.co.uk.

Tech Specs:

Camera Optics

* Lens Type: Fixed Focus (2ft/.6m – ), glass
* Aperture: f/2.8 (high performance in low-light situations)
* Angle of View: 170º ultra wide angle in WVGA, 720p, or 960p mode
* Angle of View: 127º wide angle in 1080p mode

Video

* HD Video Resolution Modes: (subject to change, pending final firmware release)

1080p = 1920×1080 pixels (16:9), 30 fps, 15 Mbit/s data rate
960p = 1280×960 pixels (4:3), 30 fps, 12 Mbit/s data rate
720p = 1280×720 pixels (16:9), 60 fps, 15 Mbit/s data rate
720p = 1280×720 pixels (16:9), 30 fps, 8 Mbit/s data rate
WVGA = 848×480 pixels (16:9), 60 fps, 8 Mbit/s data rate

* Sensor Type: 1/2.5″ HD CMOS, 2.2µm-sized pixels
* Light Sensitivity: Super low-light sensitivity (>1.4 V/lux-sec)
* Video Format: H.264 compression, saved as Windows- & Mac-compatible MPEG4 (.mp4) file
* Exposure Control: Auto with user selectable center weighted average and spot metering settings
* White Balance: Auto

Audio

* Microphone: Built-in, mono with AGC (automatic gain control)
* Audio Format: 48 kHz, AAC audio compression

Photo

* Resolution: 5 megapixel
* Capture Modes: Single shot, photo every 2, 5, 10, 30 or 60 secs.; 3 photo burst; self-timer

Storage

* Memory: SD card, up to 32GB capacity (SDHC)
* Average recording times (using 32GB SD card):

1080p (30 fps): 4h 21m
960p (30 fps): 5h 26m
720p (60 fps): 4h 21
720p (30 fps): 8h 09m
WVGA (60 fps): 8h 09m

Camera Connectors & Cables

* PC Connection: USB 2.0 (data connection and battery charging)
* HDTV Out: HD NTSC & PAL (component cable incl.)
* Audio Out: Combo 2.5mm jack with stereo audio and composite video out
* PC Compatibility: Windows® XP (Service Pack 2 or later) or Vista; Mac OS® X 10.4.11 and later

Power & Battery

* Battery Type: Rechargeable 1100 mAh lithium-ion
* Battery Life: Approx. 2.5 hrs
* Charging: via USB to computer or optional power adapter
* Charge Time: 80% capacity after 1 hour with optional power adapter; or 2 hours with a computer’s USB port

Waterproof Camera Housing

* Depth Rating: Up to 180 feet / 60 meters
* Construction: Polycarbonate and stainless steel
* Hardware: Stainless steel

Size & Weight

* Dimensions (H x W x D): 1.6″ x 2.4″ x 1.2″ (42mm x 60mm x 30mm)
* Weight: 3.3oz (94g) incl. battery, 5.9oz (167g) incl. housing

Optional Accessories

* Additional Rechargable 1100 mAh Lithium-Ion Battery (not yet available for pre-order)
* Full Line of Mounting Accessories
Optional Expansion Bakpacs™
An innovative expansion port on the back of the camera, the HERO Bus™ accepts optional Expansion Bakpacs to expand the functionality of HD HERO cameras:
* LCD Bakpac for on-camera preview and playback (not yet available for pre-order)
* Endurance Battery Bakpac for double battery life (not yet available for pre-order)
* More Bakpacs and expansion devices coming soon

About GoPro

GoPro is the world’s leading manufacturer of ultra-convenient wearable and gear mountable digital cameras. Its markets include outdoor sports and motor sports. Since 2004, GoPro has been designing cameras and accessories that make it easy for people to capture images and video during their favourite activities. Its products include the patented HERO line of shockproof/waterproof wearable cameras and gear-attachment devices.