Has GoPro been spooked by the Insta360 X4 release?
The GoPro Max 2 was due to be released in the 3rd Quarter of this year. This would have put it around the September timeframe along with the GoPro Hero 13. However, at the most recent investor relations call, Nick Woodman confirmed that the GoPro Max 2 had been delayed until the 4th Quarter of the year due to ongoing being “Behind schedule”. Now it’s interesting that nothing was mentioned about being behind schedule until a few weeks after the Insta360 X4 release. So, what are the possible reasons for the delay and how will this affect the final model? Have GoPro been spooked by the Insta 360 X4 release and its capabilities? Let’s take a closer look at and find out!
The GoPro Max 2 (rumors and speculation)
A while back, a quickly removed interview published online seemed to indicate that GoPro were basing the Max 2 upon the same sensor and processor combination of the Hero 11. Now please note, this was possible prototype information and in no way would resemble the final unit. However, had this report been accurate, I would have expected the following from the GoPro Max 2:
HDR video option.
GPlog video option.
No GPS.
Possibly a top frame rate of 60FPS in certain video options (not HDR or GPLog).
Variable Bit rate recording.
Bluetooth audio support.
Timecode support.
Renamable presets.
So basically, I would expect the GoPro Max 2 to have a lot in common with the GoPro Hero 12, but you’ll notice that there’s one thing I’m not mentioning here, and that is “Resolution”. Why? Well that’s a loaded question!
There’s no doubt that GoPro are the #1 world leader in action camera’s and that actually limits what GoPro’s can do. If that doesn’t seem to make sense, bear with me as I explain.
While people may be spending between $350 to $500 on an action camera, the same cannot be said with the mobile device they are using to download and edit footage with. There are a LOT of users out there who are trying to edit their footage on outdated, older model phones, or just plain cheap budget low end phones in the $300 range. As a result, GoPro have to cater to their largest customers when it comes to what cameras and software can do. GoPro wouldn’t have much success as a company if they released a 16K resolution camera if 99% of their customers couldn’t edit the footage on their phones. So if they release a 5.3K camera that 85% of their customers can download and edit footage on their phone with (the other 15% use a laptop or pc) then that’s a far better balance of performance and price. With me so far?
This could mean that the GoPro Max 2 was looking at only a slight increase in resolution, possibly to 6K. This would take strain off of the end users mobile devices when editing, but also help keep the GP2 processor running cooler. This seems likely if we look at GoPro’s first 360 camera, The GoPro Fusion. When it was released (2017) it supported 5.2K resolution (boosted to 5.6K @24fps with the Beta Firmware). The GoPro Max didn’t have a huge boost in resolution and came with 5.6K @ 30FPS in 360 modes when it was released (2019). So even with 2 years development between the two models, resolution stayed the exact same and the Hero Max 2 actually lacked certain features of the Fusion (night lapse mode for instance).
So why did GoPro delay the Max 2 release date?
In my opinion, there are only 2 real reasons the GoPro Max 2 got delayed.
A: Most likely! Although GoPro has huge sales worldwide, the company itself is actually fairly small. They just don’t seem to have the resources that other competitors have. This could simply mean that development of the Max 2 has indeed fallen behind schedule. GoPro know they have to “WOW” customers with the Max 2 release date and include features that customers haven’t seen before but will definitely want. So, it’s just a simple matter of resources vs time.
B: Not likely but possible! GoPro were scared by the Insta360 X4 release. The Insta360 X4 is an 8K camera. I’m not sure anyone saw that coming. The issue with 360 cameras is that although they seem to capture in a much higher resolution, that higher resolution is in a 360-degree sphere. When you reframe that to a more normal POV, you end up with a 1080P image (or less) compared to the 5.3K of a normal POV action camera. This means your footage can look low resolution by comparison. So having an 8K 360 camera means that when you reframe, you’re looking at a possible 2.7K resolution image. If GoPro were planning on releasing the Max 2 with a 5.6K resolution (but higher frame rates and HDR video thrown in) then they are in trouble. There’s no way they would get away with releasing a much lower resolution camera then their competitors are a premium price. This would mean the camera would be DOA with people flocking to the competition.
Now if scenario B is what’s happened, then this is worrying. It’s far too late in the game for GoPro to start changing camera hardware and specs, this would put them back at square 1 in camera development. This would push the release date further into 2025. So the only solution GoPro would have this late in the game is on the firmware end of things. They would be throwing all their resources at trying to wrangle everything they can out of the camera through the firmware without touching the hardware. While it would be possible to get 8K out of the Max 2 this way, you’re talking about a possibly seriously hot camera when it’s running and cutting back on certain other features to compensate (HDR, GPlog, Higher Frame rates etc.).
Final Thoughts!
While the GoPro Max 2 being delayed will worry some, it may actually be a good thing! GoPro don’t want to rush a release to the market, they know they have to impress customers with this model and taking extra time to throw in a few extra features may well and truly help the camera find its market. In terms of sales, the delay may also help. If the GoPro Hero 13 gets released in September as planned, that still leaves the Christmas market open for an additional camera purchase. This would boost GoPro sales for the year and help with market share.
As of now, there are no confirmed leaks regarding the GoPro Max 2. Everything so far is pure speculation and I honestly wouldn’t expect any realistic leaks until the end of August (and at that point, it those leaks will only cover the Hero 13 and the GoPro Entry Level camera). It’s more likely that the GoPro Max 2 leaks will be around the November timeframe (to generate interest in sales in December).
Nick Woodman stated that the GoPro Max 2 would be “worth waiting for”. Time will tell, but personally, I’m looking forward to the release. GoPro have a long-term plan in place to capture the market, not just the camera market, but other markets too (with the acquisition of the Forecite Motorcycle Helmet company). With the Hero Max being released in 2019, GoPro have had nearly 5 years to put plans in place for its successor, this is going to be a huge release for GoPro and there’s no doubt in my mind, they are indeed going to release something special.
The above article is expressing my own views and opinions about the possibilities of GoPro’s strategy and possible hardware releases. This was based upon online research, GoPro’s previous release strategies and my own personal interpretation of this information. Information contained in the article should be taken as pure speculation and not as hard facts. I also want to thank you for taking the time to read this small print, I mean, it shows true dedication to reading every bit of information possible, although at this point this is no longer information and just pure absurdity. No part of this article was AI generated, so all spelling, punctuation mistakes are completely my own. I don’t know about you, but I for one, welcome our AI overlords, hopefully the first thing they do is get rid of “reality television”. Yes, this is what you get subjected to when you read the small print on a page.
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