GoPro Max 2 Archives

GoPro Hero Max 2 Leaked (Real or Fake?)

Posted on July 27, 2024July 27, 2024 by DemonView

Hey, folks. Been a while, but I’ve been busy. I’ve been researching the GoPro Hero Max 2. Now, for those of you who don’t know, there was an image leaked within the past few weeks of what the GoPro Hero Max 2 looks like. Only I think personally think it’s a fake. Some reviewers and BETA testers for GoPro are claiming it’s real. One of those such people is the one and only GETHYPOXIC

If you haven’t heard of GETHYPOXIC before. This is a website that basically specializes in GoPro Hero tear-downs, telling you exactly what hardware is inside and the changes from model to model. They think the leak is real. I say it’s fake. So in this article we’re going head-to-head with GETHYPOXIC and we’re going to look at the reasons I think the below image is fake.

Is this really what the GoPro Max 2 looks like?

The above picture is supposed to be the GoPro Hero Max 2. Now I have a few issues with that claim and I’m going to go through them and hopefully do a mediocre to good job at explaining why this image appears fake to me (that joke was funnier in my head). If GETHYPOXIC wants to do his own write up on why this image is real, I’ll let him do that on his website.

First off, I’m going to show you the original GoPro Hero Max and the GoPro Hero Fusion to show you what the design of GoPro’s 360 cameras are really like and why this image could be fake.

GoPro Hero Fusion, GoPro’s first 360 camera!

The GoPro Max, GoPro’s current 360 camera.

GoPro’s 360 cameras have a very specific design. As you can see the lenses on both the Fusion and the original Max have been offset. This is because of GoPro’s patented way that they stitch their footage together. I believe this offset was applied to try and lesson the appearance of chromatic aberrations that usually plague curved lenses which if true, would be a huge advantage that the GoPro has over the competition.

However, if we take a look at the leaked image of the GoPro Hero Max 2,it has a centered, camera lens. Now people say that will get rid of a nadir issue, but I have my doubts overall.

Why is the lens placement now ignoring past designs?

Then we have what appears to be fins covering the camera that one would assume is for heat dissipation. This doesn’t make much sense as GoPro cameras have always had a rubberized silicone type covering on them which allows for the camera to absorb impacts from dropping it or being subject to flying debris. So, what’s the problem? Well, they can’t possibly be heat dissipation fins because rubber is a heat insulator. Think about it. If you’re barbecuing or picking up hot dishes, usually those gloves that you have to protect you from burning yourself are made from silicone rubber (an insulator from heat). This means that these “Fins” would be completely useless at dissipating heat as the heat would not be conducted by the silicone rubber. So, there is zero point to them being there (unless the photo is a fake!)

Seriously, silicone gloves protect your hands by NOT transferring heat!

The next question we have to ask is what is that large rectangle under the lens? Well, you know, it’s not a screen because again, it’s covered by these fins. You wouldn’t be able to press anything on the screen if it’s covered by fins. So it can’t be a touch screen. What if it’s a large metal heat sink? Yes that could be a heat sink to dissipate the heat. Only again, they’ve covered it with soft silicone rubber fins. And how are you going to attach that to the bare metal there. I mean that’s just going to end up peeling off breaking. Again, it makes no logical sense as you’d be covering a heat-sink with something which doesn’t transfer heat.

Could you use a touch screen that was behind a fence?

Another clue is the GoPro logo on the camera. Whoever photo-shopped that on didn’t spend much time on it as it doesn’t deform with the surface of the camera. If that logo was really there, you’d expect it to be stamped and maybe raised and depressed with the contours of the camera, but instead it’s completely flat.

So, if this is a fake photo, what type of camera could this possibly be? Well, if you’ve looked at police body cameras, they do have a center lens mounted design and a large stop start button that the wearer can press to stop and start recording even while wearing thick protective leather gloves. Later cameras, the start/stop feature would be integrated into a sliding lens cover. This I feel, is an earlier model police body camera with some bad photo-shopping done to it.

Notice the similarities between this and the leaked GoPro Hero Max 2 picture.

The final nail in the coffin for this being a faked image is the source which was Quadro news. Now, if you don’t remember, Quadro News leaked a picture of the GoPro Hero 12 last year with a one inch sensor. What’s the problem with that? Well, obviously the GoPro Hero 12 did not have a one inch sensor.

The photograph itself was actually proven to be fake because it was actually lying on top of old promotional materials a previous GoPro release. A closer examination of the photo also revealed that “1” sensor” claim had been badly photo-shopped.

Here’s the thing, in my opinion, Quadro News is a DJI site employee or contracted writer. Quadro News only (and consistently) posts nothing but DJI news, DJI specs, video footage of leaked DJI, drones in flight and DJI cameras photos.

Last year when the GoPro Hero12 leak with the one inch sensor came out, I also think that was a bit of corporate sabotage by DJI. Tell everybody the Hero 12 is going to have a one inch sensor, put the fake picture out there and that way when the GoPro Hero 12 was released and it didn’t have a one inch sensor everybody was really disappointed and really angry with GoPro saying they weren’t going to buy the camera.

On top of this, if you look at how the leak regarding the GoPro Hero 12 came to be, basically Quadro News quoted another site that was “re-quoting” Quadro News saying something along the lines of “congratulations on this getting this leaked information out there”. The thing is, the “Quoted” post never existed in the first place. The account that was congratulating Quadro News was actually defunct and hadn’t posted anything since 2017 and suddenly it became active again and choose to make one post congratulating Quadro News? Fake Fake Fake!

Now this brings us back to……. GETHYPOXIC!

Now in my opinion GETHYPOXIC is simply one of the best sites out there. I really do like their GoPro teardowns and technical information. I suspect that they may themselves be a beta tester for GoPro (if not, they should be). If they are, they may want to throw people off the scent or whatever. So for GETHYPOXIC to say “I think this is real”, I think there’s more to the story that they aren’t sharing.

Now, I’m willing to put my money where my mouth is. I basically challenged GETHYPOXIC and told them that if this is a fake picture and I’m right, GETHYPOXIC has to display one of my DEMONVIEW LLC car magnets on the back of their car for an entire month. And if I’m wrong, GETHYPOXIC will send me one of their stickers and I’ll display it on my DemonView mobile for a month.

That bet was met with complete silence ………………….. until it wasn’t. Yes, GETHYPOXIC got back to me and said, “I will take that bet”. I look forward to winning this bet easily, I just wish I knew what type of car he was driving, I prefer my magnet to be on something classy ya know!

Folks, since I’m all about keeping things upbeat, no matter what, there will be a winner and it could be YOU! Head on over to my YouTube channel and check out the latest video, I’ll be doing a giveaway associated with this Hero Max 2 leak and I’ll be selecting 2 winners. There will be more details in the video, so make sure you check it out!

The GoPro Max 2! What can we expect?

Posted on December 4, 2023 by DemonView

By now it’s no secret that the GoPro Max 2 is coming. This was confirmed by Nick Woodman himself in the last investors relations call. When asked if the GoPro Max 2 was coming, he said that it was and that it would be “Worth the wait”. There may be actually quite the wait though as according to GoPro’s own product roadmap, the next camera coming will be an “Entry Level” camera mid 2024 with 3 cameras possibly coming Sept 2024. That would indicate the Hero 13, Max 2 and one other camera, possibly another Bones or Mini model.

So with no clear indication of when the Max 2 will arrive, what can we at least expect for the Max 2 to provide us in terms of specs and hardware? Well luckily that one is a little clearer thanks to some insider leaks, good hard detective work and just come plain common sense. So with that in mind, let’s look at some of the possible features of the GoPro Hero Max 2.

1: New Sensor and Processing Chip.

This is hardly surprising given the age of the original GoPro Max. However early indications have revealed that the GoPro Max 2 designers have been using the 5.3K Sony Sensor that’s currently offered in the GoPro Hero 12, as well as the GP2 chip also being used in the Hero 12. If true, that has a number of implications which I’ll cover shortly, but it’s also a little concerning in a way. The GP2 chip will be 4 generations old by the time the Hero 13 rolls out (being introduced with the release of the Hero 10). That’s not to say there isn’t a lot of power left under the hood, but when you expect a 4 generation old processor to the heavy lifting of stitching 2 separate images together into one seamless video, you worry about having to overclock the processor resulting in overheating issues or to keep things running cool, eliminating some features from the camera (such as the removal of GPS from the Hero 12).

2: The Removal of GPS.

Although GPS stats were a fun thing to play with, GoPro never had much support for GPS and Telemetry information in their app. Their app only had the barest of stickers available. If you wanted access to all of the GPS and Telemetry information you had to look at 3^rd party software such as the excellent GoPro Telemetry Extractor software. If that GP2 processor has to be overclocked or pushed to it’s limits to support a 360 camera, then just like the Hero 12, we can expect GPS support to be dropped. Then again, GoPro were never really able to solve the GPS issues associated with the Hero Max anyway, so dropping GPS support might be a huge headache and time saver for GoPro.

3: Even better stitching with less chromatic aberrations.

The GoPro Max featured the Sony IMX577 sensor which was a 12.3mp sensor. The Max 2 is rumored to be using the Sony IMX677L sensor which is actually much taller and is a 27.5mp sensor. In theory, this means that selfie stick removal and top stitching could be more effective with less curvature of the lenses given the fact that the IMX677L is a much taller sensor. This would mean less image stretching during the stitching process.

4: HDR Video

This one goes without saying. With the 360 competition already offering this on previous models (and the Hero 12 being the first GoPro to support this) the Max 2 will have to offer a HDR video option. However, this means that GP2 processor will be under some extreme pressure to perform perfectly. Given that HDR requires at least 2 exposures to be combined into one image, if you multiply that by 2 separate lenses, that’s 4 times the work the GoPro Hero 11… and that’s before stitching too. So it’s possible that GoPro may scale back some features when the camera is recording in HDR (such as no live preview for instance).

5: In camera effects (Star Trails, Light Painting, Vehicle Lights etc).

One of the greatest features introduced with the Hero 11 was the “in camera” night effects. The GoPro Hero 12 not only retained this cool little feature, it now allowed you to shoot some of these using the Max Lens Mod 2.0 for an even wider FOV when using these modes. One of the greatest features the GoPro Hero Max 2 could have is letting users film these scenes in glorious 360. The end result could be out of this world!

6: Bluetooth audio support.

In the past, external audio on GoPro’s 360 cameras simply wasn’t supported. This was likely due to the fact that plugging in external cables or microphone adapters would result in stitching errors within the 360 image. The simplest way to solve this issue is to give the GoPro Hero Max 2 the same Bluetooth Audio support that the Hero 12 currently has. This would allow users to record audio via the camera mics but have a separate audio track for Bluetooth headsets. An essential “must have” for Max 2 users as this would allow them to record from an external audio source without the need to run cables into the camera or have issues with image stitching.

7: No major increase in resolution or frame rates.

Now this may surprise some people, especially those who’ve read the usual rumor mill tripe where idiotic lazy writers just double the specs of the previous model GoPro. This never actually happens and there’s a very good reason for that. Most people are editing their GoPro on budget mobile phones. If GoPro were to present an 8K camera shooting at 120FPS encoded at a high bit rate in HEVC…. the complaints would be endless “I can’t edit footage on my phone…”. So GoPro will likely keep the resolution in the 5.7K to 6K range at most. Just enough to give the camera an edge on the competition but still allow people to edit footage on their $300 mobile phone.

So these are the most likely things we’ll see from the Hero Max 2 when it’s finally released. However, that doesn’t mean there isn’t one thing I’d personally love to see on my Max 2 wish list. That’s accessory support. When the original Max was released, accessories were few and far between. You could have some plastic lens protectors and a larger selfie stick…. and that was about it. The Max 2 is a chance for GoPro to make some intelligent design choices and sell some additional accessories for the camera.

With less curved, less protruding lenses, there’s a possibility to actually have ND filters for the Max 2, this would be a huge bonus for users who want truly cinematic looking 360 footage complete with pleasing motion blur.

Should GoPro redesign the Max 2 so that the power port was nearer the base, then the ability to use external power banks or even the Volta itself without visible stitching issues would be a huge bonus.

The GoPro USB-C passthru door (GoPro’s best ever invention in my opinion) or similar for the Max 2 would also be welcome. This would allow users to externally power their Max 2 for those 360 night lapse shots.

A GoPro mount with an LED light built in. It’s unlikely that you could add a media mod or cold shoe to the GoPro Max 2 without having those stitching issues, but if you had an thin LED light that could attach to a selfie stick with the GoPro Max 2 mounted on top of that light, that would turn your 360 camera into the ultimate vlogging camera. In fact, maybe this is a design that could solve the Max Media Mod issue. Rather than a case that surrounds the camera, have something much lower profile that the camera actually sits on. One that offers a light, front and rear microphones also. The Media Base! I’m guessing that’s too radical an idea though and we may have to wait for the GoPro Max 5 for something like that to be introduced.

In the meantime, GoPro have a lot of work to do to make the Max 2 competitive in this market. I for one though, am looking forward to seeing what GoPro comes up with.

GoPro Hero 12 Predictions

Posted on April 23, 2023April 23, 2023 by DemonView

We’ve reached that time of year again where I’m going to lay out my own personal predictions for the GoPro Hero 12 camera..). This is not simple “doubling” of the hardware specs from previous models like you see on some other site. These are my predictions based upon GoPro’s past release strategies and what I think we’re really likely to see from the GoPro Hero 12 as a result. So on with my predictions.

Could the Hero 12 maintain the same form factor as previous models? — Could the Hero 12 have the same form factor as previous models?

So what has been GoPro’s hardware release strategy entailed in the past?

Well, if you’ve paid attention to the differences between their hardware models, you’d know that GoPro have never tried to radically re-invent the wheel. Instead, they’ve always employed more of a “incremental” change strategy. One that maintains the technical hardware edge on their competition without having to radically increase their camera price point. So, this works out well for GoPro as they are playing the long game, and this works well for the consumer as you’re always paying a sub $500 price for the latest hardware offering. With that in mind, let’s talk camera resolution.

Will the GoPro 12 have 8K capability?

No, I seriously doubt it. If you look at consumer displays at the moment, 8K televisions don’t have a huge market hold. The expense is just something that a lot of people can afford, there isn’t that much content available in the 8K corner as of yet.

Is this the cheapest 8K television there is? — This is the cheapest 8K television I’ve found and it still costs nearly 5k!

You also have to realize that editing 8K is not something the average consumer has the horsepower to do. A lot of consumers have difficulty editing in 4K, let alone the current 5.3K that the top GoPro models offer (and combine that with the 10-bit color of the Hero 11, and things get even more interesting). Also keep in mind, the majority of GoPro owners aren’t just editing their clips on their mobile devices, they are using cheap budget mobile devices to do so. It still amazes me how many people have paid less for their phone than they’ve paid for their GoPro camera, and yet they still expect to edit 20-minute clips in 5.3K on their phone!

The Google Pixel 7, still a budget call phone. — The Google Pixel 7 is no slouch, but it’s still a mid range cell phone.

Also keep in mind, GoPro’s “incremental” strategy. So, GoPro aren’t going to jump from 5.3K to 8K in my opinion. I think it’s more likely that the next GoPro model will get a boost in resolution up to 5.7K or 6K maximum, not because it’s needed, but because the consumer expects it. Having said that, if GoPro maintain 5.3K max resolution for the 3rd generation in a row, then I’d expect a jump in frame rates as a result.

What Resolution and Frame Rates will the GoPro 12 likely support.

That’s a controversial question for sure. We’ve seen GoPro actually drop support for certain resolutions and frame ration combinations. (2.7K 30FPS anyone?) This is likely due to internal constraints on the camera architecture and the camera only being able to handle so many different shooting modes. It’s also a push by GoPro to make users start adopting more current shooting resolutions and frame rates instead of sticking to old, outdated frame rates. It could be likely that the next resolution on the chopping block is 1080P. After all, with more and more 4K televisions and monitors our there (and with cheaper price points these days), that we’ll say goodbye to 1080P shooting modes.

4K displays are just about everywhere these days due to the lowering costs.

Don’t get me wrong, we may still have 1080P, but only with certain frame rate options. So, we could be looking at 1080P 60FPS minimum. This is simply due to the amount of budget mobile devices out there and having to give such users the ability to edit some sort of GoPro footage. 2.7K will still be available, after all, this resolution is needed for the Max Lens Mod, and given that mods popularity, dropping support for it would be a mistake….. unless…. GoPro offer “The Max Lens Mod 2”.

Will there be new mods for the GoPro Hero 12?

We’d all love for there to be new mods for the Hero 12. Although the current mods work very well, there has been some slight issues with them. The Media Mod can be time consuming to disassemble when trying to access the camera’s SD card or battery. The Max Lens mod can only support 2.7K resolution (and no, this is not something that can be changed by a firmware update, this is a physical limitation caused by the optics of the device, the Max Lens mod can only focus it’s FOV on a 2.7K area of the sensor).

GoPro’s current line of camera mods. An update is needed at this point.

So it may be possible that there could be a Max Lens Mod 2 that has different optics that could focus it’s image on a 4k area of the sensor. However… this mod would not work on the Hero 11, Hero 10 or Hero 9 due to it’s physical sensor size. Also, GoPro may not want to deal with hundreds of incoming consumer complaints and item returns from users purchasing the Max Lens Mod 2 and expecting it to work with their older cameras. So, while we’re due an update to the Max Lens Mod……. It may not be on the cards right now.

The Media Mod 2. Something else we’d all love to see and I’ve already listed why. However, this also has the same problem as above. Any new features it introduces, likely wouldn’t work on previous GoPro models and this translates to the same consumer complaints and item returns. However, in my opinion, an updated design to the media mod is badly needed.

Now that I’ve said the above, I will have to backtrack on it if you consider one additional factor. The Max Lens Mod 2 and Media Mod 2 could stand a “possibility” of being made… but only if there’s a camera redesign….

Will the GoPro Hero 12 be redesigned?

It’s likely. If you look at GoPro’s previous design history, they’ve changed their camera design every 2 to 3 generations. Well, the Hero 12 is in the time frame for a camera redesign. Again, nothing radical, I’d expect the screen and button layouts to be the same, however changing a few aspects (dimensions, port locations, battery door compartments) could result in a camera with better thermal processing and heat dissipation.

IF the camera gets redesigned, then the probability of a Max Lens Mod 2 and Media Mod 2 would be on the table. That’s a big “if” though. You see when the GoPro Hero 12 is released, it might make more sense for GoPro to keep the current design. That way the current Max Lens Mod and Media Mod, camera cases and accessories will fit all 3 models sold on GoPro.com (The Hero 10, Hero 11 and Hero 12). This would help GoPro reduce inventory of these mods, inventory of batteries, inventory of cases (which is what you want to do before releasing a camera redesign). So financially, it may make more sense for GoPro to keep the current form factor and dimensions. However, I’d personally love to see a new camera design, but again, incremental changes, not radical changes seem to be the GoPro way.

What about a detachable rear screen that’s also a remote/wireless charging/Max 2?

No No And No.

A detachable rear screen would need to have some sort of set of contacts on the back in order to communicate with the GoPro. This in turn would affect how waterproof the GoPro would be. If used for action sports, it could accidentally detach from the camera and be lost. Also most users already have a portable display device that’s completely wireless and it’s called their Mobile Phone. This idea of a detachable rear screen was dreamt up quite some time ago, keeps popping up and is as ill thought out now as it was then.

Wireless charging? Doubtful. After all, GoPro sells batteries and battery chargers. Probably a nice little earner for them, so why mess with that? Also we’ve seen what happens when GoPro offers a camera with a “built in” battery. Since wireless charging can take some time (and uses up valuable battery real estate) I don’t think this is likely to happen at all.

At less than $500, the GoPro Max is actually good value for 360 video shooting.

Will there be a GoPro Max 2? Everyone seems to want this… but again, the issue is where to go with such a camera? Another sign that a new Max isn’t coming anytime soon is GoPro introducing an Enduro variation battery for the GoPro Max. Remember what I said about phasing out inventory before introducing a new model? Well in this case, GoPro have created new battery inventory.

The GoPro Max now enjoys a performance boost thanks to the new Enduro battery.

Also, another sign is that there was mention that the GoPro Labs firmware for the Hero Max was going to have some updates and GoPro do seem to be focusing on this. Usually only the latest camera’s get labs updates and with the Max being so old, unlocking additional features is a sign that there’s no replacement coming anytime soon.

So what else can we expect from GoPro this year?

Well what we can look forward to is new software. Users have been complaining for years about a lack of a desktop software suite for their camera’s. GoPro currently offer and support GoPro Player (with ReelSteady as an optional extra) and a webcam app for desktop. That’s it. Now this is hardly surprising as when GoPro did offer “Quik for desktop” it wasn’t widely used, it also wasn’t very stable, and they were spending more money trying to maintain this platform than it was generating. So it made no financial sense whatsoever for GoPro to keep offering “Quik for desktop”.

However, now that the GoPro plus subscription has been a major success for GoPro, it has made them realize the value of offering a “paid” desktop software solution. So just like the mobile app, this may have free basic services for the everyday users, but GoPro Plus subscribers would have full access to much more features (music, themes, cloud account access, the ability to sync edits across multiple platforms etc.).

GoPro could even sell it as an add on (like they do with ReelSteady) to generate more income. That makes a lot of sense. Rather than just spend money on the development and support of a desktop app that works for free for GoPro plus subscribers. Charge an extra $10 a month to GoPro plus subscribers for a desktop software version of Quik also.

Having said that though, GoPro do have 2 things working against them when it comes to desktop software.

1: Their software department is actually quite small. As a result, their mobile app suffers from a myriad of issues and there are endless complaints about reliability, connection issues, black screens during renders…… so stretching that software department out even more to cover the creation of a desktop solution (that also has to integrate cloud and cross platform synchronization) may just be too much to ask of GoPro for this year. We may not see anything until next year from this. Then when it does get released…….. that’s when you’ll start seeing user complaints regarding software not working on their desktop…

2: Windows users can already use Android apps in a Windows environment. While this may not be the smoothest of experiences, it can be easily done. So, if GoPro get too greedy with their desktop offering, people may just opt to keep using their mobile version or other free video editing programs. This would potentially cost GoPro quite a lot of money in lost revenue. It could even cost them more money if the software doesn’t perform.

What would you suggest to GoPro for the Hero 12?

GoPro has a lot of things to consider, but I think they need to Go Bold. Give us a camera design with a better media mod that’s quick and simple to remove. Even if it’s not the “traditional” media mod design. Frankly something that just clips onto the camera in place of the side door would do.

Don’t make the same mistake you did with the Hero 11 Mini, don’t give us a built-in battery. That’s been quite the issue from what I’ve read. Having a swapable battery just makes a lot more sense.

The Hero 11 Mini is small, light and versatile.

You can give us Built in Memory though! Yeah, frankly 512GB of memory built in would be sufficient. It would also solve a lot of issues that I see. People will think nothing of paying $450 for an action camera, but then try to cheap out by spending $10 on an SD card. These cards are usually far too slow for the camera, are just not compatible with the camera (Sandisk ULTRA, I’m looking at you) or badly formatted to begin with. This results in camera freezing, lock ups, and shutdowns. So fix that problem now! Stop having users send back their cameras to GoPro when it’s a simple issue of using an incorrect SD card. Have a built-in storage medium and the ability to perform a “FULL” format should an issue occur.

Any last words on what to expect from the Hero 12?

Yes, likely there will be improvements on the firmware side. The Hero 11 can “almost” shoot in a flat LOG color profile, the Hero 12 may offer this.

The Hero 11 had some great fun night presets built in (star trails, light painting, vehicle lights). The Hero 12 may improve upon this (as it doesn’t require additional hardware, it’s a software process). With built in memory, you could even have “reverse time” clip options. So honestly, do expect there to be one or two new software based video or photo effect options.

You can also expect GoPro to claim an update to Hypersmooth and Timewarp options. Whether it solves any of the past problems (jerky or unwanted pans) is another thing. Maybe it’s time to look at Hypersmooth or Timewarp presets which could disable or limit horizontal panning.

And talking about presets, no, there’s not going to be re-nameable presets offered this time around either.

So, until the release of the GoPro Hero 12 in September, we’re all going to just have to wait with baited breath to see what finally gets released. In the meantime, I plan to fully enjoy the summer filming on my Hero 10 and Hero 11 and updating Google Street View with my Hero Fusion.

Until next time

Cheerio!

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GoPro Hero 11 Predictions, New Release Date, Specs & more including …a GoPro Webcam?

Posted on August 12, 2022November 20, 2022 by DemonView

It’s that time of year (August) where you’re probably seeing countless articles or YouTube video’s where people are claiming to have inside knowledge or leaks about the next GoPro model (spoiler alert, they don’t, they are just parroting the usual nonsense). To save you time, I’ll summarize what all of these videos contain!

A: The new models are traditionally released in September.

B: A wish list of what people want in the next release (as unrealistic as it may be)

C: Doubling the specs of the previous models (something lazy people do every year… in which case the Hero 10 would have the ability to record in 256K resolution…..).

So this is where I make my own predictions about the next upcoming model… only my predictions are slightly different. Why? Well mine are not only based upon years of experience in a large multinational electronics company regarding design, development, implantation and deployment of next gen models, they are also based on “research”, statements made by GoPro themselves (white paper sources only) and their previous release strategies.

So why should you pay attention to this one? Well if you’ve watched my video from last year when I was making my Hero 10 predictions, you’ll see what I actually got right regarding the specs, design and capabilities. I even predicted the GoPro Volta!

So I’m breaking this down into 3 categories.

What’s likely to be coming,

what’s borderline… it may or may not happen…

what’s NOT going to happen…

So rather than keep you wondering, here’s what my predictions are for the next model GoPro (and an explanation as to my reason for thinking this…).

What’s coming!

1: A redesigned camera!

It may not be a radical redesign, in fact it’s likely it’s going to keep the basic look of the GoPro. Users probably won’t be happy if the camera was any heavier, however reducing the footprint of the camera may not do much for heat dissipation either. So I expect the size to be roughly the same as well as button placement etc. However, I expect the battery and USB ports and covers to have a complete overhaul!

WHY: The mic drain cover. People have been breaking this since it was introduced in the Hero 9. Some pop it open thinking it’s a removable cover, some people have even used it as a place to secure their lanyard to the camera. Since this is a non-removable or even a replaceable part, GoPro probably have had a lot of returns from people after breaking this small cover. So that’s something that GoPro will want to prevent to save costs and time. So why the redesigned battery and USB ports? Well, that one is obvious…

2: The Media Mod 2.0

GoPro will probably want to include a few better features, however the media mod has had two significant problems since it was introduced. Poor quality microphones and a design that was too much work to install and remove. If you wanted to change battery or access the SD card directly, you pretty much had to disassemble the whole camera. With a redesign of the media mod to make it more of a “quick release” system, that would be a big win for GoPro and users. So this would likely require a redesign of the USB port and battery cover to make it compatible with a quick release system

WHY: If you have been paying attention to GoPro’s website and emails, they have been pushing the discounted sales of GoPro Hero 9 and 10 accessories. Everything from the Max Lens Mod, batteries, Media mod to the 3 way. With steep discounts on many of these items, there is only one real reason to want to reduce inventory like this. That’s simply because the next camera will not be compatible with these items and sales of these items will drop once the new system is introduced. So time for inventory reduction as the new design is coming along.

3: New resolutions and frame rates…

This is a bit of a no brainer, it happens with every model, however this may be implemented in a brand new way. As pre usual, it’s not going to be a huge jump in resolution, but it may depend on the sales of certain mods to enable these resolutions.

WHY: The Max Lens mod was a good seller for GoPro and offered 360 stabilized horizontal lock. However, the downside was that it only worked in 2.7K. I can honestly see the Max Lens Mod 2.0 being released to allow the same capability but in a 4K resolution. This may also pave the way for a 6K widescreen mod. This is something that the Insta360 One RS has offered and it just looks fantastic. GoPro will want to compete in this area rather than lose customers to the competition. Finally slow motion, yes, we will get faster frame rates in certain resolutions, but as we all know, higher frame rates usually means the camera runs at a higher temperature. GoPro don’t want any more “overheating” videos on the internet. So this “mega slow mo” or “super slow mo” might actually be a “burst” setting, only allowing you to shoot for 30 seconds maximum.

What’s borderline

1: Nameable presets.

People have been asking for this for years, ever since the preset mode was introduced. It’s a big want but it’s unlikely that it’s going to happen anytime soon.

WHY: This one is complicated, but it’s basically to do with the architecture of the GoPro firmware code. GoPro haven’t had a successful history of firmware releases. In fact the “boot loop” caused by an older firmware release (see video here) was a bit of a disaster. So trying to design a firmware that allows users to start entering countless settings under all sorts of different names may be just too hard for GoPro to introduce just yet. It’s also something they’ll keep in their back pocket in order to push sales of the next model if the market starts dropping.

2: Larger sensor

The problem with the GoPro’s currently is that in low light, they just aren’t great. Combine that with Hypersmooth and your footage is downright unusable in low light. To use a GoPro in low light you pretty much have to turn off hypersmooth and use a gimbal. Something not great for a camera that prides itself for having gimble like performance. So a larger sensor may not happen

WHY: A larger sensor would help solve that low light problem, but with a larger sensor, the focus (close up) suffers. The one inch sensor mod for the Insta360 One works well in low light, but means it can’t be used for vlogging due to the focal length changing. One possible solution to this is that GoPro could use a larger sensor in their camera, but a specific “Vlogging” lens mod would have be used in order to focus and crop the user. Since a lot of GoPro’s are used for vlogging or close up action, it means that this “mod” would have to be the default for the new GoPro model and that would be a hard sell especially with the price bracket that GoPro likes to sell in $400 to $550 range.

3: New mounting system.

GoPro have had their specific mounting fingers for quite some time now. This is something that can be a bit of a pain and sometimes needing to tighten your GoPro mounts have led to broken thumbscrews or stripped thumbscrews themselves. So although it’s a bit out of date and the new media mod will require a quick release system I suspect the mounting fingers will remain in place.

WHY: There are numerous knock off selfie sticks, mounts, and tripods that all have the traditional ¾ thread on them. All GoPro accessories use the GoPro mounting fingers and GoPro have quite a large inventory. The mounting fingers pretty much guarantee the sales of these items are they are just bettter quality that the knock offs and are specifically designed for GoPro’s. It’s also the design GoPro are famous for, so I honestly can’t see GoPro getting rid of this.

What’s NOT going to happen…

1: Bluetooth audio recording

Not a chance in my opinion. This likely has to do with patents and who owns them, and if GoPro could have done it, they would have done it already. Even insta only works with Apple airpods. So can’t see this one coming.

WHY: Although Bluetooth audio has been getting better, frankly it’s just not good enough for high quality audio recording. GoPro want quality video and audio associated with their camera’s, not badly compressed Bluetooth audio. This one is just too long to get into in depth or in detail, but no, just not happening.

2: 8K video

This one comes up every single year and honestly, it’s just not going to happen. There’s really just no point as this would cripple users.

WHY: The majority of people out there are still using 1080P televisions, sure 4K sets are cheaper now, but they are not the dominant format yet. 8K has barely made a dent in the market. So no point. Then there’s the computing power hurdles for older phones, older PC’s and even with the GoPro itself. 8K is just not feasible (and its pretty bad math too, 5.3K is nearly double the resolution of 4K, not 8K). so put 8K out of your head for now. Maybe when H.266 encoding comes up we’ll talk…

3: Edge to edge display, removable display, wireless charging…..

Nope, nope and nope!

WHY: The reason GoPro’s don’t have an edge-to-edge display is due to the fact they have a nice rubber bumper around them to absorb impacts when they fall or get dropped. If they were to remove this, GoPro damage would be significantly increased. Even if you put thicker toughened glass in there, it’s not going to happen. With safety glass, the best place to attempt to break it is the corner as it doesn’t flex as much there. The same would be true of the GoPro.

No removable display as although this rumor has done around for a couple of years now, a removable/remote display would be easily lost, it would need contacts on the back of the GoPro and it wouldn’t be waterproof to to the depths that GoPro is well known for.

Wireless charging is unlikely to happen as you would have to either increase the weight and size of the GoPro or reduce the size and capacity of the batteries. Just not something users would be happen with at all.

So there you have it, the 3 things that are likely to happen, the 3 maybe’s and the 3 (oh ok, 5) things that aren’t going to happen. So finally, when can we expect to see the GoPro Hero 11? Well… maybe not as soon as you think. Traditionally GoPro’s have been released in September every year but according to a statement made by Nick Woodman, their next flagship camera may not release until the 4^th quarter of the year. That would put it in October at the earliest. Since this is a redesigned model camera, I can see that being likely as there are many kinks to be worked out. So October at the latest providing there are no production issues, after all, GoPro will want release date sales, then the slump, then the Christmas rush (rather than release in November and people will just think “I’ll wait until Christmas to buy”).

Finally, can we expect a MAX 2 this year? It………. may…… happen…… it may not. The GoPro Max is due an update due to it’s age. People have even released predictions of a GoPro Max 2 being released due to a recent patent filing………… however the patent wasn’t really about the design of the GoPro Max or even anything specific to the model, it was more about how the GoPro app would be able to recognie certain scenes in a 360 video and be used to automatically create a video. So the patent (which was the finalization of an old patent BTW) was more about scene recognition in a 360 sphere. We do know that GoPro will be releasing at least 1 more camera this year, people want it to be a new Session… so what’s the one thing that competitors are doing that GoPro haven’t done yet? What could this model camera actually be?

A dedicated GoPro Webcam! Think about it. The GoPro Webcam app (which basically makes a GoPro emulate a webcam) hasn’t been the most reliable of apps. It has compatibility problems with a lot of webcam apps and is very limited in what it can do. However, when it does work the image quality can be quite good (especially in low light).. but not adjustable. Something that people still want and seem to be buying (and this is why we’re seeing so many high-end models being released) is a decent webcam. GoPro’s can be used, but there are user complaints about overheating, onboard mics not working, battery not charging while it’s in use…. GoPro might take a bold step in getting rid of these issues by simply releasing a GoPro Webcam! One that uses an actual webcam driver as opposed to emulating a webcam over a network connection.