Tag: GoPro Max 2 news

GoPro’s Exciting Max 2 Camera News and More! A Bold Move Forward!

Posted on by DemonView

No one saw this coming!

If there’s one thing you can say about GoPro, it’s that they are always pulling something new out of the bag. This year is no different. With a leaner and more efficient approach to business, GoPro is gearing up to take on the competition in a big way, and I, for one, am excited to see how it all unfolds. GoPro has truly reignited my excitement for their future plans!

GoPro’s Investor Call: A Shocking Announcement!

GoPro held its Q4 investor relations call this past Thursday, and what they announced was not what anyone expected! Honestly, I was blown away, and I don’t think anyone else saw this coming either. So let’s break it down.

Last year, GoPro announced that the Max 2 camera was ready to hit the market and would go on sale in Q3. Everyone (myself included) was eagerly awaiting what GoPro had in store. The timing seemed perfect—GoPro had nearly run out of its existing Max camera inventory, setting the stage for the Max 2’s launch.

However, mere weeks before the expected release, Insta360 dropped its X4 camera, featuring impressive specs that quickly won over users (I haven’t managed to get my hands on one myself—budget constraints are real!). Shortly after this, GoPro announced a delay, pushing the Max 2’s release to Q4. Fans were not happy, and many took this as a sign that the Max 2 might be underpowered compared to the competition. A (now removed) interview with a GoPro PCB designer suggested the Max 2 was designed with the aging GP2 processor—the same chip that powered the Hero 10, Hero 11, Hero 12, and Hero 13. That’s four generations old at this point!

By Q4, GoPro further delayed the Max 2 to 2025, sparking fears that the camera was either being redesigned from scratch or scrapped altogether. This was a major disappointment for GoPro customers and a significant financial hit—GoPro estimated a loss of $100 million in sales due to having no 360-camera offering.

Many assumed GoPro would abandon the 360 market entirely and shift focus to non-360 cameras and other projects.

We couldn’t have been more wrong!

A Stunning Turn of Events: Two New 360 Cameras!

During Thursday’s investor relations call, GoPro announced not one but two new 360 cameras launching this year! Even more shocking—the first will be available by the end of this month! This news stunned and excited fans. GoPro is officially back in the 360-camera game!

Their renewed commitment to the 360 market is also reflected in a massive update to the Quik mobile app. If you own a GoPro Max, you can now take advantage of automatic subject tracking, new preset 360 effects, and more! GoPro is not just launching new hardware; they are improving the overall user experience.

To top it all off, GoPro confirmed the long-awaited GP3 processor is coming this year! But before we get into that, let’s talk about the two new cameras.

The Refreshed GoPro Max: A Smart Move

The biggest surprise of all was GoPro’s decision to refresh the Max rather than just restart production. The Max, originally released in 2019, was a groundbreaking 360 camera, and even today, it remains a favorite due to its compact size, ease of use, and stunning video quality. However, GoPro had run out of inventory, and instead of simply bringing it back, they’ve opted to refresh it—hinting at potential improvements.

GoPro described the refreshed Max as an entry-level 360 camera, which means they’ll have to strike a balance. It can’t be just a 2019 camera sold at full price, but it also can’t be so advanced that it overshadows the upcoming Max 2.

Likely Upgrades

  • Improved Wi-Fi – Upgrading to Wi-Fi 6 could make file transfers faster and more reliable while improving battery life.
  • Upgraded Bluetooth – Enhanced Bluetooth (like in the Hero 13) could mean better connectivity, control range, and even Bluetooth audio support, a major upgrade since the original Max had no external audio support.
  • New Modes – Features like night lapse, missing from the original Max but present in its predecessor, the GoPro Fusion, could finally make a comeback.

What NOT to Expect

  • No GP2 Processor Upgrade – Any performance improvements will likely be minor.
  • No HDR Video – This feature is more suited for the Max 2.
  • No Major Redesign – GoPro will likely stick with existing tooling to keep costs down.

Will I be buying one? I’m not sure yet. I already own a GoPro Max and a GoPro Fusion, and I still use both. However, if the refreshed Max supports Google Street View updates (something the original Max failed at), I’d buy it in a heartbeat!

The Max 2: The 360 Powerhouse We’ve Been Waiting For

Now, this is the camera that really has me excited. I was ready to buy one last year, but when GoPro missed their release date, I was disappointed—though also slightly relieved. That rumored GP2 processor would have been a major letdown. The delay suggests GoPro went back to the drawing board to create something far superior. If GoPro delivers like they did with the Hero 13, the Max 2 could be a massive leap forward.

Expected Features

  • GP3 Processor – The long-awaited next-gen processor, likely built on a 5nm process for improved performance, efficiency, and thermal management.
  • Upgraded Wi-Fi & Bluetooth – Faster connectivity and Bluetooth audio support.
  • HDR Video & Higher Resolutions – Expect 8K resolution and better frame rates, possibly 60fps or 120fps in certain modes.
  • New Thermal Design – Likely incorporating heat dissipation improvements similar to the Hero 13.
  • New Battery – Possibly redesigned for better efficiency and longer runtime.
  • In-Camera Night Effects – Features like star trails, light painting, and vehicle lights, but now in full 360.
  • Contacto Door Support – This game-changing waterproof power door should also make its way to the Max 2.

What NOT to Expect

  • 12K+ Resolution – While 8K is probable, extreme resolutions wouldn’t make sense for mobile editing.
  • Media Mod – Stitching issues make external mods tricky, and Bluetooth audio makes it unnecessary.
  • Interchangeable Lenses – The protruding lenses of 360 cameras make lens swapping difficult.

Will I be buying one? Absolutely. The Max 2 will be my go-to 360 camera once it launches. It seems GoPro took the extra time to get things right instead of rushing a mediocre product to market.

Final Thoughts: GoPro is Back in the Fight

GoPro is clearly shifting gears, focusing on:

  • Improving software with highly requested features (like automatic subject tracking).
  • Innovating hardware with meaningful upgrades (interchangeable lenses, HDR, longer recording times, etc.).

The announcement of two new 360 cameras and the GP3 processor has rekindled my excitement for GoPro’s future. The Hero 13 is already one of GoPro’s best releases, and with the Refreshed Max, Max 2, and Hero 14 on the horizon, 2025 is looking like an incredible year for action cameras.

One thing not mentioned during the investor call was the Forecite helmet system, which was expected to launch in Q3 or this year. Given the potential market impact, I suspect GoPro is keeping this under wraps while they finalize testing. If it launches, I predict at least two models—one with a chin-mounted camera and another with a dual-camera front/rear setup.

Either way, it’s an exciting time to be a GoPro fan!

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GoPro Hero Max 2 Leaked (Real or Fake?)

Posted on 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 fake Hero 12 leaked image from 2023

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!