If you get outside into the great outdoors, then you know GoPro. You probably also know about drones. You might even already have one. If you don’t, then get ready to knock out two birds with one stone; GoPro has a drone. And new Hero action cameras to fit that drone, too. It’ll be barely a month before you can get your hands on GoPro’s brand new Karma drone, and two new Hero5 action cameras will be out even sooner.
The star of GoPro’s announcement overnight was the Karma, a much-teased quadrotor drone designed for portability and convenience, with four foldable arms and removable rotors that snap off for the whole system to be tucked away into the included backpack. Similarly, an included clamshell-style touchscreen controller uses two joysticks, letting an operator fly the Karma while another user controls the camera using an app. Control of the attached Hero5 camera comes courtesy of an included, clip-in 3-way image stabilisation gimbal (like the DJI Osmo) that can be removed and used separately. The Karma will cost $1195.95 in Australia without any camera included, or will be $1649.95 with a new GoPro attached.
That particular device is a new top-of-the-line Hero camera, and it boasts an integrated touchscreen on the rear along with 4K video recording — bringing together the best features of the previous camera’s Black and Silver variants. The new Hero5 Black will set you back $569.95 in Australia, and is waterproof up to 10 metres without any external case. Like the Session, it has a single button for control, Wi-Fi and Bluetooth integrated, and can capture video at up to 4K at 30 frames per second as well as 1440p80 and 1080p120 slow-motion. It’ll shoot 12-megapixel stills at up to 30 frames per second in burst mode and can also make its own time-lapse videos, and can capture both RAW photos and wide dynamic range shots.
A smaller version with a smaller video sensor inside, the equally new $459.95 GoPro Hero5 Session can only shoot 10-megapixel snaps, but will also record at 4K30, and slightly lower frame rates for lower resolutions like 1440p60 and 1080p90. It’s otherwise equal in waterproofing and has the same one-button control as both the original Session and its Hero5 Black sibling, but doesn’t have the same RAW or WDR photo capabilities. Both cameras have voice control in seven different language, while the Black will also GPS geo-tag your footage as you’re recording it.
Both cameras will be out in Australia on October 3, while the Karma will arrive on October 23. GoPro will continue to sell the original (Hero4) Session alongside the Hero5 Session and the Hero5 Black for $299.95, but that also means other older GoPros like the Hero4 Black and Silver and the basic Hero will disappear from the line-up.
There are also a bunch of new accessories and mounts on the way out later this year. A keychain microUSB card reader called the Quik Key will let you quickly transfer footage from your GoPro to your phone for editing or posting, and a new remote called the Remo will give you the same voice control that the new GoPro cameras themselves use but from a longer distance away. A cloud storage service for your GoPro footage called GoPro Plus, too, will launch in Australia in January of next year and will cost $US4.99 per month — but that also gets you 20 per cent off the price of new mounts and accessories, and access to a library of music to put behind your videos.
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