GoPro HERO11 Black REVIEW: A solid action camera for on-the-go vloggers
Whether you're always traveling or into outdoor activities like cycling, you need a camera that can keep up with your pace. Sure, smartphones are very capable of capturing great travel or action videos, but shooting for long hours may take a toll on your device's battery—so maybe having a camera for just recording moments is your best bet.
Enter the Hero11 Black, one GoPro's latest action cameras. It boasts multiple shooting modes and a sensor format that makes it easier to shoot vertical videos for TikTok or Instagram. We got to take this tiny shooter for a spin and here are our thoughts on the new GoPro.
Design and specs
Out of the box, the Hero11 Black comes with all the accessories you might need: a mount for helmets, a USB-C cable, and a hard case for storage. The camera itself feels very durable and solid, plus it's not that heavy at 153g.
The sensor is a 1/1.9-inch 27MP shooter with hyperview, superview, wide, linear, and linear+horizon lock digital lenses, enabling users to capture scenes in many modes. It's capable of 5.3K at 60 frames per second and 4K at 120 frames per second recording so videos are pretty high quality, even in low light surroundings.
The power/mode button sits on the left side of the device while the record button sits on top. Conveniently, when you press the red button even when the camera is off, it will automatically turn on to record and will shut down once you stop rolling.
At the back is a 2.27-inch touch display, while in front is a 1.4-inch screen that shows you a preview of what you're recording—this small screen comes very handy when you're vlogging.
Camera
This GoPro is great for vlogging as videos turn out crisp and vibrant. Under broad daylight, the colors are full and lively, and all the tiny details are captured even in superview—I used the GoPro to get a closer look at my dog eating and even his whiskers were caught on camera.
The Hero11 Black also deals with shaky shots well—videos come out smooth when you're walking. So you can rely on it to serve you well when you're shooting sceneries of the different places you're traveling to. To fully put the stabilizer to the test, I attached the camera to my dog's harness and went for a walk. My dog gets so unruly so shots were so shaky, but the footage wasn't as unusable as if it were shot with a smartphone.
When using the device for photos, you will want to select the linear mode unless you want a fish eye effect. Overall, the images still looked sharp and the device didn't wash out bright objects like lights.
Battery life and connectivity
The GoPro has a 1,720mAh battery life, which drains when you shoot for hours on end. The device gets pretty hot, too, when in constant use. Thankfully, though, charging is easy as you only need to plug in a USB-C cable (no need for a separate battery charger, yay!) and the device will go from low battery to full in about two hours.
As for external access, you can connect with the GoPro and even edit videos on your phone with the GoPro Quik app. Downloading the videos will take time and storage space on your phone as the file size of these 5.3K or 4K clips are pretty hefty. An 11-second video comes in at 82.8MB, while the same duration HD/30fps video with an iPhone comes only at 13.3MB.
Verdict
The GoPro Hero11 Black is an overall great camera if you like shooting high-quality everyday videos, whether in portrait or landscape, with that ultrawide perspective. Its trusty stabilization will also get rid of any shake in your shots, and the GoPro Quik app makes it convenient to transfer files wirelessly so you can upload videos immediately to TikTok or Instagram.
This action camera is available for P29,990 at the GoPro Official LazMall and retailers such as Abenson, Camerahaus, Colours Foto, Electroworld, Henry's Cameras, Inbox, Infomax, SM Gadgets, TechPro Unlimited, Timeline, Urbangiz, and more.