Action camera brand Insta360 has gone and made another tiny shooter for folks who like to capture adventure and POV footage. The versatile Go Ultra packs new internals for more imaging power, storage, and runtime than the previous model – and it's smaller than your AirPods case.
The squircle-shaped camera gets a 1/1.28-inch sensor that's more than twice as large as the one in the old Go 3S, and and it's paired with a 5-nm AI-capable chip for better low-light performance and real-time color calibration. It'll shoot 4K video at 60 fps with an HDR mode, as well as 50-megapixel photos in JPG or DNG.
In true Insta360 fashion, the Go Ultra also supports a bunch of shooting modes like timeshift, timelapse, 240-fps slow motion, and 'toddler titan,' which is designed to capture close-up reaction footage of your little tyke as they explore and go on adventures.
The camera gets in-body stabilization, horizon lock for mind-bending shots, and a wide 156-degree field of view. Insta360 also claims its digital 2x Clarity Zoom gets you closer to your subject without pixelation.
There's a bunch of neat features on board to make shooting easier: you can quickly switch between 9:16 vertical and 16:9 landscape video, control recording with your voice or gestures, and capture clear audio using an onboard mic that promises to effectively block out background noise.
This thing weighs just 1.87 oz (53 g), and can shoot for up to 70 minutes on a single charge. What's cool is that it comes with a cradle called the Action Pod it can magnetically slot into, which extends runtime to 200 minutes. The Action also includes a grip to make handheld shooting easier, a 2.5-inch flip touchscreen, and the ability to remotely adjust the camera's shooting settings when it's detached.
As you'd expect, the camera can also magnetically snap onto metal objects so you can shoot hands-free; it also attaches to a pendant, a clip, and a quick-release safety cord that come in the box so you can capture footage in a variety of ways. You can also pick up other mounts to strap this on to your bike or boat or whatever else.
The Go Ultra can happily go in the water since it's IPX8 rated and capable of operating at depths of up to 33 ft (10 m). It skips built-in storage for swappable microSD cards up to 2 TB, which is handy for when you're on long trips away from a computer to offload footage. The camera also features Apple's Find My to help you locate it if it's ever out of sight, and it'll charge up from 0 to 80% in just 12 minutes.
One of my favorite things about Insta360 gear is the companion software: the mobile app includes loads of features to add some pizzazz to your videos, and makes light work of quickly splicing it all together with its Auto Edit function.
I'm excited to see this version add flexibility and usability to the compact point-and-shoot form factor Insta360's been pioneering. The last one was plenty capable given its size, but without a display or viewfinder to compose shots and review footage, it felt more like a novelty, or a B-roll shooter at best.
The Go Ultra's standard bundle (with the Action Pod, pendant, clip, and safety cord) is priced at US$450, and can be had in Midnight Black or Arctic White colorways. You can shop other bundles, which include more mounting accessories for activities like running and cycling, over on Insta360's site.
Source: Insta360
