What do you want from an action cam? It should be rugged, reliable, and able to capture great video and audio. But that’s just the bare minimum for DJI and its all-new Action 5 Pro – a serious big hitter that might just displace GoPro from its throne.
Action cameras. Where would we be without them? Earlier last month when we covered the all-new GoPro’s launch, rumors were already ripe for the arrival of DJI’s latest entry in the field. And when DJI did launch the Osmo Action 5 Pro a few weeks later, the inevitable parallels between the two offerings were drawn.
I spent more than two weeks testing out DJI’s latest and greatest and putting it through its paces. There are a host of improvements compared to its predecessor that the company has brought to this camera, from the battery to the image quality and even low-light capabilities. Let’s dig in.
Starting with the hardware, the Osmo Action 5 Pro looks like just about any other action cam. It’s boxy, feels rugged to the touch, and gets dual screens, both of which are touch-sensitive, by the way. On the left side are the power button and a USB-C port, on the right side are the microSD card slot and battery access door, while a prominent capture button is located on the top.
The dual screens are plenty bright and that’s because they are OLED panels. They are also slightly bigger than the 1.4-in and 2.25-in displays on the Action 4, with a 1.46-in front screen and a 2.5-in rear screen.
You get three mics in total on the Action 5 Pro, which are really effective indoors and in relatively quiet situations. But if you want top-notch audio quality, the DJI Mic 2 system can be paired in a matter of seconds. In my testing, which was mostly in less noisy conditions, I used the native mics on the camera and the sound was excellent.
Coming to the most important bit, the Osmo Action 5 Pro upgrades the Action 4's image sensor, however, its resolution, frame rate, and color selections remain largely unchanged. The 1/1.3 CMOS sensor shoots at 4K 120 fps, 2.7K 120 fps, or 1080p 240 fps with up to 10-bit color sampling and 100 Mbps compression. Additionally, it captures 40-MP still images in 14-bit Raw DNG or 8-bit JPG format.
In addition to the standard video mode, you can also choose between the time lapse mode (which utilizes 1,080p at 30 fps) or slow-motion (which immediately switches to 1,080p at 240 fps). The camera incorporates DJI's RockSteady stabilization tech as expected, and there are three settings that you can toggle: Rocksteady, Rocksteady+, or stabilization off.
The Action 5 Pro offers three color profiles: Standard, HLG, and D-Log M. Both 8-bit and 10-bit colors can be utilized with Standard; however, I'd recommend sticking to 10-bit colors for the wider dynamic range. On the other hand, if you want to record in low light, you'll need to switch to 8-bit because you cannot use Super Night mode with 10-bit activated.
Talking about low light, the Action 5 Pro produces truly impressive results for an action cam. While that doesn't mean the footage will be comparable to that of an iPhone, it is still extremely good for its size.
Personally, I really like how the footage comes out of DJI’s action camera. It’s plenty bright, has a wide dynamic range, and the colors are well-balanced. My go-to is the Rocksteady mode even though it crops some of the field of view for stabilization. But if you really want to go ultra-wide, the 155-degree field of view is plenty for most situations.
I also ended up using the Action 5 Pro as my webcam for all my online meetings in these two weeks and I must say I was impressed with how straightforward it was to set up and the quality of the video it captured.
One of the main features DJI hyped up in the Action 5’s launch was its battery life. Being someone who spends long hours on the saddle of a motorcycle, swapping batteries on my GoPros became standard operating procedure. While filming on GoPro, I usually carry two spare batteries to make sure there’s enough juice to record enough material throughout a day of riding.
On the Osmo Action 5 Pro, I might not even need that. It boasts an efficient 4-nm architecture image processor and comes with a brand-new 1,950-mAh battery. DJI credit these for the camera's ability to record for four hours on a single charge. This is quite the claim considering the likes of GoPro can't even deliver half of that number.
Though I didn't quite hit those thresholds in my hands-on testing, I was still able to record for more than three hours on a single charge at 1080p. At 4k 30 fps, I was able to record for more than 2.5 hours at a stretch, while that number dropped to just around the two-hour mark at 60 fps. By the way, there was no overheating in my two weeks of testing, meaning that the camera stopped recording only when the battery ran out each time.
Compare these numbers to the latest GoPro Hero 13 Black and there’s a clear winner in the battery department. DJI also offers an ‘Adventure Combo’ bundle that comes with two extra batteries and a charger, along with a few other nifty accessories. The magnetic mount helps attach the camera to all its accessories without a hassle. Although I did find the mount to be a little tricky at first, I eventually got the hang of it.
It’s an easy camera to operate. The interface is clean and free of clutter, the sounds are loud, the touch sensitivity is spot on for either display and the buttons are tactile. The camera can be paired to your phone via the Mimo app, which doesn’t feel as feature-rich as GoPro’s Quick app, but it’s easier to use. One thing that can be a pain, though, is the fact that you have to use Wi-Fi to link to the camera every time you open the Mimo app.
The Action 5 Pro is waterproof as is up to 20 m (66 ft), and that can be extended to 60 m (197 ft) with the purchase of a separate diving case. The one thing I really liked from the word go is the impressive 47-GB internal storage that you get on the Osmo Action 5 Pro. It allows you to record a fair bit of footage without needing a microSD card – although if you do, it supports microSD cards up to 1 TB.
To sum it up, The DJI Osmo Action 5 Pro boasts the best battery life of any action camera we've seen to date, outlasting contemporary GoPro cameras by a significant margin. With bigger, brighter screens, a deeper dive rating, 47-GB of internal storage, and integrated compatibility for a professional wireless audio setup, it's a great all-rounder.
The quality of everything, from the packaging, the accessories, the mounts, cables, and the camera itself is obvious. It’s also US$50 cheaper than the GoPro, coming in at $349, and although it might not have a greater resolution than the more costly GoPro Hero 13 Black, the 10-bit recording at 4K will be more than enough for most users. If you're a loyal GoPro user, I'd recommend adding the Osmo Action 5 Pro to the list when considering your next purchase.
Product page: DJI Osmo Action 5 Pro