This year’s GoPro launch is one of the biggest changes for the HERO product line ever, and puts them back on top of the action camera game with seriously impressive new features and accessories on the new HERO 13 Black.
There’s also an extremely lightweight but more fully featured standard HERO model that’s a worthy upgrade from the GoPro Mini launched alongside the HERO 11 in 2022. We’ll start there, then dive deep on the top-tier 13 Black…
2024 GoPro HERO
For budding videographers on a budget, the new $199 HERO is their most affordable action camera ever with a full-size rear screen. Unlike the Mini, which was a point-and-pray affair with no screen (unless you paired it with the app to use your phone as a monitor), this one has their familiar form factor and rear screen, letting you easily change settings and see what you’re capturing.
It’s compact, about 35% smaller than a standard HERO, and weighs just 89g. It’s waterproof to 5m (~16ft), impact resistant, and has a replaceable hydrophobic lens. It has just three modes: Ultra HD 4K, 2.7K 60fps slow motion, and 12MP photos. The video capture has full image stabilization like normal, and you can grab 8MP stills from your 4K videos using their Quik app.
GoPro HERO 13 Black
If you’re trying to capture better slow motion or get closer to your subjects, then the new GoPro HERO 13 Black is worth the upgrade thanks to 400fps slo-mo and swappable lenses with a new Macro option. But there’s a lot more that’s new here. Here’s the most noteworthy upgrades and new features:
- 120fps 5K up to 400fps 720p slow motion
- Magnetic charging latch & cable option
- New Anamorphic & Macro swappable lenses w/ auto-detection
- Larger 1900mAh battery capacity
- New mounting options w/ integrated fingers & 1/4-20 mount
- Airpod/Bluetooth headphone compatible
Quick note about that slo-mo… those extreme frame rates are for short bursts only. They take a TON of processing power, and too much will go past what the onboard processor can handle, but if you use it wisely you can nail some impressive shots. Here’s the limits and their 30fps yield:
- 720p400: 15 seconds shooting = 3-minute, 20-second playback time
- 900p360: 15 seconds shooting = 3-minute playback time
- 5.3K120: 5 seconds shooting = 20-second playback time
It gets a new three-way mounting system on the bottom. It comes with their usual two-prong mounts, but now there’s an integrated 1/4-20 mount between them.
Plus, you can add new snap-on magnetic mounts, one with fingers, the other with a ball joint mount that snaps into standard GoPro accessories and stick-on mounts. These make it quicker and easier to move the camera between accessories, and the ball joint makes it easier to get just the right angle.
The anamorphic lens (left) gives you Hollywood-style visuals for an ultra-widescreen view, up to 21:9.
But I’m more excited about the Macro as it’ll focus 4x closer than a standard lens, meaning I can get just 4.33 inches away from small details on bikes. This should open up a lot more creative options for everyone in any field, especially since it has a variable focus, adjustable via its rotating lens ring with on-screen focus peaking option.
They also have four ND filter lenses (4/8/16/32) for changing the mood in bright sunlight. I’d love to see a polarized lens, but these are a great start considering how many professional videographers are now using GoPros for proper films. Even better, the camera will automatically adjust its exposure and shutter speed settings to deliver the best picture quality, letting you use them to easily capture motion blur. Or set those manually to get whatever result you want.
There’s also a new Ultra Wide Lens, which replaces the Max Lens Mod 2.0 from prior models (that mod still fits, it just won’t be automatically detected by the HERO 13 or get automatic updates). The graphic above shows the Ultra Wide view on the outer edges and its Vertical mode in the center, giving you a massive top-to-bottom view of what’s in front of you, up to 177º FOV. And it supports HyperSmooth and 360º Horizon Lock.
The new battery has 10% more capacity than before, giving you 90+ minutes of 5.3K/30 filming. They claim about 13.5% improvement in average battery life across all modes, in part also thanks to better heat management (notice those fins under the lens?).
Those keep it cool when running for extended scenes…which is good because run times are nearly double when there’s airflow to help cool the camera. Run times are still improved for static use (think indoors or inside a vehicle), but the more you can cool it, the better it’ll do.
If you need more time, swap in the magnetic charging port and attach the cable to the camera and a power source (like their battery pack/selfie stick). It works with or without a battery installed in the camera, and the camera maintains its 10m/IPX7 waterproof rating when using it.
For the tech nerds, it upgrades its HDR to HLG HDR, which meets broadcasting industry HDR standards and has a wider color gamut with 10-bit and Rec. 2100 color space. You’ll need a monitor capable of displaying this level of vibrancy to actually see it, but it can do it. Or you can set it to standard HDR, or turn HDR off altogether. GoPro says about 14% of footage shot with the HERO 12 was in HDR, so don’t feel bad if you aren’t using it…it’s kind of a pro setting that your mom won’t even notice.
GPS is back, too, letting you geo-tag your footage and add things like speed and mapping in post production. You can also custom name your presets, tune the audio capture, and more.
How does it compare to the HERO 12?
Other than the features listed above, it’s very similar in terms of shooting modes, frame rates, bitrates, 10-bit color, FOVs, etc. The HERO 13 is 4g heavier, but has the same dimensions, so pretty much every accessory you have should still fit.
