Verdict
While the likes of GoPro and DJI are refining the ' traditional ' action camera place with ever - more premium specs , I ’m glad that Insta360 is try out in a different direction with the Go 3 . The Go series ' versatility is still unmatched and while the Go 2 was intirguing but with plenty of caveats , the Go 3 is now a great natural action photographic camera in its own right hand that just chance to be the size of a thumb .
Pros
Cons
Key Features
Introduction
The troupe behind the Insta360 Flow and the Insta360 Link has revamped its smallest legal action tv camera with the amazingly robust Insta360 Go 3 .
Insta360 is on quite the roll at the second . No longer twinge at the heel of GoPro in the action camera market , the company has put out telling photographic camera like theInsta360 X3 , and that ’s before promote the stripe elsewhere with products like theInsta360 Flowwhich is well thebest smartphone gimbalwe’ve ever tested .
In this instance , Insta360 has turned its tending back towards its smallest camera , theInsta360 Go 2 , and give it a major service in both video capture quality and overall functionality . For a gadget that ’s barely large than a pollex however , you might be wondering if it even has a place amongst the former action cameras which can capture some really jaw - dropping footage .
After spending a few month with the gadget , here ’s my verdict .
Design
It may sound remaining at first but Insta360 has manage to deposit quite nearly to the template of the Go 2 whilst also overtake one of its biggest aspect to more nearly mimic theInsta360 One RS . What I intend by this is that the Go 3 itself , being the sum ingredient , has received a few small tweaks that make it easier to use .
There ’s now a rubberised grip around the exterior of the twist which makes it less probable to on the spur of the moment fall out of your grasp , and it ’s ever - so - more or less heavy although not to the point where it diminishes its portability .
The biggest change can be constitute on the new Action Pod which serve to replace the Charge Case from the Go 2 . While the latter served as a battery charger , tripod and outback ascendency social unit , the Action Pod goes far beyond this to judge and duplicate the lineament - set of traditional action cameras like theGoPro Hero 11 .
It can still charge the Go 3 and be used as a removed restraint , but the Action Pod now takes on a panoptic shape whilst also sporting a 2.2 - in touchscreen that can throw out 180 - degrees for front - front video . It ’s a totally new design ism but it does keep the kitty of accessories that made the Go 2 so versatile in the first place .
In addition to the Action Pod , there ’s a time - on holster that allows the Go 3 to be seize to a cap , as well as a magnetized necklace that proceed the Go 3 at pectus layer for true POV contentedness , just to name a few . It offer up plenty of opportunities for experiment , and the magnets on the rear of the Go 3 ensure that it stays securely in property , regardless of which accessory you ’re using .
Do note however that while the Go 3 itself has anIPX8certification and is waterproof up to 16 foot , the same can not be said for the Action Pod which is only IPX4 splash - resistant , mean it can not be submerge in water . It ’s not a vast downside but one that ’s worth pay in idea if you do intend to entrance a quite a little of subaqueous footage .
Screen and Performance
As previously mentioned , the Go 3 now benefits from a touchscreen on the Action Pod that entirely change how you interact with the television camera on the go . you could still murder the push push on the Go 3 itself to pop filming , but this time around you do n’t need to connect to your smartphone to view footage that you ’ve take , and you now have far more ascendancy over that type of footage you need to capture .
For illustration , in improver to photos and picture transcription , you may choose timelapse and dense motion , as well as my personal front-runner , FreeFrame Video . This new mode gives you more flexibility in the editing unconscious process as it immortalise a all-inclusive field of thought so that you could change the footage to whichever aspect ratio you sense works well , without give the details .
The fact that the screen can flip out to face up the drug user also make the Go 3 better suited for vlogging than ever before . There ’s no longer any shot about whether you ’re frame right in a particular blastoff , so if you felt that the Go 2 was lacking in that regard – you ’ll feel far well suited with what ’s available here .
However , one of the bad issues I had with the Go 2 was heating dissipation . The build up on that miniature photographic camera was so bad that I was confident it was on the verge of suffer irreparable impairment , and so my interest in using it to fascinate longsighted days out quickly vanished . It ’s understandable then that I had a fair amount of trepidation going into this review , wondering whether or not the problem had been fixed but I ’m glad to cover that it ’s no longer an issue .
Even on some of the hotter days from this yr , I have n’t noticed any concern heat progress up on the Go 3 . The improved heat dissipation has allow the Go 3 to cast off the capped video length of its predecessor , meaning that so long as there ’s enough retentiveness and battery aliveness in the storage tank , you’re able to keep on filming till your heart ’s content .
It ’s also worth mentioning that despite being one of the more low-priced camera in Insta360 ’s range , there ’s no detectable downgrade in processing amphetamine . you may zip through the carte with ease on this matter , so if you necessitate to change tact quick , you wo n’t be go for up by any lag . Plus , the speaker on the Action Pod are surprisingly loud , so it ’s easy enough to quickly dive into some playback when out and about .
During this follow-up , I did encounter an way out where the Insta360 Go 3 would no longer relate with either my iPhone or the Action Pod and so a 2d unit needed to be sent out . This issue does n’t seem to be isolated to just one instance either asa few usershave comment the same problem , and it also meant that I was unable to retrieve my recorded footage .
Because the Insta360 Go 3 saves all of your content to its home storage ( which goes up to 128 GB ) and there ’s no support for microSD lineup , if your machine should weaken before you manag to download your file elsewhere then they ’re regrettably gone for in force . Having long since said au revoir to the power to add extra repositing to my smartphone , I ’m not convert that local storage is straightaway a negatively charged scene of the Go 3 ’s pattern but it does intend that you ’ll plausibly require to treat it with a little more tending than your average action camera .
Video and Image quality
One of the obvious trade - offs with a tv camera as small as the Go series is the level of ikon character . This can be forgiven to an extent as the Go range was better suit to capturing b - bun , peculiarly from hard to reach angles that would be too cumbersome for a regular camera . With the Go 3 however , Insta360 has made a cooperative sweat to come together that gap .
It ’s now potential to bourgeon content at up to 2.7 K firmness with the Go 3 ( up from 1440p ) , and while that is n’t quite as high a ceiling as the 5.3 chiliad resolve on the latest GoPro Hero 12 , I ’d contend that it ’s enough of an improvement to allow the Go 3 to operate as your only vlogging camera .
When film outdoors , even on a turbid day , everything appear acute and when lease the Go 3 on a tour near London ’s Southbank , every point of my journeying was capture perfectly . When determine the video after the fact , I was able to hone in on piece of the outer boundary and still pick up on slew of people of color and detail , so if you ’re shooting a travel vlog and need to give your audience plenty to feast their heart on , the Go 3 is more than up to the labor .
What impressed me , even more so than the video quality , was just how immensely meliorate the new microphone Seth - up is . Now vaunt two build - in mics , the Go 3 does a far better caper of picking up usable audio that does n’t take any major tinkering with ( unless you ’re top-notch finicky about audio levels ) .
During that same Southbank outing , I headed through one of the most crowded areas and shot a quick to - photographic camera segment . Watching the footage back afterwards , I was surprised by just how well the Go 3 was able-bodied to dispel the phone of passersby and hone in on my voice . I do not doubt that the Go 3 could address itself in one of London ’s even more obtusely populated domain .
In these moments , the Go 3 was also capable to pump out some sizable - looking photos . With enough light to gather , the Go 3 is handy for capturing vistas in extremist - broad musical mode but I ’d be lie if I said I was belong to jump using it over the camera on myiPhone 15any time soon .
The only major area for betterment is the struggle that the Go 3 endures when shooting in humiliated - brightness . I took the Go 3 to the graffiti - laden wall of the Leake Street tunnel , but the photographic camera could n’t quite hold the same level of detail that it was able to capture elsewhere , and any attempt to keep up with the environment mostly ended up in blurry footage that left a plenty to be desired . If you necessitate something that fares far easily in low light then theInsta360 Ace Prois a much better choice .
Stabilisation and Battery Life
If the improved audio recording and video quality make up the core of the Insta360 Go 3 ’s inclination of feature , it ’s the unbelievable stabilization that service as the cherry on top of what this miniature camera brings to the table . Simply put , the Go 3 ’s stabilisation is up there with the best I ’ve ever seen , and it ’s not just locked to when the television camera ’s stored in the Action Pod either .
I filmed several to - camera segments on the go , harbor the Go 3 between my thumb and index finger , and you ’d honestly think that I ’d been hold it in a gimbal from how unchanging the footage was after the fact . It should be point out that I filmed the majority of my content on the ‘ eminent ’ stabilisation way , which pose just below the ‘ Max ’ choice , should you need something more heavy tariff for cycle riding or running .
One of the most oculus - catching claims Insta360 made during the launch of the Go 3 was that it could fritter for 50 % longer than the Go 2 which , if you ’re trying to get in a daytime ’s worth of filming without reaching for a stamp battery pack or charging detail , is a vast profits .
accord to Insta360 , you’re able to get 45 arcminute of filming from the Go 3 itself , but that can be bumped up to a whopping 170 minutes when the Action Pod is brought into the fold . The 45 - minute claim seems dead valid as a 30 - minute shoot brought the electric battery down to 33 % , leaving more than enough leave in the storage tank to reach that German mark .
While I was n’t able to commemorate for nearly three hours straight to test the Action Pod , I will say that it never leave me with any battery anxiety when vlogging , control that you ’ll be able-bodied to capture batch of content for any longer video you require to run up together , let alone short , TikTok fashion pieces .
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Should you buy it?
At just 35 constant of gravitation , nothing comes close to the portability of the Insta360 Go 3 , even when it ’s put up in the sequent Action Pod .
While the image calibre of the Go 3 is much improved , it still does n’t contravene on that of high - end action television camera like the GoPro Hero 12 .
Final Thoughts
The Insta360 Go 3 is n’t just a great follow - up to Insta360 ’s former thumb - sized activity camera , it ’s also a gravid vlogging camera in its own right and one that I think is certain to find an audience amongst unveiling - level capacity creators . There ’s even a shell to be made for it being a solid second gadget for professionals who demand serviceable type B - drum roll for big project .
The one obvious downside ( aside from the 2.7 K seizure roof ) is that the Go 3 still has plenty of way for improvement where low - ignitor filming is concerned , and if dark - time shoot are more your bag then I urge opting for theInsta360 Ace Proinstead . There ’s also a noticeable price bump to deal with which , at £ 379.99 is more expensive than last - generation flagships like theGoPro Hero 11(if you know where to front ) .
Still , if you ’re happy to spend a little more and you ’re not that interested in low-spirited - igniter filming then you ’ll find hatful to love in the Insta360 Go 3 .
Trusted Score
How we test
We exhaustively screen every action television camera we review . We ’ll always tell you what we incur and we never , ever , take money to go over a product .
FAQs
Yes , the Insta360 app is usable on both iOS and Android phones .
No , you may press the button on the front of the Insta360 Go 3 to start filming , even when the Action Pod is n’t around .
Full Specs
