Verdict
A GoPro Hero still make more sense for single - lens recording , but for 360º video the Insta360 X4 sets the natural action camera bench mark . little , lightweight , well - built and delightfully fuss - free to utilise , it ’s a superb way to catch sporty activities .
Pros
Cons
Key Features
Introduction
Starting with theOne Xin 2019 , Insta360 ’s cristal range has revolutionised 360º TV . With its automatic stitching of two ultra - wide television camera and an uncanny ability to remove a attached selfie stick from the resulting TV clipping or pic , the X has made 360 as easy as 1 - 2 - 3 .
With the discharge of the Insta360 X4 , the range is now onto its quaternary propagation . The big draw with this fresh framework is photographic camera timber : the X4 is the first to offer8K360º video transcription , offering a substantial resolution upgrade on the 5.7 chiliad upper demarcation of theX3 .
There are further improvements elsewhere too , and Insta360 clear intends its new flagship to be the go - to 360 camera of choice for sporty types and travelling vloggers .
How does it mensurate up against its predecessor and rivals in the natural process photographic camera world ? I spent a few days in its fellowship beforehand of launch to line up out .
Design
The Insta360 X4 await much the same as old X serial tv camera : it ’s a pocket - sized , stick - shape machine with lens pointing ( and bulging ) outwards from its two larger sides .
One of these English also features a touch screen above a dyad of forcible controls : a shutter button and a clit to hertz between the various shot modes .
There are two further strong-arm button ( one for power , the other a customisable Q button for cycling fleetly through the substance abuser ’s favourite shot presets ) on one of the minute bound , while the polar one features the removable battery andUSB - Cport , both of which feature locking mechanisms and are seal off against water and debris .
The X4 is an activity camera , and it ’s intend to be used for action . While Insta360 has n’t disclosed an information science rating , it ’s rainproof to 10 m without a dive pillow slip ( or 50 m with one ) , operable in temperatures as low as -20ºC and generally sturdy enough to withstand the variety of rough discussion it might receive fix to your bicycle , railway car or stand - up paddleboard .
The exception are those bag lens of the eye , but thankfully Insta360 supplies obliterable screw - on defender for these , should you be put them in damage ’s way . punishing - obligation lens protectors are also available as an optional supernumerary , if you really want to be sure .
A standard tripod thread on the bottom admit the X4 to be climb on on all way of things , including the ubiquitous ‘ inconspicuous ’ selfie stick made by Insta360 . It ’s deserving note , however , that there ’s nothing include in the box seat that allows the tv camera to be hop on on the GoPro - panache mountain used by most action cameras . If you already own a lot of these and desire to use them , you ’ll necessitate to get hold of some form of arranger .
Screen and performance
The Insta360 X4 is used in much the same elbow room as its predecessor the X3 .
Aside from the forcible buttons , it have a tall 2.5 - inch touchscreen ( made of near - unbreakable Gorilla Glass ) and flowing UI , allowing the mass of the mount and actions to be perform via swipe and jabbing . From the homescreen , swiping from the various edges takes you to different menus . It ’s a simple system and works well .
Many people will apply the mobile app or else , however , as it allows you to remotely do all the same – plus more – on a large screen , plus edit and share your content much more easily . The app has n’t changed significantly from its previous embodiment , and I found it in general to be the best manner to control the television camera .
One feature added here is AI - based redaction , powered by the camera ’s new 5 micromillimetre chip , which analyses and reframes your videos automatically . It ’s faster than doing the job manually , of row , but I regain the results a small irregular . Sometimes the videos ( which might get a soundtrack added to them too ) look fantastic , at other times they appear odd ( it would pick out park cars to concenter on , for representative ) . So , it ’s a feature to fiddle around with rather than bank on .
Battery living has been given a huge boost . According to Insta360 , the 2290mAh power cellular telephone provides up to 135 minutes of recording sentence ( when memorialise at 5.7 K resoluteness and 30fps ) , and my testing backs this up .
This is a 66 % improvement on the X3 ’s battery life . I also left the X4 recording a star - relapse video overnight , where it perish from around 85 % to almost eat up in five hour of snapping . telling stuff .
Video and photo quality
The main draw of the Insta360 X4 is its 360º video , and I ’m happy to report that it improves upon the X3 ’s already telling screening . The power to record clips at 8 K resoluteness ( which will give the drug user a 4 K reframed video after editing ) give users the option to go for particular over frame charge per unit , while the 5.7K/60fps mood ( which results in a 1080p video after reframing ) is still splendid for delivering smooth action shot .
The X4 also offer a more standard natural process camera - style individual - lens musical mode , which records 4 thou video with a wide slant from one of the cameras . It ’s limit to 60fps however , which does put it behind the GoPro Hero 12 Black ( which records 4 K at 120fps and 5.7 K at 60fps ) when it comes to smoothness and declaration .
The X4 issue forth with superb trope stabilisation too . Its FlowState electronic stabilization renders movements supernaturally smooth and jerked meat - costless , while HorizonLock is able to keep videos unerring level even as you release the camera through 360º.
The car - stitching and selfie stick removal stay on fantabulous , even if you may still occasionally spot the seams if you look for them , and in universal the video calibre is respectable . I would n’t describe it as outstanding , however : the little sensor size and large amount of distortion from the wide - angle lens system make for some fuzziness and oddness at times , and Insta360 ’s built - in processing has a drug abuse of boosting colour at the disbursement of realism .
Overall , however , regard the sizing of the television camera and how easy it is to use , I can survive with less - than - perfect detail and colour . And users always have the selection to shoot in the flat logarithm visibility and colour place themselves for more control over the final look of the footage .
360º photos , meanwhile , can be captured in up to 72MP quality . Note that if you reframed them you will , as with videos , unavoidably lose a tidy sum of that initial file ’s detail . An HDR mode is usable , and the snap I take expect fine to me . The power to open up a 360º image in the app and spin the viewpoint in all directions is still a lot of fun .
Finally , it ’s worth observe that – as with late Insta360 cameras – there are lots of enjoyable modes to play with here . you could easily shoot slug - prison term chronological sequence with the assistance of a selfie peg - attaching spinner hold , eye - toss off meter - lapse videos of the sensation trail across the night sky or smooth hyper - lapse sequence of your sunup bike - ride to work .
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Should you buy it?
If you ’re looking to record good tone 360º picture with a lower limit of fuss , this is the camera for you . It ’s small , light , tough and prosperous to use .
If you ’re not too niggle about 360º videos , the GoPro Hero 12 Black is the action tv camera to beat . It might face in a individual focussing , but its video quality is brilliant .
Final Thoughts
The Insta360 X4 cement Insta360 as the go - to brand for 360º activeness cameras . It makes crucial melioration to battery animation and trope quality while keep back the summary , lightweight and broken ironware and superb software of its predecessors . If you do n’t own one of those and want a camera that catch all your sporty exploits – while also permit you to reframe the range of a function later – then the X4 is a heavy bargain .
At £ 500/$500 it ’s pricier than a flagship GoPro Hero , however , so those who already own anX3orX2model , or who want to put down mostly single - lens footage rather than 360º content , might be better hold off or look elsewhere . ensure out ourBest Action Cameraguide for more options .
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How we test
We thoroughly essay every action camera we review . We ’ll always tell apart you what we find and we never , ever , accept money to critique a mathematical product .
FAQs
While Insta360 has n’t disclosed an IP paygrade , it ’s waterproofed to 10 megabyte without a dive example ( or 50 m with one ) .
