Much like the Gen Z slang term “lit,” the new gear launches announced by GoPro today represent both an incremental evolution — and a full-circle return to accessible camera products.
After all, I have plenty of early 2000s memories of my fellow Millennials using “lit” (as in “really cool”) to describe everything from college parties to weekends at the climbing crag. Yet the young tastemakers of TikTok and other social media platforms have embraced the word as their own.
Now, GoPro hopes this latest generation of content creators will also embrace new cameras from a brand founded by a Gen Xer in the early 2000s.
Its slate of new gear launching today includes the Lit Hero, a lower-cost “lifestyle” camera for more casual videographers — rather than the extreme athletes that have often defined GoPro. There’s also the Max2, the brand’s new 360-degree camera. With major improvements to video quality, it may finally compete with Insta360 as a compelling buy for outdoor creators.
Finally, there’s the Fluid Pro AI gimbal. It arrives at the bottom of the list of GoPro’s announcements. But with automatic subject tracking, it could also make a big splash among dedicated professionals.
Let’s dig into the details.
GoPro Lit Hero: Details
In a video presentation for GoPro’s new cameras, the brand’s presenters made a few too many “lit” jokes, making their self-awareness of the branding abundantly clear.
A showcase of the camera showed a young woman snapping colorful photos and taking video while at a carnival with friends — hardly the extreme sport focus that GoPro has long embodied. The camera costs $270, a significantly lower price tag than the $400 Hero 13 Black that remains the brand’s core product line.
This “whatever, whenever” camera, as GoPro evidently likes to call it, is lightweight and compact, weighing just 93 g. It records video at 4K resolution at up to 60 frames per second. Photos clock in at 12 megapixels in a 4:3 aspect ratio, allowing for a variety of cropping options to suit various social media platforms.
Though not as rugged as options like the Hero 13 Black, it’s still waterproof to 16 feet, and built with legendary GoPro durability, the brand said.
A built-in light allows for recording even in complete darkness, according to GoPro. “The built-in light expands your creative options and allows for a very fun ‘retro vibes’ look to your photos and videos compared to the sometimes ‘too stark’ look of smartphones,” the press release said.
The small camera also offers 2x slo-motion capture and a battery that can record continuously for over 100 minutes at its highest video setting.
GoPro MAX2: Details
Last year, GoPro launched the MAX, its first foray into the 360-degree camera space. However, the camera’s resolution and other specs couldn’t quite compete with the 8K resolution of Insta360, a Chinese company that has quickly become one of the preferred brands for this growing market.
But with the MAX2, GoPro aims to surpass the competition. It’s the “only True 8K 360 video capture camera on the market, capturing up to 21% more resolution than the competition for superior detail and sharpness,” the brand said in a press release.
Advanced users can use GP-Log to maximize the dynamic range and details of footage. More significantly, the MAX2 offers “Twist-and-Go Replaceable Lenses” made from extremely durable, water-repelling optical glass. Apparently, they function just like a normal camera lens: they just twist and lock without tools or calibration.
And those aren’t the only features to make this camera stand out from the crowd. Photo resolution reaches 29 megapixels, while GoPro Labs, the brand’s firmware, unlocks bitrates up to 300Mbps, and other advanced features. It also offers 360 stereo audio with advanced wind-noise reduction.
It’s also the only 360 camera with built-in GPS, the brand said. With new camera modes, 16 mounting possibilities, and waterproofing, there are tons of features here to explore. However, details on battery life weren’t immediately available to us. The MAX2 costs $500 — that’s $50 less than Insta360’s current flagship model: the X5.
GoPro Fluid Pro AI: Details
Automatic subject tracking, as seen in drones like the HOVERAir, is a next-level feature that’s already transforming photography and videography.
And that’s exactly what GoPro is offering content creators with Fluid Pro AI, a subject tracking gimbal designed for GoPro cameras, smartphones, and point-and-shoot cameras weighing up to 400 g.
This 3-Axis Gimbal uses interchangeable mounts, allowing you to attach your camera, which will then follow your movements while you record — no button pushing required. It locks onto your face or body and keeps you in the frame. The gimbal has 18 hours of runtime and also doubles as an external power bank. It costs $230.
New GoPro Product Availability
Many GoPro fans had hoped for an announcement about the Hero Black 14, or another model in the Hero line. There’s no news yet on that front, but shipping for the new slate of products outlined above will happen over the next month.
According to GoPro, you can count on September 30 shipping for MAX2, and October 21 shipping for both the Lit Hero and Fluid Pro AI gimbal. So even without the Hero Black 14, GoPro loyalists and other content creators may find themselves in for a very Merry Christmas.
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