The GoPro Hero 11 is, of course, just as robust and watertight as its predecessor. Immerse yourself in water, mud or snow. It's all possible, down to a depth of 10m. Plus, the camera features a scratch-resistant lens cap for even more protection. The cap can be easily replaced as and when necessary. The updated Enduro battery included with the GoPro enhances the camera's performance. It now lasts up to 38% longer in cold temperatures. It is also faster-charging, giving you more time to immerse yourself in the snow. The face of the camera houses the lens, which is compatible with GoPro’s ultra wide-angle Max Lens Mod, a microphone and a 25 x 25mm front-facing, non-touch colour LCD. A second microphone sits adjacent to the shutter button atop the device while a third is built inside a special water-draining inlet beneath the side power/mode button. You can also benefit from hours of enjoyment with the new nighttime effects. Three new time-lapse modes have been added. With Star Trails you can capture the light trails in the sky. With Light Trails you get the same effect, but with vehicles. With Light Painting you can create brush stroke effects with moving light. Rather than using GoPro’s classic 4:3 native aspect ratio, the Hero 11 comes with a nearly-square 8:7 chip. Combined with the camera’s high-resolution 5.3K recording options, this should allow creators to cut landscape and vertical videos from the same take.

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The revamped GoPro also features the tried & trusted power tools. Never miss a golden moment with HindSight. With this, up to 30 seconds worth of footage is captured before you even start recording. Set the GoPro to Scheduled Capture. This ensures the GoPro automatically powers on and records a time-lapse video up to 24 hours in advance. Record video clips lasting 15s to 3hrs with ease, with Duration Capture. Running with LCD screen tech, while it isn’t as inky as the AMOLED on the DJI Action 2, it’s bright and easy to view outdoors which is always handy for an action cam. video shot at maximum quality at 60fps took between 25 and 28 minutes before recording stopped, while 120fps content lasted a little shy of 14 minutes. All these tests were conducted with no airflow, in other words, when the camera was stationary. Action recording will take longer to overheat as movement promotes air circulation. Expand your camera's functionality with your favourite tools, e.g. Media Mod for adding accessories, such as a microphone and lighting. The accessories for the GoPro Hero 9 and Hero 10 are compatible with the Hero 11. Control the GoPro to your liking. The options are two-fold: point & shoot or full camera control. With full control you can make manual adjustments to the modes and settings. The point & shoot option is configured with versatile recording settings that are suitable for the majority of recordings. Select an angle, press the button and the camera does the rest.The camera is also compatible with GoPro’s smartphone app. In fact, you’ll need to first pair it with your smartphone before you can complete the initial setup process. Available for Android and iOS devices, the app allows you to control the camera remotely, edit your footage on the go and upload your clips directly to social media. The new HyperView view mode is also very interesting. Squashing the full 8:7 sensor image into a standard 16:9 frame, this mode is able to create videos with an ultra-wide feel, compressing the vertical plane and giving the impression that the horizontal plane has been stretched. While this won’t work for every shot – the distortion is quite noticeable on people and faces – it does add to the intensity of fast-paced action.

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For maximum freedom to crop footage and photos with minimum quality loss, no action camera can do what the GoPro Hero 11 does. It would have been nice to see some low light and battery life performance improvements and, for the cost, current Hero 9 and 10 owners may struggle to justify upgrading. Those looking to invest in the best, however, can end their search here. If GoPro just made an 8:7 sensor, that would have been smart, but it’s gone one step further. The GoPro Quik app for iOS and Android makes cropping your videos as easy as cropping your photos. Now the game really has changed.

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There’s also a new HyperView mode, designed to take full advantage of the Hero 11’s taller sensor. HyperView takes the full 8:7 image and squeezes it down into a standard 16:9 frame in-camera. The result is a super-distorted, super-wide view that GoPro is marketing as “ultra-immersive” with an “epic feel”. As part of this mission, whenever we review a product we send the company a series of questions to help us gauge and make transparent the impact the device has on the environment.

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I will note, however, that it would be nice to have some in-camera 16:9 grid lines to overlay whilst filming in 8:7. As it is, GoPro only offers some basic rule of thirds guides, which leaves you guessing as to how to frame your shots. The sensor’s near-square native aspect ratio enables horizontal and vertical clips to be easily cropped out of the same shot. While I’d still recommend shooting a little wide to maximise your framing options, the camera’s super high resolution 5.3K recordings give you plenty to work with. Choose between 8 or 10-bit colours when capturing your adventures. The GoPro Hero 11 features in excess of 1 billion colours, and with 10-bits you can create enhanced colour depth, smoother gradations and more realism in your photos and videos.