14 Adventurous Performances of the GoPro HD Hero2 Camera

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1. GoPro cameras are the first choice of anyone who loves to capture the excitement of adventure sports, from pro athletes to race teams to rad surfers.

2. The GroPro HD Hero2 is a significant upgrade of the original HD Hero, with a huge jump in resolution, from a 5-megapixel to an 11-megapixel sensor, plus a processor with double the speed. With this additional resolution and processor speed, the HD Hero2 also performs much better in low light, which is often a complaint of those who use these types of cameras.

3. With the new HD Hero2, you can shoot still photos with the time-lapse mode at just a half-second apart. You’ll also find a new continuous-shooting feature that is capable of recording 10 photos at 11 megapixels in only 1 second.

4. You’re sure to see and shoot all the action around you with the HD Hero2’s very wide 170-degree and medium-wide 127-degree fields of view (FOV). Plus, there is a narrower 90-degree FOV just for video.

5. The letters, HD, are not in the name just for show, as this new GoPro action camera records 1080p HD at 30fps, 960 tall HD at 48fps and 720p HD at 60fps. When the action is particularly hot, furious and fast, you can capture it in slow motion at 60fps and an amazing 120fps in WVGA (480p).

6. The people at GoPro also realized they had to give action photographers a user interface that they could view quickly for the right information. They dropped the coded messages, such as “R5” to designate you were shooting in 1080p at 30fps and replaced it with a straightforward readout, “1080-30.” The camera’s display also shows the estimated record time/storage space at whatever resolution you are shooting. GoPro has also eliminated any possibility of not knowing when the HD Hero2 is recording, by adding top and rear LED recording lights.

7. The HD Hero2 is upgraded with an HDMI and external microphone ports, and the AV and Mini-USB connections remain where they were on the original version of this camera.

8. You can select from three versions of the GoPro HD Hero2: Outdoor, Motorsports and Surf. The kit bundles for all three include GoPro’s famous camera housing that makes the HD Hero2 waterproof to 197 feet (60m) as well as shockproof, plus 1 HD skeleton backdoor, 1 rechargeable Li-ion battery, 1 USB cable and a variety of mounting hardware.

9. The Outdoor model is specifically packaged with other useful accessories, so you can wear or mount the HD Hero2 to a mountain bike or kayak. These include 1 vented helmet strap, 1 head strap, 2 curved surface adhesive mounts, 2 flat surface adhesive mounts and 1 three-way pivot arm.

10. The Motorsport Kit includes what you need to attach the camera to a windshield or an exterior surface of a car, without affecting the finish. You’ll secure the HD Hero2 tightly and record some intense stills or footage with the aid of 1 suction cup mount, 1 J-hook buckle and the same curved surface and flat surface adhesive mounts and three-way pivot arm in the Outdoor Kit.

11. For surfer dudes of either gender, the Surf Edition of the HD Hero2 comes with special accessories for any righteous waves: 2 surfboard mounts, 1 FCS-compatible camera mount and 1 floaty backdoor.

12. GoPro gave the HD Hero2 the same versatility as the earlier model, making it compatible with all the GoPro accessories.

13. Scheduled for a February 2012 release is two new GoPro devices: the Wi-Fi BacPac™ and Wi-Fi Remote that work with the original HD Hero and new HD Hero2. Use the BacPac with either camera to control video recording remotely, at quite a distance, from the Wi-Fi Remote, your smartphone, tablet or computer, once it is loaded with the free GoPro App. Live video streaming is also possible with the HD Hero2 and the Wi-Fi BacPac through any available Wi-Fi or mobile hot spot. You can even control two live video streams, with one recorded to the camera’s SD card and another sent to various devices and the Web. (The original HD Hero camera does not have this dual-streaming capability.)

The Wi-Fi Remote provides you with even more versatility, as this waterproof and rugged device allows you to control as many as 50 HD Hero2 cameras, simultaneously.

14.All three GoPro HD Hero2 kits (Outdoor, Motorsports and Surf) retail for $299 each. As of the writing of this PhotographyTalk.com article, GoPro had not yet released prices for the Wi-Fi BacPac and Wi-Fi Remote.

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