GoPro Hero 5 Black

GoPro Hero 5 Black long-term review

Going on holiday is always the perfect time to test out an action camera such as the GoPro Hero 5 Black.

So when I booked in two weeks in Vietnam, I figured it would be opportune to break out what I initially described as GoPro’s “best camera to date” for another spin.

During those two weeks, I used the GoPro Hero 5 Black in a number of different scenarios and with a range of mounts. It followed me into the sea and hotel pool. I strapped it to my chest and stuck it to my helmet while riding a moped through cities and rough terrain, and I shot handheld while under duress from some rather aggressive monkeys.

Thankfully, my experience of using the Hero 5 Black constantly for two weeks hasn’t changed my opinion much from my original review. This is still the culmination of years of GoPro’s experience with action cameras, designed to be a companion for both adrenaline junkies and those afflicted by the travel bug alike.

Not needing to worry about dropping the Hero 5 Black into an accompanying waterproof case is a time-saver you don’t really appreciate until you’re constantly moving around or taking impromptu dips in the middle of a hot and sweaty Vietnam day. It’s a far more seamless experience compared to when I took the Yi 4K Action Camera to Bali last year, for example.

The dual microphones were also great when sat on a speedboat or when cruising through Ho Chi Minh City on a moped. Wind noise is far more controlled compared to certain other rival action cameras. When capturing the sound of your environment is just as important as the visuals, it makes a big difference.

It’s not all perfect, though. My issues with the touchscreen responsiveness still remain, even though there have been firmware updates since my original review – some of which were supposedly designed to address the issue. Sometimes taps at the screen aren’t registered, but more often my problem was with swiping into the screen from the edges.

I also had very occasional SD card error messages, which meant that recordings were abruptly stopped – not ideal. I’m not sure what was causing it, either. Powering off the camera and turning it back on again would fix the issue. Fortunately, this only happened twice.

Still, aside from a few niggles, the GoPro Hero 5 Black is just really easy to use, especially when you’re travelling. The USB-C charging was also really handy, as I just carried around a portable power bank to take care of charging my smartphone and the two Hero 5 Blacks I was carrying.

GoPro’s suite of portable apps is great, too. In the bit of downtime I had, I spent it transferring images and video to my phone and then knocking together an edit on Quik to share on social media. It made keeping people at home updated really easy (also known as #holidayspam). Updates including the new QuikStories are also great, and it’s pleasing to see GoPro’s continued support with improvements and fixes.

As another aside, if talk of GoPro’s market misfortunes is true, that news hadn’t reached the considerable number of travellers I came across all sporting GoPro’s latest and greatest. Of course that’s just anecdotal evidence, but it was interesting to see.

With the subsequent release of the excellent GoPro Hero 6 Black, the Hero 5 Black has now seen a price reduction to £299, making it a great choice if you don’t want to stretch to the latest flagship. It’s still a fantastic action camera.

What is the GoPro Hero 5 Black?

The Hero 5 Black is the GoPro camera option for those who want the best action cam available right out of the box. You can almost think of the Hero 5 Black as GoPro’s ‘Greatest Hits’ compilation. It takes the best features from previous-generation GoPro cameras and combines them together in a single unit – and adds a smattering of new functions too.

What’s the recipe for the best GoPro camera? Take the same 4K resolution, 30fps video of the Hero 4 Black, throw in the touchscreen display that was a feature of the Hero 4 Silver (and only an optional extra for the more expensive Black), and mix in the built-in waterproof capabilities and improved audio performance of the original Hero Session.

Top this lot off with electronic image stabilisation (finally!), useful voice controls and GPS, and you have one superb action camera – and the best one GoPro has ever released.

GoPro Hero 5 Black – Design and Accessories

Putting aside the outlier Hero Session, the Hero 5 Black sees the first drastic re-design to GoPro’s main range of cameras, which is both good and bad; mainly good, however.

It retains its familiar rectangular shape, but the Hero 5 Black is now coated in a grippy, rubberised material. It’s far more rounded at the corners, too.

The dimensions of the camera have changed, which could mean it might not play well with a select few older accessories and mounts. The handheld gimbal I used with the Hero 4 Black, for example, can no longer hold the Hero 5 Black since the frame obscures the camera’s lens slightly.

This is because the Hero 5 Black is a few millimetres bigger in all dimensions than the Hero 4 Black when outside of its waterproof case. Most noticeable is its depth, especially when you take into account its protruding lens.

The reason is understandable, though: there’s now a 2in touchscreen display on the rear. The Touch BacPac was an optional accessory for the Hero 4 Black and added to its size.

In addition, the Hero 4 Black was waterproof only in the dedicated case, whereas the new camera is waterproof without the need for any additional housing. It’s safe to take the Hero 5 Black to depths of 10m without a worry. If you want to go deeper, then there is a waterproof housing available as an optional extra.

To keep the internals of the camera free of water, GoPro has more greatly reinforced the battery, microSD and connection port covers compared to previous models to keep them sealed. A little effort is required to access the micro-HDMI and new USB Type-C charging port in particular, since you need to depress a fiddly release button on the side to open the catch before sliding it open.

GoPro Hero 5 Black – Controls and Screen

The most notable change is that the typical three-button control scheme – a mainstay of GoPro’s cameras up to this point – is now no more. On the side of the camera you’ll find a button for power and jumping between shooting modes, and there’s a shutter button on the top. The small LCD panel remains on the front and, if you do want to change settings while viewing the camera from the front, you can dive into the familiar menu by holding down both buttons together.

The 2-inch display is of a decent size but an even larger one would have been welcome, by way of removing the thick bezel around the current display. The display is nice and bright for viewing outdoors.

The menu system has been completely revamped and is more intuitive than the older, touch-based control systems of past GoPro cameras. It draws from the kind of experience that is familiar from a smartphone, with swipes in from the sides to bring in menus and options.

For example, dragging down from the top provides access to the connection settings for pairing the camera with a smartphone or Bluetooth remote control, as well as giving access to the camera preferences. You can also lock the touchscreen from here, which you’ll need to do when entering the water as it can otherwise cause accidental interactions.

Swiping from the left of the shooting screen takes you to the gallery, where you can see all of your captured media in a grid. Tap on one to view it full-screen, or swipe left and right in a film strip. Again, all very familiar and intuitive. A swipe down at any point will take you straight back to the shooting screen.

Swipe in from the right of the shooting screen and you’ll gain quick access to context-sensitive settings, such as ProTune, video stabilisation and low-light modes. GoPro told me that its decision to make accessing the ProTune mode easier is so that users would be more likely to experiment with its settings. These offer advanced video controls such as adjusting the colour, white balance and ISO, and is a mode that many professional videographers use.

The touchscreen lets you change the shooting mode, from video to capturing stills, and to change the settings for each mode – such as the resolution or frame rate. The menus on the Hero 5 Black will become familiar within a few short minutes, being far more intuitive than having to navigate the settings on the old Hero 4 Black using the small LCD panel and three-button control system.

The only complaint I have is that actions can feel a little slow to react, and the touch detection isn’t as responsive as I’d like. On occasion this delay can contribute to a feel that a touch hasn’t registered, so in prodding again you can end up changing a setting that wasn’t your intention. The camera’s underlying operating system isn’t the swiftest in that regard.

Hopefully, this will be improved with future software updates. It’s also a little tricky swiping in from the edge especially when the camera is in its frame mount.

Then of course there’s the new-fangled voice controls. The Hero 5 Black is positively multilingual, understanding commands in seven languages. You can say “GoPro start recording” or “GoPro shoot burst” and the camera will act accordingly – that is if it can hear your command. I found it could struggle in louder environments, or I’d need to really raise my voice when outdoors. GoPro is releasing an optional voice-enabled remote control that will help in these scenarios, but I do wish the microphones were more sensitive.

The front LCD displays the mode you’re in and the resolution, battery life and the storage capacity remaining while recording in that mode. There’s a red LED above this to show when the camera is capturing, as well as another on the back.