GoPro Hero 5 Black: A complete guide

Looking for details on the new GoPro Hero 5 Black release date, plus features, specs, and software? Here’s what you need to know.

Earlier this week, GoPro unveiled its latest flagship action camera: the GoPro Hero 5 Black. It landed with a host of new features, a new rubberised design, and seriously impressive photography credentials.

So what can you expect from the latest GoPro action cam?

GoPro Hero 5 release date UK: October 2, 2016

GoPro Hero 5 price: £349.99 in the UK (or $399 in the US)

GoPro Hero 5 new features: 2-inch touchscreen, 4K video capture, GPS, 12MP camera

GOPRO HERO 5 – WHAT'S NEW?

Speaking at the launch, GoPro CEO Nick Woodman said: "Over the years, GoPro has become very well known for enabling amazing photos and videos. From ordinary, to extraordinary: GoPro.”

But what does that mean in terms of new features? Well, GoPro’s most expensive action cam features a 2-inch touchscreen, 4K video capture at 30fps, a 12-megapixel camera, image stabilisation and GPS.

Unfortunately, the new image stabilisation is electronic, rather than optical, which gives Sony's new Action Cam offerings, which do feature optical image stabilisation (OIS), an advantage in this area.

But, on the positive side, you can now speak to the Hero 5 Black and Hero 5 Session, as both come with voice control. That means you'll be able to use commands such as "GoPro, take photo" to snap a shot without having to press a single button. Neat!

The company has added support for seven languages, including English, German, French, Italian, Spanish and Chinese.

Perhaps the biggest improvement comes courtesy of the new rubberised design that makes the GoPro Hero 5 Black the first GoPro to be completely waterproof (to a depth of 33 feet) without a separate housing.

There are also three embedded microphones that no longer suffer from the muffled sound wrought by a waterproof housing. Better still, the GoPro software cherry picks the best sound from each microphone actively when you record, so your audio should always sound great. Plus, it records audio in full stereo.

When it comes to battery life, GoPro hasn't given an official spec, but it has been reported that the Hero 5 Black will come with a 2,800mAh cell. For comparison, the previous top-end GoPro – the Hero 4 Black – featured a 1,160mAh offering which meant shooting at 4K drained the charge fairly quickly.

If the reports are correct – we've reached out to GoPro to confirm – and the Hero 5 does come with the larger battery, that means it will have 150% more capacity than the Hero 4.

For the sake of comparison, the Hero 4 offered no waterproofing unless you used the housing, but came with Bluetooth and Wi-Fi.

It also had a 12-megapixel camera capable of shooting 4K footage at 30fps, and could snap shots with an ultra-wide, medium or narrow field of view – which makes it very similar to the new device. There was no touchscreen display, however.

GOPRO HERO 5 BLACK – WHAT'S ALL THIS ABOUT GOPRO+ IMPROVEMENTS?

GoPro also used the recent launch event to announce its new cloud connection feature that will see your Hero 5 start uploading new footage to your GoPro+ account over Wi-Fi when you put it on charge. You can then use the new GoPro+ mobile app to edit your footage.

To make this easier, GoPro has also released a new Quick Key fob that features a built-in SD card slot, so you can quickly transfer content from your camera to your smartphone.

Once you've got the footage into GoPro+, it will even create edits for you, saving you all the hard work.

AND THEN THERE'S THE HERO 5 SESSION

GoPro also announced the GoPro Hero 5 Session, a smaller spin-off device that boasts many of its bigger brother's features. This includes 4K video capture, 10-megapixel photos, voice control, and enhanced low-light performance.

The 4K video capture is exactly the same as the feature on the larger camera, too, capable of shooting UHD at 30 fps.

On top of that, the Session also retains the waterproofing up to 33 metres from the Hero 5 Black, and comes with the same electronic image stabilisation.

All of which might have you wondering what the difference between the two is. Well, there’s no screen, no GPS and no RAW or WDR modes on the Session, which naturally means the price will be lower.

GOPRO HERO 5 BLACK – PRICE AND RELEASE DATE

You'll be able to get your hands on the Hero 5 Black and the Hero 5 Session from October 2, with the former set to launch with a £349.99/$399 price tag.

The Session, on the other hand, will go on sale for £249.99/$299 – £100/$100 less than the full-fat Hero 5.