DJI
Finest for low mild
The Osmo Motion 4 boasts one of many largest sensors that you will discover on an Motion digital camera right now, and that makes it glorious for low-light recording. It additionally presents drastically elevated waterproofing.
GoPro
Finest for decision
$349 $500 Save $151
The Hero 11 Black presents larger resolutions and body charges, which makes it among the finest motion cameras in daylight. Nonetheless, when the solar goes down, it may’t fairly match the Motion 4’s efficiency.
The GoPro Hero 11 Black has been the most well-liked motion digital camera in the marketplace since its launch final 12 months, however now, a brand new challenger has appeared, the DJI Osmo Motion 4.
DJI’s newest digital camera packs an enormous sensor, however does that equate to a massively improved picture? We had been eager to seek out out, and so we have been testing the 2 cameras side-by-side to see the place they excel.
Specs, worth and availability
The GoPro Hero 11 Black launched on September 14 2022, with an MSRP of $499.99, or $399.98 with a GoPro subscription. Nonetheless, it has been diminished within the time since. The Hero 11 Black now retails for $399 with no subscription required.
The DJI Osmo Motion 4 launched on August 2 2023 with an MSRP of $399 – the very same worth because the Hero 11 Black. It is a important bump in pricing in comparison with the Osmo Motion 3, which launched at $329 in September 2022.
Design
Each cameras have the standard motion digital camera type issue, and so they’re very related in measurement and weight. The DJI Osmo Motion 4 is barely lighter, and barely smaller, too, however in use, you are unlikely to really feel a lot of a distinction – except you are attaching it to a drone.
Each fashions have a rugged design that is constructed to resist knocks and bumps, and each have replaceable lens covers that may be swapped out in the event that they get scratched. The GoPro has a rubberised really feel to its housing, whereas the Motion 4 is difficult plastic. We’re unsure if this makes a lot of a distinction to the sturdiness, although, because the glass screens are most inclined to break – as evidenced by our Hero 11, which had an unlucky encounter with a rock a couple of months again.
They’re each waterproof with out the necessity for extra housings, nonetheless, the Motion 4 can stand up to dives of as much as 18 metres, nearly doubling the 10-metre ranking of the Hero 11 Black.
The Hero 11 has fold-out mounting tabs on its base, and these permit it to hook up with an enormous number of equipment and mounts from GoPro and third-party producers. The Osmo Motion 4 has a quick-release magnetic latching mount system, and as soon as linked to its baseplate it may additionally join to those identical equipment. Each mounting choices are good, however we favor DJI’s resolution because it’s faster to modify between mounts when you put money into a few baseplates.
There are giant touchscreen shows on the rear of each cameras, and smaller front-facing screens, too. The Motion 4’s entrance display can also be a touchscreen, so you should utilize it to regulate settings, whereas the GoPro’s entrance display is for viewing solely. It might sound superfluous to have a touchscreen on each side, however in observe, it turns out to be useful extra usually than you’d anticipate. It is nice when your digital camera is mounted in a clumsy spot.
Video and picture seize
The Hero 11 Black wins on the subject of resolutions and body charges, permitting you to shoot at as much as 5.3K 60fps and as much as 240fps in 2.7K. Comparatively, the Osmo Motion 4 tops out at 4K 120fps, and you will must drop right down to 1080p for 240fps recording.
Nonetheless, the Osmo Motion 4 has a a lot bigger sensor, and because of this it excels in dimly lit conditions. In the case of taking pictures at evening, there is not any contest, it outpaces the Hero 11 Black in all regards.
Each cameras can seize 10-bit color and each provide flat profiles for color grading in publish. They each provide extraordinarily huge FOV choices, however they’re achieved in barely alternative ways. The Osmo Motion 4 has a wider lens, so its ultra-wide FOV has extra linear distortion, the Hero 11 Black’s HyperView makes use of software program magic to squish the 8:7 sensor right into a 16:9 body, which leads to extra uncommon distortion. Each look good, in our opinion, and are equally huge, so it is purely down to private choice.
The identical is true for the picture captured in daylight, each of those cameras provide glorious picture constancy, however they only look barely totally different. The Hero 11 has extra saturated colors as customary, whereas the DJI has a extra pure look with barely larger distinction. Each look good and which one you favor is solely a matter of style.
The Hero 11 Black has a singular function that permits you to file in an almost-square 8:7 ratio, which might then be cropped into each vertical and horizontal clips for social media. The Osmo Motion 4 does not provide something related, however it may file and be mounted vertically utilizing its included mounting body.
Stabilisation, options and battery
Each cameras provide glorious in-camera stabilisation, and each will let you add further stabilisation in publish utilizing software program similar to Gyroflow. This function was beforehand lacking within the Osmo Motion 3, so it is glorious to see it included with the Motion 4.
As for which stabilisation system is best, it is exhausting to say, each DJI’s RockSteady and GoPro’s HyperSmooth do an unbelievable job of smoothing out digital camera shakes. We predict the DJI digital camera does a barely higher job of stabilising footage in low mild, probably owing to its bigger sensor, however each are comparable within the daytime.
The GoPro has the sting with horizon levelling, providing 360-degree horizon-lock at as much as 5.3K 30fps. In the meantime, the Osmo Motion 4 can solely lock the horizon at as much as 2.7K 60fps, or 45 levels of horizon-balancing at 4K 60fps and beneath.
Each cameras have detachable batteries, and each cost through USB-C. There’s not an enormous distinction in precise runtime, however the DJI battery has a barely larger capability than the Hero 11 pack. In the event you’re taking pictures in excessive climate situations, it is value noting that the DJI battery is rated to resist temperatures as much as minus 20 Celsius, whereas the GoPro battery is just rated for minus 10.
The cameras each provide an analogous set of options, together with timelapse and hyperlapse modes, in addition to the flexibility to dwell stream, use the digital camera as a webcam and pair with a companion app. Nonetheless, every digital camera excels in several areas.
The GoPro app locks some options behind a paywall, which will be irritating, however essentially the most generally used options can be found without cost. We’re notably keen on the light-painting mode, which lets you simply create animated timelapses of individuals drawing within the air with sparklers or glow sticks, there is not any such mode out there on the Motion 4.
GoPro additionally provides you the flexibility to use overlays of the digital camera’s GPS information, so you may embed issues like your velocity and altitude into your movies. The Motion 4 permits you to do that, too, however it solely works when you have the GPS Bluetooth distant accent, which prices an extra $79.
DJI has a function referred to as InvisStick, which masks out your selfie stick in movies, giving an impact that is akin to movies from a 360 digital camera. It isn’t fairly seamless, and you will undoubtedly see some blurring and artefacts, however it’s a neat trick that is not supplied by GoPro.
Conclusion
The GoPro Hero 11 Black and DJI Osmo Motion 4 are two of one of the best motion cameras in the marketplace right now, and so they’re each value contemplating if you happen to’re searching for a rugged small type issue digital camera.
The correct digital camera for you all will depend on how and what you wish to shoot. In the case of pure picture high quality, we favor the GoPro’s color rendition and high-resolution seize, no less than within the daytime.
GoPro
$349 $500 Save $151
When it will get darkish, the DJI Osmo Motion 4 is the clear winner. It is a lot extra able to capturing particulars in dimly lit eventualities, and that is all due to its bigger sensor.
DJI
In the event you primarily shoot indoors or after darkish, then the Motion 4 is the digital camera for you. However, if you happen to primarily shoot within the daylight, the GoPro presents higher sluggish movement and extra versatile taking pictures with its distinctive 8:7 sensor.
