Shenzhen-headquartered Insta360, which is now the undisputed leader in 360 cameras, is back with a new camera, but this one doesn’t capture 360-degree videos. Instead, it’s a rather straightforward action camera, but one with very good hardware.
The Insta360 Ace Pro, on sale now starting at $449, brings a 1/1.3-inch image sensor, which is tied with the DJI Action 4 for the largest in the action camera industry right now, but Insta360 also adds Leica lenses to the equation.
The large sensor and Leica optics improve image quality significantly for an action camera, producing videos that are brighter and more vivid.
Stabilization is superb as expected from an Insta360 product—this is a camera that allows you to film while walking and running and still get jitter-free videos. The software adds a new A.I. Warp feature this year that uses generative A.I. to turn footage shot with the Ace Pro into something like an anime or cyberpunk video. See samples below.
The A.I. isn’t done on device; you have to send the footage to Insta360’s servers to get the results, and it takes close to a minute. Still, it’s a lot of fun.
The hardware design is similar to previous action cameras: the Ace Pro is a small cube-like plasticky device with a 2.7-inch flip out screen that gets bright. There’s a secondary smaller screen on the front of the camera that can display monochrome text (to see which shooting mode you’re in). Controls are self explanatory—there’s a red record/shutter button, a power button, and the screen supports taps and swipes.
The camera can shoot 4K videos up to 120fps (frames-per-second) or 8K videos at 30fps. I mostly shot in 4K/30 (the default setting) and footage looked sharp and stable. Exposure and dynamic range have been improved significantly from previous Insta360 cameras, mostly due to the improved optics and also maturing software.
The Ace Pro is waterproof up to 30 meters, which means it can be used as a dive camera. Insta360 designed a magnetic lock base that allows the camera to be taken on or off very fast (under a second), but is also secure thanks to a locking mechanism on top of the magnetic attachment.
Weighing 7oz (or 207g) the Ace Pro is lightweight and easy to carry. While the price could be a bit high for average consumers, Insta360 is selling a standard Ace (without the Pro) that loses the Leica optics and uses a smaller image sensor. That entry level camera is priced at $370. But for adventurers and solo content creators, the Ace Pro is a good option.
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