GoPro Hero5 Session: Ready, get set, shoot

Its compact form, solid build quality and just-about-right weight is impressive

I was dehydrated, sweating profusely and felt like I would collapse any moment. But this was expected. After all I was trying to review an action camera at the height of summer. Things had started well with the GoPro Hero5 Session (Rs 29,500). Its compact form, solid build quality and just-about-right weight had impressed me. But I had to plug in a USB Type-C cable (not bundled) to charge, a Class 10 microSD card (not bundled) to shoot and the GoPro Capture app on an Android phone to use the camera. Whew! 

First, I set the Session to shoot at full HD, hit the shutter and went for a jog. I’d already set up voice control, but it proved ineffective on the noisy roads of Delhi. It worked quite well once I entered our neighbourhood park. I was impressed with the image stabilisation the Session offered, especially during the rather ungainly steps I took over an uneven track — this was especially apparent when I viewed it against the 4K footage, which offers no image stabilisation. Videos captured were great at both resolutions, except in a dark corner of the park, where it took some time to focus. Also, this camera is meant to be mounted on your body. Mounted on a bike’s handlebars, I found the image stabilisation to be a lot less effective. The lack of a viewfinder or live screen means clicking still photos is that much more difficult. 

The Session is water-proof till 10 m. Shooting in 4K, I was able to get an hour’s worth from a fully charged battery; one can stretch it by one more hour if one is shooting at lower resolutions. But if you’re looking at five hours worth of trekking, you have to connect it to a battery bank. If you’re shooting under water, there’s no way you can do this since this involves opening the flap that covers both the microSD card as well as the USB Type-C port.

The GoPro Hero5 Session is for those who want to enter the action camera space, but aren’t ready to shell out a bundle.