Insta360 - Ace Pro 1

The ace pro 1 did great, no heat issues, while I was travelling last year in the US virgin islands. I'll be back on a different beach in a couple of weeks. I'll try to overheat the 2.

The difference is that the gopro 11, or any other gopro since, have inferior video quality compared to DJI action 3/4/5 or Insta360 ace pro 1 and 2. Gopros are inferior in quality for a while now in lowlight and also in good light conditions.

Acepro one na lang bilhin mo kasi mag-2nd hand ka pa..

I use GoPro hero 12 with digipack refuel battery inside a t-housing aluminum housing. I have a macro lense magnetic mount that I pop on and off at will when needed. On top of my cradle I have the insta360 Ace pro for lower light footage and a redundancy. Depending on the dive site. I'll use GoPro footage for shorts or clips, or if I'm in a place with a ton of different colors I'll use the 8:7 resolution for full frame shots, and use insta360 for entire dive. I have Ace pro 1, the Ace pro 2 has a feature where the side button is programmable, so a zoom macro is possible and the Ace pro zoom doesn't lose resolution like the gopros do. I however not using the Ace pro 2 since I saw one YouTube video where it struggled with purple light when the pro 1 didn't, it only happened once but that's enough for me to pass since I do UV lights on reef night dives. I was gonna upgrade to full slr setup till I witnessed a dude with a Sony a1 housing flood, pretty sure I heard him crying underwater. So the GoPro/insta360 combo works best for me

I use both GoPro, 10,12, and Ace pro 1 on dives. I use Ace pro 1 for recording entire dive. And GoPro for highlights for lack of better term. Push come to shove and I had to choose one, it would be the insta360 Ace pro 1. Im about a week removed from trip to Cozumel and the Ace pro just performs better, especially on night dives and insanely well with UV night dives. And it doesn't overheat like GoPro. One caveat. I have an aluminum housing that fits GoPro with the battery pack, so for deep dives, or extended dive times that would be my go to, those options aren't really available for Ace pro.

I have the Ace Pro 1 and the GoPro 10 12 13, depending what kind of footage you're going for will depend on which camera to get. All around I would go with the Ace Pro 2. The clarity Zoom is lossless, you can get wet lenses that provide immaculate macro and wide angle shots. Ace Pro 2 has underwater mode, unfortunately it can only be on or off cannot be turned on at will underwater as of yet. However if you are doing some very lengthy Dives, like Tech Dives over an hour and so, GoPros about the only one that can do that with tea housing and the extended battery pack. That housing also has macro lens, but that setup kind of sucks. The DJI action series comes pretty close to the Ace Pro 2, but does have some soft edges when it comes to the wet lenses. If you want good examples the guy I follow is Sean Elliott in Australian diver on YouTube.

Depending on what kind of diving you are doing can change which camera. I personally own. GoPro 10/12/13, insta360 Ace pro 2. I used to own a paralenz and Ace pro 1, And I have used DJI action, (not latest model). I also used a 360 camera, I hate those personally so I don't even remember which one If your looking for an extended dive or going ultra deep like 90 meters and want to record the entire dive. then GoPro is about the only one with accessories to allow that. Other then that, GoPro ain't the scuba king anymore and I would pass My current goto is the Ace pro 2. The normal housing has been record at something like 70 meters, (it's on a deep wreck diver channel). The clarity zoom and underwater mode paired with wet lens is incredible footage for an action camera. Yet to see it beat. The DJI comes real close, but they gotta fix those soft edges. (Again, haven't used newest model but I heard they are still there. I also do UV light shooting on reefs on night dives. GoPro is useless, the Ace pro 2 is best of the action cams for this . DJI was ok at this, not as good at Ace pro with the UV, honestly my Samsung ultra 24 phone was pretty damn good with this to The DJI I initially skipped because they had a bit rate problem on launch that has since been patched. Between the soft edges and lackluster UV performance, I probably won't be switching to it. One more to consider is the dive volk phone case. I've used one. It nice, the membrane allows full access to phone functions, the shot quality is excellent, wet lenses available, good night shots. My only drawback preventing me from using that full time us phone memory Cheers .

Depending on what kind of diving you are doing can change which camera. I personally own. GoPro 10/12/13, insta360 Ace pro 2. I used to own a paralenz and Ace pro 1, And I have used DJI action, (not latest model). I also used a 360 camera, I hate those personally so I don't even remember which one If your looking for an extended dive or going ultra deep like 90 meters and want to record the entire dive. then GoPro is about the only one with accessories to allow that. Other then that, GoPro ain't the scuba king anymore and I would pass My current goto is the Ace pro 2. The normal housing has been record at something like 70 meters, (it's on a deep wreck diver channel). The clarity zoom and underwater mode paired with wet lens is incredible footage for an action camera. Yet to see it beat. The DJI comes real close, but they gotta fix those soft edges. (Again, haven't used newest model but I heard they are still there. I also do UV light shooting on reefs on night dives. GoPro is useless, the Ace pro 2 is best of the action cams for this . DJI was ok at this, not as good at Ace pro with the UV, honestly my Samsung ultra 24 phone was pretty damn good with this to The DJI I initially skipped because they had a bit rate problem on launch that has since been patched. Between the soft edges and lackluster UV performance, I probably won't be switching to it. One more to consider is the dive volk phone case. I've used one. It nice, the membrane allows full access to phone functions, the shot quality is excellent, wet lenses available, good night shots. My only drawback preventing me from using that full time us phone memory Cheers .

I have GoPro 10/12/13. And insta360 Ace pro, 90% filming while scuba, with occasional daughters recital. I noticed a significant difference from 10-12, also huge noticable effect for some reason in the GoPro labs results as well. I did not notice that much of a different 12-13 and for some reason I'm having more thermals with the 13. I ended up going with the Ace pro primarily for twilight/night dives but I'm starting to use it more and more for all dives.

I have the X3 and the Ace Pro 1 so the same dilemma with older versions. I agree with you I took my X3 and the footage was stunning no problem with the stitch line so long as you set the camera correctly. Also you need to keep the two lenses on the same plane ie at an even depth - don’t have one pointing down and one pointing up as the difference in exposure will be two much for the software to cope with.

Whatever you choose, don’t choose GoPro mini, it sucks (at least mine did), sometimes it freezes, sometimes works fine, sometimes won’t turn on. Just replaced with a instant 360 ace, very affordable and works just fine. Good luck!

Basic summary is the X5 is out for obvious reasons (curved lenses don't work great underwater), the Action 5 tends to overdo the "blue" correction and isn't always accurate to the real colors, and sometimes loses sharpness in some scenarios. The AcePro's colors are better, but the highlights tend to be quite soft which removes some of the punch from the image. It also loses sharpness in some scenarios. The GoPro tends to have the most accurate colors and the best overall sharpness in these tests.

Get the original Ace Pro. It’s probably less expensive than OA5 Pro and is a fantastic camera.

Avoid GoPro. Terrible reliability. They’ve rested on their laurels far too long and don’t deserved your business. I’ve heard a DJI account is required to use the OA5. If true, absolutely avoid them as well. I’ve been very happy with my Insta360 Ace Pro. 100% reliability after 2 years. It has literally never not turned on, overheated, or otherwise malfunctioned in any way. Image quality is fantastic and it absolutely destroys GoPro in low light. If you plan to record at night, Ace Pro/Ace Pro 2 is the way.

If you’re leaning towards the GoPro side, get the Hero 12 or 13 Black Just be warned that GoPros are notorious for overheating if you’re just letting them sit and record long clips in 4K with no airflow. If you’re planning on doing stuff where you’re moving like biking or hiking then it’s fine but for stationary vlogging, it can be a bit of a literal headache If not those two, then consider the Insta360 Ace Pro. It’s got a flip-up screen which is huge if you’re planning on talking to the camera because you can actually see if your face is in the frame. It also handles low light way better than the GoPro, which usually turns into a grainy mess the second the sun starts to go down. More options on here like the Sony to narrow down your choices - [10 Best Action Cameras to Invest In](https://alaskanarrows.com/10-best-action-cameras-to-invest-in-2025/) Either way, make sure you save like $60 of that budget for a high-quality V30 SD card and an extra battery! Cheers

TLDR: Stop believing Tiktok "influencers" who get paid to shill for products. Use the right tool for the right job. I have Ace Pro and Go 3S and I use them for different things. The majority of Tiktok "reviewers" are people being paid to promote a product and so they use their photography/video skill to make the output look really good. Ace Pro is a decent action camera - so it is good for action camera type things (vlogging, stabilizing large camera shake if you are running/moving, being water/impact resistant, being very small and mountable). I have the Ace Pro (which is the same sensor as the Ace Pro 2). Ace Pro is primarily for video in daylight, but is ok for indoors or night time if you aren't shaking too much. I don't like Ace Pro for photography in general. If you want superior still image quality and zoom, the Canon is going to be way better for that. Video quality is good if you are standing still (the image stabilization is worse, so it's less good if you are walking/running around). However, again - it is just a tool... just like getting a really nice pan, oven, and kitchen knife isn't going to mean you automatically are going to be making top tier food... getting a nice camera isn't automatically going to give you good content. Go 3S is a POV camera. You are trading image quality (video will look a little bleached/washed out in bright midday sun, and dark/blurry at night) and stabilization (there is only tilt correction of 10 degree) for compactness to be able to easily and discretely mount to your heat/chest or on a pole/fence. So it will only really look go if you are doing something interesting in your POV (playing sports, cooking, eat, walking with your attractive travel partner, etc). Go3S can also be snuck into small spaces (on a cat's collar, in a cat food bowl, in your backpack, on a fishing pole, etc) - even more so than an Ace Pro (although both as better than the Canon for this).

I don't know about gimbal mode for X4 Air. I think it depends on what you want to do with the camera. I have an Ace Pro and an X4 and I use my X4 a lot more in general because of the convenience of having a 360 pespective that allow reframing after the fact. I also have the X2 awhich was 150g and I notice the weight of the X4 (200g) at the end of a 100cm pole (a long lever) while snowboarding as I like to keep the stick horizontal and at waist height. The X5 is 200g as well so it will be a bit heavier than the 165g X4 Air. Last I checked the X4 Air is like $150 cheaper for a slight reducing in low-light image quality (the sensors are smaller) and like 15 minutes less battery life. So I would pick the X4 Air for action sports usage (handheld out in sunny weather) as well as to save some money. But if money is not an issue and you want the absolute best image quality available on a Insta360 right now and you are mostly not long-lever handholding (e.g. head, chest or object mounted) than I would got with X5.

I have a X2/X4 and a Ace Pro. X5 is a 360 camera. So when you crop it down from 8K 360 to a 16:9 viewport with say a 90 degree field of view... you are at something around 2.7K resolution (note you can shoot single lens in 4K, but it is an ultra, ultra wide field of view... so it's not going to be as good as a normal 4K as well). Personally, if I have to have only one camera with me, I always take my X4... it is just much more versatile as I think the convenient of framing and tracking almost always outweigh the loss in quality. Some times I have both an a magnetic-quick mount stick and just swap between the two depending on whether I need the reframing ability of the 360 camera or not.

TLDR: I have Ace Pro and X4... and I would get the x4 Air myslf to spend less time/thinking in the moment than trying to block and frame stuff with my Ace Pro, but YMMV depending on the type of stuff you do and how you want to record it. Also to consider it that unlike the X3 the other poster mentioned - X4 Air and X5 have quality of life no-editing options like Me Mode and Instaframe that create an MP4 that you can use immediately. Me Mode which creates a 4K video that centers the viewport down the shaft of the selfie stick (which is basically what you want 90% of the time when videoing yourself). It's what I do when recording myself hiking, snowboarding, skiing, etc. Me Mode can be "reverse" so it takes a superwide 4K video of what ever is at the top of the camera (i.e. you point the selfie stick like a wand at what you want to record). That 4K video is not as good as the 4K out of traditional recent action camera. Instaframe is tracking your face and editing/frame the viewport to follow you. I only have the X4, so I don't have it and haven't use it personally. I've always had a lot better luck with the Insta360 app than with the GoPro app and for the 360 cameras, there are some AI tracking options in the new 2.0 app (a lot of people hate it though so YMMV, I use the desktop app myself). As for Ace Pro and Ace Pro 2... I think the Ace Pro is like 80-90% of the Ace Pro 2. The new one is a better at wind noise reduction and low light video and a little wider angle. I think it gets a bit more battery life too - but none of the feature seemed THAT much better (otherwise I would have upgraded myself).