Insta360 - GO 3S

Can someone advise me? I've got my insta360 go 3s like a week ago and this dji seems to be better than that. Should i refund the go3s and buy this one? The only argument against it is the weight of this device because I want to record the cat's POV so the 52g could be a little to heavy?

I think i read the glasses have max rec time of 2.5 mins- dont quote me on this but its certainly not enough either way (whether its 30 sec or even 10 mins) - you could buy 2-5 go 3's and swap them out every 30 mins LOL. otherwise you will need to either be connected with some CIA/MIB level tech (someone hook me up plz) or use a action camera like insta360 or etc. then still you will need 2nd battery swap 1/2 way through or connecting to power bank to last 2.5 hours

there are some very complicated DIY solutions I have been brainstorming about, involving extending an action camera's lens with a custom ribbon, to make it fit on a hat etc, but yea haven't quite figured it out yet... this would be the simplest solution. the go3s does come in 128gb which in theory you might be able to just buy two of those then put one on its charger when as soon as youre done, then you might only need 2. buy one complete kit that includes the action pod then one stand-alone for cheaper. these cameras still aren't great in low light tho..... overall the quality wont be as good as current action cameras, and if you're shooting in low light environment like indoors without great lighting, I would just make something else work like a chest mount action camera or just hat mounted action even tho that sounds clunky af.

It's teeny. Night light is ass though, so get something bigger if you want night shots, or your track is dark

I use an Insta360 Go as I can pop out the tiny camera bit and mount it on my helmet. It only does about 40-45 mins like that but that’s enough for my commute or if I’m with others. Really nice quality. For longer rides I mount the whole thing underslung on my handlebars.

Oh agreed on the app, I just use it to export videos and do any editing on my PC. The mounts aren’t entirely magnetic on mine, they just help guide either the full unit or just the camera ‘puck’ into some physical clips on my handlebar mount or my helmet one. Haven’t had a crash yet but it happily stayed put on a rugged mtb ride.

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).

TLDR: I personally really like the versatility of the 360 cameras like X4 Air (if I could only own one it would be a 360 camera), but the small size of the Go 3S makes it a more discreet device. In the end, it's depend on your use cases and imagination. I have Go 3S and regular X4. The X4 Air is about the size/weight of a chunky candy bar/short TV remote/ or slim eyeglasses case and they have distinctly different use cases. Use the Go 3S for established POV videos - for example mounted on your head, chest, or to the body of a instrument. Here you have established stationary positions of the camera and viewing angle. For instance, I mounted a Go 3S to an Air Rocket my kids launched as part of a school project and I got a good slow motion sequence of the crowd on the ground as the rocket blasted away. Use the X4 Air when there is a lot of movement going around that makes it hard to properly aim it - for instance you want a full body view of yourself (with no visible poll) from 3-10 feet away as your are moving (hiking, skiing/snowboarding, etc), or say you are trying to video your friends moving (skiing/snowboarding) while you are also moving where it would be tricky to casually keep them well framed in the camera (a veteran/pro videographer will be able to anticipate/follow the action with some communication/planning with the moving subject... but a 360 camera makes this a lot easier). I've also mounted the 360 camera to a fishing pole and a hockey stick and the 360 camera can easily stabilize the extremely movements of those two poles while still focusing on the action at hand (i.e. the lure being flung into the water, or the players and puck despite the camera twisting/spinning along). As for the drone, the Antigravity drone is not schedule for release until early 2026, so that will be far from now. Whether a drone will replace the X4 again depends on your use case... with a 10ft (3m) pole, the X4 Air can do a lot of similar angles to a drone being within 10-15 of the subject and isn't limited by the various regulations around a drone (drones are noisy and banned in most state/national parks, within 15-20 miles of airports, and landmarks and public/private buildings). You can easily make a video of what looks like a drone flying behind/in front of you with a 360 camera on a long pole. What you can't do with a normal 360 camera is get a view 100-300 ft in the air away from anything else (like a bridge or tower).

The DJI Osmo 5 Pro (I have the Ace Pro which is pretty comparable in size/weight/image quality) can be mounted with a headstrap but it isn't as are light and convenient as the Insta360 Go-series (I have the Go 3S) or DJI Nano hat clip or magnetic pendant mounts. DJI Nano is currently pretty cheap right not with Cyber Monday pricing - has same size sensor as Go Ultra but is between the Ultra and Go 3S in weight and is right now the same price a Go 3S (but better image quality). Hey, if you don't like the Nano, let me know and I'll trade my Go 3S plus like $80 for the Nano ;D

Just my opinion, but the Go-series (3S and Ultra) are specifically made to be small and lightweight for hands-free POV views and/or mounted in tight/small spaces. If you don't need that, I wouldn't recommend getting them. If you don't like your phone battery dying, you could buy a portable charger for much less money (it's a nice thing to have regardless). I prefer the still image quality of any of the iPhone/Samsung S-series/Google Pixelfrom the last 4 years over the Go Ultra (since the Ultra doesn't do computational photography). For video I still think the msot recent iPhone are pretty good image quality (although the image stabilization can't handle quite as much shaky as Insta360/DJI). Otherwise, since you don't need water/shockproofness. I would actually go with the Osmo Pocket 3, Type-1" sensor which offer superior video quality, especially in low light, gimbal offers superior stabilization especially in low light. Photos are still a little bit of a weakness (the video centric OP3 has a low resolution still images and again lacks computational photography).

I have an iPhone 16 pro and have been using it on the daily. But I like the Go for being a little less in-your-face when I’m vlogging in a shop or restaurant. I also like the feature of the Go automatically taking photos in set intervals during the day. It’s an easy way to capture a diary of a busy travel day. I just upgraded to the Ultra for the battery life and the removal SD card.

I have a GoPro and use it nearly every ride. I only notice the extra drag when I turn my head to the side. If you care about image quality, chin-mounted is the way to go. A camera inside the shield will catch glare. Also, the Insta 360 Go does not have a removable battery. You want removable batteries so you can easily swap them instead of having to carry an external battery pack. Safety-wise, my opinion isn’t based on any hard facts, so take it with a grain of salt. I don’t think action camera compromise the safety of the helmet as long as you use an adhesive bonded mount. These mounts are not designed to sustain an impact. It would easily tear or break away in a before it does any damage to head or neck. They also have the added benefit of recording evidence in case you’re in an accident with another driver. Motorcycles are the striking vehicle more than 9 times out of 10. Without video or witnesses, it’s your word against theirs. You’ll want footage to prove your innocence.

Haha I went with none of these. I am a publicly shy person and not comfortable sticking a camera on people's faces. So I settled for the **Insta360 Go3s** which allows me to record discreetly while leaving my hands free. Yes the video quality isn't at par with the above discussed cameras, especially in low light but I have no complains. Now I just place the tiny 4k camera on my cap and record my POV in my travels. Years later I can watch these videos from the same viewpoint of how I had seen them. Plus the tiny cam is also waterproof so no worries on that front either. I used it on my recent trip to Thailand and the daytime videos with plenty of sunlight turned out great. I am happy with my purchase so far.

The Go won't last that long. You'd have to have it in the battery case and then it won't be easy to mount to a hat, and it still may not last long enough. You could maybe plug the battery case into a portable power bank you keep in your pocket. But even then, I think the Go may overheat and stop recording here and there so you are unlikely to get an uninterrupted recording. I don't know anything about the Glasses, but I'd doubt something like that can have enough battery to go that long, so again, you might want to run a wire from a battery bank up to it. Concerns again for overheating in something like that as well. These things aren't made for continuous recording.

So like is this not that much better than the Go3s? I feel the notable improvements are just minor upgrades. Longer battery life SD Card slot - in a world where internal storage is becoming a norm, could they not have kept it while adding an SD card slot? Marginally larger screen Better lowlight performance 4K films up to 60 fps now Since no one is talking about it in the videos released so far, the video quality in non lowlight conditions is probably not better in any meaningful way. They only mention the sensor being bigger but don't stress or highlight any footage to show that it leads to better video quality. Seems to me like you lose the biggest selling point of the camera for slight improvements here and there. edit: Just watched DC Rainmaker's video and he goes into more detail with video comparisons and it's as expected. Looks like the larger sensor size really only equates to better low light performance. A notable Pro I left out is that the Go Ultra has wireless mic compatibility. That would be the biggest reason for me to upgrade, all the other enhancements are nice but not too critical for me. Neither is the wireless mic, to be honest, but it's the feature I think I value the most among all the upgrades.