Hands on: Insta360’s GO camera packs a lot of features in a tiny, wearable package

Insta360 today launched its GO camera, a wearable shooter that’s about as big as your thumb. I’ve had my mitts on one for a couple of weeks and I’m simply twitterpated with its clever engineering and thoughtful trough of accessories.

The GO’s meant to be worn or stuck somewhere. Its back is magnetic so it’ll stick to metal surfaces, it also comes with a sticky mount, magnetic tether, magnetic tripod mount, and a charging case that holds about two and a half full charges.

Specifications:

• Aperture: F2.1
• Video resolution: Standard: 2720×2720@25fps（Captured）/1080@25fps (Exported via app)
• Interval shooting resolution: 2720×2720@25fps（Captured）/1080@25fps (Exported via app)
• Timelapse resolution: 3040×3040@30fps（Captured）/1080@30fps (Exported via app)
• Hyperlapse resolution: 2720×2720@30fps（Captured）/1080@30fps (Exported via app)
• Slow motion: 1600×900@100fps (Captured) /1600×900@30fps (Exported via app)
• Photo resolution: 3040×3040 (Captured) / 1:1 Exported at 2560 x 2560,16:9 Exported at 2560×1440, 9:16 Exported at 1440×2560, 4:3 Exported at 2560×1920
• Video Format: insv (Captured) /mp4 (Exported via app)
• Photo Format: insp (Captured) /jpg (Exported via app)

It comes with a powerful editing app that features the company’s Flashcut AI, a tool that finds your best shots and combines them. But during my limited use so far, my favorite feature’s been the camera’s image stabilization.

This thing really is a camera for people on the go, hence the name. Its six-axis proprietary image stabilization software is, as advertised, nearly gimbal-like. And that means you can surf with it, run with it, or strap it on your kids or pets and let them bounce around and you’ll still get usable footage. It’s apparent that image stabilization is one of Insta360’s strong suits, and they put it to excellent use here.

The GO also has a fantastic hyperlapse mode that allows you to shoot up to 30 minutes of video that’s subsequently rendered down to five minutes or less. It also does slow motion, still shots, and standard video.

So far, results have been mixed. I’m not a big fan of the 30-second limit on standard videos, but perhaps further testing will make it seem less arbitrary. To its benefit, the GO handles broad daylight well and the included accessories make it intuitive to get just about any shot you can think of.

Stay tuned for our full review next week. The GO is available now for $234 (tax included) online.

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