GoPro Hero 3 White Action Cam, retail $290.00*
Manufactured by GoPro (www.gopro.com)
Last updated 09-25-20
This product does not emit light of its own, so the standard review format will not be used and the product will not be assigned a rating. This website is mostly about light-emitting products, but occasionally, you'll see non-light emitting products on it too if it's something I use regularly and/or really like (this camera meets both of those criteria!). It *DOES* have several LEDs in it, so it's at least a bit germane to the theme of this website.
The GoPro Hero 3 Action Cam is a very nice digital camera -- much better than many actually. It shoots in 1080p resolution, and can record video or take 5mp still photographs.
It comes in a very sturdy plastic body, and feeds from a special rechargeable LiPo battery (which is included).
It can be controlled via WiFi with the free GoPro Hero app or with a handy-dandy remote control (which is sold as an "extra").
* Product has apparently been discontinued; however, used and surplus new units are still commonly available. The going price for a used one is approx. ~$50.00; when purchased new (many retailers still have stock) expect to pay almost $300.00.
I paid $29.99 for this one on Ebay in early-September 2020.
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Charge its battery first (see directly below), and THEN you can go shoot those dragonfly nymphs (larvae).
Insert a 2GB or larger MicroSD card into the slot for it on the left side of the camera's body.
Turn the camera on by pressing and holding in that circular button on the front of the camera until you hear the camera emit three fairly loud "beep" sounds.
The action cam defaults to "record video" mode; to record a video, just press & release the button on the top right of the camera's body.
Press & release it again to stop recording.
To set it to "still photo" mode, quickly press & release the "power" button on the front of the cam's body.
To permanently neutralise the GoPro Hero 3, just get a claw hammer and...O WAIT!!! YOU DON'T REALLY WANT TO DO THAT!!!
Just press and hold down that circular button on the front of the camera until you hear seven loud beeps.
From the Backscatter website, comes the following:
Professional 1080p 30 fps / 960p 48 fps / 720p 60 fps and more video capture
5MP photo capture with 3 photos per second burst
Wi-Fi Built-In
Wi-Fi Remote Compatible (R/C is sold separately)
GoPro App Compatible (the app is FREE)
197 feet (60m) Waterproof Housing
Assorted mounts and hardware included for attaching to helmets, gear and more
Optics
Ultra sharp /2.8 6-element aspherical glass lens
Ultra wide angle / reduced distortion
There are numerous operating modes, but I still use the most basic ones -- that is, I turn the camera on, set the "Mode" to one of two modes: photo or video; and then go on a shooting spree.
This camera was also missing the instructional material -- not at all surprising as it was sold as "used."
So I'm rather ill-prepared to try and explain the numerous other operating modes that this lovely instrument (nice to look at and nice to use!!!) comes with.
This unit was sold without the exterior casing (for waterproofness) and all of the related accessories (brackets, clamps, et.); it was just the camera itself, its battery, and the USB charger cable.
To charge the LiPo battery in the GoPro Hero 3 Action Cam when it starts going down the tube, plug the small rectangular plug on one end of the charger cable into the lowermost receptacle on the left side of the camera body, and plug the other end into a USB port on your pee-cee or Mac computer
A surprisingly bright red LED on the front of the camera will now come on.
When the LED goes off, this is your indication that the battery is fully charged.
At this point, unplug the cable from the camera and from the computer.
The GoPro Hero 3 Action Cam is designed to be used as a digital camera (and I should say not exactly an "el-cheapo" model either!), not as flashlight meant to be carried around, thrashed, trashed, and abused; so I won't try to drown it in the toliet tank, bash it against a steel rod or against the concrete floor of a front porch, let my mother's big dog's ghost or my sister's kitty cats spring a leak (uranate) all over it, run over it with a 450lb Quickie Pulse 6 motorised wheelchair, stomp on it, use a medium or large ball peen hammer in order to bash it open to check it for candiosity, fire it from the cannonata, drop it down the top of Mt. Erupto (I guess I've been watching the TV program "Viva Pinata" too much again - candiosity is usually checked with a laser-type device on a platform with a large readout (located at Pinata Central {aka. "Party Central"}), with a handheld wand that Langston Lickatoad uses, or with a pack-of-cards-sized device that Fergy Fudgehog uses; the cannonata (also located at Pinata Central) is only used to shoot pinatas to pinata parties away from picturesque Pinata Island, and Mt. Erupto is an active volcano on Pinata Island), send it to the Daystrom Institute for additional analysis, or perform other indecencies on it that a flashlight might have to have performed on it. So this section of the web page will be ***SIGNIFICANTLY*** more bare than this section of the web page on a page about a flashlight.
In fact, that specifications chart, the photographs on this page, the spectrographic analyses, and that video (most located directly below) may very well be it.
Sample photograph taken with the GoPro Hero 3.
Spectrographic analysis of the red, "Charge cycle in progress" LED.
Spectrographic analysis of the red, "Charge cycle in progress" LED; spectrometer's response narrowed to a band between 635nm and 655nm to pinpoint emission peak wavelength, which is 644.550nm.
The raw spectrometer data (tab-delimited that can be loaded into Excel) is at hero3.txt
A sample of video that I made with the Hero 3.
I had it affixed to my Bayangtoys X22 Brushless Double-GPS Gimbal Drone which experienced a total ***EPIC FAIL*** of a flight.
Weather conditions at flight time were fairly heavy smoke and the ambient temperature was 89°F (31.8°C).
I cannot provide this video in other formats, so please do not ask.
TEST NOTES:
GoPro Hero 3 camera was purchased on Ebay on 09-03-20 and was received on 09-09-20 (or "09 Sep. 2020" if you prefer).
I purchased it primarily to use with my Bayangtoys X22 Brushless Double-GPS Gimbal Drone though it will of course see other photographic & videographic duties as needed.
UPDATE: 09-13-20
Camera's battery will discharge if WiFi is on yet the camera itself is off.
Yes, I learned this the hard way.
The only way to neutralise the WiFi is to remove the camera's battery and then reinstall it; shutting WiFi off via the camera's menu apparently will not do the job.
UPDATE: 09-25-20
If you format the MicroSD memory chip with your computer, the camera will choke on it and display, "SD ERR" in big black letters on its LCD.
You must format the memory chip in-camera -- there is an option for that if you go to the Settings menu.
Yes, I learned the hard way.
MANUFACTURER: GoPro
PRODUCT TYPE: Digital action cam
LAMP TYPE: LED
No. OF LAMPS: At least 3 (2x red, 1x blue)
BEAM TYPE: N/A
SWITCH TYPE: Three pushbutton switches
CASE MATERIAL: Plastic
BEZEL: N/A
BATTERY: 1x LiPo, 3.70 volts, 1,180mAh (1.180Ah)
CURRENT CONSUMPTION: Unknown/unable to measure
WATER- AND SIBERIAN TIGER URANATION-RESISTANT: Very light splatter-resistant at maximum
(though if a Siberian tiger really did go poddy on it, you've got FAR more serious problems than a stinky, dead camera!!!)
SUBMERSIBLE: ¡¡¡SATANÁS LLEVA UN PAÑAL SUCIO, NO!!!
ACCESSORIES: Battery, USB interface cable
SIZE: 59.70mm W x 41.20mm H x 21.50mm D (not incl. lens); 30.0mm D (incl. lens)
WEIGHT: 73.0g (2.58 oz.) ( incl. battery)
COUNTRY OF MANUFACTURE: (I believe) Japan
WARRANTY: 1 year
PRODUCT RATING:
<>Product is not intended to be used as a light emitter,
so the conventional "star" rating will not be used.
GoPro Hero 3 White Action Cam
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