Kinda Like the Old One

The GoPro Hero HD is squarely based off the old model. It has the same mounting system, case, physical shape and user interface. It is so similar, I suggest you read the original short review I did and then come back here for the low down on what makes this one better. Here's the link. Or you could just take these basic points as a foundation.
• Awesome mounts for everything.
• Meant to be semi cheap so you don't sweat it, yet capable.
• It has a 170 degree field of vision and the case makes it waterproof to 100 feet. Very rugged.
• Two buttons for controlling the basic UI. Shoot, toggle modes. The UI is so rudimentary you'll often forget how to use it, but all you need to do is turn it on and shoot.
• There's no native LCD for viewing replays.
• It's not tiny.

The Video is Now HD

Instead of the paltry 512x384, the $270 camera with surf mount has several modes, most HD. On the silky smooth 60 frame per second mode there are standard definition resolutions of 848x480 or HD at 720p/1280x720. Both are 16:9 ratio, which is recommended only for motorsports or other activites where you're not trying to catch yourself in frame standing up. The 60 frames per second modes are noticeably smoother in normal playback but they're meant to also look better if you slow down the frame rate playback for slow motion in your favorite video editor. The grain was noticeably worse when using 60FPS indoors, but not a deal breaker.

In 30 frame per seconds, there are modes for 720p again, but also a 1280x960 which is 4:3 high def. That's the default and I used that for surfing which is (usually, if you do it right) something you do while standing. The 1080p mode is 16:9, and 30 frames per second but limits the field of vision from 170 to 127 degrees. Again, the 16:9 modes are used less than you'd expect in sports shots. There's also a center weighted mode for exposing the road when shooting from inside a car, and leaving the dashboard underexposed properly.

The bottom line is that this new camera is in HD. That's the big improvement

Quality

This is a still of the movie at full res, not the actual 5MP stills.
First, watch the movies the guys at the company produced here. Then watch my shitty one filled with shitty surfing. Colors were a little washy/green but the ocean and the sky together, with the lens collecting droplets, well, that isn't an idea situation. Watch it for yourself and form your own conclusions, but note the reflections off the water which will inform you of pretty decent autoexposure and sharpness. It's a vast improvement over other sports cams and the standard def version. Oh a little thing held over from the last generation that isn't a ding or a plus: the 170-degree angle is great for reducing apparent vibration and for making sure what you want in shot is in the frame, but has the unfortunate side effect of making things like waves and jumps and other otherwise impressive looking things seem smaller.

Storage Capacity

Average recording times:
1080p: 12 min/GB
960p: 14 min/GB
720p: 16min/GB @30fps; 11 min/GB @ 60fps

GoPro recommended you use fast SDHC cards to save battery life. And that on a 32GB card you can get almost 6 hours of recordings, although you'd be constrained by battery life. Oh one annoyance — every time you clear the card, the files are named from 001, 002, again. So if you copy them over to the same location, they'll ask you if you want to overwrite. I wish the camera kept its file name numbers in series.

Battery Life

The other big change is that instead of being powered by a pair of AAAs, GoPro jammed a 1100Mah 3.7 volt battery in the case. I did not do a full run down test, but shooting 51 minutes of video didn't reduce the charge one notch; GoPro estimates you can get 2.5 hours of battery life from the camera in normal climates, regardless of the definition of video you're shooting. The old model died quickly in the cold if you weren't using rechargeables but this camera's housing retains a bit more heat making it better for the winter. You charge it by USB. Unfortunately you can't charge it while doing a USB transfer, yet. They hope to fix this by firmware later.

Sound

Stills

I didn't test this mode, but GoPro claims the 5MP shots are better due to better processing. There are several still modes, as before: Single shot, triple shot that takes three shots over 2 seconds and a time lapse mode that can be set to record a shot every 2, 5, 10, 30 or 60 seconds. And a 10 second delay timer. For me, this is not why you get a sports camera.

The Surf Mount, in Particular

Oh it's 3M double sticky and it seems to hold up just fine. You clean your board of wax and then use a bit of rubbing alcohol to apply it. Let it settle overnight. To get it off (permanently) you use a hair dryer, which sounds a bit scary when it comes to something nice and fiberglass, but what do I know? (That's why I put this one on a pop out longboard.

The Future

Another big but so far not useful thing on the new camera is the expansion port. they plan on offering a bigger back door for the case, so you can fit in an external LCD screen for replays or an extra battery pack. I like the idea. I'm thinking they could probably go ahead and work on making the camera smaller even if it costs a bit more, in the next generation, though. I like GoPro enough to use it, even though gadgets on the mountain or in the surf piss me off by way of distraction. Now that they've got mounts, higher resolutions and battery endurance covered, I think making it even smaller is the next step to making it more enjoyable.

High def modes

Best mounting options in the business

Rugged, yet affordable case good for bumps and waterproof to 100 feet

Wide angle lens captures 170 degrees of motion so you fit in the shot and vibration is dampened.

Smooth 60 frames per second great for action shots

Relatively cheap for what you get

Case kind of biggish
[GoPro]

The Price: $200

The Verdict:This is the best sports cam I've ever used. The various mounts allow it to be strapped to a helmet, a chest, a rollbar in a car, or on the glass or metal of an auto's flat surfaces via suction cup. There's a plug mount and 3M mount for surfboards, or a 3M mount for ski/snowboards. There are even bicycle mounts for facing rear and forward. And I could see the chest mount being applicable to almost any sport, from martial arts, to kayaking, to hockey. (The mounts are sold separately.) It's cheap enough you shouldn't worry about it too much either, at $200. Although I did still worry about it a little bit: The mounts worked, but I've popped the 3M mount off a snowboard on a hard day of riding, and since then have depended on the large suction cup and a tether for safety.

It's housed in a tough plastic case, that locks tight, which makes it waterproof enough to submerge it 100 feet. The camera takes SD cards, and between the 2xAAA battery life and 2GB of storage, you end up with about 1 hour of footage and life in the cold. Buy rechargeable batteries. (The camera is noted to have shorter battery life in colder weather and using lithium or NiMH you can get 2-3 hours in regular climates.) Video quality comes in at 512x384, and works well on cloudy days, but in bright environments it shines. The Hero also has a 5MP still mode which can record stills continuously at 2 or 5 second intervals. (I've included some samples in the gallery.)

The f/2.8 lens has 170-degree field of vision which allows for not only better light sensitivity, but the full context of whatever maneuvers you're pulling, and reduced jitter from vibrations. But it also has the effect of reducing the visual impact of what you're doing. A small jump will look small. Don't take this the wrong way — I prefer this wide angle lens to the alternative, which is having a zoomed-in, shakey cam shot. One other gripe I have is that the camera's group delete icon looks like the multiple still shot mode icon. I deleted a batch of great videos one day, by accident. I swear, I jumped over a house that day. Really.

Check out this video from the USC Ski team, or any of the company's samples.

Here's another of an RC Car doing a 20 foot backflip, with a Go Pro Hero camera.

At the lower end of the spectrum, I've compiled a few shots of me mostly falling.

*That song is a Hey Jude cover by Rico & the Rudies, from a Trojan Beatles Reggae box set.

As for the falls, don't worry. If you get this camera and use it to capture your adventures away from the computer, you'll likely look much better! I highly recommend this thing.

[GoPro will be bringing some Hero Wide cameras to Snowmodo.]

Snowmodo is our snow sport winter meet up at Lake Tahoe, California, with prizes, discounts, tons of fun snow activities, a party and GADGETS. If you can make it please RSVP and find out more info by clicking on the banner below. I'll let you wear my hat (below).

Using the same logic that makes a pair of skis better at high-speeds than a snowboard, because the skis always have two edges gripping the snow during turns, Pyott's Twin Parabolic Ski concept basically provides each ski with an extra edge. By jointing two longer and narrower skis under each foot, the design allows for more grip at high-speeds since there are more applied edges griping the snow.

Overall the experimental concept seems like a significant way to make downhill racing faster and more dangerous on a pair of skis. The idea of using adjustable joints to make the set of blades under each foot flexible is pretty interesting, and I can't help but wonder if the same concept can be applies to a snowboard in some way. [Yanko Design via DVICE]

Snowmodo is our snow sport winter meet up at Lake Tahoe, with prizes, discounts, tons of fun snow activities, a party and GADGETS. If you can make it (and people are coming from TEXAS) please RSVP. I'll let you wear my hat (below).

There's a custom-designed lens system for optimal beam quality and seven top-grade LED lights. Its three modes include a low power-consuming emergency mode, which gives you up to two weeks' light using just 0.25W. Using its strongest battery, it will last all night for a month. But is that worth $1,185? Depends how safe you want to be. [Lupine via Book of Joe]

There's also Belkin's Remix Acrylic Case for nano ($24), classic and touch ($29), the Remix Metal case for nano ($24) and classic ($29), the Leather Sleeve for nano ($24), classic and touch ($29), the Leather Folio for nano ($24), classic and touch ($29), and the Silicone for nano ($14), classic and touch ($19). [Belkin]

In the 2nd-gen version, Nike's cut a hole so you can see what the hell's going on with your workout, but it still keeps the same fabric and still holds the Nike+iPod receiver. It's $29.95, and you can grab one over at the Apple store. Too bad Nike didn't fix the problem we had, which was the instantaneous crushing of the iPod when we put this on our biceps because our muscles were too huge. Ha, ha. Just kidding. We have no muscles. – Jason Chen

Product Page [Apple via iLounge]

Sony to stream replays via PSP to Arsenal stadium fans [Pocket-lint]

If it weren't only around $99, we'd say screw it. But your grandparents aren't going to know the difference between this and an iPod anyway. – Jason Chen

Product Page [Best Buy]

Insigna 2 GB Sport [Crunchgear]

The player comes with 512MB of memory, which isn't much, but the 40 hours of playback is something you won't get with most players. Unfortunately, 512MB only equals about 8 hours of music, so you're going to be hearing Stevie Nicks' "Stop Draggin' My Heart Around" at least 5 times before switching batteries. Double unfortunately, these are standard AA batteries and not proprietary rechargeable ones.

It does have a pulse rate monitor and a calorie counter, but neither apparently work very well. For about $90, what do you expect? – Jason Chen

Thomson Lyra PDP2662S MP3 player [T3 via Digital Lifestyle Magazine]

Sennheiser sporty headphones [Tech Digest]