Recently I found myself getting ready to run a race that I wanted to record, but the question I had was, ‘Which camera to use?’
So I strapped on my running shoes and braved the sub zero temps to find out. I pitted the 4 most obvious choices against each other:
A GoPro Hero 9 Action Camera
A GoPro Max 360 Camera
A DJI Pocket 2 Gimbal
A Samsung Note 20 Ultra Phone
Check out the video or continue reading below to find out which I chose.
GoPro Hero 9
GoPro Hero 9 Black
Unsurprisingly, this ended up being my #1 choice. It’s almost like these cameras are made for extreme movements or something (sarcasm intended). The Hero 9 had the steadiest image quality and usable audio. While there was still a lot of low wind rumble in the audio track, my voice could be heard clearly over the noise. It also has the highest resolution of any of the cameras at 5k.
Purchase Links
GoPro Hero 9: https://amzn.to/342xvtP
GoPro Hero 10: https://amzn.to/3tfVy5b
GoPro Max 360
GoPro Max Camera
This was actually a close second place. Again, it’s not surprising since it is an action-focused 360 camera, but I was originally concerned the quality wouldn’t be up to the same level as the others. It does have the lowest final resolution at 1080p (when exporting as a 16x9 video), but it has that bright, clean GoPro style which helps compensate for the lower resolution. The audio quality was nearly identical to that of the GoPro Hero 9. When you turn on the WindBoost mode on the MAX, it removes the 360 audio and records in stereo, but that’s fine if you’re going to export it as a standard, non-360 video.
Since it records in all directions at once, you don’t have to worry about missing anything because you can reframe the video and catch the action in post-processing. It’s also just a ton of fun to go back and look around after your event to relive the moment. The downside of this camera is that you can’t pull a 16x9 video straight from the camera. You have to spend at least a little time in post-processing. Also, the stabilization isn’t quite as solid, but it was as good or better than the DJI Pocket 2 and the Galaxy Note 20 Ultra.
Purchase Links
GoPro MAX 360: https://amzn.to/3ajQkcZ
DJI Pocket 2
My third choice was the DJI Pocket 2. I had higher hopes for this. I love this camera for vlogs. It does a great job giving natural movement while walking and looking around. Unfortunately, running causes more extreme side-to-side movements that the limited gimbal movement can’t completely compensate for. There was noticeable rocking in the test video that was distracting to me and I could see it making someone else motion sick.
The Pocket 2 had the best wind reduction. My voice was easy to hear and the loud rumble that wind can cause was surprisingly minimal. The form factor is also very nice. It has a shape that doesn’t need an extra stick attached to it like the 2 GoPro cameras. I was fearful that the running would be bad for the mechanical gimbal and indeed during one of my earlier tests, the older DJI Osmo Pocket 1 had a gimbal error due to the cold. If DJI releases a Pocket 3 with the ability to add Digital Stabilization in addition to the standard mechanical stabilization, this might become the best choice.
Product Links
DJI Pocket 2: https://amzn.to/35XGP6b
Samsung Note 20 Ultra
The model of the phone isn’t important. This is the phone I own, but it’s a representative standard for just about any phone. This is my last choice of the 4. At first, it might seem like the obvious choice because many people use it for music, tracking their run, and for safety. It doesn’t require you to carry an extra device.
Note 20 Ultra
The problem with using a phone as a running camera however, is that it is very unwieldy. With this phone, and I suspect most phones, the selfie camera doesn’t have digital or optical stabilization which means your video is going to be a shaky mess. While the rear cameras can have both optical and digital stabilization, I wasn’t able to activate it if I started with the selfie camera first and then switched (while still recording) to the rear camera.
I could use just the rear camera, but then you can’t see yourself on the screen to make sure you are in frame and if you want to turn the phone around to look at something else, it’s very difficult to flip the phone without dropping it or getting your fingers in the way.
An unexpected, yet very pertinent problem with my test was that I had to take my glove off to interact with the phone. The other cameras I tested have physical buttons which are easy to push with a gloved finger. Since I was running in sub-zero temps, my hand got very cold while using my phone.
Product Links
Samsung Note 20 Ultra: https://amzn.to/3j3DWC8