GoPro Hero 8 Black Now Available in Nepal: A Significant Upgrade!

The 8^th iteration of the GoPro action camera series was unveiled in October. The GoPro Hero 8 Black, is the official name and is the official go-to action camera for this year. GoPro Hero 8 Black was supposed to start shipping from October 15th and now it’s finally available in Nepal. Yes! GoPro Hero 8 Black has launched in Nepal and it’s available via Oliz Store.

So now let’s analyze the 4 engaging aspects of the GoPro Hero 8 Black.

Design

Okay, so the GoPro Hero 8 Black has some external design changes than its forerunners which makes the device look and feel more premium. Firstly, the outer camera bump has been pushed inside a little. It’s subjective to people but I think it’s cleaner now. Secondly and overall the most important Design change is the addition of built-in mounting. The folds are located at the bottom of the camera which can be unfolded or folded anytime you wish. The “Folding Fingers” lets you attach GoPro to the mount without the need for a case. This solves the previous hiccup of having to carry around the frame everywhere you go.

Thirdly, the battery door has been moved on to the right side which isn’t the most ideal setup. But it does give way to new ‘Media Mods’ which we’ll see in a little while.

Other than that, the device is waterproof up to 33m, has touch screen LCD’s, features voice commands and every other hardware as it’s predecessor.

HyperSmooth 2.0 and Time Warp 2.0

The GoPro Hero 8 also features an upgraded version of the previously introduced HyperSmooth. And it’s better this time. Videos shot from this GoPro clearly indicates that it won’t be needing any gimbals at all. The previous generation had great stabilization but this time it’s on a whole new level. This 2.0 extends the Hyper Lapse feature to all frame rates and every aspect ratio which is awesome.

Alongside this, the new camera also features a Time Warp 2.0, the GoPro’s Time-lapse mode. The Time Warp allows a user to switch between real-time and time-lapse mode with just one tap on the screen. It’s like a transition in a video where you can switch from “zoom” mode to normal mode.

You can also continue to record static time-lapse videos and night lapse shots on the Hero 8 Black.

Modular Accessories (Mods)

There’s no need for an external case to add attachments rather you can add a variety of media mods to the Hero 8 directly. These Mods include light for dim conditions, a shotgun mike for external audio and a front-facing display. The Shotgun mic houses a microphone along with with 3.5 mm audio jack, USB type C port, an HDMI outlet and two cold shoes for external attachments. On top of it, you can place the display mod, which is essentially an extra LCD that can be used as a larger display or when vlogging. Finally, there’s the light mod, which is actually an LED light. It’s battery-powered and it can be attached to your liking on the GoPro.

4 Digital Lenses, Improved Quality, and Customizable Presets

The Hero 8 Black features four ‘digital lenses’ – SuperView, Wide, Linear, Narrow – to offer a range of in-camera shooting options. Narrow is one new option that basically offers a field of view as that of a phone. These modes can just change the field of view as per the user’s need.

Videos can be shot at 4K at 60fps and slow-mo can be shot in 1080p at 240fps. Other than that, photos can now be shot at 12MP with separate HDR and SuperPhoto toggle. The live streaming features from last year was also bumped up a notch. Now, you can stream 1080p contents instead of 720p which is a big deal for streamers.

In addition, there’re also in-built customizable presets which give you flexibility while using the camera. Basically, it has these in-built video settings that can be toggled with just one touch. Instead of browsing through the quality and frame rates, just select the preset you want and you’re good to go.

GoPro Hero 8 Black Price in Nepal, Availability, & Impressions

These were the major aspects of the device that got me pumped for Hero 8. Except for these, the Hero 8 still uses the previous generation GP but it does use a better battery which apparently has a higher discharge rate. There’s live burst photo mode, integrated GoPro app, higher quality microphone and tons of other features worth exploring.

Overall, Hero 8 is a significant update to its forerunner. Improvements have been made to almost every aspect and there’s flexibility in each and every segment of the camera. The implementation of folding fingers and even more improved stabilization in the device are probably the best aspects of this iteration.

GoPro Hero 8 Black Price in Nepal is Rs. 51,500. Its price tag seems slightly expensive and it’s more than what we had anticipated. Well, the price doesn’t matter if you want the latest and greatest. But, if you think you don’t need all the new features, just get yourself an older model.