Skip to main content

GoPro teases first footage from its Karma ‘ultra-portable folding drone’

Rumors have been circulating about a GoPro branded quadcopter drone for the better part of a year now, but today the company finally gave us some tangible proof that the drone is indeed under development. Early this morning, the company revealed the name of the upcoming drone in a YouTube video. Slated for release next year, GoPro’s first foray into the world of consumer quadcopters will be known as the “Karma.”

Unfortunately, that’s all we really know at this point. The company has remained tight-lipped on the subject thus far, and hasn’t released any photos or videos of the drone yet — only a bit of aerial footage that first surfaced back in October. That said, the timing of this video release seems to suggest that GoPro is planning a big reveal sometime in early 2016 — perhaps at the Consumer Electronics Show in January.

We don’t have a lot of details on specs or features at this point, but GoPro’s website describes the Karma as an “ultra-portable folding drone.” Aside from that nugget of information, all we have is speculation — but because this is GoPro we’re talking about here, it’s probably safe to assume that the drone will also be equipped with a high-resolution camera (at least 4K) and a rugged design. As the video suggests, the Karma will be targeted at the same group of adventurous consumers at which GoPro’s action cams are aimed.

Specifics on the Karma’s price aren’t available at this point either, but those in the know suggest that the drone will be priced competitively with the Phantom series from DJI — the currently uncontested king of the consumer drone space. If that turns out to be true, the GoPro Karma will likely fall in the $700-$1,200 range.

Drew Prindle
Former Digital Trends Contributor
Drew Prindle is an award-winning writer, editor, and storyteller who currently serves as Senior Features Editor for Digital…
GoPro boosts Hero 10 performance with new firmware and Enduro battery
GoPro Hero 10 Front Screen.

One of my few complaints when reviewing the GoPro Hero 10 Black was its somewhat fleeting battery life, and though I haven’t personally encountered the issue, many users have reported problems limiting recording times due to overheating. GoPro seems to have heard that message loud and clear, as they have announced a major firmware update for the camera that aims to solve the problems as well as a brand new Enduro battery.

The firmware (which will be available by the end of October) introduces three new video performance modes designed to maximize the Hero 10’s performance in different scenarios. Maximum video performance mode prioritizes high resolution, frame rate, and image quality. Extended battery mode limits resolution and frame rate to maximize recording times and battery life, while tripod/stationary video mode provides high performance when the camera is stationary, and there isn’t any airflow to cool the camera.

Read more
GoPro drops teaser video for Hero10 camera ahead of Thursday’s reveal
watch gopros teaser video for the new hero10 action camera gopro hero 10

GoPro is set to reveal the latest iteration of its popular action camera on Thursday, September 16.

The California-based company has just dropped a slick teaser video (below) for the Hero10 Black. The 57-second production, titled A New Era of GoPro, shows a slew of beautifully cinematic and highly dramatic action shots (you wouldn’t really expect anything less) as GoPro attempts to create a buzz around its latest product release.

Read more
GoPro Hero 10 Black leak reveals images and specs
GoPro Hero 10 Black.

Images of the GoPro Hero 10 Black leaked yesterday, giving us our first look at images of the device along with specs. WinFuture, a German publication that previously leaked information about the redesigned Hero 9 Black in August last year was also the source of the latest leak.  A report on the website suggests the Hero 10 Black looks similar to its predecessor (Hero 9 Black) in terms of size, design, and external accessibility features. The only design difference so far can be seen in blue accents that spell out "10 Black." 
The major hardware changes we're seeing are improvements to processing power with the new GP2 processor and an improved image sensor that beefs up from 20-megapixels to 23-megapixels The Hero 10 Black is also expected to support 5.3K video recording at a smooth 60 frames per second (fps), 4K videos at 120 fps, and 2.7K videos at 240 fps. The last one can help you create high-resolution slow-motion clips. This is a considerable improvement over previous models that only supported 5K recording at 30 fps and 4K recording at 60 fps. 

Marketing materials seen by WinFuture hint that Hero 10 Black’s in-camera software stabilization will see an improvement to offer "gimbal-like stabilization", after being upgraded to HyperSmooth 4.0 and TimeWarp 3.0 for time-lapse videos. Users can also enjoy an auto-upload function to transfer files online at a much quicker speed. The Hero 10 Black also supports 1080p live streaming, the same as previous models. Finally, the Hero 10 Black is said to offer 10 meters deep housing, touchscreen controls, and voice accessibility. Users can also access the webcam mode along with SuperPhoto and HDR options. These features combined with the improved recording capability have the potential to be a gamechanger for streamers and on-the-scene photographers. 
The company hasn’t made a formal announcement so we don’t know how much the Hero 10 Black would cost. The previous edition, Hero 9 Black was released at $450 and is currently priced at $400 (excluding the subscription), so we can expect a number around this range, perhaps a bit higher. Given the scale of the recent leaks, the launch of the Hero 10 Black is likely to be imminent. 

Read more