DJI Action 5 Pro vs. Action 4 vs. Pocket 3 | Evening Comparison

[@BraxChat]

This is the BEST #1 video on KZbin for the DJI pocket and action series. I am just like you on using the action 5 for vlogging and honestly I prefer it! Thanks!!

[@TravelingAhn]

Hello Braxton, thank you for your kind words! I appreciate it! The small form factor and great audio with the DJI Mic 2 is what really wins me over!

[@babyboy1971]

I agree. The best! Braxton, may I ask you your thoughts? I’m looking for a small action camera, not for action, but to record family and fun and also for daytime walks and walks at night in city lights. Mostly POV walks. I’m also going to use it to record inside malls and shopping centers, stores and for evening city walks in various settings from bright to dark. Just like in this video, but more inside. I already have a pocket 3 which is amazing, and a GoPro which is great for sunny skies but fails in low or artificial light. I was waiting on the ace pro 2, but I think I’m leaning towards the action 5 now, as a sidekick to my beloved pocket 3. Do you think it could film at evenings and inside places like malls with minimal jello / jitter and with accuracy in the mixed light? Do you recommend it overall? It seems like the best action camera at this point in time!

[@BraxChat]

@@babyboy1971 My friend, that’s a fantastic question! I was planning to cover this in an upcoming video, but I’d be happy to dive into it with you now. Everything in this video already addresses the key differences in image quality across various scenarios, so it sounds like what you’re most curious about is accessories. The Pocket 3, Action 5, and Ace Pro 2 are all incredible cameras that serve similar purposes. Personally, I recommend the Action 5, but only with a cage, so you can attach a light and get the high-quality results you’re after. No matter how advanced the AI gets for low-light processing, adding proper lighting truly brings footage to life. My current setup includes the Action 5 Pro with a Tilta cage (for the Action 3), paired with the GoPro Light Mod on top. Alternatively, you can use the Ulanzi LM18 without a cage, though it can be a bit too bright for the eyes. The Light Mod’s hot shoe mount tends to slip out easily, so adding a bit of tape between the foot and the cage helps maintain better friction-after that, it works like a charm. The Pocket 3 is generally the best option for your use case but works exceptionally well when paired with the Action 5, especially considering the mic quality. If you want to level up the Pocket 3, I recommend attaching the same GoPro light to a cage system I recently found called the OSMO Pocket 3 PULUZ Metal Protection Frame. With that setup, you’ll have a light on one side and a mic on the other-perfect for on-the-go filming (just watch out for rain!).

[@TravelingAhn]

Wow, so informative ❤️

[@TravelingAhn]

I'll record some malls and inside locations at some point and share!

[@pg1]

This channel deserves more subs. Appreciate the comparisons!

[@TravelingAhn]

❤️🙏 One day!

[@goldexpert5172]

WOW! Best comparison video on KZbin! Thanks!

[@TravelingAhn]

@@goldexpert5172 Thank you so much for the kind words 🙏

[@yagor]

Super helpful! And very positive) Every excited comment is well deserved! Thank you for time and work!

[@TravelingAhn]

Hello Egor, thank you so much for you kind words 🙏 I appreciate you!

[@uvodipbhadra7453]

great ... you deserve more subscribers

[@TravelingAhn]

Thank you so much!

[@kir11]

Very detailed comparison! Thank you! Its shows the real things as it is.

[@TravelingAhn]

Thank you Kirill, appreciate the support!

[@TimBrownTown]

That bonus comparison is GOLD! I think you should do a dedicated video with some more test with the Action 5 at night with the gimbal vs. Pocket 3. I have seen a TON of comparisons of these, and nobody has done that comparison, which I think really shows a lot on much dynamic range the Action 5's sensor has when you look at the signs getting blown out with the Pocket 3. I think it has more dynamic range than the Pocket 3, but as you pointed out in really low light that 1" sensor does shine. Personally, I think the Action 5 needs a couple of firmware updates to tune the sensor to the processor, much like our cell phones get. I honestly wouldn't get one until that happens and the Ace Pro 2 comes out but the potential is truly there. Peter Lindgren talked about this and showed how it would expose for his face when he was in the shaded area of a pool but the sun-lit background was also exposed properly. He said he didn't get that kind of dynamic range even with his FF cameras. If they can combine the tech that they're using to get that dynamic range and a 1" sensor on a Pocket 4, it's going to be amazing.

[@TravelingAhn]

Hey Tim, thanks for your thoughts and feedback! I always appreciate your perspective! Yeah, the bonus comparison is something that I wanted to show because of the sheer versatility the Action 5 lends to us. If you only had one camera, this can be so much better in many scenarios regarding the Action 5. Like you said, hopefully the firmware updates will be coming soon. DJI is pretty good about that over its history. What keeps me in the garden of DJI is the simplicity and quality of its DJI Mics. While you can connect it to the Ace Pro, it's not as good of quality and it's a hassle to sync 32 bit float to the footage for a workaround. I did see the Peter Lindgren video you mentioned!

[@stefw0200]

A lot of work, but unfortunately you didn't mention which stabilization mode was used for the A4/5. This in combination with shutter speed is the most critical setting for low light. With gimbal A5 you should have turn EIS completely off for best results

[@TravelingAhn]

Thank you! So the stabilization I used was Horizon Balancing, sorry I didn't mention that in the video. And you are right, the EIS along with the Gimbal is probably not ideal! Appreciate your thoughts!

[@AntzMr]

Yeah, still like the Pocket 3 better! Great comparison again!

[@TravelingAhn]

Thank you Antonio, always appreciate your support!

[@walkwithyan]

pocket 3 is king. but im excited for the upcoming firmware update for the action 5 and the launch of insta360 ace pro 2 this oct. 😊

[@TravelingAhn]

@@walkwithyan for sure!

[@walkwithyan]

​@@TravelingAhngreat comparison test btw. 😊

[@TravelingAhn]

Thank you!

[@rohan7011]

action 5 with gimbal looks good... can you do a run test?

[@TravelingAhn]

Hello, I'm traveling now and didn't bring my gimbal. But, I'll look into this when I get back!

[@babyboy1971]

This is gold!!! I think the ISO 100-3200 footage on action 5 is very usable. Looks great, especially for an action camera! And the gimbal footage is very nice, of course. I may have to pick up that gimbal. But honestly that’s why I use the pocket 3! I think a gimbal on an action can is a bit too cumbersome but it’s very cool to see how good it did!!!! I’m definitely going to get the action 5, to compliment my pocket 3, though I am curious to see what the ace pro 2 brings. I’m very excited and grateful that you made this video and thank you for sharing your findings! These are similar walks to what I often do. And like you, I use action cams to vlog! I think a lot of people do and as David Manning was saying in one of his videos about the action five in low light, I think that we call “low light” is actually in a lot more settings and scenarios than we think. Even just indoor shots or subway shots or walking through airports or malls or things like that, would be considered low light! Question: Did you use 1/120 on your non gimbal 100-3200 footage? Seems so as I see almost no jitter. This quadruple rule is pure gold!!! I’ve shared with many KZbinrs with credit to you! You rock and I’m excited to see many more tests! Keep up the great work, my friend! Action 5 Pro ftw!

[@TravelingAhn]

Hello Donovan, love all your support. We are definitely like-minded when it comes to using the Action 5 and how it works so well with the Pocket 3 in vlogging scenarios. Good question on the (100-3200) ISO range. I realize I didn't specify. Yes, I was using the Shutter 4x rule.

[@babyboy1971]

@@TravelingAhn nice! Thats the rule that rules! 😉 I wish more reviewers knew this!

[@WanderEats]

Hi Anh.. may I ask when you are using the Action 5 Pro with the gimbal, did you turn off stabilization completely?

[@TravelingAhn]

Great question. I Actually kept the Horizon Balancing on. I felt like that would help minimize the possible jitters of rebalancing on the gimbal itself.

[@WanderEats]

@@TravelingAhn would turning it off entirely help in any way?

[@qbukhari]

​@@TravelingAhn Turn it off man... Only then you will get no jitters on 1/60 shutter speed. Stabilization needs high shutter speed. 30 fps 1/60 on a gimbal iso 800 to 1600.... You will love the footage

[@TravelingAhn]

By turning it off you would probably have to likely crop if you wanted to avoid the fish eye effect. Another thing is that if the gimbal to keep the DJI action study it's going to be much harder to fix in post. In my experience mixing in electronic image stabilization when you're using a mechanical gimbal runs a low risk of the jello / micro jitter effect since it's on a actual mechanical gimbal

[@TravelingAhn]

I'll look and see if this works for me!

[@MadanNpVlog]

Every thing was good but it my honest advice for compression video please used all 3 camera with same time so we can see the difference ❤

[@TravelingAhn]

Hello, that a good point and request. I just don't happen to have a rig that allows me to place all three simultaneously. I should definitely look into it!

[@SamongpetsMTA]

i like your way of review!

[@TravelingAhn]

@@SamongpetsMTA thank you 🙏, appreciate it!

[@LloydSim]

Hmmm. personally, I think I prefer pocket 3’s results based on this comparison. I just got mine (tnx to your previous vid), so I’ve yet to try it and compare with my iPhone, but my iPhone 15 Pro Max’s night time videos are just horrendous. The action 5 does have pretty decent balance of lighting though, i wonder what the future firmware updates/improvements will be like for it since it’s already pretty good. Tnx for the vid!

[@TravelingAhn]

Hello Lloyd, thanks for the thoughts and support. Yeah, I'm looking forward to the future DJI firmware updates. Hopefully they can do some good updates to address people's concerns with Bitrate! While the iPhone night footage isn't good, it is nice to have a quality camera that is literally always with you (at least in the daytime 😂)

[@marianpavlik6352]

Nice comparison I see you have quite good result in stable walk with OP3 compared to Action 5 with gimbal. I know this OP3 walking stability is a topic in many reviews but your walk is OK :-) I have OP3 and now have changed from Action 1 to a one year old Action 4. I have not yet shot with Action 4 but I will use it mainly for action purposes (bike, skiing, scuba diving.

[@TravelingAhn]

Thank you for your kind words! Yeah, the Action 4 would be quite the upgrade for you from the Action 1. Others have mentioned that the OP3 bounce is not obvious with me (interesting, I don't try to ninja walk),

[@koreatackle]

안녕하세요 OA5 구매하면서 지난 영상부터 잘 보고 있습니다. 좋은 정보 정말 감사드립니다. (한국분이라 믿고 한글로 작성합니다.) 저는 이전까진 아이폰으로 촬영했으며 얼마전 업로드 한 영상부터 kzbin.info/www/bejne/kJe3f2OHrt2hhpo OA5로 촬영했습니다. 카메라에 대해 잘 모르기 때문에 1080 / 60 / 10비트 컬러 / 나머진 오토 셋팅하여 촬영했는데 영상 퀄리티가 마음에 들지 않습니다. 매번 촬영 클립이 많은 이유로 1080으로 촬영하는데요, 2K나 4K 혹은 D-LOG M 셋팅으로 촬영하면 결과물이 더 괜찮을 수 있을까요? 클립의 용량이 커지면 편집시 어려움이 따를 것 같아 1080을 유지하고 있었습니다. 마지막으로 텍스쳐 -2 노이즈리덕션 -1 을 셋팅하는 이유를 여쭙고 싶습니다. 앞으로도 유익하고 좋은 영상 부탁드립니다. 구독!

[@TravelingAhn]

Hello, I just checked out your channel 👏.I should be asking you questions 😂 To help answer yours, I would first recommend that you always record in 4K. I agree that you should use 60FPS, since you are actively shooting outside and there is lots of movement with your fishing. If you know how to use the DJI Lut for D-Log M I would do that. If not, normal profile. Also, make sure you always record with -2 Texture (Sharpness) and at least -1 or -2 Noise Reduction. The Texture will help your video quality not look like you made your video with your smartphone. Hope this helps. Let me know if you have any other questions.

[@koreatackle]

@@TravelingAhn Thank you so much. My computer might be tired. I'll shoot 2.7K 60 D-LOGM and apply lut & -1 -1👍👍👍👍👍👍👍🫡

[@TravelingAhn]

@@koreatackle I'll check out your next video!

[@jatinpanghal2570]

i bought an action 5 yesterday and now know what camera to buy next. pocket 3 is freaking awesome with that Bokeh and to bring a variety of shots with low and high brightness. that one inch sensor definitely helps

[@TravelingAhn]

Hello Jatin, congrats on the Action 5! Yeah, the Pocket 3 compliments the Action 5 so well!

[@shubhranshuanurag185]

which one to be chosen as the first camera to begin with: Insta360 ace pro or action 5 pro or pocket 3?

[@TravelingAhn]

@@shubhranshuanurag185 Those questions are always tough to answer. But, if you want the best and simplest audio quality than DJI and its DJI Mic system is going to win over the Insta products. Between the Action and Pocket, it depends on if you want to film during inclement weather.

[@shubhranshuanurag185]

@@TravelingAhn Thank you. What about combining Insta360 Ace Pro with DJI Mic 2? Will that win over combining DJI Action 5 Pro with DJI Mic 2? Is DJI Pocket 3 has too much clarity in low light than Action 5 Pro, worth paying more for a non-waterproof gimbal camera than Action 5 Pro or Insta360 Ace Pro? 🔥

[@TravelingAhn]

@shubhranshuanurag185 while the Insta camera will connect to the DJI mic 2, the clarity of the reception will not be as good because it is not a DJI product

[@BestToWonder]

5:17 The "Toneh" 🤣🤣, it's a new standard word now, everyone's using it 🤣

[@TravelingAhn]

Thanks to Casey @cameraconspiracies 😂

[@BestToWonder]

@@TravelingAhn ya, absolutely ☕

[@Mr.MassLifts]

DJI, sponsor my guy Adam!!!

[@TravelingAhn]

@@Mr.MassLifts 😂😂😂

[@Vlogging_with_Friendss]

i am using Pocket 3 for my vlogs... its fun to use 😎😎

[@TravelingAhn]

Such a great camera!!! Thanks for taking the time to comment and support the channel ❤️

[@warrenrae32]

The pocket 3

[@TravelingAhn]

Thanks for sharing your thoughts and feedback, really appreciate it!

[@marke.8334]

Pocket 3 shows much more detail in the stone floor when you're walking at about 14:00

[@TravelingAhn]

Great catch on that Mark! Thank you for the comment and support!

[@Anadrolus]

Of course the Pocket 3 is brighter it's at 1/60 exposure whereas the other cams are at 1/120... what was your logic behind that ?

[@TravelingAhn]

Hello, I appreciate your question. I used the 1/120 because that is how I would normally set my settings if I were vlogging with the Action 5. I did show some examples of Motion Blur using the 180 degree rule, which introduces all the micro-jitters.

[@qbukhari]

Pocket 4 Wish List 5x optical zoom Removable battery 1 inch sensor 360 pan movement Built in ND filters Mini fill light built in Pre-Defined and user defined gimbal movements Say good bye to all cameras.... It will rule the camera world.

[@TravelingAhn]

Love the Pocket 4 Wish List! I absolutely agree with your list and it certainly would be the GOAT of the camera world!!!! Well, it looks like DJI will likely give us the Pocket 4 as early as 2026? What do you think?

[@qbukhari]

@@TravelingAhn DJI has to make a decisive move now. All these features on a built in gimbal in a small form factor. OMG it will be a perfect video camera.

[@TravelingAhn]

Let's hope for the best 🙏

[@TimBrownTown]

If they do that AND add 15 stops of dynamic range I agree.

[@qbukhari]

@@TimBrownTown Won't be possible. Dynamic range will stick with 1 inch sensor limits. Anything more will be artificial processing

[@qbukhari]

Insta360 Ace Pro has a unique trick in its bag .... 2x lossless zoom. That alone makes this camera better than Action 4 and 5 Try this 2x zoom in your videos. Its absolutely clean and stabilized

[@TravelingAhn]

I'll have to look into that feature! The Bluetooth connection for the wireless DJI mics works best compared to pairing it with a Ace Pro or iPhone etc

[@qbukhari]

@@TravelingAhn DJI Mic 2 on Ace Pro ..... Very low quality audio

[@TravelingAhn]

Yeah, that really keeps me in the DJI garden on that regard!

[@qbukhari]

Pocket 3.... Much better than both

[@TravelingAhn]

Yeah, I agree! But the Actions have come along in their abilities! Thank you for the comment and support!

[@Furniturejogot]

❤💕💕🇧🇩🇧🇩🇧🇩

[@TravelingAhn]

Thank you so much for taking the time to comment and support the channel ❤️

[@combaksal]

근데? 한국인이신가요?

[@TravelingAhn]

Yes, I was born in Busan and was adopted to USA. I now live in Korea and have dual citizenship

[@combaksal]

@@TravelingAhn 아항. 그렇군요~ 항상 응원하고 있습니다~ 아자 화이팅~

[@TravelingAhn]

@@combaksal 감사합니다 ❤️

[@siddharthachakraborty5715]

Action 4 has higher bit rate. So it looks more detailed.

[@TravelingAhn]

Hopefully DJI will come out with a firmware update addressing this. Thank you for your comment and support!

[@thecaptain2521]

I use windows movie maker, even if I record in 4K, movie maker will only render 1080p for youtube. What program do you use to get the video ready for KZbin???

[@TravelingAhn]

Hello Captain, I use Final cut Pro. Its arguably the easiest to learn, but not the most powerful compared to DaVinci resolve or premiere Pro

[@TimBrownTown]

You're in windows. Start with Capcut and if you need more, do Davinci resolve. Both are free. Capcut is easier to start with and doesn't require a lot of computing power.

[@TravelingAhn]

Great suggestions Tim!

[@thecaptain2521]

Thanks Tim I'll try Capcut first!!