DJI Osmo Action 3 Review for MTB

[@MrGourd]

Glad you mentioned the fact that recording, stopping, etc all have distinct sounds. Such a great quality of life improvement as I also run a chin mount and sometimes can’t remember what the camera’s doing.

[@DaleStone]

So what do you think, should this be my new primary camera? Full spec list at :bit.ly/DJIDaleStone

[@viperrules24]

The section at 7:19 is so smooth and stabilized, it legitimately looks like a video game made with Unreal Engine 5. So freaking good!!!

[@luffyluck]

Looking good. Overall I'd say it seems to be a bit more grainy in good light but has better stabilization in low light which is probably more important where you ride. Regardless, happy that there are more options on the market!

[@fivetool]

The picture quality of the clips you chose for this video are amazing. This is a big upgrade from your previous camera.

[@TobiB89]

I think the depiction of steepness is quite impressive. Always feel like GoPro-footage makes everything look super flat. This feeling of steepness from the dji almost compares to footage of 360 cams imo.

[@sampah89]

Sorry Dale, I really watched this video only for the rides, hardly listened to the review. The distraction was too overwhelming

[@elijahbroughton9907]

I honestly think this a great option, first the price point is great and the image is actually pretty good 👍

[@shaneridesmtb]

I love my Action3! Honestly coming from a GoPro, the footage and color grading is so much better, but I'm struggling with audio quality. The gain on the mic needs to be turned down a little. I'm running 2 taped on dead cats and an older gopro foam cover and now it's better. BTW an older wind slayer, for a gopro 8, fits pretty decent on the action 3 if you run the additional cage. The quick record button lines up great and it helps keep the dead cat fuzz out of the field of view.

[@Qinhaocheng]

Firstly I have to say that I struggled to listen to you since most of my focus was attracted by the riding itself (have to rewind the video so many times because of missing what you said). It seems insta360 still shows the steepness better but with a cost of very obvious distortion, while this cam has a pretty good balance. The image detail (like the grass, granular dirt, etc.) of osmo 3 isn't really as good as GoPro 11 IMO. But with such battery life/stabilization/view angle/low light performance/easy-mount, and most importantly, price, I'm seriously considering upgrade my GoPro8 to this Osmo Action 3 very soon.

[@DaleStone]

The framerate might be lowering image detail through motion blur (30 here vs my usual 60), so I'll have to try with 60 and sharpening in post for a fairer comparison.

[@duncanwright301]

I really like this. It seems similar to the gopro, but shows steepness pretty well (while not distorting like the Insta360)

[@GoodTrails]

I was really impressed by the stabilization in the dark! You are shredding by the way! This is going to be the year of the Stone!

[@DaleStone]

Haha thanks, I hope so too! 📈

[@mrvwbug4423]

Definitely a lot less gopro effect with this camera, steep stuff looks actually steep, not flat like gopro and not way too steep like 360 cams tend to do.

[@terrybull4604]

Not sure if it's just me or not , but It looks like there is a more accurate portrayal of the gradient....no "go pro affect"

[@EvilDaren]

Do DJI ask that you write "The end of Gopro?" when they send you the camera? I've seen dozens of video with the same title

[@DaleStone]

I've never once seen that and they didn't ask! 🙂

[@timbershadow1]

Yeah, thanks to you and this unbelievable footage, my wife is giving me a week in your area for my birthday! Being from farm country Wisconsin this is a total dream come true for me. I watch your videos almost daily and I'm entranced with your edits. I'm not a huge camera buff but the quality is so remarkable that I feel like I'm the one riding and I guess that's the point. Don't get me wrong, our area is pretty nice but to have your trails for a week has me in la la land just about all the time. Seriously can't wait... Oh yeah, the camera is pretty dope, so keep killin it!

[@DaleStone]

Have a fantastic birthday trip! 🤘

[@sgfurio07]

Fantastic. I've loved watching your vids, but always found them distorted. As you mentioned about speed and depth perception. This is lengths better than your current setup. I myself are contemplating a action camera. All my mates say GoPro GoPro GoPro. But after seeing this, and comparing it to your other stuff, DEFINITELY a DJI for me.👍🤟

[@teddysnaps4786]

I only know of one other MTB channel that uses this camera within my consumption habits and it's such pleasure to watch. I thought it was just my monitor meshing well with footage from this camera but judging by all the positive comments it looks like it's widespread. I really hope more adopt, I think that will be the biggest hurdle but the adoption process doesn't seem like that much of a change. Cheers

[@nicks2716]

Unsurprisingly, such a well done and thorough review. You are a multi-talented person. When I watch your rides, I’m not generally very aware of the image quality or thinking about it, so I’m probably not the best person to offer feedback. But one thing I will note is that the reduced GoPro effect this camera offers on the steeps is appreciated. Otherwise, image quality for me is indistinguishable from your 10 setup - which is a good thing. The other benefits you note with respect to battery life, battery pack and lack of overheating would seem to put the camera over the top. So thumbs up from this not very savvy action-camera viewer.

[@orestisvas7277]

Hey I have not watched one of your videos for a short while and I have to say two things. One this looks amazing and I did not remember it like this so this camera is very good. 2 your riding is insane. Good job

[@M40kc]

I was going to say, you could actually see the steepness of the trail. No “GoPro effect”!

[@earthymom68]

Thank you, Dale! I had never heard of this camera and will be in the market for a new one eventually. This looks amazing!

[@ASPIRE1355LC]

I was impressed with your skills, review (still am) and camera. I decided to buy one right up to the moment you said I would have to put my android phone into developer mode for the Chinese app to be installed which, apparently, was refused permission to be on the Play store. Nope.

[@DaleStone]

I felt it was important to include that. 🙂 Unfortunately GoPro (and I believe Insta360) both require the app to register the camera before you can use it too...

[@saywhaatnow]

I'd say the field of view is a massive improvement over other cameras. I'd call that a win.

[@NickBainas]

Just to touch on the 5.3k of the GoPro, it allows you to crop/reposition your scene to 4k without losing resolution. The DJI footage looks soft compared to GoPro but GoPro is known for its its sharpness/over sharpness. But regardless, the best camera is always the one you have.

[@DaleStone]

Being able to reframe the shot is definitely a pro... outside of the action sports world where sacrificing a wider FOV is not a great option. Tough sell with riding. I agree though!

[@NickBainas]

@@DaleStone being able to crop in from 5.3k when removing the "GoPro" effect is definitely beneficial to riding footage.

[@DaleStone]

@@NickBainas I don't agree at the expense of FOV. 🙂

[@NickBainas]

@@DaleStone the extra 14-30 degrees FOV over the hero 11 is definitely worth considering!

[@sjaan7370]

Great review of the DJ1. So many great features, but the video quality doesn't look as sharp and detailed as the GoPro.

[@DaleStone]

Could be 30 vs 60 and post processing techniques. To be determined!

[@edsmit1343]

Thanks for this review!

[@ronanM-L]

I like it, the stabilization looks incredible and the audio is good!

[@MTBinKY]

I like your list of positives, but the fact that you say it doesn't freeze up has gotta rate high for the things we do with these. Honestly, I don't know how people put up with it. I am curious if you notice a slight drop in sharpness or if that's just a matter of something you've changed in post. Thanks for the review.

[@userbosco]

Great overview of the cam, but the best part of this was the killer riding footage!

[@mtbwithtfb]

It appears, Dale, that this camera, unlike the GoPro, shows the actual steepness of the trail. Is this really what I'm seeing?

[@DaleStone]

That is true in my opinion too!

[@mtbwithtfb]

That's a good reason to upgrade my camera.

[@viperrules24]

I agree. I believe the video from 12 days ago (1500 feet or something) was filmed with this camera. I have been on that trail and the footage is representative of how steep it is IRL!

[@daveharris39]

I dont have your professional opinions about this, but it looks and sounds good. I've seen a few of y'alls rides when you were anticipating the battery dying before you finished the ride. Sounds like this one has better battery life!

[@TeamCykelhold]

Some parts of the vid looks super good and crisp and other parts doesn't look as crisp and in focus as with a gopro. Hard to tell if it's the camera, the settings, the compression or what it is. If that is possible to fix, then it's a winner. But quality comes first IMO.

[@pkvillager]

I just got my Action 3 yesterday and took it for a ride. I really like it. I do think the GoPro has the best image quality in terms of detail. I can see more details on GoPro doing pause tests on all GoPro vs Action 3 reviews I have watched. @Suspension Traveler has really good side by side between the Action 3 on older FW vs the GoPro. For ultimate image quality the GoPro is better by a little bit and that will be up to the individual to decide. But for me not being a professional the price, battery performance, ease of use and the mounts made me go with the Action 3.

[@DaleStone]

Fair points, though I would argue that the ultrawide FOV provides a bigger viewer benefit than pixel peeping image quality. Pause tests are not overly representative of the average viewer watching straight through, though they certainly provide interesting information!

[@pkvillager]

@@DaleStone Oh yeah for sure! Thats part of why I went with the DJI

[@-tr0n]

This footage is noticeably better. Nice review

[@MTBMcPhee]

Great review Dale. I hope your friends jump on this one too because the footage looks so much better than the 360 cameras! Would be interesting to compare the FOV to the hero 11 in hyperview, which I feel is a little warped compared to this.

[@Radln_Jeden_Tag]

The footage seems less "sharp". Youre Gopro footage always (at least to me) looked a bit "oversharpened" but I think that wasn't really bad. I didn't have to concentrate as much on making out roots and rocks on the trail. The dji makes the trails (especially the more distant trail) more blury (it kind looks like compression artifacts and could be yt's fault , but the "oversharpened Gopro look wasn't influenced by the compression as much ). I myself was thinking of bying a new GoPro maybe dji but I'm honestly quite happy with my Gopro Fusion altough its image quality is fairly bad and its a 250 gram Brick, simply 360 video with and easier workflow than any insta 360 is great.

[@DaleStone]

I've been slowly easing back on the GoPro sharpness over the past few months, but probably went a bit far with this camera. Going to try to increase the sharpness in post once again and see where that leaves the quality.

[@1ndigo82]

It seems to make the speed more relative to actually whats going on. Its kinda interesting to see it this way.

[@therealridedmc]

I don’t think I have a keen enough eye to tell the difference between this and a GoPro. But I can say that I do prefer this (& GoPro) footage to 360 camera footage which is just too distorted for my tastes. Any chance you could post a clip without any modifications to colour? I’m worse at editing than I am at riding/filming, and the only modification I do with my GoPro footage (Hero 9) is lower the audio levels to between -8 and -12. And I’m generally happy with my footage.

[@DaleStone]

Most examples online likely use the "normal" colour profiles straight out of camera. It looks pretty good!

[@DonsMTBTrailGuide]

Thanks for the review. As my GoPro Hero 7 Black is giving me issues I am looking to upgrade to either the GoPro Hero10 or the DJI Osmo Action 3. I like what you were saying about the battery life of the DJI. I run a battery pack on my Hero 7 black so I don't have to change batteries during a ride. How long does one of the DJI batteries actually last. You mentioned a number of rides but can you say in minutes or hours. Also I use a GoPro chesty mount. Will the DJI system work with the chesty or do you need to get some type of adapter. Let me know what you think.

[@MrMorka39]

I started watching your video My dream Bike is Here and I spotted straight away that the video quality is very good. Then I found this video that all explained. Sound camera. Getting on the list. Are all the gopro adapters compatible with this camera? Thank you

[@DaleStone]

I would assume so, but really not sure!

[@bikelifegermany4444]

sounds good, maybe i try that out. my gopro has sd card and overheating problems.

[@zacharykai6317]

I am thinking about getting the osmo action 3, but you mentioned you had to get a differnt sd card. Which one did you get for it that worked well?

[@DaleStone]

Don't recall exactly, but I think it was an Insta360 V30 class card. Nothing too wild.

[@lynxg4641]

Good review Dale, would agree with you on all the points except for lens quality, doesn't seem as sharp to me as the GoPro, but then again, I'd have to see the RAW footage to really make that call (I did watch it in 1440 to see if that helped compared to 1080). Something you didn't mention in the "creature comfort" settings is the what from their video looks to be very easy to use and change camera settings, that would be a big plus for me.

[@DaleStone]

Once you've dialed in your settings there isn't any need to use anything different! 🙂

[@lynxg4641]

No, wasn't meaning in that regard, I meant switching between modes and such, like switching from Normal to Timelapse or SloMo and such, GUI seems very intuitive and user friendly and the screens are big.

[@DaleStone]

@@lynxg4641 that's true!

[@lynxg4641]

@@DaleStone so for me that come sin handy when you're bombing down the trail and come across a cool feature and everyone wants to give it a go. So you use the handy magnetic lock to quickly remove the camera, swipe up to get to the menu, then swipe left to get to SloMo, then easily adjust how slomo and at what sort of quality - great especially for MTBing, IMHO.

[@PaulTakesPhotos]

Great video and wonderful mbt technique :)

[@TMaddison]

Seems like they fixed the focus issues that were a big problem with initial batches of this camera

[@martinmarinov5766]

that’s some great color grading, can you share the settings? I have the same camera but I want to find some good color settings and I can’t find them anywhere

[@DaleStone]

I think it would be dishonest to pretend I know what I'm talking about there, haha. I'm flattered you like my work but I'd definitely point you towards the wealth of knowledge about colour correction on KZbin already! 😁

[@ManeMtb]

This vid made me decide to buy Osmo action 3 over GoPro 😅 Can you maybe share your settings? I noticed that in Pro mode, while everything is on Auto, camera does horrible job with UltraWide/RS when there is no sun, later afternoon in the open even. Footage is really blurry and unwatchable. But I think if I put it to Promode off, then even on the screen you see everything light up, and I have to try if bluriness occurs as well (EIS off or EIS on). But are you in pro mode with custom settings, or pro mode off? Presets are also working strange since some stuff is not related to them, and when you turn promode ON instantly its behaving differently even though everything is on Auto from settings... Thanks!

[@DaleStone]

I believe I did somewhere in this video! Pro mode for sure. Going to review the 4 shortly and provide more details settings.

[@downhillupside]

Gopro has been incredibly complacent over the years. I'm glad there are some true competitors out there now. Also, what's the name of the high speed jump line you're showing at various points in your video? ( 7:50 )

[@DaleStone]

There are several different high speed jump lines in this video, they might each get their own.

[@Chasing-Daydream]

Well.......I'm scared of the magnetic aspects because I've almost lost my hero 10 when I had it on a magnetic mount on my helmet. But the not overheating, the out of the box wind reduction and the low light footage is definitely something that interest me. Is that glass on it easy to break? It's going to be a while before I can invest in a whole new camera setup to give it a try though. But thanks for your review.

[@DaleStone]

The magnetic attachment is backed up by a physical latch to keep it in place, it's more for easy locating than ultimate securing.

[@JaredDoyle76]

I chose this camera over a GoPro for 2 reasons: GoPro overheats consistently and quickly, and the unreliability of GoPro.

[@FVPOV]

Yeah Dale! Welcome to the DJI club!

[@dasanoneia4730]

im sold

[@andrewah15]

Great video and great action 3 review. 👍🏽😎

[@sergiogonzalesYT]

Thanx for the review!

[@ronanmcn4967]

5:45- Just one more lap. We've got enough time

[@_Vicarious]

Mate, not going to lie. The quality of your filming in the early stages of your channel was elite (early hundred subs). You had by far the best visuals of any MTB KZbinr and I thought your channel was chronically underrated because of it. You must have had the setting dialed on the GoPro. The visuals from this is meh. Please don't just blend into to crowd of average MTB KZbinrs. Your quality is what set you apart.

[@DaleStone]

As technology advances, staying the same distance ahead of the curve will get harder and harder. Audio is the next focus!

[@dirtchurchmtb]

Really enjoyed the review and the riding, Dale. I’m curious - what’s your basic process for post production, and what are you using (software, computer, etc)? Thanks.

[@DaleStone]

I use Resolve, and the process differs depending on how complex the video is!

[@dirtchurchmtb]

Dale, are you getting 3-4 hours of battery life at the settings you describe? That is 4K 30?

[@DaleStone]

@@dirtchurchmtb I haven't ran out of battery on a single ride yet, so at least an hour and a half of filming time I'd reckon. No idea what 100-0 looks like.

[@columbianranger]

looks like a great camera!

[@ICE329]

Well done Dale! 👏

[@zirie]

Great riding!

[@boybusilakbikes]

Looking forward to the long term review in a few months.

[@DaleStone]

We will see if there's anything else worth reporting on!

[@PueroricanpiratesMTB]

Dale how can your video looks so good my videos don’t look like that , what software you used

[@DaleStone]

Resolve

[@mahennaiker5072]

Great review was never a fan of gopro due to over heating

[@bearded4glory809]

Any chance you could do a run with both cameras mounted at the same time to get a good side by side comparison?

[@DaleStone]

Quite difficult given their mounting location, haha. And mounting location is extremely critical to performance!

[@bearded4glory809]

@@DaleStone I think it was the loam ranger that compared different gopro version with a double action cam mount. Might be worth looking into. Great video either way. DJI may be my next camera after seeing this.

[@eprohoda]

buddy, so amazing video-work- =)

[@arnaudFbr]

do DJI cameras have a GPS and capability to add telemetry data to the videos to have a speedometer overlay like on gopro for example? if yes, i'm buying one asap

[@DaleStone]

Not sure, research required!

[@arnaudFbr]

@@DaleStone it appears it doesn't, that's really sad because that camera is sexy

[@DaleStone]

@@arnaudFbr truthfully I think those features are a bit gimmicky after a few uses. There might be a third party app that does what you're after?

[@arnaudFbr]

@@DaleStone i don't use my gopro for biking, i mostly use it for skiing and soap box races (yes, very wide range of passions lol) so it's always nice to see how fast i went on the very badly welded kart that i put together in my garage. i should be able to add a speedometer myself if i use an app like strava or something, but i like the convenience of the gopro stuff (even though quik sucks imo)

[@nattytambam]

Some nice features, but the overall image quality is just not as good as previous videos. Not as sharp, not as much detail, looks relatively blurry to me

[@DaleStone]

Could be an effect of slower shutter speed via lower framerate and lower sharpness in post. Time to tinker!

[@BermUnit]

The thing about detaching the camera without moving the base...the kids these days don't know.

[@ddangerousddave]

Rad brah

[@ironguitardac]

I have it and it is amazing :)

[@TheyForcedMyHandLE]

Looks awesome and fantasmical review, but the having to enable the Android development mode to use the app is scary stuff.

[@DaleStone]

Yep, not super awesome!

[@JIBBING_1980S]

It doesn't have Gps speedometer , if u know how to add the gps meter without using screen recording on smartphone please include the tutorial . Thanks

[@DaleStone]

That's beyond my paygrade, which was zero haha.

[@bilmaj4613]

can you do a video on how did you mount it on your helmet? :D

[@DaleStone]

GoPro sticky mount, nothing fancy!

[@mashednz]

I'm curious if the chroma noise in the shadows on a frame like kzbin.info/www/bejne/eHaniXuOfrtrmKM is coming from youtube compression or if it is in the footage itself? It could also be being introduced in the colour grading if the shadows are being lifted a ton in post. The camera looks like a great option though and awesome to have more alternatives to gopro.

[@DaleStone]

Mostly in the footage. A noise reduction filter would work quite well I reckon, but not something I'm willing to pay for haha.

[@mashednz]

@@DaleStone The denoise in Davinci Resolve is very good but it is only in the paid version. It is pretty well priced though.

[@davidmtb186]

we need a settings tutorial pleaaasee

[@DaleStone]

My new video on the Action 4 has just that!

[@ToddNZMTB]

I don't even pay for this so yeah, looking good 😁

[@Ynot_Ride]

11:49 Could you tell what card you swapped? cheers

[@DaleStone]

I don't remember exactly, but I think I went to a V30 card.

[@stefankaufmann2340]

Can I use my GoPro mounts and SD cards with it?

[@DaleStone]

Yes

[@stefankaufmann2340]

Great! Thank you for your response!

[@svenwesley7031]

Dammit Dale, it's your fault I had to buy one.

[@garyharmon5386]

Now I’m really confused. I am a retired photojournalist and I have been looking at GoPro but the colors are really nice with this camera. Can you edit the video on a IPhone and what app do you use? Thanks

[@DaleStone]

I use Davinci Resolve, and do not own an iPhone.

[@garyharmon5386]

Thank you

[@TonyFernandezjkdjedi]

I like to lock my frame rate for some blur and can do it with ND filters, can the DJI Osmo do the same?

[@DaleStone]

You can select your frame rate yes, but I assume you mean shutter speed? Not sure on that.

[@TonyFernandezjkdjedi]

@@DaleStone Yes shutter speed, thanks.

[@zanedombrock7918]

What SD card do you use???

[@DaleStone]

I honestly don't remember, some insta360 branded V30 one I think.

[@zanedombrock7918]

@DaleStone ok thanks man👍

[@BushmanCanuck]

Nice job on the review. But the elephant in the room is the video artifact mostly just below center of the screen. I've encountered this on my own cameras and I think it's a combination settings, editing software and or SD card. But the other feature rich things like battery pack and magnetic mount are really nice.

[@DaleStone]

I don't see the artifact you're talking about!

[@BushmanCanuck]

@@DaleStone maybe it's my tv 😂

[@bainoe]

Nope. If DJI fix the sharpness of this camera then it’ll be fine. GoPro Hero 11 still the beast just use enduro batt.

[@DaleStone]

Sharpness can (and should) be adjusted in post!

[@bainoe]

@@DaleStone I only find out for Osmo 3 best setting is 4k 60fps Rocksteady off. Don't use Rocksteady option that makes the focus and sharpness sucks because it zoom in the lens. You can try by yourself. I bought 2 Osmo Action 3 for me and my son but we end up for GoPro Hero 11. Anyways it's defend on the pips out there what is the best camera for them. I love watching your videos man keep it up. God bless.

[@DaleStone]

No stabilization is a non-starter for mountain biking unfortunately!

[@SKYLIMI]

Dji problem kzbin.info/www/bejne/emqxZHSVo6uWick GoPro is geared towards more experienced users, while DJI caters to individuals who perceive themselves as advanced users. GoPro offers the ability to record at 200 Mbps, highlighting the noticeable distinctions. The introduction of DJI has sparked enthusiasm among users, given its novelty, although GoPro's enduring superiority remains unquestioned.

[@DaleStone]

No product is perfect, and no product is definitively better in every situation! GoPro has definitely lacked meaningful innovation for a few years, in my opinion.

[@HardtailLife]

You ride too fast for any overheating stress test 😜

[@Lucas_mtb69]

What settings do you use?

[@DaleStone]

I thought I covered them in this video haha.I'll be making a more up to date video soon!

[@Lucas_mtb69]

2:46 you didn’t mention ISO range, shutter speed or white ballance, which are really the most important. Will be looking forward to update👍

[@DaleStone]

@@Lucas_mtb69 maximum range, auto and native I believe.

[@Lucas_mtb69]

@@DaleStone oh Jee ok. Usually auto settings can make the stabilisation all messed up but I may try it out. Keep up the good work man.

[@atulyt2129]

How's your experience been with Action 3 Lucas ? I had made up my mind to go with GoPro 10 but heard about it overheating,low battery backup as compared to DJI and then this review confused me even more. Dc Rainmaker says its worse video and image quality than GoPro 10 (I would love to take pics out of videos) ,hence I had decided on Gopro.

[@Scott-qd6fs]

Not impressed with footage 'Blotchy"

[@nurfilme]

Bei so Überschriften schau ich die Videos garnicht an👎

[@DaleStone]

Welcome to KZbin, you must be new here.

[@ET2carbon]

Not impressed sorry