Is this the worst action camera I've tried? Insta360 Ace Pro Vs Insta360 X4

[@changrenyong7616]

This is truly the best X4 review I have seen so far. So much cycling-related details on its pros and cons. Bravo!

[@Ali_Clarkson]

Oh man thank you for saying that! It’s a risk making such a long detailed video (not to mention exhausting) so to hear you say exactly what I was hoping it would provide is a bit of a relief 🤘🏻

[@АлексейЦыганков-ъ1ц]

ye x4 sucks! take gopro 12 + max lens mode 2

[@Vitalos]

Yeah, this is what I also liked the most. I watched some videos but this is the best so far! ;)

[@budgetbiker7]

This is the most comprehensive and down to earth comparison for action cameras I have ever seen, please do more of these when the latest stuff comes out! My GoPro 10 is starting to show its age. Great video as always Ali!

[@Ali_Clarkson]

Thank you very much! I really wanted to give as much info as possible and show actual real-world footage so people can really make up their minds. Sadly it does make a long video which won’t ever do as well as a 8-10 min review but I didn’t want to compromise even if it means fewer views. Comments like yours makes me really happy I went the route I did 😊

[@CrimsonDoveKarting]

I use my 360 for racing and just got an x4. 2 notes no one's mentioning so I just have to. 1: The x4 no longer has a recording limit, I hit 2 hours 4k@60 on a single recording and it still had a little battery. 2: it's constantly saving, after my 2 hour test I ripped the battery out to see what would happen, only lost the last 5-10 seconds. About frickin time

[@luism.2050]

Got the Ace Pro and the X3. I find I reach for my x3 more often for all sorts of situations: motorcycle, bike rides, hikes, out and about on travels, social events with friends and family… I really love the 360 footage and the ability to reframe. It makes solo filming more interesting, dynamic, and captures way more than 1 locked angle. I can live with the lower quality footage.

[@darylsummer1424]

I absolutely love your review and honesty in this video. Most reviewers are very biased to a particular brand because they're getting something through the back door. Well done. Cheers

[@BicinViaggio]

Finally an honest review! Very good job, thanks!

[@Feemy]

Great job pointing out the flaws, which none of the sponsored videos even touch on! The idea is great: multiple framing opportunities so you can enjoy being in the moment and do all the reframing afterwards. BUT there are just too many cons like the ones you mentioned, that just make it a hard sell for me. Too pricey and too fragile being the main cons. DJI have the best pricing and they also include some accessories which is great.

[@BeautifulNorfolk]

Hmmm... contemplating upgrading my X3 with an X4! Definitely looks like a great improvement.

[@igorwanderer4020]

Thank you very much! A uniquely useful review. I have already ordered the X4, but I want another camera for quiet travel now. I'm choosing between ace pro and osmo pocket 3. After your review, I'm thinking about pocket 3

[@toferlund]

Great footage comparison. Really what I wanted to know for mountain biking videos. Thanks for sharing.

[@Metro_Gnome]

Its funny Ive had the ace pro for most of this year and i like it. You have to BT mic ot with a dji mic and use a +4 diopter fpr vlog mode but thats actually what i use it for. Yall cam laugh but i still use the micro cube GP hero 4 for mtb. Low fuss, low profile, low megapixel ...I set it to 1440p and go. The ace pro is my outdoor lowprofile shooter and for that purpose its great, so youre right but...personally I wouldnt go as far as tell people to not buy it. The flippy screen alone makes it more of a mid, micro mirrorless video camera than any other action cam

[@Ali_Clarkson]

Yeah as a vlog style camera it’s pretty decent but this test was specifically to see whether it was good as a MTB camera and I simply can’t recommend it for that when there’s better options for less money.

[@babyboy1971]

I have the GoPro 12 and I’ve been having major ace pro envy but this video makes me think the ace pro wouldn’t be a huge upgrade from the GoPro except probably in low light.

[@Ali_Clarkson]

Depends what you want to use it for…for bike POV I simply can’t recommend the C Ace Pro, the tight FOV looks really bad in my opinion and the GoPro is much wider. But if you’re wanting a camera for vlogging that’s easy to get good audio with, works better in the dark and has neat recording options (like being able to pause or delete clips) then the Ace Pro is great

[@bobmajew53]

Well, after the GoPro the Ace Pro is miles ahead. I do a lot of cloudy and low light riding and all of my mountain bike footage looks really sharp. I don't fuss with post-editing so that's a non-issue. The pause feature is great for field editing, eliminating the boring bits. The camera is typically mounted to the handlebars and the image stabilization is superb. For really rough terrain I move the camera to the helmet mount which isn't my favorite, but heads are really good gimbals. My only complaint is wind noise, even with the WindSlayer it's kind of loud so needed to get the auxiliary microphone adapter. I'm not too thrilled about it because the adapter doesn't seal that well and should it rain I'll need to yank it off but that's not a big deal. I think a Bluetooth mic could okay without the adapter but I need to find out more about it - anyway if it needs to be manually reconnected each video, that's another pain and will just use the windslayer.

[@spirittravels.]

Thanks for the review. So this begs a question. Which action camera would you recommend a GoPro hero 11 or 12 or a DJI action? 4?

[@Ali_Clarkson]

Thanks for watching :) My pick for the best all-round camera is the Action 4, it does everything either excellently or very well…the only minor bad points are that it doesn’t quite go as wide as the GoPro Hero 12 with Lens Mod 2.0 and it lacks some cool features the Ace Pro has like pausing a recording etc. But with it being the cheapest, smallest, best in low-light, best audio, best body design, magnetic mounted, good battery life, good battery charger, easy to mount vertically makes it an easy winner for me

[@spirittravels.]

@@Ali_Clarkson thanks for the update. Much appreciated 👍

[@mtbboy1993]

For my use x4 doesn't make sense for my use scenerio, chin cam. But defenitly has it's uses. Great to have options. You made great points about the adapter. But I think it's better used on a selfie stick. I know some use it for Google maps 360 pictures, seen some of it few years ago, maybe an older version. But they had it on a stick on a backpack I think. So for hikers making 360npics or footage, it makes sense. Mounted as intended.

[@tsdmoto]

They couldn't or wouldn't give you a vertical adapter built in because they would not have an opportunity to sell you another accessory. :)

[@Ali_Clarkson]

A valid point!

[@SW-Video]

Thank you for your honest review.

[@Ali_Clarkson]

My pleasure!

[@Emtbtoday]

I liked the x4 footage more clear but at 26.40 the ace pro looks alot better, will you be testing the dji action 5 soon?

[@Ali_Clarkson]

Yes, going to do an action 5 vs Hero 13 when possible 👍🏻

[@sandy_knight]

Worth mentioning, GoPro do a pass-through door so you can plug in USB peripherals (e.g an external battery, mic etc) while keeping the battery and SD card protected. Regards 8K mode, unless you're watching on an 8K monitor/TV you'll be seeing the picture resized to what ever resolution you monitor is which will vary depending on your computer. The same is true for HDR or high frame-rates, if your computer doesn't support it you'll be seeing an approximation.

[@Ali_Clarkson]

I mention that in my Hero 12 vs Action 4 video. I feel it’s a poor fix to a bad design, when not using the cable you have a big hole into the heart of the camera…the DJI Action 4’s design (and the X4) means they’re 100% sealed all the time. Agree with the 8k points though, perhaps a nice feature to allow zooming and cropping but not many people are going to be able to watch actual 8k footage plus the camera will eat SD cards and batteries!

[@eddiefraticelli5327]

Great video. U may want 2 review the manual as the x4 does have wind noise settings and for low light there is also a low light stabilization setting. I do not have the other camera 2 know what settings it has.

[@customerisalwaysrigh]

This was really cool! You should compare an action camera to a phone camera to see if your skill as an filmer/editor can make up for the lower quality of the phone camera.

[@the_Monkee]

C’mon Ali don’t go throwing another camera into the mix!!! You had me settled last week. Now I’m more confused lol. Actually tbh thanks for the video. Not really interested in 360 (had the old GoPro fusion) pc can’t handle the footage. I’m sure there are plenty of viewers looking at this and having their minds made up.

[@Ali_Clarkson]

Sorry haha but my pick is still the DJI 👍🏻

[@G-Man01]

Wonder how you feel about a DJI vs AcePro 2

[@Ali_Clarkson]

I wonder too, the Ace Pro 2 seems to have fixed the issues I had with the original (wider FOV, replaceable lens etc), I’ve seen some comparison videos and I’m my opinion the footage looks mostly identical between the DJI and Insta360 so any decision comes down to other factors. This is where I think the DJI might still win, it’s smaller and lighter, plus cheaper. I still think the physical camera is better with the DJI, the doors are super easy to open and close with gloves and the sd card and battery are under the same door helping protect them. The DJI also has amazing audio (the Ace Pro 2 has a cool wind muffler but they don’t recommended using it in wet conditions). The insta 360 app is better though and I do like the option to pause and resume recording but I think overall the DJI still gets my vote

[@liverpoolpictorial]

I still can't get the hang of moving around the menus after 3 months.

[@Windsurfingaddict]

Great review, personally I take out the card on the x3 and now x4 as much faster to download🎉 into laptop . The helmet mount on 360 my favourite.🥳🥳🥳

[@Ali_Clarkson]

Thank you! Out of curiosity how do you then edit the footage?

[@fishycomics]

I returned mine, will go back to a Insta 360 One X and Insta studio 5.0 version trouble free work flow if asked.

[@Steve211Ucdhihifvshi]

Thanks, good points

[@piotrjanik]

Great work! There’s soooo much Insta360 sponsored content out there that finding one that was not felt like a miracle.

[@RonBesse]

The "L" bracket I use for the insta360 X4 is better designed and the mic jack adapter fits perfectly. My only bitch, is Inst360 still doesn't have GPS in the cameras, WTF? It is an action camera. I have the gps remote but less is better when doing extreme sports. It is a want to be able to include telemetry data overlays on posted videos. Using a remote gps, smart watch, or phone is just more things that could disconnect, batteries to deal with, and an additional thing to carry or lose. I hate when camera companies hold back just to include it later, so everyone has to up grade one's gear when it should have been in there from the first production camera. Anyway, I got that out of the way. I actually love the Insta360 line of cameras and have sold off 11 other action cameras to upgrade to the latest Insta360 cameras. I have two of the X4 and one of the Ace Pro's. I love the color science and image stabilization now is amazing. The standard lens guards that came with the new X4 are great for ease of putting on and removing, but there is a slight distortion and much sun flare. I my leave them off on my helmet camera, but keep them on the field camera on the tripod. I am curious if anyone else has tried the premium guards to check distortion or sun flare between the two types?

[@waq444]

Very practical information. About using the camera horizontally why not use phone holders that come with vacuum free suction cup. They've screws in the midfle to tighten up. Do you think this camera would be good for recording driving videos as ive heard its video stabilization is excellent

[@dorothyclarkson772]

Mother is first again! How pathetic is that? BTW, Strava said my max speed yesterday on my bike ride was 201 mph. Does that make me Wonderwoman?

[@alimantado373]

Who is this Dorothy Clarkson? pic please 😄

[@Ali_Clarkson]

@@alimantado373 she’s the birth giver!

[@alimantado373]

@@Ali_Clarkson 😆 wholesome and great! Glad your mom is proud and supportive!

[@dansacco1964]

Strava did that to me too on my last ride. It said my max was 2500mph. Must be the solar storm. You can be a superhero though. You did support Ali's bike obsession growing up. Im sure that wasn't easy or inexpensive.

[@Vitalos]

Thank you for this video! :) I am looking for a cam to record my biking adventures and also some drumming in nature. I think the possibility to record in 360-mode while I am drumming in a forest or somewhere else outside will give me more creative options so I'm gonna buy a insta360 X4. ;)

[@nicwhites]

This review has a lot, but to be honest I don’t think you really gave the X4 a proper review. Why do I say that? Well a majority of the review was a POV shot view which the purpose of this camera is definitely not supposed to do that. Yes it can, but it doesn’t mean it’s the primary purpose. Secondly, when you did start to use the camera for its intended use, there was little effort put in to the mounting process which made it look kind of crummy. Although I sound negative of your review, your cons were solid points; Very overlooked points at that.

[@Ali_Clarkson]

Fair points but I was primarily reviewing it as a MTB pov camera. I understand that 360 is its main feature but my previous favorite camera setup for my MTB content was a GoPro on helmet and the X3 on my chest in single lens mode. I liked this as I got better quality footage for KZbin from the GoPro but I also got a second angle from the X3 which I could also use for reels etc. I wanted to see if the X4 worked any better and to see if the 360 mode can match (or better) the footage I got from the Hero 12 and Lens Mod.

[@emergencyambulance2017]

clear winner, X4 ✅ close your eyes and buy it.

[@YoutiaoVlogs]

I use pure video for fireworks on ace pro and have sorne testing it including festive lights. Works very well

[@228slide]

Hi is there any way you can share yr X4 settings as I have a problem on really sunny trails entering into dark forest....... appreciated 👍

[@Ali_Clarkson]

I pretty much just run mine in auto sorry…I’m not the best when it comes to settings but I imagine there’s no perfect setup for such extremes in lighting, at least auto will adapt, it just might take a moment

[@HeliShed]

.................... or use a normal mobile phone clamp for the x4 for horizontal orientation and any reason why you didn't record at 60 fps? Which................. you should for action? Just asking, no malice intended. Thanks for the video.

[@Ali_Clarkson]

I wouldn’t trust a phone clamp for harsh riding plus you’ve got the possibility it would press the buttons on the side. I use lower frame rates to get extra light into the lens and also try and get a bit of motion blur around the sides to increase the feeling of speed 👍🏻

[@HeliShed]

@@Ali_Clarkson ahhh gotcha! Thanks Ali!

[@aspinaki]

I think you use a Fuji GFX100 for your action footage. :)

[@ChristiaanRoest79]

Both are great

[@buhayniteacher5547]

ill go for acee pro

[@SwimBikeRunFastest]

One little niggle i have found with my x4. If you use the app to live view a recording and then exit the live view it stops the recording.

[@YanDoroshenko]

No Ali, I'm not buying an action camera! You can't make me! However...

[@Ali_Clarkson]

But which one??

[@YanDoroshenko]

@@Ali_Clarkson Not sure. Starts with a D, ends with JI...

[@Ali_Clarkson]

@@YanDoroshenko 😎

[@YanDoroshenko]

The first pro of the Ace Pro is obviously in the name.

[@Ali_Clarkson]

Haha I missed a trick there 😋

[@KokoroKompass]

They are both so oversharpened, looks horrible in a forest! I say sell em both and get a dji pocket 3 haha. Not sure if the gimbal will cope with the aggressive riding though!

[@Ali_Clarkson]

When released many people were complaining that the Ace Pro a was way too sharp, they did release a firmware update but it’s still quite high. I didn’t think the X4 was too bad but I definitely still prefer the image quality from the Hero 12 and Action 4. I did wonder if the Pocket 3 would make a good chest camera but the POV is fairly tight and the wide angle adaptor is only held on with a magnet (plus needs to be removed and re-fitted every time you switch the camera off or on which sucks. Still a camera I’m interested in testing as a vlog rig though!

[@KokoroKompass]

I think the gimbal would have a hard time keeping up with the rapid movements. You don't want to mount it directly on the bike too(vibrations nearly broke my pocket 2). But for low light it would blow these out of the water. And for solo tripod shoots it would be amazing, since it can track quite well! Especially of you put on a flashy t-shirt haha.

[@Ali_Clarkson]

@@KokoroKompass I still think some of my best looking footage was shot with a GoPro hero 4 and Karma gimbal on my chest! It struggled on REALLY tight corners but was great everywhere else…you could switch the stability modes off on the Hero 12 and action 4 to get an even wider POV too! Just a shame it was so bulky and expensive, I had to use their battery with cable and carry it in my hip bag and even then I’d someone’s hit it on my saddle or helmet chin guard!

[@tasanastaspats5769]

why you said no gopro mount type?? yes we do have,its a metal frame with gopro mount

[@tasanastaspats5769]

lol i just text comment,and you got one😅

[@Ali_Clarkson]

@@tasanastaspats5769 😉

[@Deadpool-ou2xq]

For an adventure camera and ACTION camera : The ace pro every single day 🙌

[@Ali_Clarkson]

I sold mine not long after this video, just couldn’t get on with it

[@orestisvas7277]

It is really interesting how the guys in canada are sponsored my them, Dangerous Dave's vieos look far worse then befor insta360 in my opinion, less on VanCan but still

[@Ali_Clarkson]

Insta360 did seem to do a big marketing push for the Ace Pro in the MTB world. They used to send me cameras but when I told them they probably don’t want my honest review after using it they stopped sending me new models 😂 But yeah there’s a lot of videos out there claiming these are the best thing since sliced bread so I wanted to be thorough and honest with my video.

[@orestisvas7277]

@@Ali_Clarkson that's interesting. They really want to surpress bad reviews

[@Emtbtoday]

Massive difference in the x4 to the ace pro can't believe how much

[@hungry_heart09]

Please do insta 360 go 3s review

[@jimmyquek6536]

Ace pro all day long...

[@quesoner34]

Not really interested in the topic, leaving a like and comment for the algorithm though. Keep on Ali and I hope you can get better and more stable regarding health , love your riding vids.

[@youaintseenmeok]

There are windmuffs x4

[@WiljanWiljan]

Unfortunate X4 very very weak in low light

[@tasanastaspats5769]

you using not genuine metal frame,there are available different metal frame as you shown

[@Ali_Clarkson]

My bad, for some reason I thought I saw that cage advertised on the Insta360 site…I just looked and I was wrong. I don’t think it would make much difference though? They both look fairly identical.

[@frankthetankricard]

The zoom feature of the ace pro works in every mode other than 8k. And it is not digital zoom but rather disables pixel binning in order to crop into the 8k sensor data. Normally the 4k video is constructed by capturing data in 8k resolution and the camera cleverly combines four adjacent pixels to create a sharper 4k image before the recording is saved. When you "zoom" in this feature is disabled and it just crops into the center of the raw 8k sensor data. So you don't really lose resolution with it but 4k is a bit more detailed without zoom. Now, to mention a really annoying drawback of this, the camera remembers the zoom state even after stopping/restarting a recording and there's no option to change this. I've had a few instances where I held the camera in my hand, zoomed in on something to record it and shut the camera off using the record button. Then I proceeded to mount the camera on my chest mount and film the next pov with 2x zoom enabled. I made a feature request on Insta360's website but I think it's not going to happen.

[@DroseMr]

No battery acess was discussed and no go 🤢pygtech 🎉😂

[@FayeAbram-h7s]

X4 is not an action camera, action camera should not have fragile lenses. They lie about the advertisement. If you break the lense then goodluck having them replaced.

[@Ali_Clarkson]

Agreed, that was a major flaw with the Ace Pro too

[@electric_boogaloo496]

I have an Insta360 one X2. For chest mounted wide angle shots, really love the flexibility of shoot first and frame later in the 360 camera mode, I have lost so many riding videos to cameras being knocked to point in a totally wrong direction with regular action cameras. I have been very happy with the results except for the resolution and have been looking to upgrade to the X4. Really do appreciate the reviews in MTB context. Did you have flow state stabilization on in post while exporting the video? Your X4 360 video looks a lot shakier than what I get from my X2 kzbin.info/www/bejne/qnrIZ5lqg9Wpnacsi=ZjoVehuuCH3foUs2

[@sakarrc5001]

X4 is total crap of a camera. It's a gimmic for smarphone shorts, nothing more. Flat cp is terrible for color correction and 1080 crops looks bad. Terrible. My Hero 7 Black is eons ahead for colors and clarity.

[@jemadv1594]

Great presentation 👏 terrible products. insta360 products are overpriced hype, very disappointed. Image quality was terrible and over saturated. DJI products are currently our #1 choice