Pat PilcherSummary
GoPro Hero 11 Black Mini REVIEW
If you want a GoPro that’s of a more diminutive size then the Mini might just do the trick, but PAT PILCHER points out a couple of flaws.
$729
The adage “good things come in small packages” applies to the GoPro Hero 11 Black Mini. This wee featherweight champ packs a big punch. After putting it through its paces to see how it stacks up against its larger and extremely capable sibling, here’s what I found.
When Go Pro called it the Mini, they really weren’t kidding. It is noticeably smaller than the Hero 11 Black, but crams in nearly all the features you’d expect from a GoPro. It’s about 20mm narrower, but a tad taller and deeper. All told, it’s a super compact beastie that is ideal for anyone wanting to capture action footage without having a camera get in the way. Attaching it to my cycle helmet was a hassle-free undertaking.
Would you like to support our mission to bring intelligence, insight and great writing to entertainment journalism? Help to pay for the coffee that keeps our brains working and fingers typing just for you. Witchdoctor, entertainment for grownups. Riveting writing on music, tech, hi-fi, music, film, TV and other cool stuff. Your one-off (or monthly) $5 or $10 donation will support Witchdoctor.co.nz. and help us keep producing quality content. It’s really easy to donate, just click the ‘Become a supporter’ button below.
Like its bigger sibling, the Hero 11 Black Mini is dead easy to use. Its buttons are well-placed, and its touchscreen is both intuitive and responsive. Navigating through its menus and settings was relatively easy too.
On the video footage front, the Hero 11 Black Mini did a solid job. Footage captured was sharp with excellent colour and contrast. Low-light situations were also captured with little pixel noise and decent detail levels. As you’d expect from a GoPro, image/video stabilisation kept the footage super steady too.
Like its big brother, the Hero 11 Black Mini feels built to withstand thermonuclear war. It has excellent waterproofing, and its rugged construction means it can handle harsh shooting conditions and the odd tumble without breaking a sweat. When it comes to durability, the Hero 11 Mini is waterproof down to just over 10m. GoPro also thoughtfully include a nifty carry case and two mounting brackets which made attaching it to a range of surfaces (like my cycle helmet) an absolute doddle.
That said, a few gotchas apply with the Hero 11 Black Mini. Its lack of a screen might save weight and keep everything compact, but the downside is that you can’t see what you’re filming in real time. This also means it is controlled using just the power and record buttons (and voice commands). The other issue I noticed was that I found myself recharging it fairly frequently, as I couldn’t swap out its battery. This might be an issue with extended shooting sessions. Given GoPro was aiming for a compact form factor, doing away with a replaceable battery allowed them to keep the Hero 11 Mini compact. This does however mean that if when the battery dies or develops a fault, the camera is dead too.
While the lack of a front or back screen made framing/composing shots tricky with the Mini. It is able to be connected to the GoPro Quik app (Android/iOS), which allows for settings to be tweaked and can act as a live viewfinder. There is also a small top-mounted LCD display for accessing settings. It can be navigated with the power and record buttons.
When it comes to video, the Mini packs the same excellent performance of its larger sibling. Its 8:7 sensor means you can get a tonne of different aspect ratios which makes sharing video across multiple platforms effortless. There’s plenty of shooting modes too. It can shoot up to 5.3K at 60fps, as well as 4K at 120fps, and 2.7K at an impressive 240 fps. Hyper smooth 5.0 stabilisation and Horizon Lock also deserve special mention as they help to deliver silky smooth and steady video that’d look like utter chaos on most other cameras. All told, the image and camera settings available are identical to those on its Mini’s bigger sibling, the GoPro Hero 11 Black (see my review here).
The lack of a removable battery or built-in viewfinders are not deal-breakers, and the GoPro Hero 11 Black Mini’s solid build and excellent capture/image stabilisation capabilities make it an excellent action camera. When used with its smartphone app, it’s easy to use, and it delivers the same excellent video quality as its bigger stablemate. If you’re in the market for a good camera for attaching to a drone or for use in other tight spaces, the Hero 11 Black Mini is worth checking out.
