GoPro Max 2 is confirmed as coming, but what do we know so far?

(Image credit: GoPro / Future)

At the launch event for the new GoPro Hero 12 Black, the company confirmed that it is working on a successor to its 360 camera, the GoPro Max.

Asked specifically about when the successor to the Max would come, GoPro founder and CEO Nick Woodman replied that: "Oh yeah, I can confirm, we get this question a lot, there is an enormous interest in the next version of Max. And what I can confirm today is that it is in the works and it will be worth the wait".

Within the application it is stated: "a video may include a capture of a scene, such as a wide-field of view capture of the scene. A punchout of the video may provide a framing of the captured scene. The punchout may be determined based on the context of the video, such as the type of captured scene within the video, the motion of the image capture device that captured the video, video, and/or the motion of one or more things within the captured scene."

That rather cryptic abstract from the patent application suggests that GoPro are working on software to help chose which frames within a scene are the best ones to keep, or edit into your wild action packed videos. This could also lend itself to producing non-360 degree videos, from using all of the 360-degree footage and then condensing that into unique angles for a "flat" video that can be viewed without any 360 viewing device.

This is a lot like the recently announced Insta 360 drone camera. However, I think that this software could be released and implemented within the next iteration of GoPro Max 360 camera. Logically, a lot of this would be done in software after the 360-degree video has been taken, but if you want a higher quality video than say 1080p, GoPro would have to introduce a 12K 360 image. Nothing currently suggests this is going to happen, but this would certainly put it in front of its competitors.

Even though footage from the GoPro Max might appear to be brilliant when viewing it singularly, once compared to rivals from Insta360 it is clear to see that the GoPro Max is lacking in dynamic range, leading to a overall worse image than expected from a GoPro product. If the new Max 2 offered better dynamic range, and was able to control highlight roll off better, it would have a winning product.

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For nearly two decades Sebastian's work has been published internationally. Originally specializing in Equestrianism, his visuals have been used by the leading names in the equestrian industry such as The Fédération Equestre Internationale (FEI), The Jockey Club, Horse & Hound, and many more for various advertising campaigns, books, and pre/post-event highlights.

He is a Fellow of The Royal Society of Arts, holds a Foundation Degree in Equitation Science, and is a Master of Arts in Publishing. He is a member of Nikon NPS and has been a Nikon user since the film days using a Nikon F5 and saw the digital transition with Nikon's D series cameras and is still to this day the youngest member to be elected into BEWA, The British Equestrian Writers' Association.

He is familiar with and shows great interest in street, medium, and large format photography with products by Leica, Phase One, Hasselblad, Alpa, and Sinar. Sebastian has also used many cinema cameras from the likes of Sony, RED, ARRI, and everything in between. He now spends his spare time using his trusted Leica M-E or Leica M2 shooting Street photography or general life as he sees it, usually in Black and White.

With contributions from

Chris George

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