Insta360

Fuzzbuster

Well-known member
I am going to purchase a insta360 hopefully there are some deals this time of year! Any advice? X3 or x4? Motorcycle package or ultimate moto package? Is it better to mount the camera on the handle bar or stick? What memory card is sufficient? Battery? Do I need an extra battery?
 
I am going to purchase a insta360 hopefully there are some deals this time of year! Any advice? X3 or x4? Motorcycle package or ultimate moto package? Is it better to mount the camera on the handle bar or stick? What memory card is sufficient? Battery? Do I need an extra battery?
I would probably just buy used if you're going to dip your toe in that water. Unless of course there is a nice boxing 'week' sale.
 
I keep thinking one of these would be cool, then I remind myself of the terrabytes of drone video and GoPro video that I have clogging up my laptop that I watched once or twice after I filmed it, and will probably never use or watch ever again.
 
I have the insta x4 mainly to use it as my dashcam.

I got the basic package, and bought the mounts (clamps and one fixed to the handle bar) and stick from aliexpress at a cheaper price.

I have the 1tb memory card. It can store like 4 hours of 8K video. I don't need that much as most of the time when i get to a stop I delete the current record as nothing interesting happened. So maybe I would recommend a 512gb card.

Regarding the battery, I have a USB charger in my bike so my mobile phone and camera takes rounds of which get to use the charger. At the end of each ride (+/- 6 hours) both of them end with 80% battery or so.
 
Short answer: it depends entirely on what you'd like to use it for. Buying used is definitely an option if you just want to play around to see what they are capable of. Insta360's software support has been very good for older models; the latest software still supports my ancient Insta360 One, and they occasionally add new features to the software like better audio wind suppression that still work with older models.

The strength of a 360* camera is the convenience of being able to just stick it anywhere, hit the record button and ride, and not worry about framing or levelling. For the same reason, you might want to consider a long USB power cable on the bike rather than swapping batteries.

Grab some adhesive GoPro camera mounts and some GoPro -> 1/4-20 adapters, because you'll probably be experimenting with a bunch of different angles. A mirror mount is probably the most generally useful for street riding, but it really depends on the purpose of your recording. For the track bike I've got mine mounted on the triple tree so I can see the dash and forward through the windshield, yet also see my hands to check throttle/brake/clutch inputs if necessary.

Keep in mind that the listed 8K, 5.7K, etc, resolutions refer to the total 360* view. That 8K is measured across a 360* sphere, and your final 4:3 or 16:9 viewport output that you will watch on a screen is just a fraction of that. In other words, you don't get 8K 16:9 video output from an 8K 360* camera. So if your goal is 4K high-rez video output, more pixels is better. You're still recording the whole 8K up front though, so you'll have to do some math on how much your memory card(s) will hold for a day of riding, and how much bulk HDD storage you'll need if you're in the habit of keeping the original 360* footage. The on-disk size of these videos gets ridiculous when you're talking about 8K 60fps.
 
There a certain things I like to buy new, technology stuff is one of them, earplugs are another, underwear definitely! I like the convenience factor, seems simple to set up and go. I don't like helmet mounted footage because of the head movements and fixed on bike just gets boring and misses alot. I also like that it self levels even in a crash. Price obviously is expensive but some of the other cameras are up there too!
 
I just looked at the price of these things, holy moly.

Then again, I am the guy with a $1200 (at the time) drone that I fly a handful of times every year, so, hey.
 
There a certain things I like to buy new, technology stuff is one of them, earplugs are another, underwear definitely! I like the convenience factor, seems simple to set up and go. I don't like helmet mounted footage because of the head movements and fixed on bike just gets boring and misses alot. I also like that it self levels even in a crash. Price obviously is expensive but some of the other cameras are up there too!
I think the tradeoff is that instead of spending the time to frame your shot in advance by choosing your mounting point, etc., you have to sit in front of your computer and rewatch everything and reframe it the way you want. So more time spent afterwards, but also the ability to catch something you may not have expected initially.
 
I think the tradeoff is that instead of spending the time to frame your shot in advance by choosing your mounting point, etc., you have to sit in front of your computer and rewatch everything and reframe it the way you want. So more time spent afterwards, but also the ability to catch something you may not have expected initially.
From what I have seen in videos, being able to capture everything around you even the unexpected is amazing!
 
And if you have any other outdoor hobbies, it also comes in handy.

It's too much money for me but man it would be nice.
 
I have the insta x4 mainly to use it as my dashcam.

I got the basic package, and bought the mounts (clamps and one fixed to the handle bar) and stick from aliexpress at a cheaper price.

I have the 1tb memory card. It can store like 4 hours of 8K video. I don't need that much as most of the time when i get to a stop I delete the current record as nothing interesting happened. So maybe I would recommend a 512gb card.

Regarding the battery, I have a USB charger in my bike so my mobile phone and camera takes rounds of which get to use the charger. At the end of each ride (+/- 6 hours) both of them end with 80% battery or so.
Does it work well as a dashcam? I have read that they are not really recommended for that specific purpose? I assume if you are going to run power to the camera and use a stick you would have to wrap the cord around the stick? Or is there a stick that has and internal power cord?
 
I would probably just buy used if you're going to dip your toe in that water. Unless of course there is a nice boxing 'week' sale.

100% buy used.

I've owned every GoPro from Hero 6 through Hero 12. My first 6 was bought new. I beat the heck out of that thing and when I sold it, it was still like new. Since then, all the rest were used. Upgrading hasn't actually cost me anything over the years since people are always impulsively buying or selling these things.

With GoPro, for $50/year I have unlimited video uploads and no questions asked free exchanges on any GoPro product I break (even if I intentionally break it). GoPro will just send me a new one like "lol, maybe hit it with a softer hammer next time!"

Now when it comes to Insta360... Never buy directly from Insta360. They're a really greasy company. They will not take back anything you bought from them once you open the box.

I bought an Insta360 One R Twin Set brand new a few years ago. I was immediately unimpressed with the quality and wanted to send it back. Three days after receiving it, they wouldn't take it back because I had opened the box. So if you really have to buy one new, buy it from a big box store or Amazon, do not buy it directly from Insta's website.

If GoPro's vibe is "We're happy to be a part of your adventure." Insta360's vibe is "**** you, pay me. Oh, you already paid me? Good, all that's left is '**** you' then."

A few months ago I sold my One R Twin set for $300 (far less than half of what I spent on it), and bought a used Insta360 X3 for $280. The used X3 was a minor step up. It's totally good enough for social media but I do 4K video on YouTube and on anything that wasn't sunny and clear the footage was just so-so.

I sold the used X3 for $300 within a month, and bought a used X4 for $400.

Now with the X4 it really does feel like I have come up a full step in quality from my original One R. I haven't played with it too much yet, but I'm cool with what I'm getting for the $400 I paid, but had I paid the $660+ after taxes, I think I would be disappointed.

The reality with these cameras is that what you see on youtube isn't what you get right out of the camera. A lot of those guys are either customizing all of their shooting settings like you would a DSLR camera, adjusting shutter speed, ISO, frame rate, exposure, etc. or they're shooting in log and then color grading everything afterwards.

TLDR: If you really, reaaaallly need to buy new, just make sure you don't buy from Insta directly. I would get a used X3 for $300 if you just want some shots for social media, or a used X4 for $400 if you want to do some 4k footage stuff.
 
There a certain things I like to buy new, technology stuff is one of them, earplugs are another, underwear definitely! I like the convenience factor, seems simple to set up and go. I don't like helmet mounted footage because of the head movements and fixed on bike just gets boring and misses alot. I also like that it self levels even in a crash. Price obviously is expensive but some of the other cameras are up there too!

Food for thought: If you don't think of it as technology, and think of it as a camera (which it is), buying used becomes totally normal. Used cameras and used camera lenses are a huge part of the camera market.

If you go downtown to Best Buy, they won't sell you used tech. But if you go to the big camera stores down the street, they'll sell you all kinds of used lenses and used cameras. That's how normal it is to buy cameras and lenses used.
 
Does it work well as a dashcam? I have read that they are not really recommended for that specific purpose? I assume if you are going to run power to the camera and use a stick you would have to wrap the cord around the stick? Or is there a stick that has and internal power cord?
Hi, me again. I'll go away after this I promise haha.

As a dash cam it would be okay enough to recognize "there is a car... and here it is hitting this other car" - but probably not okay enough to make out a license plate clearly should one of those cars decide to flee the scene...

The X3 is only 5.7k resolution, and the X4 is 8K, but all of those pixels are spread over needing to cover absolutely everything around you. A lot of that resolution is wasted because those pixels cover things you'll never really look at, like the sky above your head, or the ground under you. Often, if you're trying to focus on something, the resolution is more like 1080P or less.

Compare that to an action camera. The action camera might only be 4K, or 5.7K, but all of those pixels are only for whatever is immediately in front of the camera in it's field of view, so you get a way higher pixel density (way sharper image) on action cameras.
 
100% buy used.

I've owned every GoPro from Hero 6 through Hero 12. My first 6 was bought new. I beat the heck out of that thing and when I sold it, it was still like new. Since then, all the rest were used. Upgrading hasn't actually cost me anything over the years since people are always impulsively buying or selling these things.

With GoPro, for $50/year I have unlimited video uploads and no questions asked free exchanges on any GoPro product I break (even if I intentionally break it). GoPro will just send me a new one like "lol, maybe hit it with a softer hammer next time!"

Now when it comes to Insta360... Never buy directly from Insta360. They're a really greasy company. They will not take back anything you bought from them once you open the box.

I bought an Insta360 One R Twin Set brand new a few years ago. I was immediately unimpressed with the quality and wanted to send it back. Three days after receiving it, they wouldn't take it back because I had opened the box. So if you really have to buy one new, buy it from a big box store or Amazon, do not buy it directly from Insta's website.

If GoPro's vibe is "We're happy to be a part of your adventure." Insta360's vibe is "**** you, pay me. Oh, you already paid me? Good, all that's left is '**** you' then."

A few months ago I sold my One R Twin set for $300 (far less than half of what I spent on it), and bought a used Insta360 X3 for $280. The used X3 was a minor step up. It's totally good enough for social media but I do 4K video on YouTube and on anything that wasn't sunny and clear the footage was just so-so.

I sold the used X3 for $300 within a month, and bought a used X4 for $400.

Now with the X4 it really does feel like I have come up a full step in quality from my original One R. I haven't played with it too much yet, but I'm cool with what I'm getting for the $400 I paid, but had I paid the $660+ after taxes, I think I would be disappointed.

The reality with these cameras is that what you see on youtube isn't what you get right out of the camera. A lot of those guys are either customizing all of their shooting settings like you would a DSLR camera, adjusting shutter speed, ISO, frame rate, exposure, etc. or they're shooting in log and then color grading everything afterwards.

TLDR: If you really, reaaaallly need to buy new, just make sure you don't buy from Insta directly. I would get a used X3 for $300 if you just want some shots for social media, or a used X4 for $400 if you want to do some 4k footage stuff.
The thing with GoPros...they tend to fail a lot... it's a complaint that i hear a lot. You get the perfect footage and then something gets corrupted or they overheat (say faster than what the dji action cams).
Or something gets bricked and your camera becomes unusable. Now if you expect it and pay for that membership (yay another subscription), youll be fine. But most people who get it for the one vacation will be crushed.

And yes, footage is underwhelming "as is" and requires to be massaged. For shutter speed, iso, frame rate, nd filters...its "easy" once you figure out what settings to use but if more editing is required (colour grading, etc) you lose a lot of people over that ahahah. Its a fun skill to work with/on but not worth it for the common folk

Food for thought: If you don't think of it as technology, and think of it as a camera (which it is), buying used becomes totally normal. Used cameras and used camera lenses are a huge part of the camera market.

If you go downtown to Best Buy, they won't sell you used tech. But if you go to the big camera stores down the street, they'll sell you all kinds of used lenses and used cameras. That's how normal it is to buy cameras and lenses used.
Due to the nature of action cams, and the hits they take and damage and finickiness that might come with them, a lot of people stay away.

Then the used market is ALL OVER THE PLACE. I still see gopro 8 (5 versions behind) being sold for 200-250... while go pro 10 are in the 200-300 range... it's BONKER considering you can get the newest one at costco for $400
If you live on marketplace/kijiji you might find good reasonable prices...but it's a labour of LOVE ahhaah
Also if you're willing to take it apart and take say 2 broken go pros to make one functioning one, you can save a lot of money but that's a whole other level of tinkering.
 
Sounds like the world of Drones where DJI is constantly releasing the “next best thing” making their old models quickly obsolete and depressing the prices.

I’m still flying an Air2 which does all I need and want, and is more than small enough to tote around on the bike while big and capable enough to handle conditions that the Mini can’t fly in. I had several other DJI models on the path to the Air2, but see no purpose of upgrading anymore for my needs.
 
Sounds like the world of Drones where DJI is constantly releasing the “next best thing” making their old models quickly obsolete and depressing the prices.

I’m still flying an Air2 which does all I need and want, and is more than small enough to tote around on the bike while big and capable enough to handle conditions that the Mini can’t fly in. I had several other DJI models on the path to the Air2, but see no purpose of upgrading anymore for my needs.
but don't you want to fly up to 20km and get the omniscient multidirectional low light obstacle abvoidance?

honestly good rule of thumb in OPs case, get the most recent model since you need a dashcam anyways (say insta360 x4 ) and then you won't feel the need to upgrade for probably 3-4 generations) because the x3 doesnt have as good of an image quality/bitrate as the x4 so you might not get as much detail that would be important as something that will be used as a dashcam.
 
but don't you want to fly up to 20km and get the omniscient multidirectional low light obstacle abvoidance?

Considering the law says you’re never allowed to fly out of your line of sight, even the 5km or whatever the Air2 offers has always seemed like a waste. The extra obstacle avoidance would be nice, sure, but not worth me dumping another thousand dollars into the things to accomplish.

So yeah, I keep coming full circle to “what I have is more than enough”.
 

Back
Top Bottom