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This is exactly their strategy, and it works to some extent. Their aspirational marketing works quite well. The people acquiring their product are aspiring to b

This is exactly their strategy, and it works to some extent. Their aspirational marketing works quite well. The people acquiring their product are aspiring to be outdoorsy, fit, and adventurous. I bought a GoPro several years back as well, after using it on one of my camping trips and a trip to a water park with the kids, I realized I don't really have the kind of adventurous, outdoorsy life I was aspiring to. The GoPro sits in a drawer. You actually have to be pursuing activities that you think are worth capturing on a GoPro or a drone, and then you have to have an interest in capturing/editing those pursuits. Longer term, there is a legitimate niche for their products. It is the intersection of people interested (personally or professionally) in photography/videography who have adventurous/outdoorsy pursuits and hobbies. Whether that niche is large enough to support a company of their size (and their competitors) is still an open question.

vidanay 7y ago
Kind of like those annoying watch commercials showing everyone free climbing when in reality your adventure watch is only going to be telling you how late the 4:18 BART is.
netsharc 7y ago
Seems like TV producers (and of course YouTubers) also use them, e.g. to mount them on and in a car for a car review video shoot.
KeepTalking 7y ago
For me, the aspiration to own a GoPro was to capture footage in wet / water conditions. With an iP68 rating for the iPhone to makes sense for light use-cases, an iPhone is sufficient for me. 1. I think the underlying problem has been the lack of innovation from GoPro. I find that while the number of cameras in our daily life has increased, the use-case for something like a GoPro is marginal at best. Apple and other vendors have done an excellent job of improving camera technology on the iphone11 that today, I no longer carry a GoPro or even an SLR camera on holidays. 2. Another amazing shenanigan from GoPro was their accessories business. When I got my only go-pro in 2014, it required me to spend another $200-300 on some really basic accessories like an LCD screen. It just felt like the company added barriers that stopped you from actually using the product. 2a. Minor nitpick - Their packaging in 2015 was a piece of work. It took me forever to get it unpacked and even get hold of the device. 3. Mgmt focus - I live in San Mateo and the stink of constant GoPro layoffs made it an undesirable company to even consider working for. The people I knew that worked there all quickly bailed and went to work for Google or Apple. It also didn't help that I only remembered about my GoPro when I saw Mr Woodman show-up on Shark-Tank. I just felt he didn't focus on a struggling company and wanted to find other things to do.
- MivLives 7y ago
  1. They have added some newer models that are interesting, like the 360 one they just released that actually has a screen which I guess is also 2. They're priced way out of the budget of idle curiosity for me though. Sure 500 dollars isn't a lot for a camera, but it's way out of the range for something I"m going to goof around with.
rurp 7y ago
To add to this, even if you enjoy adventure sports, filming them can be a pain. A friend of mine was working on getting sponsored as a rock climber and did a lot of filming with his GoPro. Getting decent shots takes a lot of time and effort, which really cuts down on the actual climbing you get to do each day.
- justinator 7y ago
  It's funny how when you want to essentially get a job doing something it involves actual work!
- dougmwne 7y ago
  Yes, after getting one for skiing, I realized that helmet cam footage only looks awesome if you are dropping off a cliff. Even at steep pitches the perspective on the footage looks like you're on almost flat terrain. It takes real time and care to get usable shots out of the things. I've made a short ski edit for a club before and the amount of effort that goes into producing something mildly entertaining to watch is insane. Drones and helmet cams actually seem like they have pretty niche applications when an iPhone will do great for 95% of people, 95% of the time. The need for that particular lens and shot just isn't usually called for in whatever you're trying to create.
  - MivLives 7y ago
    Something about them in my experience makes it feel like you're not going as fast. I ride an electric skateboard and helmet cam footage makes it feel like I'm just walking when I'm approaching 20 mph. I guess that's why they normally use a ton of angles on most of these things.
    - Guest0918231 7y ago
      If gaming has taught me anything, it's that a wide field of view makes it appear that you're moving much faster. I found a simple video showing a person walking the same path with three different fields of view. The 120 degree FOV makes it seem like they're sprinting while the 40 degree FOV looks like a slow walk in comparison. Also pay attention to the little box the person walks past halfway through the below video. Imagine you're skateboarding and that is a parked car. The difference in speed and perceived danger is huge. https://i.imgur.com/s4IrpJU.mp4 https://i.imgur.com/s4IrpJU.mp4
justinator 7y ago
I bought a GoPro several years back as well, after using it on one of my camping trips and a trip to a water park with the kids, I realized I don't really have the kind of adventurous, outdoorsy life I was aspiring to. The GoPro sits in a drawer. Hey, I have that adventurous, outdoorsy life life! Wanna send that GoPro over? I'll make sure it's properly utilized ;)

vidanay 7y ago

Kind of like those annoying watch commercials showing everyone free climbing when in reality your adventure watch is only going to be telling you how late the 4:18 BART is.

netsharc 7y ago

Seems like TV producers (and of course YouTubers) also use them, e.g. to mount them on and in a car for a car review video shoot.

KeepTalking 7y ago

For me, the aspiration to own a GoPro was to capture footage in wet / water conditions. With an iP68 rating for the iPhone to makes sense for light use-cases, an iPhone is sufficient for me. 1. I think the underlying problem has been the lack of innovation from GoPro. I find that while the number of cameras in our daily life has increased, the use-case for something like a GoPro is marginal at best. Apple and other vendors have done an excellent job of improving camera technology on the iphone11 that today, I no longer carry a GoPro or even an SLR camera on holidays. 2. Another amazing shenanigan from GoPro was their accessories business. When I got my only go-pro in 2014, it required me to spend another $200-300 on some really basic accessories like an LCD screen. It just felt like the company added barriers that stopped you from actually using the product. 2a. Minor nitpick - Their packaging in 2015 was a piece of work. It took me forever to get it unpacked and even get hold of the device. 3. Mgmt focus - I live in San Mateo and the stink of constant GoPro layoffs made it an undesirable company to even consider working for. The people I knew that worked there all quickly bailed and went to work for Google or Apple. It also didn't help that I only remembered about my GoPro when I saw Mr Woodman show-up on Shark-Tank. I just felt he didn't focus on a struggling company and wanted to find other things to do.

MivLives 7y ago
1. They have added some newer models that are interesting, like the 360 one they just released that actually has a screen which I guess is also 2. They're priced way out of the budget of idle curiosity for me though. Sure 500 dollars isn't a lot for a camera, but it's way out of the range for something I"m going to goof around with.

rurp 7y ago

To add to this, even if you enjoy adventure sports, filming them can be a pain. A friend of mine was working on getting sponsored as a rock climber and did a lot of filming with his GoPro. Getting decent shots takes a lot of time and effort, which really cuts down on the actual climbing you get to do each day.

justinator 7y ago
It's funny how when you want to essentially get a job doing something it involves actual work!
dougmwne 7y ago
Yes, after getting one for skiing, I realized that helmet cam footage only looks awesome if you are dropping off a cliff. Even at steep pitches the perspective on the footage looks like you're on almost flat terrain. It takes real time and care to get usable shots out of the things. I've made a short ski edit for a club before and the amount of effort that goes into producing something mildly entertaining to watch is insane. Drones and helmet cams actually seem like they have pretty niche applications when an iPhone will do great for 95% of people, 95% of the time. The need for that particular lens and shot just isn't usually called for in whatever you're trying to create.
- MivLives 7y ago
  Something about them in my experience makes it feel like you're not going as fast. I ride an electric skateboard and helmet cam footage makes it feel like I'm just walking when I'm approaching 20 mph. I guess that's why they normally use a ton of angles on most of these things.
  - Guest0918231 7y ago
    If gaming has taught me anything, it's that a wide field of view makes it appear that you're moving much faster. I found a simple video showing a person walking the same path with three different fields of view. The 120 degree FOV makes it seem like they're sprinting while the 40 degree FOV looks like a slow walk in comparison. Also pay attention to the little box the person walks past halfway through the below video. Imagine you're skateboarding and that is a parked car. The difference in speed and perceived danger is huge. https://i.imgur.com/s4IrpJU.mp4 https://i.imgur.com/s4IrpJU.mp4

justinator 7y ago

I bought a GoPro several years back as well, after using it on one of my camping trips and a trip to a water park with the kids, I realized I don't really have the kind of adventurous, outdoorsy life I was aspiring to. The GoPro sits in a drawer. Hey, I have that adventurous, outdoorsy life life! Wanna send that GoPro over? I'll make sure it's properly utilized ;)