GoPro Hero 13 Black review: It’s all in the accessories

Editors’ note: This review of the GoPro Hero 13 Black was originally published on September 4, 2024. It has been updated with current prices and our 2025 Editors’ Choice award.

Just to get this straight away, GoPro’s current flagship camera, the Hero 13 Black, isn’t that different Hero 12 Black. I imagine many people currently using this camera – or the Hero 11 or 10 Black – won’t feel a strong desire to upgrade – not right away, anyway.

While many shooting options and other features have remained the same, some design changes have been made to accommodate a new battery, a new mounting option, and most importantly, new add-on lenses that enhance the camera’s versatility. This also means that you will have to pay more than Hero 12 Black is under $400 Price to get those new features. Compared to competing last-generation cameras from Insta360 and DJI, the GoPro Hero 12 Black offers more for your money and is my value choice for a full-featured action camera.

However, the GoPro Hero 13 Black is still my top choice for anyone who wants a small, powerful camera with features and software for beginners, pros, and everyone in between. That’s why it won our Editors’ Choice award in this category, even more than a year after its release. Also, if you’re interested in the flexibility of shooting with a 360 camera, GoPro’s Max 2 camera is also an Editors’ Choice award winneralong with The most advanced Insta360 X5.

More lenses, expanded possibilities

Since the release of the Hero 9 Black, GoPro has sold the Max lens model, an ultra-wide-angle twisting lens that creates a huge field of view that matches the company’s existing Hero Max camera. the Max Lens Mod 2nd generation version It will work on the Hero 12 Black, but GoPro is adding four more options specifically for the 13 Black.

Like the Max 2.0 Lens Mod, the Ultra-wide lens adjustment ($100) Expands the camera’s field of view up to 177 degrees. And with the option to shoot in a 1:1 aspect ratio, it’s the lens you need to capture expansive landscapes and immersive action.

Then there Four-pack of neutral density filters ($90)which can slow down your camera’s shutter speeds, allowing you to create motion blur in bright light. You can manually control shutter speed and exposure when the ND filter is on. There is also a Macro lens adjustment ($130) Which can focus at a distance of up to 4.3 inches (11 cm). There is a manual focus ring around the lens, and focus peaking is available, which determines which subjects are in focus by a choice of blue, red or yellow.

GoPro has also developed Anamorphic lens ($150) This gives the camera the widest field of view ever without any circular distortion. The lens lets you shoot in a 21:9 aspect ratio, has in-camera pinch for smooth editing and adds classic anamorphic lens flare and soft corners.

All I can say is that it’s time GoPro upgraded its lens lineup. The lenses really expand the imaging capabilities and overall versatility of the Hero 13 Black. Best of all, you just twist the lens, the camera automatically recognizes the lens, sets up the camera for use and unlocks the lens features, such as providing focus peaking for the macro lens. This also means that if you create your own set of settings to use with a particular lens, those settings will be used automatically when you attach the lens.

Another new accessory that makes setup easier is the magnetic latch mount. GoPro isn’t the first to have a latch system like this, but the addition means you have three ways to mount: you can use either flip-flop fingers, 1/4-20 tripod threads or a magnetic latch mount. This means you can place the camera on a tripod for studio shots, switch to the built-in fingers for the more secure accessory and then use the magnetic latch mount for those times when you want to quickly switch to different tripods or flip the camera 180 degrees for easy selfies.

There’s a new, more important accessory: the battery door. It’s a special battery door, with magnetic pogo pins and a USB-C cable that clips onto it. It’s called Contact ($100) And at first, I thought it was just for ease of charging. However, it does allow you to operate the camera continuously via its magnetic link – with or without an in-camera battery. Best of all, it is water resistant up to 10 metres. Well, that and it has magnets.

Speaking of batteries, the camera has a new, higher capacity Enduro battery pack that has been redesigned for improved efficiency. I tested the camera for about two hours with it off and on with a variety of settings, specifically shooting 4K60 video with the camera’s GPS turned on while waterskiing on the Hudson River. When I was done, I still had about 50% battery left. Obviously this isn’t a complete, tested guide, but I’ve used enough GoPro cameras to know that it’s better, and even a few extra minutes can mean the difference between getting a shot or not. GoPro says that, on average, the Hero 13 Black has a 13.5% improvement in boot times compared to older models.

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Improvements and tweaks are abundant

The rest of the camera updates are smaller but still important. For slow-motion fans, GoPro has added new slow-mo burst settings, letting you shoot at higher resolutions and faster frame rates, up to 400fps, although it’s only at 720p. However, you can use it for 5.3K120.

GoPro has also added an HDR-log gamma HDR option that meets HDR broadcast standards with 10-bit and Rec. 2100 color space and wider color gamut.

Then there are some improvements like Wi-Fi 6 for faster uploads and optimized audio tuning to prioritize audio over ambient sounds. There is also an update to the quick capture feature in the camera. Quick Capture turns on the camera and starts recording with a single press of the record button. When you press it again, the camera will stop recording and turn off the camera. It’s a nice feature for people like me who primarily shoot 30-second clips, but it can be frustrating if you want to capture another clip right away. Now, you can start another recording immediately by pressing the shutter button within 5 seconds of ending a quick capture to prevent the camera from fully closing.

One more thing: As I mentioned earlier, GoPro restored the GPS on the Hero 13 Black after removing it from the Hero 12 Black. GPS data can be used to add graphic overlays to your videos when editing them in GoPro’s Quik mobile app.

Video and photo quality are still great, except…

With 5.7K resolution up to 60fps, the Hero 13 can record extremely detailed videos. Pair that with amazing image stabilization, and the result is great-looking videos in almost every situation. Add to that the ability to swap different lenses for wider fields of view, better background blur, anamorphic lens flares, and more, and the camera’s results are hard to beat for its size and price.

On the other hand, low-light performance has never been a strength of action cameras, and it’s very mediocre with the Hero 13 Black. Combined with the camera’s image stabilization – which is otherwise excellent – the results are not good. If you were to record anything at night, it wouldn’t sound great. In my test, The best option for shooting in low-light conditions is the DJI Osmo Action 5 Pro.

Now, if all this and the Hero 13 Black’s $400-plus price tag sounds like more of a camera than you need, there’s still the Hero 12 Black. But, if you really want a simplified GoPro photography experience, here it is GoPro Hero $200and Lit Hero cameras, $229.

The last hero camera I’ve been testing for about a decade, and although the basic concept is the same here – a small, simple camera for casual use – the features and design have been vastly improved, as you might expect in 10 years. The updated version is much smaller, shoots 4K30 video and has a small touchscreen for control, preview and playback. Like other small GoPro cameras, the battery is built-in. The Lit version adds LEDs to the front to brighten your close-up shots and can shoot at up to 4K60 resolution.

Again, with the Hero 13 Black, there aren’t many changes to the shooting options, but accessories are a big part of the story here. It’s also the first camera I thought you might want to use Invest $100 in a GoPro subscriptionwhich will not only take $100 off your new camera, but also give you up to 50% off accessories at GoPro.com. Accessories have always been a big part of what makes GoPro cameras so flexible, but for the Hero 13 Black, they really add to the versatility.