GoPro Hero 1 vs 2

[Ashantiashanti]

Heya guys,
am about to invest into a my first GoPro,
but I do not know if I should go for Hero 1 or 2, as I can get a Hero 1 for ca. 160 USD cheaper than a Hero 1. (both with the dive housing.)

From my research there's a big difference between the still picture quality, but this is not a problem as we have other great cameras.
However, is there a big difference with the still pictures underwater as well?
Then I've heard that Hero 2 can automatically adjust the light settings, does this make a big difference underwater?

I have found this video on youtube, comparing the two:
GoPro Dive Housing Focus test - YouTube
Here it seems that Hero 1 can barely focus on anything, while Hero 2 can?
However, some people in the comments section stated that their Hero 1 is better.

What do you guys think?

Cheers

 

[flareside]

The reason why the Hero 1 would not focus in the video was that it was not in the dive housing which is required to focus underwater. I prefer my Hero 2 to the original as the image is clearer.

 

[Marty Cerven]

From the video description.

GoPro HD hero 2 vs GoPro HD hero 1
In this video I compare footage shot on both the HD Hero 2 and the HD Hero 1.
I used GoPro HD Hero 2 with the Dive Housing and HD Hero 1 with the regular standard housing.

That makes that test about as useless as it gets, the stock dive housing has a curved lens and so loses focus underwater. Comparing 2 different camera one with a flat dive housing and the other with a stock lens I see very little point in unless someone is trying to just show what the dive housing does which is the most likely purpose of that video.

Both are pretty good cameras in terms of video but when it comes to stills especially underwater dont expect too much. You will also need to get a flat lensed dive housing when buying either one as the stock housing cant focus underwater.

Here is a little comparison video I made a while back hero1 vs hero2 which may give you a better idea of what to expect as the video you linked was just showing the dive housing vs stock housing rather then a direct camera comparison.

[video=youtube;ThWjQpYrJMk]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ThWjQpYrJMk[/video]

One thing you may also want to look into is going for a hero3 white or silver instead, a white is an updated hero1 and a silver is the updated hero2. They all come with a stock flat lens housing and are a little smaller with built in WiFi which is very useful for land based use. Not sure about Canadian pricing but in the US a white is $199 and silver is $299 and considering you dont need to buy a die housing too it may well work out cheaper then a hero1 or 2 camera if the main intended use is underwater.

Overall the hero2 is the better camera but the hero1 probably had the best auto white balance of all the current gopro cameras when it comes to underwater use. The hero2 has more issues and tends to go green once light is a little low underwater even though it actually handles low light better then the hero1 on land.

 

[Ashantiashanti]

From the video description.



That makes that test about as useless as it gets, the stock dive housing has a curved lens and so loses focus underwater. Comparing 2 different camera one with a flat dive housing and the other with a stock lens I see very little point in unless someone is trying to just show what the dive housing does which is the most likely purpose of that video.

Both are pretty good cameras in terms of video but when it comes to stills especially underwater dont expect too much. You will also need to get a flat lensed dive housing when buying either one as the stock housing cant focus underwater.

Here is a little comparison video I made a while back hero1 vs hero2 which may give you a better idea of what to expect as the video you linked was just showing the dive housing vs stock housing rather then a direct camera comparison.

[video=youtube;ThWjQpYrJMk]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ThWjQpYrJMk[/video]

One thing you may also want to look into is going for a hero3 white or silver instead, a white is an updated hero1 and a silver is the updated hero2. They all come with a stock flat lens housing and are a little smaller with built in WiFi which is very useful for land based use. Not sure about Canadian pricing but in the US a white is $199 and silver is $299 and considering you dont need to buy a die housing too it may well work out cheaper then a hero1 or 2 camera if the main intended use is underwater.

Overall the hero2 is the better camera but the hero1 probably had the best auto white balance of all the current gopro cameras when it comes to underwater use. The hero2 has more issues and tends to go green once light is a little low underwater even though it actually handles low light better then the hero1 on land.

What a great post and video!
I actually thought that both camera's in the video I found had the dive housing (lazy me, should have read the description).
How similar is the SRP Blurfix to the extra dive housing? From the video you posted I would go for Hero 1, however, it was a shallow dive.

But on a different note:
I actually have a friend in the US who can bring home a new Hero 3 Silver for me. The same price could get me a Hero 2 + Dive housing used here in DK.
For ca. 142 USD I can get a used Hero 1 + Dive house - however, do you think that the jump from Hero 1 to Hero 3 Silver edition is worth the extra 160 USD?

 

[Marty Cerven]

The Main difference between the SRP Blurfix and GoPro dive housing is the dive housing is slightly wider FOV as the Blurfix also uses the stock round housing lens which does slightly magnify the image. Also the obvious difference of being able to screw in different filters but sharpness there isnt that much difference, if anything the gopro dive may be a fraction sharper but this is probably down to how clean the extra lens is.

Id say the Sliver is a better deal if you can get it new compared to used hero2 + dive housing. Your getting a new camera with the smaller form factor and new housing plus built in WiFi. I have just been playing with the WiFi app on the 3 black that got released yesterday and its very useful for all above water use. Underwater WiFi is of no use but on land it makes changing modes and getting a preview feed very handy, I could see me using it to setup any body mounted cameras very easily even before a dive as long as I have my phone on me.

Its hard to say if its worth the extra $160 as even the hero 1 is a pretty good camera but the hero2 has a much sharper image in 720p60 vs the hero1. Hero1 is also limited to wide FOV in only 720p where the 2 can do it in 1080p30 also and the 2 is better in low light.

If using WiFi you can get live preview on the hero2 but not hero1, I dont know if this is also the case with the white as I really havent looked into it that much. I did give one of my Hero1's to a friend as I really hadnt used it much since getting 2's and now that I have a black I though it would be better to give to someone that actually will use it. I was still quite surprised at the quality of the video from the 1 having not used it all that much.

I will be making a hero1,2,3 black comparison soon. I did shoot some side by side footage with them last week but it was a pretty crappy dive with nothing around. Since then the Black has had a firmware update too so I will re-shoot this hopefully this week to show all modes in the 1 and 2 with most modes in the 3 black. The 3 Black has so many modes that its pretty hard to go through them all underwater and shooting 3 cams with a 2 button UI is pretty time consuming changing modes lol.