GoPro Hero 10 Black owners have been given an end-of-year treat in the form of a big firmware update, which delivers three new features including a 24fps mode.
The firmware update, which you can download today via the Quik app, was released in beta form in early November, but has now been given a full rollout just in time for the holidays.
The biggest upgrade, at least for fans of a more ‘cinematic’ look, is the addition of a 24fps mode, which is now available in 5.3K, 5K, 4K and 1080p resolutions. While higher frame-rates are better for fast-action scenes, 24fps has long been a standard for movies – and fewer frames-per-second also allows more light to get to the sensor.
The impact of this will likely be relatively minor, but it should provide a boost to low-light performance in some situations. If you’ve been looking to cram more of the scene into your mountain biking videos instead, then the SuperView mode (also new with this firmware update) should be another welcome bonus.
This mode effectively stretches the sensor’s 4:3 aspect ratio into a wider 16:9 view, using the whole of the sensor to maintain quality. It’s particularly handy when you’re shooting POV (point-of-view) videos with mounts like the Chesty, as the wide-angle view helps to get more of the scene in shot.
If that view still isn’t wide enough, the Hero 10 Black’s new firmware update also delivers support for GoPro’s Max Lens Mod accessory. This optional accessory, which costs $99.99 / £89.99 / AU$159.95, gives you the widest possible GoPro field-of-view (155 degrees), and allows the Hero 10 Black to provide even stronger Max HyperSmooth stabilization.
It achieves this by cropping into the wider field of view, which means you can only film in a maximum of 2.7K resolution with the Max Lens Mod. But the considerable benefits are the improved stabilization and automatic horizon-leveling, which are both ideal for filming first-person action sports.
This firmware update follows the recent arrival of GoPro’s new Enduro battery. Announced in early December, this battery is compatible with the Hero 10 Black and promises to bring improvements to recording times and better cold-weather performance.
We haven’t had the chance to test out the Enduro battery yet, but if its claims are accurate, it’ll likely be more useful than the latest firmware update for most people. GoPro says the Enduro, which you can buy now for $24.99 / £24.99 / AU$39.95, boosts record times by as much as 40% (in 4K/120p mode) and keeps going in temperatures of 14°F / -10°C.
That said, the Hero 10 Black’s new firmware update is a welcome addition, particularly as the update prior to this one arrived to fix some overheating issues that mainly affected its 60fps mode.
We can see the 24fps mode being particularly popular with vloggers and filmmakers who use their GoPro as a rugged B-cam, while the new SuperView mode and Max Lens Mod compatibility are handy if you shoot a lot of POV action sports scenes.