There’s nothing like using an action camera for sheer knockabout fun. For capturing adventurous video of extreme activities and remote places, these hardy little box-like devices are your most reliable friend. A good action camera can be taken to places you’d never think of taking a mirrorless or DSLR camera or a smartphone, and come back with the high-quality video and stills to prove it. It’s a market that’s always moving and heaving with new products – like the just-announced DJI Osmo Action 4, which is a little too new for us to include on this list, but sports an impressive set of features.
The definition of an action camera is a little more malleable than you might think. In general, an action camera is defined as a small, wearable device with extensive waterproofing. When most of us think action camera, we think GoPro – and the pioneering design of the GoPro Hero, fundamentally unchanged through eleven iterations, is indeed the inspiration for most of the models that come under the action camera umbrella.
But, as we’ll see, action cameras can vary in form and function. Before we get to our list proper, here’s a quick run-down
