GoPro is the primary brand of the privately owned Half Moon Bay, California company Woodman Labs that features small "wearable" waterproof and shockproof camera/camcorders such as helmet cameras that are targeted at adventure photography and currently weigh 3.3 oz (6 oz with the waterproof housing and attachments added).
According to the company, video from its camera have appeared in 60 television shows ranging from Mythbusters to Sarah Palin's Alaska. The cameras have been used to film inside of the mouths of alligators, sharks and polar bears.[1]
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The company was formed by Nick Woodman. Woodman said he was inspired to start the company following a 2002 Australia surfing trip in which he was hoping to capture action photos but could not get the angles he wanted because the amateur cameras were too big and too far away. He noted that unless you were a professional surfer, the photos taken by amateurs were not as dramatic. He wanted to create a camera system that could capture the professional angles and that's how be came up with the GoPro name.[2][3]
Woodman initially raised money for his company by selling bead and shell belts out of his VW van. While making the belts he came upon the idea of providing a fashionable strap to attach a camera. At the time most straps were rubber wrist straps that awkward, painful or easily broke.[2][3]
In 2004 the company sold its first camera system -- a 35 mm film version. [2]
The cameras evolved quickly going from 35mm to digital where it started recording 10 second clips to 3 Megapixel digital cameras to its current configuration of having fixed lens cameras with a wide 170 degree angle in high definition 1080p broadcast quality video. The cameras can also be connected to create 3D video.[2]
The cameras have branched out from the surf crowd to be used by auto racing, skiing and bicycling as new adapters are created.[2]
The parent company includes financing by several venture capital companies including Steamboat Ventures (affiliated with the Walt Disney Corporation), Riverwood Capital, Sageview Capital, Walden International, and U.S. Venture Partners. [4][1][3]
On March 30, 2011, it acquired CineForm. In particular the acquisition brought the CineForm 444 Codec into its control. The codec (which was used in the film Slumdog Millionaire) according to the press release "makes HD and 3D editing faster and more convenient without sacrificing image quality." It was used to roll out the 3D HERO® System shortly after the acquisition.[5][6]
On October 24th, 2011 GoPro introduced the HD HERO2 Professional. Marketed as "Twice as powerful in every way", the Hero 2 has an improved image sensor to 11 Megapixels, improved low-light capability and records up to 120 frames per second (WVGA only). The HERO2 has an MSRP of $299.99[7] and is available with three different accessory packages: Outdoor Edition, Motorsports Edition, and Surf Edition[8]. Each package includes different camera mounts and accessories.
The company currently only sells two basic cameras, neither of which in its native format has a viewfinder or zoom lens. The only menu is a three character LCD that appears on the front of the camera and is cycled through by pressing combinations of the front button and a top shutter button. The cameras have dimensions of 1.6” x 2.4” x 1.2” (42mm x 60mm x 30mm). Both cameras shoot 5 megapixels. The cameras are bundled with a clear polycarbonate HD Housing (with glass lens) that is rated shockproof and waterproof to 180 ft/60 meters. The housing consists of a quick-release buckle on the top and threads at the bottom which can be used with a special screw to connect to all of the GoPro mounts. The housing has metal buttons which are synched to connect to the camera's controls. The housing has a "skeleton" backdoor option to access the back controls and microphone in situations where it is not necessary for the camera to be water tight or shock proof (but wishing to take advantage of the mounts)[9]
In addition to the usual camera features, the cameras also include an upside down mode to make the photo/video appear upright when played; interval shooting of every 2, 5, 10, 30 or 60 seconds allowing the camera to continuously shoot unattended; 3 photo burst; and self-timer. The camera spec sheet notes they have a proprietary 1100 mAh lithium-ion battery, Aperture: f/2.8, and rated >1.4 V/lux-sec in video mode.
The Naked camera line form the basis for other bundles which are differentiated by the types of mounts they have (HD Helmet HERO, HD Motorsports HERO, HD Surf HERO).
The Digital HERO 5 (first introduced on Amazon on December 5, 2008)[17] had a 5 megapixel still photo sensor, and supported standard definition (640×480) video capture. It ran on two AAA batteries, had 16MB of internal memory, and could function with a 2GB SD card. It was the first GoPro HERO camera to use a 170° angle of view, ultra-wide lens.[18] Its housing was aggressively--and extraordinarily--rated to 100 ft/30 meters depth. Its dimensions were 2.6" x 1.75" x 1.25" (66.04 x 44.45 x 31.75mm). The camera is not designed to work with the newer HD HERO line of housings, although the standard screw mounts are indeed compatible.[19]
The Digital HERO 3 released in 2007 had a 3 megapixel camera and and shot standard definition 512×384 video. It was rated up to 98.4 feet in depth.[20]
According to Amazon, the 35mm camera (model #001) became available on April 13, 2005. It had dimensions of 2.5 inches by 3 inches and weighed 0.45 pounds. It included the camera, a clear case with quick release, a camera strap and ski glove adapter lash. It could pivot "on the fly" and was functional to 15 feet of water. It was described as a "reusable wrist camera" and included a roll of 24 exposure Kodak 400 film.[21]