# Hero 3 HD Black, Silver or White Edition? What's the Big diffrence?



## Basti

Silver is the best deal. The black edition's only perks are a 2.7k resolution that hardly any device can actually play and the included remote. But that doesn't justify the price. The silver has very good quality (1080p and 11MP pictures) in decent light and you can use your phone as a remote if you wish so.


----------



## boarderaholic

Get the silver. I have the black edition and actually mostly regret it. I didn't realize it at the time, but there's too many features on the black version that I KNOW I will never get around to using. Someone brought up a good point on another forum that I'm on that the quality of the video is so good with the black that most machine's wouldn't be able to process it anyway.


----------



## BigmountainVMD

I like my H3 black, and my ONLY complaint is the battery life sucks. If the battery life is the same between all three... then it is down to the specs. The main reason I got the black was for the 120 fps at 720p, which is really nice for some HD slowmo shots but I really don't get enough use from it.

We will see though. If I was on the mountain all season like I was 2 years ago, I'd probably get full use from all the features but now, at 40ish days per season, I'm more concerned with just riding than filming.

As for the computer argument, my 2011 MBP has been able to handle everything the black can do. It helps to have it plugged in and the fans definitely start to buzz, but it handles it fine.


----------



## Vinh

What if you can get the black one for even a cheaper price than the silver one? I got someone trying to sell his black edition and with currency exchange stuff I can get it cheaper than buying a silver edition one here.


----------



## boarderaholic

If you can get it cheaper than the silver edition, then by all means, knock yourself out. Not literally, please. At the end of the day, I really enjoy my black, even if I know I won't ever use it to its full potential.


----------



## vknyvz

prices seems to be fixed everywhere, amazon evo ebay trying to find a cheaper black if not i am gonna get the silver thanks to you guys i don't see the point of buying the black 

hey this should be `of course` but, gopro can be used underwater right like diving and stuff?


----------



## boarderaholic

vknyvz said:


> hey this should be `of course` but, gopro can be used underwater right like diving and stuff?


Up to a certain depth, but yes.


----------



## zoom111

vknyvz said:


> prices seems to be fixed everywhere, amazon evo ebay trying to find a cheaper black if not i am gonna get the silver thanks to you guys i don't see the point of buying the black
> 
> hey this should be `of course` but, gopro can be used underwater right like diving and stuff?



Not sure on the price of the gopro but have you considered other alternatives ?


----------



## accuracy

I got the black edition so i maybe bias but the remote is pretty handy and maybe i won't used it to its full potential but maybe i will i still want to have those options.

$400 Black w/ Remote

$300 Silver + wifi remote $80 = $380 not unless you have and iphone you can use the app.


$100 for the extra features and wifi remote for me it's worth it.


About the battery there's really nothing we can do about it co'z they all sucked.


----------



## boarderaholic

accuracy said:


> I got the black edition so i maybe bias but the remote is pretty handy and maybe i won't used it to its full potential but maybe i will i still want to have those options.
> 
> $400 Black w/ Remote
> 
> $300 Silver + wifi remote $80 = $380 not unless you have and iphone you can use the app.
> 
> 
> $100 for the extra features and wifi remote for me it's worth it.


If you're buying straight off the site, then yeah, you make as well splurge, but in store, currently Future Shop has the silver on sale for $300, and the remote for $100, which brings the total to $400. For the black edition I spent $475 on it, after tax. After taxes and stuff, you still end up saving about $55.


----------



## hoodboard4life

Go with the Silver edition. Also, battery life isn't terrible so long as you use it appropriately. Turn WiFi off, only record when you have to (don't leave it recording when you're on the lift for example).

I have both the Silver and the Black editions and for the price the Silver edition is amazing.

And you won't feel so bad when it flies off your helmet and tumbles down the mountain!


----------



## vknyvz

hoodboard4life said:


> Go with the Silver edition. Also, battery life isn't terrible so long as you use it appropriately. Turn WiFi off, only record when you have to (don't leave it recording when you're on the lift for example).
> 
> I have both the Silver and the Black editions and for the price the Silver edition is amazing.
> 
> And you won't feel so bad when it flies off your helmet and tumbles down the mountain!


this lil thing supposed to be really strong, look at the vid on my first post, fell from 12000 feet and still fine



zoom111 said:


> Not sure on the price of the gopro but have you considered other alternatives ?


no not really what else is out there?


----------



## boarderaholic

vknyvz said:


> this lil thing supposed to be really strong, look at the vid on my first post, fell from 12000 feet and still fine
> 
> 
> no not really what else is out there?


There's the contour camera as well. I couldn't tell you anything about them though. 

Cameras | Contour


----------



## zoom111

If your looking for something to film with and have a bit of fun then you should check out the RD32II. It's around 125$ and shoots in full HD. I don't film very often and didn't want to spend too much on a camera that I would be using a few times a year. Overall I'm very happy with the camera, it can do video, photos and audio (waterproof also). Here's a sample video from youtube (watch in HD) and a few shots I took at Tremblant early this year (raw photo, no editing)


----------



## accuracy

boarderaholic said:


> If you're buying straight off the site, then yeah, you make as well splurge, but in store, currently Future Shop has the silver on sale for $300, and the remote for $100, which brings the total to $400. For the black edition I spent $475 on it, after tax. After taxes and stuff, you still end up saving about $55.


Yeah i bought mine online, we do alot of cross border shopping. Its way cheaper.


----------



## BigmountainVMD

I've been researching cameras WAAAAY too much and I can say that in terms of pic/video quality, functionality and camera specs... the Hero 3 black has it. I just really didn't like the boxy look of the Gopros and wanted a cylinder like the ion air pro, but the smaller Hero 3 and 120 fps 720p did it for me.

Other options are:
Contour
Ion air pro (pro 2 model being released soon)
Drift HD
Replay XD1080 --> I really like this one, seems perfect for boarding and pretty small. Not technically waterproof... I emailed them with some questions and they never responded so I said fuck it.

Here is a list of 10... hero3 black is in the top spot:

Best Action Cameras to buy in 2013 | Geonaute 360-degree action camera | T3


----------



## vknyvz

BigmountainVMD said:


> I've been researching cameras WAAAAY too much and I can say that in terms of pic/video quality, functionality and camera specs... the Hero 3 black has it. I just really didn't like the boxy look of the Gopros and wanted a cylinder like the ion air pro, but the smaller Hero 3 and 120 fps 720p did it for me.
> 
> Other options are:
> Contour
> Ion air pro (pro 2 model being released soon)
> Drift HD
> Replay XD1080 --> I really like this one, seems perfect for boarding and pretty small. Not technically waterproof... I emailed them with some questions and they never responded so I said fuck it.
> 
> Here is a list of 10... hero3 black is in the top spot:
> 
> Best Action Cameras to buy in 2013 | Geonaute 360-degree action camera | T3


wow dude i really like the Contour ROAM2 and ion speed pro, circular shape really look nice

but hero 3 comes first, i wonder where silver will go in this list, I mean from what I can tell difference isn't that much just 1mp more and lens is different, which makes a difference I know, lens is all about a camera.

i found a gopro silver brand new never opened box, buying it today for 250, that's like 70 in savings  he says it's never opened in box so we will see


----------



## BigmountainVMD

vknyvz said:


> wow dude i really like the Contour ROAM2 and ion speed pro, circular shape really look nice
> 
> but hero 3 comes first, i wonder where silver will go in this list, I mean from what I can tell difference isn't that much just 1mp more and lens is different, which makes a difference I know, lens is all about a camera.
> 
> i found a gopro silver brand new never opened box, buying it today for 250, that's like 70 in savings  he says it's never opened in box so we will see


The Ion air pro was pretty cool and has double the battery life of a gopro at 2.5 hours and that is without a battery pod. It has similar connection in the back for this whole "pod" thing where you can add a wifi-pod or a battery-pod if you want to use it with your phone or get more record time.

The Ion air pro 2 ups the ante going from 5MP to 14MP, but I couldn't find any more info on it. I just really like the small contour, simple slider record operation and battery life. Video quality on the original was sub par, and low light recording was not good. The 2nd edition should be better. The only thing I cant figure out with these cylinder cams is that you have to do a side helmet mount for POV, and there is no way to do that in a clean looking way w/o just attaching to a goggle strap, which is too elastic and wiggly IMO.


----------



## vknyvz

got the silver one for 250 

god micro sd's are so freaking expensive


----------



## Karpediem

Actually micro SD's are stinking cheap now. I picked up a 16gb class 6 for $11 off Amazon. From what I have seen the speeds of the class 10 SD's aren't very accurate and Class 6 and sometimes class 4 cards perform as well or better. Still, you can get a class 10 32gb card for twenty some bucks. Here is the one I bought, it's up a couple bucks now.. http://www.amazon.com/Transcend-microSDHC-Class-Memory-TS16GUSDHC6E/dp/B0026L7DGA/ref=sr_1_4?s=pc&ie=UTF8&qid=1361479152&sr=1-4


----------



## kwillo

I've owned a Contour GPS, Hero2 and Hero3 Black. I'm not sure about the silver but at the very least the Black can process low light conditions and colours much much better than the Hero2. Also 1080P at 60FPS looks amazing and allows better slow-mo with twixtor and optical flow.


----------



## hoodboard4life

Finally got around to writing my review of the Hero3 Silver edition

The Bro Life: Review: GoPro Hero3 Silver Edition


----------



## boarderaholic

hoodboard4life said:


> Finally got around to writing my review of the Hero3 Silver edition
> 
> The Bro Life: Review: GoPro Hero3 Silver Edition


Y u edit music over Subby rumble? Kidding! (Not really..) But that's a well done write up, thanks!! I think in about a week and a half, it will by my turn to attach my GP onto my Subby too! Wee!


----------



## vknyvz

nice review thanks, 

so here it is, i bought one from bestbuy coz i needed one fast for this weekend for 69.99 surely this is overly expensive they said price is gonna come down to 30 this sunday so i am gonna go back and return it get my 30 dollars back, on newegg it's also 30 bucks so that should be fine.

i got the sandisk ultra 32gb btw with the one that comes with adapter of course


----------



## pwol

IMO Black Edition is the only one worth getting. Silver is the same as the Hero 2 just smaller/lighter. If you want the silver you can prob just find a Hero 2 for real cheap now. 

Black Edition can record:

720p at 120fps
1080p at 60fps
2.7k at 30fps

Silver/Hero 2:

720p at 60fps 
1080p at 30fps (30fps is pretty useless in recording anything with motion in my experience) 

And the Black Edition comes with the Wifi remote which is $80 itself so that alone makes it worth getting for.


----------



## vknyvz

pwol said:


> IMO Black Edition is the only one worth getting. Silver is the same as the Hero 2 just smaller/lighter. If you want the silver you can prob just find a Hero 2 for real cheap now.
> 
> Black Edition can record:
> 
> 720p at 120fps
> 1080p at 60fps
> 2.7k at 30fps
> 
> Silver/Hero 2:
> 
> 720p at 60fps
> 1080p at 30fps (30fps is pretty useless in recording anything with motion in my experience)
> 
> And the Black Edition comes with the Wifi remote which is $80 itself so that alone makes it worth getting for.


black has 12mp and better lens so if you're considering these yes it's better 
but remote alone is not a reason to get the black over silver especially if you are an iphone user, with the gopro app I already have a remote controller
i also got the silver for 250 brand new from craigslist, I really think i got a good deal


----------



## pwol

vknyvz said:


> black has 12mp and better lens so if you're considering these yes it's better
> but remote alone is not a reason to get the black over silver especially if you are an iphone user, with the gopro app I already have a remote controller
> i also got the silver for 250 brand new from craigslist, I really think i got a good deal


What I was trying to say that the differnece in recording performance and quality was worth the extra $100, and then they throw in a $80 remote and make it even sweeter. 

GJ on the deal man, I ended up getting a sick deal myself lol


----------



## vknyvz

pwol said:


> What I was trying to say that the differnece in recording performance and quality was worth the extra $100, and then they throw in a $80 remote and make it even sweeter.
> 
> GJ on the deal man, I ended up getting a sick deal myself lol


lol sick deal indeed, you didn't firebug that checkout page right?

where you getting that from? lol i am sure you wont tell me

you're getting 2 extra battery a must buy lol


----------



## pwol

vknyvz said:


> lol sick deal indeed, you didn't firebug that checkout page right?
> 
> where you getting that from? lol i am sure you wont tell me
> 
> you're getting 2 extra battery a must buy lol


my friend gets an employee discount from GoPro, I got lucky.


----------

