The GoPro Hero10 is by far the best action camera around It produces impressive footage, has tremendous image stabilization, and is easy to use There is one problem with this camera, however: the Hero10 Black weighs 53 ounces (03 ounces lighter than the Hero9 Black), but when the camera is mounted on a helmet, its weight is very noticeable

DJI's new action cam, the DJI Action 2, not only features an innovative modular design, but also weighs just under 2 ounces, making it much more portableTo learn more about how DJI is trying to differentiate its action cameras from the industry leaders read more

The DJI Action 2 is available for pre-order in two bundles and will ship by the end of November

DJI Action 2 Power combo ($399): includes camera, power module, magnetic strap, and magnetic adapter mount

DJI Action 2 Dual screen combo ($519): includes camera, front touchscreen module, magnetic strap, magnetic ball joint adapter mount, and magnetic adapter mount

In a way, the DJI Action 2 shares the same design philosophy as the Insta360 One R action camera, a pioneer in modular design; like the One R, the Action 2 has a main camera body to which modules can be attached to increase functionality

Two modules will be available at launch: Power Module ($75): Basically a large battery with a microSD card slot When installed, it can extend the run time of Action 2 up to 180 minutes

Front Touch Screen Module ($169): This module has an OLED front screen, microSD card slot, and three microphones Similar to the front display on the original DJI Osmo Action and GoPro Hero10, it allows for better framing when vlogging or taking selfies The module's battery also extends the camera's battery life to 160 minutes

While the concept is similar to the Insta360 One R, the DJI Action 2's modules are hot-swappable, so there is no need to shut down the camera when you want to swap something out However, the Insta360 One R has more options for the camera itself, with three options to choose from, including a 1-inch sensor and a 360 camera

The DJI Action 2's main module measures 15 x 15 x 09 inches and weighs 197 ounces It has a 1/17" CMOS camera on the front and a 176" OLED touchscreen on the back Internal storage is 32 GB

The camera itself has a viewing angle of 155 degrees and a maximum aperture of f/28 It can capture still images up to 12 MP and video up to 4K resolution and 60 fps It can also shoot video at 120 fps at 27K and 240 fps at 1080p

These specs are lower than the Hero10 Black, which has a 23 MP camera and can record 4K at 120 fps and 27K at 240 fps

Like most modern action cams, the DJI Action 2 has built-in image stabilization (referred to here as RockSteady 20) and HorizonSteady, which allows the camera to stay level even if it twists and turns [This is almost identical to the GoPro Hero10

DJI claims that the camera module alone can provide up to 70 minutes of battery life, but other action cameras often have shorter battery life when using image stabilization or increasing resolution

When paired with the front touchscreen model, the company claims that battery life can be extended to 160 minutes, and 180 minutes with the power module The fact that the module is hot-swappable also means that a number of battery packs could be available to further extend the endurance time, but DJI has not clarified what happens if the video is recorded on a microSD card and the module is removed

After releasing the Osmo Action, I believe DJI realized that it could not compete head-to-head with GoPro Instead, they developed an action camera that addresses some of the weaknesses that the Hero10 has

In a way, the DJI Action 2 is like GoPro's Session camera, with its small, square design making it more compact than their rectangular action cameras

We're hoping to get our hands on a DJI Action 2 soon, so stay tuned for a comparison with the best action cameras