Maybe it'll sound a little naive to say this out loud, especially in 2024. But I'll say it anyway, just for giggles: It's nice when it feels like a company whose products you like is listening to what customers want, isn't it?
Far too often, it feels like companies, broadly speaking, are just out to do whatever they think will rake in the most coin for themselves and any shareholders they might have. And yes, I know companies want to make money—of course they do. But I think it's also possible for both companies and their customers to win at the same time.
Indeed, companies can win by inviting their customers to help them improve and then iterating to give customers what they want (well, within reason). Make customers feel like they're being listened to, and that they're improving to meet what customers want. That's how you build brand loyalty. Not by beating everyone over the head with a really terrible, annoying ad involving some singing sitcom stars from 20 years ago at every single commercial break on a given streaming platform.
Annoying people doesn't make them give you money; giving them products with features they want does. And that's why I think that Insta360 has been interesting to see evolve over the past few years. From the time I reviewed the One X2 a few years ago to its most recent 360 camera, the X4, there's been a clear throughline. And it hasn't just been that the company keeps putting out new and/or limited edition versions of its cameras just to put out something new for people to buy.
No, it's steadily been integrating improvements into its products; listening to customer feedback, and making changes to newer versions of things that customers actually want. Imagine that!
For those who haven't used one yet, 360 cameras are cool because they offer you a nearly uninterrupted 360-degree field of view. Sure, if you look carefully, sometimes you can see the stitching. But for most practical purposes, they let you capture everything they can see (obviously, they can't see through or around you or other objects), then choose your point of view in post.
But because they have big glass bubbles as part of their lenses, it can be easier than you'd like to damage them. And if you damage one (or both), then the point of having a 360 camera in the first place is kind of moot. Suddenly, if you want to replace it, you're out a few hundred dollars.
Now, the One X2 had lens protectors. There were these little stick-on ones that didn't do much, and that users complained about. There was also a much more robust tempered glass premium lens guard system for the One X2, but because it was essentially a clip-on hinged single unit that clamped over both 360 lenses at once, it also hindered One X2 functionality unless you wanted to take the lens guard off.
Still, having to pop it off to plug in a USB-C cable sure beats accidentally scratching your lens, right? Right.
Then came the X3, which offered improved image quality and battery life, but didn't offer a robust lens protection solution. I remember having a conversation with another journalist at a press ride once, after the X3 came out, and she was eyeing my X2 and its lens guards a little bit enviously. "I wish the X3 had something like that available," is a rough paraphrase of what she said when I explained that she was looking at an X2 mounted on my handlebars.
But by the time the X4 launched, Insta360 was back at it with a new, improved lens guard solution. Now, if you buy an X4 (including the BMW Motorrad Limited Edition I'm about to tell you about here), it comes with Standard Lens Guards, but they're not the flimsy, stick-on units seen on the One X2.
No, instead, they're a clear plastic unit that neatly and reassuringly snicks into place with a standard bayonet-style twist connection. You'll know that they're where they're supposed to be, because you'll hear (and feel) a little click once they lock into place.
For even more protection, you can purchase the new X4 Premium Lens Guards for an additional charge. Those operate using the same twist-on bayonet connection, but swap out the plastic for tempered glass. Visibility, accessibility to all the buttons and ports on the X4, and protection are all present for owners to enjoy. And that's how you iterate in a customer-inclusive manner. Funnily enough, if I recall correctly, the new Premium Lens Guards for the X4 are priced about the same as the bulkier old unit for the One X2, which is an extra bonus.
I've already talked about how pleasantly surprised I was at the impressive battery life of the X4 after I took it out for the first time. That's the type of practical, real-world improvement that riders enjoy. Sure, on paper the 8K possibilities are impressive, but how often you'll use it depends on how robust your computer is. We're not quite in an 8K-standard world yet, so while it's a cool party trick, most users will probably find the 4K and 5.7K options more useful for everyday purposes.
But the Insta360 BMW Motorrad X4 Limited Edition brings something else to the party, and it's not just the new paint and graphics on the thermo grip case. What's something that riders unfortunately deal with on a regular basis, especially if you ride on public streets with other traffic?
That's right; you want a dashcam. Maybe not always, but there are definitely a lot of times when it would really come in handy. And now, with the introduction of the Insta360 BMW Motorrad X4 Limited Edition, it gets a brand new Dashcam Mode.
To be clear, the X4 did previously have a Loop Recording mode. There, you could set it to record in a loop for a set amount of time, like 5 minutes or so, after which time it would automatically stop and record over the footage once your chosen amount of time had elapsed.
Dashcam Mode works a bit differently, in that it lets you select a percentage of your installed microSD card that you want to dedicate to recording dashcam footage. I got to test a beta version of this firmware update before it was released, and if you watch our video about it on the RideApart YouTube channel, you can see and hear my thoughts on it there.
It's potentially useful, but in practical use, I feel like it needs a few tweaks to really be helpful to riders. In my experience, there were two things I felt could be improved. One has to do with recording functionality on the camera, and the other has to do with editing the resulting footage using the phone app.
Regarding functionality, the Dashcam Mode as tested required me to pull over to stop the recording when an incident occurred that I didn't want to record over. The X4 offers both voice and hand gesture controls for other features, so it would be a no-brainer to see this offered for stopping Dashcam Mode and starting a new file recording, as well.
As for editing in the phone app, it's something I actually enjoy doing with 360 footage in the Insta360 App. Having used the app for a few years, on multiple mobile (and desktop) devices, and through various software updates, I can say that it, too, has improved mightily over that time.
And here in 2024, I genuinely enjoy using it to edit 360 clips on my phone because of its available Quick Edit Mode. I go into this a bit in my video about Dashcam Mode, but basically you can use your phone to look around whatever the video has recorded from every angle.
In Quick Edit mode, where you point your phone is what's recorded. No need to set tracking targets manually; just point your phone where you want the video to look. It's super intuitive and dead simple, even for a non-video-pro like myself. For some reason, the Dashcam Mode videos I recorded don't offer you this option. Instead, you only have AI and Pro Modes to edit in, and I think that's likely to turn a lot of potential users of this feature off.
If you have an incident on the road and you need to pull footage from certain angles to file an insurance claim or police report, making it as easy as possible seems like the best-case scenario.
When I asked an Insta360 representative about it, they told me that this was a good idea, and that they'd pass it on to their dev team. Given the company's previous history of integrating user suggestions into future updates, I won't be surprised if we see that as an improvement down the line, but it's not currently available at the time of writing.
There's also talk of an Automatic License Plate Blurring feature coming to the Insta360 app sometime soon, but I haven't been able to test it yet and so can offer no observations. Once I'm able to test it, I'll be sure to add an update to this review, just to keep everything easily accessible in one place.
One other thing I'll note about the X4, as a camera, is that it does heat up pretty readily. On a motorcycle or other wide-open powersports application (like, say, in/on a UTV/ATV/snowmobile), all the fresh air rushing past it can only help with keeping the unit cool. In more heavily enclosed environments, you may need to take additional precautions to keep it from getting too hot to function properly. That's another reason why 8K recording all the time might look less attractive to users, because that seems to make it heat up more quickly.
Overall, the X4 is probably the most capable 360 camera that Insta360 has made to date. And the BMW Motorrad Limited Edition offers a nice tie-in for BMW Motorrad fans, but also brings Dashcam Mode functionality to the party if that matters to you. It should be rolling out to other X4s in the future, as well, according to Insta360.
What would you like to see in a 360 Dashcam Mode? Are you looking forward to Automatic License Plate Blurring for future motovlogging purposes, or does it not matter to you? Let us know in the comments!
