It appears that the Insta360 Ace Pro 2 could soon be in our hands if leaked pictures of the product's packaging (see below), as well as an open box with the action camera inside, are anything to go by.
An upcoming Ace Pro 2 would come hot off the heels of the GoPro Hero 13 Black and DJI Osmo Action 5 Pro and upgrade Insta360's 8K Ace Pro, which is still only a year old. And those leaked Ace Pro 2 pictures reveal more details about the would-be GoPro and DJI rival.
Chief among the details revealed is that the Ace Pro 2 will be an '8K AI-Powered Action Cam'. That video resolution is nothing new – the Ace Pro is already capable of shooting 8K 30fps video, specs that are also pictured on the packaging. However, what's new is the added emphasis on computational smarts this time around.
Battery life has also seemingly been revealed, with the screen on the camera showing up to 3 hours of record time. That would be a serious step up from the 100-minute record time of the Ace Pro and sits somewhere between the improved performance of the Hero 13 Black (2.5 hours) and the Osmo Action 5 Pro (4 hours), the current leading action cameras.
We can also see an obvious design tweak with a pronounced microphone underneath the camera's lens – meaning there could be improved in-camera audio quality.
Meet the new insta360 ace pro 2 #insta360acepro2 #insta360 #acepro2 @insta360More about it on my YouTube channel very soon https://t.co/xxxcD8XNU9 pic.twitter.com/F0O81u1j57September 21, 2024
A previous Ace Pro 2 leak seemingly showed the camera in the hand with slightly different markings, including 'dual AI chip'. This marking is not on the newer photos; though the second-gen model could still have dual AI chips. We don't know what purpose they would serve, but with that AI-Powered tagline it seems like a fair bet that the Ace Pro 2 will heavily rely on AI-smarts.
There also appears to be complete markings on the lens now, which suggests it'll be the same Leica Super Summarit-A lens with maximum f/2.6 aperture as before.
However, the same source that leaked the product packaging has shared a video on Youtube (see below) and in it suggests the Ace Pro 2 will have closer minimum focusing – a boon for vloggers – though of course we can't verify this. The leaker also shares the Ace Pro 2 will have a built-in wind muff and better low light image quality.
Three's company
The action camera market, once dominated by GoPro, now has two other serious players; DJI and Insta360, meaning competition has never been hotter.
What's even better for consumer choice is that each brand is forging its own unique path; GoPro with its interchangeable Lens Mods and enhanced 5.3K video, DJI with its leading low light performance and tougher build, and now Insta360 appears to be doubling down on its high resolution 8K video and AI-smarts.
The Ace Pro series is also the only one of the three leading models to feature a flip-up selfie screen, though that does also mean it is the biggest and heaviest of the three.
Insta360 already has an excellent track record in the action camera space, with its industry-leading 360-degree camera, the X4, plus its tiny and versatile Go 3S. There's no word on a potential Ace Pro 2 release date, but it looks set to complete Insta360's lineup nicely and has colored us excited.
