GoPro has been the industry standard for action cameras for over 15 years. It wasn’t until a few years ago that brands such as DJI and Insta360 began making action cameras with more features that challenged GoPro’s lead. The company has just unveiled its latest action camera: the GoPro Hero9 Black, bringing with it one of the most significant updates in years to the product lineup.

The updated camera improves on nearly every aspect of the device, with better resolution for stills and video, a larger battery, better video stabilization, and more.

“HERO9 Black reflects our commitment to delivering what our customers have been asking for, including more value for their money,” says GoPro founder and CEO Nicholas Woodman. “HERO9 Black is a beast of a product, and GoPro subscribers can get it for $100 off at GoPro.com while also enjoying unlimited cloud storage of their GoPro footage, up to 50% on everything at GoPro.com and no-questions-asked camera replacement. And we’re not done, with more value adds coming to GoPro subscribers later this year.”

The new device retains an overall design very similar to its HERO8 predecessor, but the core features of the Hero9 Black are 5K video recording, 20MP photos, improved HyperSmooth 3.0 stabilization, in-camera horizon leveling, up to 4K/60p and 1080/240p slow-mo shooting, a front-facing 1.4-inch LCD display, a larger 2.27-inch rear touchscreen display, and 30% more battery life that promises improved cold-weather performance.

The HERO9 Black also features a removable wider-angle lens that can be swapped out for the new ‘Max Lens Mod’ that makes the field-of-view even wider for photos and videos (155º). When attached, the Max Lens Mod also offers GoPro’s Max Hypersmooth stabilization (limited to 2.7K60p), Max SuperView and Max Timewarp, which appear to be tweaked versions of the more standard versions, designed specifically with the wider-angle lens in mind.

And there’s one more announcement, too, and this is perhaps the most exciting in the long run: they’re eliminating plastic from HERO9 Black’s packaging and adding value. HERO9 Black will come in a high-quality travel case that fits additional mounts and accessories.

“Reducing as much plastic as possible from our business is a priority for us,” Woodman says. “We’re excited to package HERO9 Black in a high-value travel case instead of traditional wasteful packaging, and we’re committed to doing the same with the rest of our cameras by the end of 2021.”

HERO9 Black Features:

• New Image Sensor
• Video: 5K30, 4K60, 2.7K120, 1440p120, 1080p240 and more
• Photo: 20MP
• New 1.4” front color display with live preview and status modes
• Larger 2.27” rear touch display with touch zoom
• 30% more battery life than HERO8 Black with improved cold weather performance
• Removable, rechargeable battery
• HyperSmooth 3.0 with in-camera horizon leveling
• TimeWarp 3.0 featuring Real Speed and Half Speed
• 1080p Live Streaming
• 1080p Webcam mode
• Power Tools: HindSight, LiveBurst, Scheduled Capture and Duration Capture
• SuperPhoto + HDR Night lapse video
• RAW photos
• Digital lenses
• Voice control with 14 commands in 11 languages + 6 accents
• 3 microphones with advanced wind-noise reduction
• Stereo + RAW audio
• Larger speaker for improved audio playback
• Removable lens cover
• Built-in folding mounting fingers
• Rugged + waterproof to 33ft (10m)
• Compatible with Max Lens Mod, Light Mod, Display Mod and Media Mod for HERO9 Black

The GoPro Hero 9 Black is available today for $449.99 ($50 more than 2019’s Hero 8 Black) or $349.98 when purchased through GoPro’s website if you also buy a one-year GoPro Plus subscription, which costs $50 for a year and offers total camera replacement, unlimited cloud storage and discounts on gear.

The Max Lens Mod isn’t yet available for purchase, but the GoPro website says it will retail for $100 and offers an option to submit your email on the product page for more information when it becomes available.

More info on GoPro’s website.