why no replaceable batteries? I have an old hero 8 and have already killed 4 of them. Not being able to change the battery is just stupid and not sustainable either.

I was initially really interested in this but the lack of a swappable battery is really a deal killer for me. I want to maximize recording time, not just have a smaller form factor.

one stop channel for an honest review with exact information needed for the viewers .... please continue like this for futuer as well . Thank you

Seems like a great camera with its small size and built-in horizon lock. I almost never use my front screen and can learn to live with no screens quite easily. The non-swappable battery might be a problem though. Depends on how long it takes to charge. We will have to wait and see.

In your upcoming review, please confirm that we can keep a recording Mini charged with an external battery. That's crucial information for when the battery gets worn in a few years.

Thank you so much for the review. Opened my eyes in ultrawide mode and high resolution.

It looks good for moto-vlogging where the back screen isn’t much use as I use my phone to set it all up. Although the Session 5 form factor to me is perfect, and I learnt to vlog without a screen with it. Thanks for the overview Ray

Thanks for this! The Hero 11 black mini is what I really want since I bought the Hero 10 last year. Also I noticed the 11 mini's bottom mounting fingers don't fold in flush like the back side or it's big brothers'.

I whitewater kayak and can not wait for this camera! Weight on top of my head is the big deal for me. Thanks for the overview!

I don't know, the downsides of not having the screen or removable battery (and all the flexibility and ease of use that provides) are not offset by the smaller size (it really isn't that much smaller to me) or lower price ($100 isn't something to laugh at but it certainly isn't enough to make you buy this camera because of it for many folks). I can see this being a niche for people that want to mount it permanently to a bike or helmet and just leave it there forever or something.

Man I really appreciate the time you spend on this gear ,it really helps. Am pretty sad we wont get an updated Max. Not sure what’s that about?

As always, excellent overview - just what the doctor ordered. Now then, having a handful of original Sessions and GoPros, my main areas of interest/concern are: Will it be more likely to overheat/crash in higher resolution/frame rate? Will the battery soon refuse to hold a charge like all my Sessions? How will the audio recording mono mic and noise reduction compare to its big brother? And will it have the same Wi-Fi/Bluetooth remote features? And will it charge at the same rate? Will they later produce a GP 11 Mini Creator Edition with remote power and video looping? (AWESOME for Dashcam)

Excellent presentation as usual DC!

Great review thanks! I've been waiting for a camera like this for a long time now! I still use the session attached to my work vest with an external battery. So this is small I can use external battery and still use an SD card all day long on the construction site! Thanks gopro!!

Thanks Ray! Some takeaways for me personally: Good 👍 : - a smaller camera (which is important for many action cams) without performance compromises. - cool heat sink innovation. - more compact mounting options. Bad 👎: - irreplaceable battery, although I understand this for space saving purposes. - although ‘smaller’, it’s not much lighter and weighs more than a hero 8 black! - as you mention some very random features omitted like: scheduled capture; webcam; gps; video looping. These could be a deal breaker for me and since I still need the smaller cam for my sports I may look elsewhere.

Ray has been a busy man this week. It's a full time job just to keep up. Technology all the things!! 😃 And coming in clutch with the Ti-83 reference!! Now go hit the like button and such!

Thank you GP for going smaller, but keeping the Mini feature-rich. Since I prefer the cam on my baseball cap while offshore fishing instead of a chest or shoulder mount for the POV aspect, the slightly lighter/smaller form factor is a welcome thing. Sure, the battery life is shorter, but a tiny charger on board my boat will take care of that. Looking forward to your review next month!!

I loved my Session 5 until i broke it, it´s clearly my favourite gopro model, and i was happy when gopro announced this camera, but i´m a bit dissapointed for not being too mini. i don´t care the screen or a little less battery life, but i dont like that they removed some features that are only software just to make it different.. y can understand not having GPS because it takes space, but i think they didnt need to remove photo mode , webcam mode ,etc even if i rarerly use them .

Gr8 video! I still use my session 5 which is an awesome little action cam :) What I like about the new mini and session 5 is my vlogs are either biking or diving and I wear gloves in both sports so I need an action cam with just one big start stop button and prefer not having a viewfinder, this helps in editing to cut down time spent choosing the better shots.

Thanks for going over this model. I think this is good decision for GoPro. If you are going to release another model besides the Hero 11 it should be different. Making more than one camera like the Black , Silver, and White has never made sense to me. This one is enough like the Session and made for action. If you need the full Hero 11 Black buy it. I don't really use the rear screen to frame my shot and sure don't need the front screen.

The weight is a big issue. With only a 20g savings versus the regular model, it's difficult to justify save for the slightly lower price, especially with all the mentioned omissions. Add to that the inability to change batteries and the knowledge that GoPro's repair team has sent me three broken Max cameras after I paid them to repair a scratched lens in April (and still hasn't sent me a working one) and I shudder to think at what the long-term viability of this thing is.

I’m loving the Hero 11 Black so far. But for the mini, no swappable battery is a deal breaker.

Thanks for the info. Hoping this model will simplify things. With the rear touch screen on my GP8 I'm always inadvertently changing settings. For on the fly footage while cycling this mini 11 looks promising!

Thanks for the video. It answers most of the questions I had. Thinking of getting one of these for filming star trail timelapses. Can you confirm it has the star trail feature like the full size Hero 11 Black does? Can it be controlled using the Volta and The Remote, and is there a pass-through USB door available? Thanks again.

I can't wait to slap this thing on my bike! Thanks for the Hands-on!

No chance I would buy this with an internal battery. Thanks for the coverage!

I am super excited for this. Cuts a lot of th echaff I dont use out and keeps a lot of the stuff I do use. RAy, do you know if there is a pass through door for this camera? That would clinch it for me for real

I've never wanted a screen on a gopro so this is the version I've always wanted!

The lack of screens does mean you'd save some battery, yes - unless you turned them off while recording on the regular GoPro, which I do. Also, I turned off the phone connection stuff which means there's no constant Wi-Fi hotspot produced by the GoPro - this saves a ton of battery as well. So the perceived increase only exists if you both keep the screens on and the phone connection on. Otherwise I'd suspect the regular GoPro gets vastly better battery life for only 20 grams more plus it has a screen. So the mini just isn't worth it at all imo.

私は日本人です。あなたの考え方がとても参考になりました。ありがとうございます！！ I am Japanese. Your way of thinking was very helpful. Thank you!!

I rarely use my screen on the 9/10 . I use QuickCapture 99% of the time recording trail videos on my mountain bike. This is a must purchase camera for me.

Worth noting, with subscription it is currently $99 to replace HERO11 (I assume this also means Mini). However, historically the replacement cost drops (HERO7 is now $69) so by the time the battery is no good in Mini, it should be cheap to replace (GoPro also replaces with more recent model if they are out of stock of your model).

Still running an old Session 4 but have been wanting more FPS for years. Finally bringing back a mini.

I think this is the perfect GoPro for extreme sports the only thing missing is a replaceable battery but other than that I think it's great

tbh the most disappointing design issue is the built-in battery. I have an old Session with a worthless battery. So it's my car cam which is ok. The battery door removed and cabled all the time. I might still be tempted to buy it if the newer batteries work out. I do wish I could turn off all the displays on my Hero10/9s because I absolutely notice a degraded battery life if there are a bunch of clips +1min display time for each vs just one long one where the display was only on for 1min.

Great video! Is there any possibility the new mini to have a protective housing just like all the other action cameras???

Even with the omissions the mini is still a really interesting option. Helmet mounts will be improved for sure - still holding out for the full run down on this before I trade up from Hero 7

Tons of information from your videos. I just bought the 11 Black with three batteries and the mic adapter. I use these on the water and utilize a Yolo Stick that charges my Hero 4, not to sure about this 11 yet? I hope it will still work, which does help in charging your battery.

as always great video :) thank you !

From an FPV perspective, its advantage will be more robust without the 2 giant screens, 20grams or so reduction isn't much. but at 150kph crash, less drag/enertia helps. Interesting to see more reviews 1st. full version may present better value in most scenarios with removable batt etc. Yet $100 less...that's a good option 🤔 (the session 5 was a joy for fpv, so am keen to see how this goes)

I got my GoPro 5 session as a Christmas present when they were brand new I've had it ever since I Love My Hero 5 session

Thanks for this! I was hoping you'd show us how you can use the Quik app and use your phone as a screen to frame shots. Still deciding between this and the regular 11 as I still have the 9.

Another fantastic Review, always the best- Now totally awesome backdrop too! What is that LOcation???

Thank you for testing this. :)

Thank you thank you! Great to know what it has or not before 10/25. It helps us make a decision sooner than later. I've been interested in small form factors since my Sony WX300 P&S camera. Due to my GP8's heating issue, wondering if the Mini will handle it better. But some of those missing features are turn offs. No battery swap, looping, photo. For me, the Hindsight feature sounds really cool in the big one. I read the manual of the 11, and it sounds like both screens can be turned off. If so, then the Mini's benefits seem inconsequential. On the Mini, when recording, does it do chaptering, or like a 20 minute file is broken up into smaller files that makes a whole? Thanks again!

Good review. Im getting this 11 black mini to replace the hero 4 session iv been skydiving with. A lot of skydivers use the full size GoPro but its just too bulky when flying at 150mph. I wish this Gopro hero 11 black mini could come in the same size as the session. Still like that its smaller than the full size with the same capabilities.

I think the mini might be a good back up to my GoPro Max. 360 camera, Hero works as a vlogging camera/photo mode, mini for action shots, underwater stuff.

Nice review. Thank you 😊

Its November 2023 and i still use my gopro sessions 5 i love it so much and it works perfectly fine. But i would like to upgrade and this hero 11 mini seems like what i need.

No-one is mentioned the audio recording on the hero 11 vs hero 11 mini, for Mountain biking POV this would be great to know !

Super awesome video. Thank you.

Not certain if it's for me or otherwise, but I appreciate your time and information. Cheers

Hello and thank you, If no GPS and no metadata, will we be able to use reelsteady and stabilize the image with the GoPro Mini ?

Have you put the Hero 11 Mini on a scale? The Hero 8 Black weighs 124.29 g with the battery and SD card which is different then the advertised 117 g weight. Thanks.

will the mini 11 work with the old smart remote (3-button) from the Hero 6,7,8. ? In my watersports a must-have feature, can you test and confirm...

Thanks for confirming things, can you confirm if voice commands are supported?

Could you please test if and how Spot Metering is implemented? The Sessions had it as a toggle switch in the App. Normal GoPros have it as a truly annoying touch control nowadays, which is obviously not working here.

The sessions are awesome, I say are cause I still use both of the older ones

Fan of this one, lighter when using the bite mount and I don’t use the screen to frame my shots that often

Ugh. Video looping mode and the GPS location were the MAIN reason I wanted this. Put this on the front and back instead of a Cycliq

You skipped over the NO LOOP mode which is pretty sad as this camera would be really good for daily cycling "dash cam".

Can you do a video comparing run time of 10, 11 and 11 mini

It looks like a nice camera but I kept getting distracted by the background. Where was this recorded? I envy your ability to buy so many bits of kit. But even more I'd love to be able to just turn up at some of your location shots.

i really liked the session cameras range.

For me, the lack of a removable battery and no video looping mode are the deal breakers. Over time, the battery will have a shorter life, and will require surgery to replace (and who knows how challenging that will be, there's some things where the battery is basically impossible to replace).

This is what I'm waiting for. Perfect for me.

Genuinely curious if this is a solution for bike cams for general riding Edit: no looping video could be a pain

That t-shirt is up there with the pasta one 😉😎

Any news of a usb pass through door for the Hero 11 Black Mini ? (For a power pack for a super long capture)

i loved the session

I do a lot of car trackday/pov stuff and not having GPS is such a deal breaker... I do have external GPS for laptiming but having gopro GPS just made it so easy to look at GPS and track overlay for entertainment purposes

Hi Ray, do you have a review of the Cycliq Fly12 Sport planned?

I wish it was lighter for FPV, are the mounts on the back removable? That culd save me some grams, not much but some.

So is there an app that lets you view through the camera lens to set up your shots? I like the idea of no screen on the body, since I don't use it anyway, except to set up the shot.

thank you, finally. I have 5 mini, since than I waited for new small device from GoPro. And I would go for even smaller and thinner if possible. Give me 1h recording in 4k 60fps with image stabilization and made device smallest possible, allmost to look like hidden camera - I would gladly pay double this price.

I don't get it. I was excited about the mini 11 since GoPro announced it as the same camera as the 11 Black but smaller. But it seems a lot of features are missing including GPS..and anyone knows if the Smart Remote is compatible with the Mini?

Initially I was excited, but like many others mentioned no swappable battery is a deal killer. I use my GoPro a lot as a "body cam" on a chesty, and sometimes even on a head mount, and sometimes mounted on top of my car, so a camera with no screen made sense to me. But all of those scenarios need longer runtime than a single charge of a single battery. Plus the size isn't that much smaller. It looks much thicker than original. I'd be interested to see the overheating data. I think the only chance for this camera to succeed is if it can record highest framework/highest resolution video till the battery dies and never overheat (due to the "big ass heatsink"). Otherwise it's absolutely useless.

Does the door come off like a GoPro 8? So we can always have a power cable plugged in.

my biggest hope is that it is more durable than the ones with the screen, the screens seems to break so fast

Looks like the back is just plastic with grooves ... not a heatsink. Will it work with the remote? Can you use external power supply? Can you use it with the mic adapter?

This camera + GoPro labs 👌🏽

Hello, you mentioned that it is compatible with Max Lens Mod. I received my Mini today, I was able to physically install the Max Lens Mod accessory but there is no way to select the option from the menu. Contacted Gopro and tech stated that we have to wait for the upgrade.

I wonder if they will make this compatible with the mic adapter

Nothing I miss from missing features :)

I’ve been using mine for almost a week now and I really love it, it’s just freezing up constantly.

I wonder if it supports the old 3.5mm mic adaptor from the Hero 6 days? If it doesn't then there's no external mic support, right?

Is there any possibility to use an external mic with Hero 11 mini ? You didn't say anything about it and this is in my opinion very important for many users of GoPro (including me).

How long can you record while charging before it overheats?

I think this would be awesome for Moto vlogging “IF” the battery was removable!! The size is perfect for mounting on a helmet.

I was really hoping this would compete against the new Fly 12, but it seems the battery life remains significantly less, i.e. by whole hrs. GoPro prob views a Fly 12 comparison as apples and oranges, given the disparity in video capabilities, but the fact that the Fly 12 and Fly 6 exist shows GoPro is missing an opportunity.

THE BIG QUESTION: I would only need the LIVE VIEW mode in quik to monitor what I am recording, the mini has this function enabled ? because the black does not have it. thanks in advance

2:21 that is what i am loking for in the GOPRO10. haveing that fins in front instead another screen. I woul like a small scrren in back and the frame be covered by this pasive fins and forget about lag and heat problem on summer.

Is the gopro remote compatible with it ?

How do you like that Peak Design case for your iPhone?

Does it link with the GP APP the same as the old Session with all those functions?

I had high hopes for the 11 mini, but the non-replaceable battery and the fact that the size of the camera is barely smaller than the 11 because it is thicker, I am already very disappointed. My experience with GoPro in recent years is unfortunately that they are very unreliable cameras overall. What do you do with the 11 mini when it freezes like any other GoPro and you can't reset it by taking the battery out?

*I DON’T WANT PHOTO MODE IN MINI* *I DO WANT REMOVABLE BATTERY* Small display could accidentally have me in photo mode when I want video 99% of the time. Accidentally being in photo mode could cause me to miss the shot. Great job gopro. I like this.

Get it on the DJI Avata! Desperately want to see how well it’s handles 🙏🙏🙏

This camera looks absolutely perfect EXCEPT the non-removable battery. If it had a removable battery I would buy in a heartbeat. The problem is, once that battery dies, the whole camera is garbage, not to mention only one battery charge per outing. The form factor is perfect for my activities (kiteboarding, surfing, drone, etc). Looking forward to your official review video. Like you said in your video, I'll like like buy the big brother 11 black.

Thank you for sharing the infos! Anybody knows if it can record while charging by connected power bank (USBC cable) and if the streaming option on phone app works? Looking for a minimal running/hiking film and streaming solution.