GoPro cuts Hero4 Session camera price again after sales fail to take off
The waterproof cube-shaped camera is the company's smallest, but it looks like it'll take an equally petite price to spark sales.
- More than two decades experience writing about PCs and accessories, and 15 years writing about cameras of all kinds.
GoPro's Hero4 Session (left) is much smaller than the Hero4 Silver (right) in size and now in price, too.
It was late September when action-cam maker GoPro cut $100 off the price of its waterproof cube-shaped camera, the Hero4 Session, bringing the price down to $300 in the US, or £250 and AU$430 in the UK and Australia.
That price drop apparently wasn't enough to spark interest for holiday shoppers, so GoPro has brought the price down by another $100, bringing it to $200 in the US, or £160 and AU$300.
Despite being significantly smaller and simpler to use, the Session was a tough sell at its original $400 compared to the Hero4 Silver that, at the same price, had many more features and better video quality. When the price was cut to $300, a GoPro representative said the price drop was driven by feedback from consumers and retailers. People weren't sure where the Session fit into the lineup, they said, and the pricing added to that confusion. (Here's how all the models compare to each other.)
The Session was certainly a better deal at $300, but was still in competition withseveral other cameras priced at $300 or less which had similar or potentially better features. This includes Polaroid's $150 Wi-Fi-enabled Cube+, a camera that looks so much like the Hero4 Session that Polaroid licensee C&A Marketing is suing GoPro for patent infringement.
The Session's new $200 price tag brings it into range for those considering the Cube+. It also makes it a compelling choice for current GoPro or other action-cam owners looking to get another angle on the action with a secondary camera.
However, at this price the Session is competing with the GoPro Hero+, which has fewer shooting options than the Session. In fact, it's hard to see why you would bother considering the Hero+ unless you really want the design of the other Hero cameras and need something waterproof to 131 feet(40 meters).
Also, I'm wondering how two $100 price cuts since the Session's launch in July will leave owners feeling about their purchase and the company in general. Sure, there's usually a financial penalty for being an early adopter, but a 50 percent price drop seems potentially damaging.