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GoPro now shipping 3D action-camera case

Want to add some depth to your video next time you go base jumping off El Capitan? GoPro now is selling its $99 3D mount for its Hero 1080p camera system.

Stephen Shankland Former Principal Writer
Stephen Shankland worked at CNET from 1998 to 2024 and wrote about processors, digital photography, AI, quantum computing, computer science, materials science, supercomputers, drones, browsers, 3D printing, USB, and new computing technology in general. He has a soft spot in his heart for standards groups and I/O interfaces. His first big scoop was about radioactive cat poop.
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GoPro's 3D videocamera system
GoPro's 3D video camera system GoPro

GoPro, which specializes in rugged cameras that can be attached to snowboarder helmets and surfboards, has begun selling its new system for recording 3D video.

The $99 3D Hero System is a water-sealed enclosure that holds two of the company's video cameras and links them with a synchronization cable. The dual cameras, which record 1080p video with an infinite-focus fisheye view, are sold separately at $260 each.

GoPro announced the 3D system at CES earlier this year, but now it's shipping. The camera housing is 5 inches wide and 2.5 inches tall and attaches to the company's existing mounting systems for helmets, chest straps, wrists, handlebars, and suction cups.

It takes two cameras to record 3D, and of course it also takes specialized software and hardware to play back 3D video. GoPro offers a free download of its CineForm Studio software, which lets people edit video and produce the files that can be uploaded to YouTube's 3D site. (GoPro announced last week it acquired CineForm.)

The camera can be set to shoot video or 5-megapixel still images. With a 32GB SD card, it'll shoot 9 hours of video at 720p and 4 hours at 1080p. With still photos, the camera can take not just ordinary or self-timer shots but also photos taken at intervals of 1, 2, 5, 10, 30, or 60 seconds, GoPro said.