Select GoPro HERO4 might be affected by the troubles

Oct 9, 2014 09:09 GMT  ·  By

GoPro has just introduced the HERO4 cameras and naturally a lot of you might have gotten excited over it. After all, the new generation brings about 4K video shooting at 30fps and a built-in touchscreen (on separate models though).

However, even as HERO4 cameras have yet to reach customers who have ordered it, the CheesyCam crew already found something that is wrong with the device. So if you have been thinking of purchasing one yourself but haven’t got to it yet, it would be advised to wait a little bit, just to see how this plays out.

Some GoPro HERO4 tend to overheat when attached to a BacPac

According to their findings, the GoPro HERO4 can dangerously overheat, but not always. This unwanted by-product comes around when users try and attach a brand new Battery BacPac Accessory.

Or that’s what they thought initially. After attaching the same BacPac to a GoPro Hero3+ camera, the device ran cool and unmolested.

So the question was whether the BacPac (which was ordered directly from GoPro, no shady business) was incompatible with the new HERO4 or the small camera was to blame for the problem.

They put the GoPro HERO4 through one last test. They went out and purchased yet another HERO4 camera and tested it against the same BacPac. Well, the results are quite worrisome, as one camera heated up while the other one didn’t.

Apparently, something inside the HERO4 camera makes the device heat up when used in concert with the BacPac. Actually, in just as little as three minutes, the mini shooter gets hot enough as to be capable of distorting a small piece of plastic placed on the BacPac.

There is the possibility that the HERO4 camera purchased by the folks who conducted the experiments is the only item affected by the over-heating troubles, but this is highly unlikely. Probably a bunch of cameras running under the same serial number are incompatible with the accessory.

We're still waiting on feedback from GoPro

CheesyCam has yet to receive feedback from GoPro, so for the time being a possible fix for such a problem eludes us.

The HERO4 was announced a few weeks ago in Black and Silver versions. The Black model was the more capable one, offering the possibility to shoot 4K at 30fps, while the Silver model and previous Hero3+ could only muster 4K at 15fps.

The HERO4 also adds manual control over ISO limit, color and exposure settings. The Silver model offers a built-in touchscreen that helps with composing shoots.

Hopefully the overheating issues is nothing GoPro can’t fix. Have you noticed similar problems?