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GoPro CEO Nick Woodman says people don’t buy action cameras for the hardware, but rather for “the awesome story that they think they can tell.”
But telling that story has been difficult, Woodman acknowledged, often requiring users to wait until they are back at their computer and then demanding they spend way too long sifting through and editing their footage.
So GoPro is making things easier, revamping its software to allow far more to be done from phones and making both mobile and desktop software easier to use. It’s also adding voice control to its Hero5 cameras, allowing people to cut down the amount of excess footage shot in the first place.
That's good, because every day phones are getting better at video, as well as more resistant to dust and water. At the same time, more and more hardware makers are offering action cameras, including Nikon, which introduced models this week.
Woodman said he is confident GoPro’s hardware is better than its rivals, but says when it comes to software, “no one is even in the same universe.”
I decided to put that software to the test on the three-hour bus ride back to San Francisco from Squaw Valley, where GoPro introduced its newest products Monday.
As Verge video producer Vjeran Pavic worked in Adobe Premiere, I fired up GoPro’s new Quik software. I tried the desktop version first, but decided to go with the iPhone version, preferring its effects and music options.
He toiled away, struggling to use the mouse to maneuver through Premiere on the bumpy bus ride, while I mostly let the GoPro software do its thing, trimming a few clips here and there, testing out different pre-built themes and adding text.
To be sporting, I gave Vjeran at least an hour’s head start, and we were both pretty much done by the time we got back.
Yeah, his is way more professional, and you should watch it.
But I think mine is pretty fun. Plus I got to level up on Pokémon, listen to some music and relax for two extra hours.
The mobile Quik software, by the way, is free and works not just with footage shot on a GoPro. So perhaps you, too, can give Vjeran a run for his money.
This article originally appeared on Recode.net.
