I was so excited with the news of an update to my original Osmo Action. Eventually got my refund today after returning it. The image quality was just not up there with the original model. The overheating as documented by many just terrible. I also hated the battery situation when using on a full day out. Most shops are full of negative reviews of the product, something I have not seen from a DJI product before. Whilst I think it was differnet for DJI to take the route they went with a new design I really just wish they updated the original one and built on it. Such a shame.

Deleted - wrong place

Well, I'm loving mine - which has got nowhere near overheating in my real-world use (which may differ from yours).  I think some people 'get' this device, others don't, and others bought it while somehow expecting DJI to be able to overcome the laws of physics.  And some have jumped ship before even the first post-first-release firmware update.  The big mistake DJI made was calling it the Action 2 - it's not, it's the Modular 1 and it's for a different market.  Anyway...

There is an interesting gulf between people who do theoretical overheating tests (often indoors on a desk with 25% of the heatsink on an insulating surface) and those who actually are using the camera creatively - the latter are mainly saying "no problem in real world use" and the former are full of shock and horror.  Personally mine barely gets warm in normal use.  

The first thing you have to bear in mind is the laws of physics.  Something that produces a lot of heat (CPU going flat out, battery discharging quickly) in a sealed case with limited surface area is going to get hot.  If you want something that is not going to get hot, don't buy a tiny camera.

Second thing is that most people won't be using it in ways that are likely to overheat it.  Take 4K120 for four minutes.  That's going to give you 16 minutes of finished slow motion at 30fps.  In most cases that's going to bore your audience rigid.  Especially if it's a static picture of your desk.  One tester complained that when he was vlogging at 4K120 it overheated on him before he could say much.  Er... 4K120 for vlogging??  Cheese...

Third thing - look at it this way.  A man buys a new car.  He takes it home, parks it in his garage, puts a brick on the accelerator to make the engine rev to maximum, closes the door and leaves it for half an hour.  When he returns, the overheat light is illuminating the whole garage.  He goes back to the dealer and says "this car is overheating when I leave it in my garage running at high revs!"  And the dealer says, "And your problem is, sir?  Try driving it to the coast.  Have a pleasant day there.  You need to relax".  It seems to me there's a distinct risk that people testing the Action 2 may be doing much the same thing as that motorist.

Another rush to market product in my opinion.  

fansfe82067d Posted at 11-13 00:34
Well, I'm loving mine - which has got nowhere near overheating in my real-world use (which may differ from yours).  I think some people 'get' this device, others don't, and others bought it while somehow expecting DJI to be able to overcome the laws of physics.  And some have jumped ship before even the first post-first-release firmware update.  The big mistake DJI made was calling it the Action 2 - it's not, it's the Modular 1 and it's for a different market.  Anyway...

There is an interesting gulf between people who do theoretical overheating tests (often indoors on a desk with 25% of the heatsink on an insulating surface) and those who actually are using the camera creatively - the latter are mainly saying "no problem in real world use" and the former are full of shock and horror.  Personally mine barely gets warm in normal use.  

I think you hit the nail on the head with the naming.   If it had been called the osmo modular 1 - I think the reception would have been a lot warmer.

MKosmo Posted at 11-13 06:19
I think you hit the nail on the head with the naming.   If it had been called the osmo modular 1 - I think the reception would have been a lot warmer.

Yes, it's a "lifestyle action" camera, very different from the original Osmo Action, but still a capable camera for vlogging and the mild adventures that most people have at the beach, in the park, etc. I could use the Action 2 for most of my "action" videography, but I would still need my Osmo Action for some things.

DowntownRDB Posted at 11-13 05:45
Another rush to market product in my opinion.

Exactly.  I like mine, but it wasn't ready for launch.  There's bugs in Mimo, none of the accessories are ready yet, and the camera's software has a ton of quirks.

There are things it does great, and I actually love the modular design.  I've always hated the GoPro mount for how much of a pain it is to constantly unscrew it and rescrew it to charge or remount on my bike, or switch bikes, so the magnetic 'quick-release' here is perfect too.  But it just needed more time before launch.

It seems that everybody uses customers as their beta testers. The Go 2, GoPro 10 & others all had issues at launch. The Go 2 as I understand has lost of the issues fixed with firmware updates, the 10 not so much as of yet. I see the "Action 2" more as competition for the Go 2 than a GoPro. I agree that it should have been released as the Osmo Modular. Now if they decided to actually update the Osmo Action what in the world would they call it guess they could call it Osmo Action v2 or Action 3 I guess. I sure hope that DJI decides to actually update the OA in it's present form factor.

I do not have this device nor have I seen it in person. I usually purchase stuff right when they come out (Pocket , Pocket 2, Oslo Action and Spark drone), but since after the Pocket 2, I am waiting to purchase.
I like the idea/concept but two things I am waiting for:
1) confirmation that any major issues can be fixed via firmware (not hardware limitation) and if not I will wait for the next version and keep using my OA1.
2) is is this going to be a device that they only release one firmware and then stop future small enhancements.
My Original Pocket as well as the OSMO Action had many update with both fixes as well as small additional features and enhancements. Pocket 2 was abandoned after one firmware when some issue still persist like the exposure jumping/flicker in certain situation which is now believed to be a possible hardware limitation.

I already posted to Pocket 2 branch that image quality produced by Pocket 1 is much better than quality of Pocket 2 and Action 2 and many had agreed. So no surprise your Action 1 shoots better. Action 2 firmware has tons of serious problems as well and still no sign of upgrade. Confidence in DJI has fallen to ground zero.
Not that I swear I will never buy any new product but the lesson learnt and before buying I will make sure that the quality of a new gadget is better than something I already have. And the price is adequate

MKosmo Posted at 11-13 06:19
I think you hit the nail on the head with the naming.   If it had been called the osmo modular 1 - I think the reception would have been a lot warmer.

I've now seen a couple of reports on YouTube from people who dropped theirs and destroyed the screen.  In one case it fell off the pendant when he was doing something stupid, but it only fell from chest height.  The other fell from the door of a parked car when he was testing the sticky pad.

I love this camera to bits, but.... it is NOT an action camera and DJI were not wise to market it as such.  An action camera is one that you can drop 50 feet onto concrete and it didn't get scratched and it kept running - like my Action 1.

I rather suspect the developer branch came up with this excellent totally new concept, and the marketing branch said "great, that can be the Action 2".  And the developer branch went out and got drunk.

jhoff80 Posted at 11-13 08:15
Exactly.  I like mine, but it wasn't ready for launch.  There's bugs in Mimo, none of the accessories are ready yet, and the camera's software has a ton of quirks.

There are things it does great, and I actually love the modular design.  I've always hated the GoPro mount for how much of a pain it is to constantly unscrew it and rescrew it to charge or remount on my bike, or switch bikes, so the magnetic 'quick-release' here is perfect too.  But it just needed more time before launch.

Agree 100%

Just tired of being DJI's beta testers.

Arpettaz Posted at 11-14 04:09
Wow - I could not have said it better myself. I agree with everything you have said.

Overheating? Is it really the biggest issue of the new camera? I do not think so because it has issues much more serious than overheating.
Mimo bugs? i have never used the app at all unless I was forced to do that. I always download footage for post using USB.
Wrong ISO selected in auto-exposure, worse image quality than predecessors have, junk files taking 30% of space and drain not so powerful battery - this is what worries me much more

utkin Posted at 11-14 05:55
Overheating? Is it really the biggest issue of the new camera? I do not think so because it has issues much more serious than overheating.
Mimo bugs? i have never used the app at all unless I was forced to do that. I always download footage for post using USB.
Wrong ISO selected in auto-exposure, worse image quality than predecessors have, junk files taking 30% of space and drain not so powerful battery - this is what worries me much more

Agree! DJI have lots to fix, and hopefully very soon.

Main unit only can be used for B-roll and/or when around water

Mine is completely useless! The camera forces you to download the app to even use it. Its not on the play store so you have to download it from their website.  You download it, and it doesn't work for a lot of phones. I hear it works fine with Apple, but a lot of android users like myself can't even take a video or picture because for some reason we need to active a camera that we already paided for.

I have to send mine back as the Magnets Are Reversed in this small part .

Not to mention the most crappy and useless stabilization in the world. No gyro data to make stabilization in post... BUT AVATA HAVE GYRO DATA.

This camera it's a joke. The most exciting features (weight and form factor) are useless with this crappy package of IQ and IS.

My Two Cents worth. Really happy with the Action2. Have to really stretch to find any aspect I'd like improved with it.
Filmed time lapse all day (it's high Summer here) the other day, using the 2fps mode (the clouds were performing).
Not a whisper of overheating. stitched the takes together and have a stunning 30 minutes of very useful T/L cloudy sky.
The underwater feature means a whole new world for me. Have tracked down the gear so fins and mask now standard gear in the car, but so far the shallow water vids are magic enough for me.
Conversely, bought a waterproof case so that I could work with the battery module in place. Fail. The waterproof case was no such thing. No damage done, caught it in time.
I dont use the digital horizon feature. If I needed something like that I'd buy a gimbal unit but my DJI Pocket has that covered anyway.

Massive failure - that depends.  We use it for 4K120 and it works fine and does not overheat.  Also 2.7K60 HS often inverted and it works fine.  On body using the lanyard works fine.  In fresh water and salt water 4K60 works fine - but you must rinse right away.  Is it perfect - no.  Have I made a bunch of firmware and software suggestions for improvements to DJI - yes.  Will they implement them for the Action 2 - only one they are looking at is gyro.  For the OA3 they implemented a bunch however.  DJI could be so much better - but they choose not to.  It is what it is.  

https://forum.dji.com/thread-272028-1-1.html