EOS-1D X Mark IIIvs Hero 12 Black
Canon
EOS-1D X Mark III (2020)
Starting from £3500 new
Best for Professional Sports, Wildlife & Press Photography
View EOS-1D X Mark III
GoPro
Hero 12 Black (2023)
Starting from £300 new
Best for Adventure, sports & travel video
View Hero 12 Black
GearScore™ Verdict — Which should you buy?
Professional Sports, Wildlife & Press Photography — EOS-1D X Mark III (2020): Canon's DSLR masterpiece — 20fps live view, 5.5K RAW, 191 cross-type AF points, and dual CFexpress. Almost certainly the finest optical viewfinder camera ever made.
Adventure, Sports & Travel Video — Hero 12 Black (2023): GoPro's best all-round action camera — better battery, 10-bit colour, and HyperSmooth 6.0 make it a genuine step forward.
Who should buy what
EOS-1D X Mark III (2020)
- Sports and wildlife photographers with a Canon EF lens collection
- Professionals who prefer the optical viewfinder experience
- Press photographers who need 20fps, weather sealing, and Ethernet
- Canon historians who want to mark the end of the EOS-1D DSLR era
Hero 12 Black (2023)
- Action and sports photographers who want the best stabilisation available
- Travellers who need a rugged waterproof camera for any conditions
- Cyclists, surfers, and skiers wanting helmet or handlebar footage
- Hero 11 owners considering an upgrade — notably better battery life
Quick take: The hero 12 black has the highest resolution at 27mp; the hero 12 black is the most affordable. Scroll down for the full spec breakdown.
Full specifications
| Specification | EOS-1D X Mark III (2020) | Hero 12 Black (2023) |
|---|---|---|
| Price | £3,500 | £300 |
| Sensor | 20.1MP full-frame CMOS | 1/1.9-inch CMOS |
| Resolution | 20.1MP | 27.0MP |
| Video | 5.5K RAW, 4K 60fps (crop), 4K 60fps (full-frame via firmware) | 5.3K/60p, 4K/120p, 2.7K/240p slow-mo |
| Autofocus | 191-point all cross-type OVF AF; 525-point Dual Pixel CMOS AF (Live View) | Fixed focus (wide) |
| Stabilisation | — | HyperSmooth 6.0 (in-camera EIS) |
| Burst Rate | 16fps mechanical, 20fps live view | 27MP RAW burst |
| Battery Life | ~2850 shots (CIPA) | ~70 min at 5.3K/30p (Enduro battery) |
| Weight | 1250g (body only) | 154g |
| Dimensions | 158 × 167.6 × 82.6mm | 71.8 × 50.8 × 33.6mm |
| Weather Sealed | Yes | Yes |
| Viewfinder | OVF 0.76× magnification, 100% coverage | 2.27" rear touchscreen + 1.4" front display |
| Screen | 3.2" fully articulating touchscreen, 4.15M dots | 2.27" rear touchscreen; 1.4" front colour display |
| Mount | Canon EF | GoPro mounting ecosystem (fingers, adhesive, magnetic) |
| Memory Cards | Dual CFexpress Type B slots | microSD up to 1TB (V30 minimum) |
| Connectivity | Wi-Fi 5GHz, Bluetooth 4.2, USB-C 3.1 Gen 2, Ethernet | USB-C, Bluetooth, Wi-Fi, GPS |
Suitability by genre
| Genre | EOS-1D X Mark III | Hero 12 Black |
|---|---|---|
| Sports & Action | — | |
| Wildlife | — | |
| Wedding & Events | — | |
| Portrait | — | |
| Vlogging & Video | ||
| Street | — | |
| Landscape | — | |
| Adventure & Sports | — | |
| Travel | — | |
| Underwater | — | |
| Cycling & Hiking | — | |
| Everyday | — |
GearScore™ suitability scores are based on aggregated purchaser reviews weighted by photography genre. See how scores are calculated →
More comparisons with EOS-1D X Mark III
Camera family history