Hero 12 Blackvs A6300
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?
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.
Travel, Street, Wildlife & 4k Video — A6300 (2016): The camera that proved Sony APS-C was serious — world's fastest AF at launch, uncropped 4K, and 11fps in a compact weather-sealed body.
Who should buy what
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
A6300 (2016)
- Travel and street photographers who want compact weather-sealed performance
- Wildlife photographers who need fast phase-detect AF in a lightweight body
- Content creators who want uncropped 4K in a compact E-mount body
- Sony E-mount users looking for an affordable used body with excellent image quality
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 | Hero 12 Black (2023) | A6300 (2016) |
|---|---|---|
| Price | £300 | £449 |
| Sensor | 1/1.9-inch CMOS | 24.2MP APS-C Exmor CMOS |
| Resolution | 27.0MP | 24.2MP |
| Video | 5.3K/60p, 4K/120p, 2.7K/240p slow-mo | 4K/30p (full pixel readout, no crop), 1080p/120p |
| Autofocus | Fixed focus (wide) | 425 phase-detect + 169 contrast-detect AF points — world's fastest at launch (0.05s) |
| Stabilisation | HyperSmooth 6.0 (in-camera EIS) | None |
| Burst Rate | 27MP RAW burst | 11fps |
| Battery Life | ~70 min at 5.3K/30p (Enduro battery) | ~400 shots (CIPA) |
| Weight | 154g | 361g (with battery and card) |
| Dimensions | 71.8 × 50.8 × 33.6mm | 120.0 × 66.9 × 48.8mm |
| Weather Sealed | Yes | Yes |
| Viewfinder | 2.27" rear touchscreen + 1.4" front display | EVF, OLED 2.36M dots, 0.70× magnification |
| Screen | 2.27" rear touchscreen; 1.4" front colour display | 3.0" tilting LCD, 921k dots (no touch) |
| Mount | GoPro mounting ecosystem (fingers, adhesive, magnetic) | Sony E-mount |
| Memory Cards | microSD up to 1TB (V30 minimum) | Single SD UHS-I slot |
| Connectivity | USB-C, Bluetooth, Wi-Fi, GPS | USB, Wi-Fi, NFC |
Suitability by genre
| Genre | Hero 12 Black | A6300 |
|---|---|---|
| Adventure & Sports | — | |
| Vlogging & Video | ||
| Travel | ||
| Underwater | — | |
| Cycling & Hiking | — | |
| Everyday | — | |
| Street | — | |
| Wildlife | — | |
| Portrait | — | |
| Sports & Action | — |
GearScore™ suitability scores are based on aggregated purchaser reviews weighted by photography genre. See how scores are calculated →
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Camera family history