Arthur Fuentes

Article (news)

Insta360 X5

ABS-CBN News

<div><img src="https://od2-image-api.abs-cbn.com/prod/editorImage/175151511071220250703030756_14464cf407f7b48a64a62a3262a562d935d7c7edf4d57ef2d6299421c86e6e93.jpg" style="width:950px" class="fr-fic fr-dib"/>The Insta360 X5 is the latest flagship 360 camera from a brand that has come to dominate this niche videography market. Arthur Fuentes, ABS-CBN News </div>MANILA — The Insta360 X5 is the latest model of a camera beloved by action-oriented content creators like cliff divers, motorcycle riders and cyclists. After trying out the X5 for a couple of weeks, it has become obvious to me why the 360 camera has become an indispensable part of the adventurer’s toolkit. It’s also clear why the X5 looks set to cement Insta360 as the king of this niche market–this thing is really, really good.I have to admit: I wasn’t always a fan of 360 cameras. I always found them too gimmicky, and the footage (especially the fisheye and “tiny planet” clips) too disorienting. As someone who bought the very first GoPro and several other GoPros (the Hero 4, 6 and 8), I had always thought that this was as good as it could get.<div><img src="https://od2-image-api.abs-cbn.com/prod/editorImage/1751511501525insta motorcycle mount.jpg" style="width:950px" class="fr-fic fr-dib"/>The Insta360 X5 mounted on a motorcycle. Arthur Fuentes, ABS-CBN News</div>While I did get the Insta360 X2 a couple of years ago, I never really got down to editing the footage we took of trips to Japan, Taiwan and Europe. I always thought that processing 360 footage would be too much of a chore when smartphones were already taking videos that were of amazing quality.But when I got the X5 as a review unit a few months ago, I had to review this mindset. I looked at how other people had been using 360 cameras and realized that I was missing out on something awesome.Since I consider myself still a novice when it comes to the Insta360 universe, here’s the short list of upgrades in the X5    from the X4.<div><img src="https://od2-image-api.abs-cbn.com/prod/editorImage/1751514588713insta360 road bike mounting.jpg" style="width:950px" class="fr-fic fr-dib"/>Mounting the Insta360 on a road bike. Arthur Fuentes, ABS-CBN News</div><div><img src="https://od2-image-api.abs-cbn.com/prod/editorImage/1751511582404insta mtb mount.jpg" style="width:950px" class="fr-fic fr-dib"/>The Insta360 X5 mounted on a mountain bike. Arthur Fuentes, ABS-CBN News</div>The X5 has two 1/1.28-inch camera sensors, which is a huge leap from from 0.5-inch sensor of the X4. It also has two Pro Imaging chips and one AI chip that help process the data from this much larger sensor, which means footage is of a much higher quality compared to the X4, which only has one AI chip.Thanks to these hardware upgrades, it also has improved low-light performance, which means night videos don’t look so dark or blurry.It can shoot 8K (4K front and back) at 30 frames per second, and 5.7k at 60 fps. Meanwhile, the battery has also been beefed up to let it run for 185 mins straight while shooting 5.7k at 24fps. It also now has a built-in wind guard to minimize wind noise.<script data-wid="auto" type="text/javascript" src="https://content.viralize.tv/display/?zid=AAFz8gWM8iRADsJr&amp;cid=ABbmCESHaF6joqXf"></script>But the biggest upgrade, which people have been talking about, is the X5’s replaceable lenses. If you scratch or break your lens while shooting, you can replace it yourself if you order the replacement kit. Personally, I’ve never broken an action camera’s lens before, but it’s good to know that you don’t need to bring it to a service center anymore if the lens cracks or gets scratched.Now for the user experience–operating the Insta360 X5 is easy enough. There’s an option to buy it paired with an “invisible” selfie stick, which is very handy when you want to take videos while walking or running.During a recent trip to Japan, me and my wife were able to use the camera to get a few interesting clips of parks in Sapporo. The camera allowed us to make an otherwise mundane stroll through the Otaru park look more dynamic. <script data-wid="auto" type="text/javascript" src="https://content.viralize.tv/display/?zid=AAFz8gWM8iRADsJr&amp;cid=ABbmChbM4umuhR5j"></script>In my case, I had to buy a few accessories to properly mount the camera on my bike and motorcycle. Since this is an action camera, it just makes sense to use it for something a bit more action-oriented like riding a bicycle or a motorcycle.The camera’s controls are intuitive enough– a power button on the right side of the screen activates the device, a circular button at the left bottom of the screen turns on recording, while a square button on the right switches shooting modes from either video, photo, time lapse and several other modes.<script data-wid="auto" type="text/javascript" src="https://content.viralize.tv/display/?zid=AAFz8gWM8iRADsJr&amp;cid=ABbmDKxP20uTp0tv"></script>You swipe down from the top of the screen to see the camera’s settings, swipe up from the bottom to set the capture modes–whether in 8k, 5.7k or 4k and the corresponding frame rates. Swiping right shows the images and videos captured, while swiping left shows the exposure controls.For the best video quality, I leave the settings at 8k at 30 fps. This setting also leaves you a lot of room to maneuver when editing–you can zoom and dewarp your footage without too much loss of details.The mic works well. The noise reduction is excellent, and there is no need to put a deadcat on the mic holes to muffle the crackle from moving at speed when biking or motorcycling.The Pure Video mode makes sure that your night rides are properly lit. Apparently, this is a huge improvement over the previous version, which struggled with low-light videography.Editing is pretty easy, once you get the hang of it. The Insta360 Studio for the mobile app is intuitive enough to learn on your own, but there are also plenty of tutorials on YouTube that will get you up to speed.Because the video is 360, you don&#x27;t need to worry about losing details when you switch from a traditional landscape video for YouTube, or the vertical video mode for TikTok and Reels.You can also just let the app’s AI do all the editing for you, but I personally found the trim and angle choices of the AI not really up to my taste. I enjoyed trimming the videos myself as well as choosing the angles by keyframes.The Insta360 Studio’s free library of transitions, effects, and music is also pretty decent. If all you want to do is edit 360 videos, you can do it all on the Insta app–you don’t need other editing programs like CapCut, Davinci Resolve, Lumafusion or whatever program you use to edit longer videos.<script data-wid="auto" type="text/javascript" src="https://content.viralize.tv/display/?zid=AAFz8gWM8iRADsJr&amp;cid=ABbmDnZUNB8UaAld"></script>For cyclists, there&#x27;s even an option to include your GPS and fitness stats into a video to show off your speed, cadence or power output if you&#x27;re into that kind of thing. The footage looks straight out of a video game, which is pretty cool.All in all, the X5 and Insta360 Studio are a lot of fun. You probably will need to spend a bit more for the accessories, such as the selfie stick as well as bike and motorcycle mounts, to get the best footage, but if you’re a serious action-adventure content creator, it’s all worth it. It will definitely be hard going back to the Insta360 X2 after using the X5.

The Insta360 X5 is the latest model of a camera beloved by action-oriented content creators like cliff divers, motorcycle riders and cyclists.

The Insta360 X5 is the latest model of a camera beloved by action-oriented content creators like cliff divers, motorcycle riders and cyclists.

REVIEW: Insta360 X5 is a must for action-adventure content creators

News

Entertainment

Lifestyle

Sports

Metro.Style

More

Traffic

Manila

Horoscope

Technology

REVIEW: Insta360 X5 is a must for action-adventure content creators

Arthur Fuentes,

ABS-CBN News

Published Jul 03, 2025 12:22 PM PHT

|

Updated Jul 03, 2025 12:42 PM PHT

Read More:

ABSNews

Insta360 X5

Insta360 X4

action camera

adventure camera

video editing

ABS-CBN is the leading media and entertainment company in the Philippines, offering quality content across TV, radio, digital, and film. Committed to public service and promoting Filipino values, ABS-CBN continues to inspire and connect audiences worldwide.

Corporate

Investors

Governance

International Distribution

Corporate

Governance

Investors

International Distribution

NPC Seal of Registration

Privacy Policy

AI Policy

Terms of Service

Advertise with Us

© 2025 ABS-CBN Corporation. All Rights Reserved.

NPC Seal of Registration

Privacy Policy

Terms of Service

AI Policy

Advertise with Us

© 2025 ABS-CBN Corporation. All Rights Reserved.

NPC Seal of Registration

Privacy Policy

Terms of Service

AI Policy

Advertise with Us

© 2025 ABS-CBN Corporation. All Rights Reserved.