Can anyone recommend a battery pack for extending the life of my GoPro - At yesterdays wedding the bride was nearly 30 mins late resulting in my Hero dying towards the end of the ceremony (a long catholic one)

I was looking at something like this rather than the overpriced GoPro BacPac

Anker® Astro3E Mobile Battery Pack 10000mAh External Battery Pack High Capacity Power Bank Charger (Dual 5V 3A USB Output) for Smart Phones, Android Phones, PS Vita, GoPro; iPhone 5, iPhone mini (Lightning Cable not Provided), iPhone 4S, iPad 3; Sams (http://www.amazon.co.uk/Lightning-Sensation-Blackberry-connectors-customized/dp/B0063AAIRG/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&qid=1366534759&sr=8-3&keywords=usb+battery)

Pete

Hi Pete

Have you actually tried a USB power pack plugged into the GoPro's USB port ?? Can you actually remove the Hero Battery and just run off the USB battery pack?? The BacPac is simply a bigger battery so with the External USB battery will it and the GoPro (with the battery left in) co-exist OK???

Apart from lack of portability it looks like a good idea if you can find somewhere to mount the hi-cap battery

Chris

Hi Chris - apparently with my silver edition you can run with USB power without the battery - The USB Battery will tape to the stand - something else to think about but I'm less than impressed with the standard battery life - still a great little camera though :)

Thanks Pete

Nice to know!!

I found this which proves that you can indeed use a supply without a battery in the camera

GoPro Hd Hero 2 can I plug any aftermarkets charger in? - YouTube

Tell us how it works when you get one? I use either my wrist remote or my tablet to start the camera otherwise I too get 30 minutes of an empty Church and like you, I'm also the idiot sitting ouside waiting for the bridal limo while the GoPro faithfully records the restless congregation!!

Chris

Same here Chris - Rather than leave things to the last minute with the risk of missing something, I start my audio recorders, GoPro and both TM900 cameras about 15 mins before the start - then wait outside for the bride - fortunately they're rarely late! - I tried once to get the chief bridesmaids to call or text me when they are setting off but invariably they forgot and I missed a couple of bride arrivals - never again!

Alternatively just use the normal recording mode rather than Protune. Presumably you were on Protune to get such a short battery runtime. I've used Protune for a few weddings but now decided its more trouble than its worth for my usage. You get wifi realtime preview DURING recording not just before recording when in the normal mode as well (Hero 2).

Pete

Protune is also like shooting in RAW format on a still camera so all actions that the camera adds in non-Protune mode are lost (like NR especially) so often the image actually looks worse.

Yeah I stick to standard as well and the Hero is a lifesaver at weddings when someone blocks a camera!

If I can't be bothered to keep my tablet with me I just strap the remote on my arm so I can start the camera as soon as the bride steps into the Church ..no preview of course but it's a real handy start/stop device!

Chris

Hi Guys - No I don't use Protune - I find it not necessary - the battery simply ran out as I started the camera 15 minutes prior to the ceremony as usual but the bride was 30 minutes late - combine this with a full Catholic mass wedding (over an hour) and that little battery had no chance.

I've ordered a USB battery pack and will be using it at this weekend's church wedding - I'll post my thoughts.

With regards to controlling the GoPro I use the android app on my Samsung phone - works a treat.

Pete