Looking to purchase a gopro for the the upcoming year. Wondering if we could get some advise on the best place to purchase. We are want the ability to record each game so like some suggestions on exactly what we will need to purchase along with the camera (batteries, memory cards, etc.).
If you are buying a new camera, they all will (for the most part) be the same price between locations. GoPro does a pretty good job of managing the prices of their products. If you find a place online that sells them substantially cheaper, be very cautious (and check them out on resellerratings.com before buying). If you don't mind used or referb products, you can do pretty well if you do your home work. It generally goes without saying, but be careful of Ebay sellers that do not have tons of good seller history.
So if buying new, we still feel the GoPro Hero 4 Silver is the best bang for the buck. You get a great little camera with the included LCD. The LCD is a must in my opinion because it will help you properly setup the shot (complete field in view and no fence in the shot). You can do the same thing by turning on WiFi and controlling the camera with your smartphone or tablet, but it is a pain. Not to mention that GoPro WiFi generates heat and will most likely cause your camera to shut down in the middle of a game. The Hero 4 Black is a better quality camera. But I think for the money and the lack of the LCD, it really is too much camera and money for the sport. If you know you will use it more outside the game, the black is a great camera (4K is amazing stuff). Lastly, the new camera, the Hero Session is sort of an odd duck. It is smaller (a cube really), but camera size is generally not an issue for our sport. This camera is meant for mounting to your body. The reduced size makes for better point of view video. But due to the reduction of size, the following are drawbacks: no LCD and no removable battery. Also, the start/stop recording button also powers the camera up and down. Saves battery life, but annoying.
I know I said lastly, but there is also the Hero +LCD camera. This is their budget starter camera and is sort of an odd duck. I cannot speak to the quality because we have not yet tested it. It does save you some money, so it might be an option. The case is not removable and is part of the camera. The USB power plug will be the only way to power the camera externally as there is no auxiliary port on the rear of the camera (as there is in other models). And since there is no removable battery, you will have to have external power to record most full games, and certainly most games.
If going used or if you find a good deal on an older model, I suggest the GoPro Hero 3 Black (not the plus). This camera is my workhorse. The quality is second only to the Hero 4 Silver, and not by much. You will have to add an external LCD, but other than that, I see no downsides. Due to the age of this model, you can really save some bucks.
Because each of the models listed above have a couple different battery situations, we have broken down our suggested accessories in 2 different links. Hope this helps:
Hero 3 (Suggest Hero 3 Black)
http://www.lynkspyder.com/gopro3.html
Hero 4 (Suggest Hero 4 Silver)
http://www.lynkspyder.com/gopro4.html
Josh Greer
LynkSpyder
www.lynkspyder.com