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I Replaced DJI Osmo Pocket 3 With Insta360 X5 | Which Is The Best Travel Camera?
@PaulAntill pits the brand-new Insta360 X5 against his longtime favorite, the DJI Osmo Pocket 3, to see which one deserves to be the ultimate travel camera. From low light performance and gimbal smoothness to wild 360 tricks and rugged durability, both of these cams bring something unique to the table.
Filmed across a week in Chengdu, China, this hands-on comparison breaks down real-world use, battery life, editing workflow, and that awkward tariff pricing hike. Whether you’re filming cinematic travel shots or just looking for the most versatile, compact camera for your next trip — this video will help you figure out which travel camera is best in 2025 for your kit.
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0:00
I'm headed to China for the next few weeks and need to pack a small travel camera
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The Insta360 X5 just dropped, but I've also got my trusty DJI Osmo Pocket 3 to pick between
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So which one am I taking with me? Both, of course. What kind of question is that
0:13
Welcome to Chengdu China and another episode in my replacement series where I pit new gear
0:18
against the stuff I already use and love to see if it can earn a place in my kit
0:22
The Osmo Pocket 3 has been my go-to travel camera for years, so the X5 has a lot to prove
0:26
okay if i had to narrow it down here's what my perfect travel camera needs it's got to be
0:33
lightweight and deliver great video quality but most importantly it has to be fun and easy to use
0:38
something that makes me want to keep shooting not something that gets in the way let's start by
0:42
looking at design while both of these are super compact cameras they take a totally different
0:47
approach the x5 is a sealed unit no moving parts no gimbal and that means it's ip68 waterproof
0:53
dustproof and much better suited for taking on an adventure meanwhile the pocket 3 is more delicate
0:58
and something i wouldn't take to the beach or pool i'm not going any further with the awesome pocket
1:03
now i thought the pocket 3's 2 inch rotatable touch screen was already great but the x5's
1:08
larger 2.5 inch screen is even better making it easier to check for framing and incredible
1:13
for filming vertical content which my book is a big plus now i can't talk about cameras without
1:20
getting into video quality. On one hand, the Insta360 X5 captures way more, but with the Osmo
1:26
Pocket 3, it's much tighter. So filming videos like this, it can be a little bit difficult. You have to
1:31
hold your hand a little bit further out when you want to get more in the scene. It's a lot easier
1:35
to use the Insta360 X5 because it's not just capturing me, it's capturing what's in front of
1:40
me to my size, and of course, I can reframe it later in post. So that's really great. But with
1:45
the Osmo Pocket 3's one perspective, I have to switch between it facing backwards
1:50
or selfie mode. And when there's a lot of action happening quickly, that could be the difference between getting
1:56
or missing the shot. But the benefit and one of the biggest reasons I love the Osmo Pocket 3 so much is that one inch sensor And that one inch sensor unlocks this really nice depth of field especially when you get closer to your subject It blurs out the background really nicely The X5 though everything is in focus all the time
2:12
no matter how close I get. And that's not very flattering. The Insta360 X5 can shoot up to 8K
2:17
30 frames per second, which sounds impressive, but the resolution is split between both lenses
2:22
in 360 mode. So really, you're looking at something closer to 4K. And even though the
2:27
Pocket 3 tops out at just 4K, I found that it produces sharper and more natural images straight
2:33
out of the camera. You guys work way too hard. So when it comes to vlogging with these two cameras
2:39
they trade blows. But if you add a selfie stick to the mix, the X5 pulls off one of its greatest
2:44
invisible party tricks. Literally. In a few seconds, you can go from a simple handheld shot
2:49
to making it look like you have a drone or even a personal camera operator following you
2:53
with no selfie stick in frame. And this feature unlocks some of the most fun shots
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I captured on the trip, especially when I was finding creative angles to move the X5 through
3:04
It's also great to have a small, pocketable camera that offers decent zoom range
3:10
Now, unfortunately, with the Insta360 X5, you're pretty limited in what you can do
3:14
On the other hand, with the DJI Osmo Pocket 3, we got a recent software update
3:19
which brought medium tele-zoom. So that's been great for getting closer to the action without losing quality or portability
3:26
But when I'm doing these day-long video shoots, battery life is another really big concern
3:31
With the Insta360, you do have hot swappable batteries, so when one dies and you need to quickly recharge
3:35
you're ready to go. With the Osmo Pocket 3, I do get longer battery life at about two hours, but the internal battery
3:40
is not swappable. But I do have this really nice extended battery grip
3:44
It nearly doubles battery life to about four hours, but it does make things a little bit less pocketable
3:51
Okay. It was this next day that I really wished the X5 had some kind of similar extended battery grip
3:57
Yeah, it's only 3 p.m. I only been shooting a mix of shorter to medium length clips in the battery on this It already pretty low I have to plug it in in order to get more charge so i had the x5 plugged into that power bank that you just saw and everything was going fine until the charging cable cut onto something and then this happened no oh thank god i think it
4:18
may have scratched a little bit oh lord yeah it scratched just a little bit i don't know how
4:24
noticeable that is i wish that was recording though yep i dropped the camera it took a full
4:28
fall right to the concrete from like five feet up but amazingly it only got scratched up a little
4:34
bit yeah you hate to see it but that little scratch was enough to show up on video not too
4:40
noticeable but maybe enough that it's worth swapping this out hey it's featured me back
4:44
from the trip and it's time to get this lens cover fixed since the 360's credit the new x5's
4:49
cover is more durable and scratch resistant but if you're ever unlucky and you do need to have one
4:53
replaced they sell these kits for 30 dollars that do include one replacement lens we've got
4:59
the lens guard off now i am i'm going to take the replacement lens carefully place it in the middle
5:05
here yeah that's looking a lot better i just need one for the front lens now but until then
5:13
back to the video the x5 gets a decent bump to low light quality thanks to its new one over 1.28
5:19
inch sensor which is 140 larger than its predecessor but as i found out at night it
5:24
still can struggle even with lots of light coming from the buildings the fountain the video quality
5:32
on the x5 just doesn't hold a torch to the osmo pocket's one inch sensor with the x5 insta360 has
5:39
introduced a new pure video mode which is basically their version of night mode that boosts exposure
5:44
without making the image grainy but overall there's a lot of smoothening and denoising that
5:49
I don't really like. Especially in the details of the sky, the trees, things start to look a little
5:55
bit mushy. You can tell that there's a lot of processing happening to clean up the image
6:00
Don't get me wrong, the Insta360 can still get you good shots when you're in a pinch, but if I have the choice between these two cameras I always going to pick the Osmo Pocket 3 Now here the part I was really dreading editing this video Getting those cool reframing shots is a chore even when using the
6:16
app. Now, for my editing workflow specifically, I first have to import all the footage into the
6:21
Insta360 app, export it as a flat video, which, even with my powerful M1 Max MacBook Pro, takes a
6:27
lot of time. So by the time everything's processed and ready for me to finally start editing
6:31
I've already checked out. For shorter videos with just a few 360 clips
6:35
yeah, not a big deal. But for something longer like this, it adds up fast and makes me think twice
6:40
about shooting in 360. So let's address the elephant in the room
6:45
Pricing. The Insta360 X5 starts at $550. Not bad given all its upgrades
6:50
and everything that it can do. The Pocket 3, it used to start at $520
6:54
But thanks to tariffs, it now costs $800. That's a 54% price hike
7:01
And when you jump up to the creator combo that you've seen me use with the battery grip and the mic, that's $950
7:07
Yikes! If you're in a country like China where the price bump hasn't hit you, Pocket 3 is a killer value
7:12
But for everyone else, it makes this camera much harder to recommend. And suddenly, the X5 is looking like it could be the smarter buy for a lot of people, especially if you're on a tighter budget
7:23
So, this wasn't like my usual replacement videos where one device clearly outshines the other
7:29
Both of these are super compact travel cameras, but with a totally different twist on things
7:33
The X5 unlocked the creative freedom I was looking for, especially for just being able to hit record
7:37
and figure out how I wanted the shot to look later. But like I said, it comes with that extra cost
7:42
With the Pocket 3, I'm still getting that high quality footage I know and love, but it doesn't always deliver that wow factor
7:48
that I'm craving. And so getting to use these two cameras for the past couple of weeks, what I ultimately found
7:52
is that they complement each other really well, and I'm super glad that I brought both with me
7:56
But what do you guys think? If you like these kinds of no fluff side by side comparisons, be sure to subscribe for my other replacement series style videos, and until the next one, I'll catch you later
8:11
Pandas! Boop
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