A surprising number of the new GoPro Mission accessories will work with Hero cameras, including GoPro's first-ever vertical mount and wireless mic

GoPro may be best known for action cameras, but if there’s one thing that’s almost just as synonymous with the GoPro name, it’s the accessories. The launch of the GoPro Mission series, then, unsurprisingly, came with several new camera accessories. But what’s most surprising? Most of them are backwards compatible with the Hero series.

The GoPro Mission series looks like a classic GoPro action camera, but the new series leans more towards high-end video with larger one-inch sensors capable of up to 8K open gate, along with the brand’s first mirrorless camera.

But another thing that GoPro cameras are known for is durability – I imagine NASA isn’t the only one still using an 11-year-old GoPro. Plus, the Mission 1 Pro ILS isn’t a replacement for the Hero13 Black, which will continue to remain available.

While some mods are exclusively designed for the Mission series, like the new point-and-shoot grip, ND filters, and Media Mod, these new GoPro accessories are backwards compatible with some Hero series cameras.

GoPro Wireless Mic System

With the Mission series, GoPro also announced its first mic – and it’s compatible with a number of cameras, including non-GoPro models. The wireless mic set has a USB-C receiver that allows it to work with a number of cameras and smartphones. GoPro Hero Black models and Mission series cameras have an easy pairing mode, GoPro says.

The mic offers 24-bit, 48kHz audio and works from up to 150 meters away. The kit includes two mics, a receiver, and a charging case, with a battery life of about 6.5 hours per mic.

GoPro Vertical Mount Adapter

Social media is all about those vertical videos right now – but GoPro hasn’t launched its own vertical mount until now. The Vertical Mount Adapter makes shooting vertically with a GoPro faster, even on mounts that don’t have the ability to natively tilt the camera to its side. The L-shaped adapter gives the GoPro three attachment points instead of mounting exclusively from the bottom. The adapter is also magnetic, so it’s made for quick swaps from vertical to horizontal and back again.

The Vertical Mount Adapter, which is made with aluminum, is compatible with the Hero12 Black and Hero13 Black cameras as well as the new Mission series. It mounts on other GoPro accessories using the traditional finger mounts, magnetic mount, or a 1/4-20 mounting tripod thread.

GoPro Volta 2

I’ve used the original GoPro Volta to keep a GoPro running long enough to capture a time-lapse of the northern lights all night long. GoPro is refreshing this popular accessory, which is an external battery, mini tripod, and grip all in one.

The update offers an even higher capacity battery at 5800mAH, up from 4900mAH. That’s good for up to 9 hours of 4K30 video.

GoPro Light Mod 2

One of the biggest accessories that can improve video footage is having enough light. The GoPro Light Mod 2 is a constant LED light that’s 33 percent brighter than the earlier version at 200 lumens. The light has a cold shoe mount, so it’s compatible with any camera that has a cold shoe mount, so it works with earlier GoPros with a media mod and can also be mounted separately.

Enduro 2 Battery

New batteries are typically not compatible with older cameras because they are a different size, but the new GoPro Enduro 2 battery is compatible with both the Mission series and the Hero13 Black. The catch? The battery life isn’t as long on the Hero13 Black as it is on the Mission cameras. A new charger that charges two Enduro 2 batteries at once is also launching.

The new GoPro accessories won’t be available until May at the earliest, but the company is launching each one on a rolling basis, so others may not arrive until the third quarter of the year (along with the Mission 1 Pro ILS mirrorless).

Pricing details have not yet been announced.

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