DJI Action 2 review: Super-small and super versatile?

DJI has re-designed its action cam from the ground up; will the DJI Action 2 lead a second revolution in the field?

DJI Action 2
(Image: © Adam Juniper/Digital Camera World)

Digital Camera World Verdict

This is an action camera which looks and works like nothing before it. Having such a tiny main camera has previously come with usability sacrifices (like the cubic GoPro Hero Session’s lack of monitor), yet here is a polished camera and powerful camera with a fluid OLED touchscreen which forms the center of a versatile system. Image stabilization and horizon leveling are all there too, and app has all the elegance you’d expect of DJI (with years of experience from drones with live view). While the max resolution is a minor disappointment, this feels like a better ecosystem for the average GoPro customer and the lack of subscription discounts is reassuring too.

Pros

  • +

    Magnetic versatility is genuinely practical

  • +

    Responsive OLED touchscreen

  • +

    DJI Mimo app control experience excellent

  • +

    Lighter than GoPro 10 even with 2nd module

Cons

  • -

    No 5.3K video option

  • -

    Smaller screen encourages use of Mimo app

  • -

    Price jump from OSMO Action

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Like Sony’s “Walkman” before it, the GoPro is such a dominant brand in the action camera space that, well, that’s what people call them. The market is swamped with cheap copies and innovation is left to GoPro. Or is it? DJI certainly have other ideas. They shook things up with their first Action camera’s front-facing secondary screen (which Go Pro were quick to copy), but their Action 2 is a new thing altogether. Well, several things to be precise.

The camera brings a modular system so that the user can choose between size, weight and power more easily than other action cameras can be taken in and out of their water housings. The practicality and gadget value is glorious but is it the right action camera for you? And if it is, which accessories will make it the perfect tool? 

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Adam Juniper
Managing Editor

With over 20 years of expertise as a tech journalist, Adam brings a wealth of knowledge across a vast number of product categories, including timelapse cameras, home security cameras, NVR cameras, photography books, webcams, 3D printers and 3D scanners, borescopes, radar detectors… and, above all, drones. 

Adam is our resident expert on all aspects of camera drones and drone photography, from buying guides on the best choices for aerial photographers of all ability levels to the latest rules and regulations on piloting drones. 

He is the author of a number of books including The Complete Guide to Drones, The Smart Smart Home Handbook, 101 Tips for DSLR Video and The Drone Pilot's Handbook