GoPro HD Hero 960 Helmet Cam
The Hero 960 was the model that put a rugged point-of-view camera in reach of ordinary skiers, and the review was right about what mattered: it was tough, waterproof, and mounted to anything.
That last part is why GoPro still dominates. The mount fitting has stayed compatible for fifteen years, so the enormous ecosystem of clamps, straps and harnesses still fits current cameras. It is the strongest reason to buy one over a rival.
What is dramatically better than the 960:
- Stabilisation. This is the real change. Footage from a 960 juddered; current electronic stabilisation produces something watchable. It matters far more than resolution.
- Waterproof without a housing, so no fogged case and no fiddling with a latch in gloves.
- A screen you can frame with, which the 960 lacked entirely. Aiming a helmet camera blind is how people came home with four hours of sky.
The competition worth knowing about, which did not exist then: DJI's Osmo Action, and Insta360's 360-degree cameras, which let you choose the framing after the fact. For helmet use that is a genuinely better idea than pointing a fixed lens and hoping.
What has not improved: battery life in the cold. Carry spares inside your jacket. And mount it on your chest rather than the top of your helmet, which flatters the speed and does not make you look like a periscope.
Part of the guide to cameras and photography.