How to use a GoPro camera with your smartphone

How to take better photos with Android
How to shoot better videos with Android

Connect the GoPro camera with your smartphone

To begin, you'll need to download and install the GoPro app from Google Play. Once on your Android phone, connect the GoPro camera to a Wi-Fi network. Note that connecting to a Wi-Fi network isn't a requirement, however, as the GoPro can act like a router and generate its own Wi-Fi signal. This signal is similar to a Bluetooth connection, but with the added benefits of being more stable and having a wider range than Bluetooth.

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You can enable the Wi-Fi signal within the camera's 'Setup' menu. Below it is another option to pair the camera with the device called 'Pair'. Select this option and choose 'GoPro App' and it will launch the app on your smartphone. In the app, select the model of your GoPro camera and search for its signal. To pair the device you must enter the pairing code that appears on the camera screen.

If you'd like to pair it with new smartphones, it will also ask for a password. If you forget it, you can reset the configuration of the Wi-Fi signal within Setup > Reset cam > Reset Wi-Fi.

Warning: The camera's Wi-Fi uses a lot of battery, so avoid it if you don't have spare batteries or the ability to charge it quickly.

Record from your smartphone

Once connected to your smartphone, the GoPro can be controlled from your Android phone and check files that are saved to your microSD card.

To control the camera, select 'Control' in the application to see a preview of what the camera is capturing. There is around a one-second delay between the action and what appears on the screen of the smartphone. The streaming quality isn't great but lets you view and control recording. The recorded file will, of course, have a much higher quality than what you see on the screen.

From your smartphone, you can control the start and end of the recording, change the mode (video, photo, time lapse, etc.) and you can also access the menu that controls resolution and frames per second by pressing the spanner icon. This is much easier than from the camera.

Share your videos

To view the videos and photos inside the camera, enter 'Media' or click on the square icons from the recording interface. On your smartphone, you can view and play all videos and photos you've recorded with the camera. In addition, you'll also be able to download them to the smartphone to share on social networks.

With a GoPro, you can easily trim parts of the video you want to share: there’s no need to upload a five-minute video if only 15 seconds of it is interesting. Enter the camera and select 'Media'. Select a video, select the piece you want to share and press 'Save' to save it on your smartphone. Once saved, you'll see a button to share directly or through messaging apps directly.

Edit videos

The GoPro app lets you trim your video sequences (5s, 15s, 30s, etc.) but you can also download the clips to your smartphone and edit them with any video editing application. When you download a video or photo from the GoPro camera to your phone, they're stored in a folder in the internal memory of the device. The route is DCIM > com.gopro.smarty, where you'll find two folders. One is called 'Clips' for videos that we've edited with the app, and another is called 'GoPro' for videos that have gone to your smartphone.

If you shoot 4K and want to edit videos on your phone, you'll have to opt for a paid version of the app. I used KineMaster for editing the video above and I'm playing Pokemon Go in this clip (with music courtesy of The Miskins Ronson). I could use the videos it recorded in 4K, but app converts them to Full HD, which is the maximum resolution you can export edited videos in.

Do you know any tricks for the GoPro? Let me know in the comments.