We have already presented the new high level Insta360 Ace Pro 2 smart cam, with its 8k resolution and Leica lenses for the best possible quality videos. Underwater light is never enough, and the Insta360 Ace Pro 2 is specifically designed for these conditions. Let’s see what we have found out during our sessions at sea, at the International Awards Camp 2025, for the selection of the Best Choice by Apnea Passion 2025 freediving and spearfishing products.
Amazing light even at high depths and great colour control
The Insta360 Ace Pro 2, with its 1/1.3″ sensor and the top brand for lenses, Leica, definitely has the capacity to utilize all the light available even underwater. At the same time it is key to avoid, something that happens with other smart cams, to modify colours in a way they look nice but are not real. The Insta360 Ace Pro 2 has the capacity, thanks to its evolved software, to improve the global, image keeping a true and real view.
Specific underwater function
The specific Underwater function sets the view in UltraWide, which works greatly in all open air and underwater video shooting. The Underwater setting is great as it improves stability of the video, and the Instra360 Ace Pro 2 is one of the best on the market in this. Also, it automatically compensates optical distortion caused by light refraction underwater, delivering a wider, more natural field of view without manual settings adjustments. And more…the Underwater Function also regulates the perfect colour edit bringing real colours back in the video even at high depths, where normally everything appears bluish.
Definition and quality versus battery
Indeed the possibility to use 8K resolution is great underwater, but impact the 1,800 mAh battery, which will last maximum one hour at 30fps, the maximum frame rate at 8K. If there is no specific need for 8K, definitely a lower resolution will be a good choice to improve battery duration, key when in the water, where battery change is more complicated. We have tested a duration of almost 2 hours at 4K and 30fps, which is a good value. For videos during the long spearfishing sessions, the 1080 is still a good resolution, even if it will not permit to zoom too well the video id needed. This setting of 1080 at 30fps can lead almost to 3 hours of battery charge, which is very good if we consider that our Insta360 Ace Pro 2 will not be constantly shooting videos, but only at every dive.
Amazing colours at the International Awards camp with the beautiful Leaderfins ICT Design fins
We could not test the Insta360 Ace Pro 2 without making videos of the beautiful Leaderfins ICT Design fins. The glass fiber blades of different designs and colours are amazing and the Insta360 manages to catch all the beauty in the water. The number of different colours of the design fins are also an important test, due to the fact that the various tonalities go from dark to very light, and so it is not easy for the camera to adjust the light of every part of the video. The strong capacity of the Insta360 Ace Pro 2 to absorb all the possible light available also led, in the Automatic mode, to some white areas being too illuminated, but this can be adjusted with the manual mode.
16:9 or 9-16 just as you like, also underwater
A very smart and simple solution, to which not many have thought, is to have a dive case which can be easily positioned on the floating hand grip horizontally, but also vertically. With all the social media requiring one or the other format, this is very useful. Yes, you can also simply keep the hand grip horizontal to have a 9:16 recording, but it is definitely not the same thing!
Probably the best on the market with a few possible improvements
We have tested quite a few smart cams, including the GoPro 13, and the Insta360 Ace Pro 2 appears to be definitely the best one underwater. The Insta360 smart cam improves the light of the video keeping true colours even at high depths. Two things could be improved. The dimension and weight of the Insta360 Ace Pro 2 are greater then other good quality smart cams. Secondly, and most importantly, we would love the cam to be water resistant down to at least 20 meters, and not only 12. This would cover the needs of the majority of spearos, and also some freedivers not looking for performance, but just having fun diving at medium depth in apnea, watching the underwater world. Not being obliged to use the underwater case in such conditions would definitely make it easier and more user friendly to use the Insta360 Ace Pro 2, which would also become smaller and more hydrodynamic.
