A lot of us have been using GoPro Hero action cams since they first appeared on the scene nearly a decade ago.
Those of us who suffered with GoPro’s predecessors — huge, heavy, lo-res, bulky camcorders, either jerry-rigged onto our helmets or wired to an anchor weight fanny pack of batteries and controls — knew right away GoPro was onto something big.
They are, after all, the ultimate “selfie.”
One emerging application for cyclists: Loop video of commutes and road rides for safety purposes. If you get in an accident, the GoPro’s record will help document what happened.
For the same reason, we wonder if GoPro won’t wind up being built into cars. And used for DIY home-security systems.
We love GoPros for their light weight, HD output, battery life, multiple mounts, durability, versatility… well, we’re starting to sound like an advertisement.
Which GoPro really loves. Especially now.
The Silicon Valley company, which moved its headquarters from Half Moon Bay partly to be closer to the tech pulse, recently applied for an IPO with the Securities and Exchange Commission.
It was called a “secret” application, but that just shows GoPro’s sophisticated marketing acumen. What gets more attention than something “secret”?!
This comes after GoPro was featured in a fawning “60 Minutes” special and considerable Wall Street attention to GoPro’s annual doubling of revenue.
Whatever the case, there won’t be anything stealth about GoPro’s presence at the Sea Otter Classic bike fest April 10-13.
GoPro traditionally is a marquee presence at Sea Otter, its big booth topped by a huge pennant featuring a constant churn of activity as riders come and go to fiddle with their cams. You typically can score a great deal on GoPro cameras and accessories, too.
This year’s event promises blow-out potential. It’s possible GoPro will use the combined incentive of Sea Otter and its IPO to roll out something really huge.
We can only speculate what it might be. A game changer in mountable, wearable, wireless, mega-HD, socially networked, blah blah blah?
But one thing is clear: You’ll have a hard time missing GoPro at Sea Otter.