BMW, Mini, and GoPro have announced a partnership that’ll make producing car videos easier. The app is free, but you’ll also need a 2012-or-later BMW or Mini equipped with BMW Apps or Mini Connected, an iPhone 4 or newer, and a Wi-Fi-equipped GoPro camera.
Once the camera is connected to the phone and the phone connected to the car, command of the camera’s functions is through the car’s infotainment system. Essential controls, such as power on and off, record, and stop, are complemented by a handful of preset recording modes that can be selected quickly and easily. The central in-dash display can also show a preview of your shot, but only when the car is stationary.
The most obvious downside is the small image far away on the dash screen, which is often a jumpy, delayed feed. Hardcore GoPro jockeys may also be frustrated by the inability to fine-tune the camera’s more advanced settings, such as Protune, from the app. The six pre-set recording modes—four video and two time-lapse—offer access to a limited spectrum of the otherwise vast capability of GoPro’s recent high-end models.
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But if you are in and out of the paddock at an open-track day and you don’t want to waste precious gigabytes recording the gripping action of a 25-mph pit-lane crawl or deal with having a loose cell phone clunking around in your car, the app makes sense.
Now sit back and watch what we could do with a GoPro and a new BMW M3 sedan in the accompanying video.
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