Category: Photography

This year I finally got a 360 camera – the Insta360 X4.  With the image quality increase of the latest camera from Insta360 it’s not as much of a compromise to include its ~2k footage alongside 4k footage from other cameras. Especially on a sailboat – the action can be in any direction and the horizon is always tipping, so a 360 camera enables me to reframe the shot where the action is and to always have a level horizon. One of the caveats with the 360 camera filming in 8k is the battery life. When I’m on a sailboat I can’t always stop sailing in the middle of a race to change the battery or sometimes I don’t even have a dry place to keep a battery with me, so getting the most out of a battery is really important to me.

According to the specs online – Insta360 rates the battery life at 75 minutes when filming with the highest quality settings that I would most like to use for sailing (8k 30fps). While some of the online reviews sort of confirmed this, there were no comparisons between the insta360 batteries and some of the aftermarket batteries that were coming on the market. So I set up some tests for 17 different batteries from 9 different retailers for 187 tests over 227 hours to answer those questions and I wanted to share my findings.

How Long Does the Insta360 X4 Battery Last?

After running the test on 2 Insta360 batteries and 15 aftermarket batteries the results were pretty clear. The insta360 batteries averaged 78 minutes while the aftermarket batteries averaged around 72 minutes.  The insta360 batteries hit the 75 minute mark in 100% of the tests.  The aftermarket batteries only hit the 75 minute mark in 2% of the tests.

Which Battery Lasted the Longest?

If battery life is of the utmost importance – you’ll want to go with the Insta360 batteries.  If you want to save some money, don’t need as long of a duration or can switch batteries easily and don’t mind dismissing a nag screen then the aftermarket batteries will work fine.

Here’s the average runtime for each of the brands:

And here you can see the individual performance of each of the batteries.  Note the range between the minimum and maximum test along with the average.  The Insta360 batteries minimum performance was at or above the max of most of the other 3rd party batteries.

The Batteries

1. Insta360 X4 Battery
2. Addpower X4 Batteries
3. JHTC 360 X4 Battery
4. METACUCU 2Pcs Batteries
5. REYTRIC 2-Pack X4 Batteries for Insta360 X4
6. Aovee 360 X4 Battery with Fast Battery Charger Hub
7. YONHUIZI Battery
8. Rszfnjxry Fast Charge Hub with Batteries
9. COOLSHOW X4 Battery

How did I test?

Using the settings I’d most likely be using for sailing – 8k 30fps. I set the camera up in my living room and while it’s not recommended to run the camera at that resolution indoors, I used a small fan to mimic the airflow the camera would get outdoors and keep it from overheating. I used the same two 2-battery chargers to charge all of the batteries.

One other note about aftermarket batteries – Insta360 has introduced a nag screen about a battery anomaly the first time the camera is started after inserting an aftermarket battery. I’ve always been able to dismiss this and use the camera normally with the aftermarket battery.

To see my videos created with the Insta360 Ace Pro – check out No Quarter Sailing on YouTube.

If you are interested in the battery life of the Insta360 Ace Pro – check out a similar test I did for that camera.

Disclaimers: I purchased the camera and some of the batteries myself. Other batteries were received through the Amazon Vine Voices Program. As an affiliate in Amazon’s program I may receive a commission for product links.