After launching it exclusively in China last week, DJI has announced a global release (US not included) for its new Osmo Action 6 action camera. The camera isn’t all that different from the physical design of last year’s model, but DJI is introducing some innovative new functionality. For example, it has an adjustable aperture that uses a mechanical iris (rather than relying on software tricks) and a larger square format sensor that offers more flexibility when cropping footage to different horizontal and vertical aspect ratios.
Like many of DJI’s launches last year, including the recent Neo 2 selfie drone, the company hasn’t confirmed when or if the Osmo Action 6 will be available in the US. Chinese pricing starts at 2,998 yuan or about $422. In Europe it starts at €379, in the UK it’s £329, and in Japan it’s ¥61,270, or about $396.
Last year’s Osmo Action 5 Pro, like the action cameras of DJI’s competitors like the GoPro Hero 13 Black, used a fixed aperture at f/2.8. The aperture of the new Osmo Action 6 can be opened up to f/2.0 to let in twice as much light and improve the camera’s ability to capture high-quality video in low-light conditions. The aperture size can also be limited to f/4.0 to reduce the amount of light coming into the camera. This increases depth of field and brings objects in the frame more into focus, and also eliminates the need to use a darkening neutral density filter when conditions are too bright.
The Osmo Action 6 uses a new 1/1.1-inch CMOS sensor that’s larger than the 1/1.3-inch sensor found in the Action 5 Pro, but its square shape is similar to the square sensor that Apple now uses in the front-facing selfie camera on the iPhone 17 lineup, which lets the iPhone capture landscape photos and videos without having to rotate the phone. The Osmo Action 6 offers similar shooting flexibility, but the advantages of that square sensor come in especially handy during postproduction, making it easier to crop and retouch video in a variety of aspect ratios, including vertical formats for smartphones and social media, while the action still remains in frame.
The camera can capture video at up to 4K/120fps in a 4:3 aspect ratio, but its slow motion capabilities improve to 240fps with lower resolutions up to 1080P, and can be increased to 960fps using interpolation to generate extra frames in between. Internal storage is scaled down to 50GB which can be expanded using a microSD card up to 1TB capacity.
DJI claims the Action 6 can record up to four hours continuously using its 1,950mAh battery, but keep in mind that the company’s testing is conducted under ideal conditions, with video only captured at 1080P/24fps. Battery life will be reduced when capturing at 4K and higher frame rates, or using it in temperatures well below zero. DJI says the camera can function properly even in temperatures as cold as -4 degrees Fahrenheit, and it remains waterproof to depths of more than 65 feet.