Garmin VIRB X and VIRB XE Now Official

Garmin has been trying to take a sizeable slice out of action camera pie, but has so far been unsuccessful with their previous attempts, with the most recent one being the Garmin VIRB Elite which we featured here in the past. The company is at it again, this time they unveiled two action cams – the Garmin VIRB X and the Garmin VIRB XE – which we think has a better chance of going toe-to-toe with GoPro’s offerings.

Gone are the odd-shaped form factor that we saw on the VIRB Elite, and instead Garmin went for a more conventional design on their cameras. Furthermore, they’ve thrown in a rugged armor for the cameras which will allow them to survive being submerged down to 50m deep without the need for an external housing.

If the VIRB X and VIRB XE look identical to each other, it’s because they are. Both cameras can shoot 12-megapixel stills, but they differ in the video recording abilities. The former tops out at 1080p @ 30fps or 720/60fps while the VIRB XE can record 1440p clips at 30 frames-per-second or 1080p videos at 60fps.

The VIRB XE also offers in-camera adjustments found under the “Pro Mode”. This allows users to take control of some of the aspects of their recordings like the ISO, White Balance and Exposure.

Shooting capabilities aside, both the newly-announced Garmin action cameras are equipped with Bluetooth and Wi-Fi module which allow them to play nicely with other wireless devices, as well as the Garmin Fenix 2 which can be used to track your heart rate while you’re recording your death-defying stunt.

Lastly, both the VIRB X and VIRB XE are equipped with Accelerometer, Gyroscope and GPS – all of which can be used to add more information about your experience on top of the actual video. The Garmin VIRB X and VIRB XE are slated to make its market debut this summer and will retailed for USD299 and USD399 respectively.

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[Garmin]