A person holds the Insta360 Retro Viewfinder with a Go 3S action camera inserted. — There’s certainly some retro appeal to Insta360’s new action camera accessory.

The pill-shaped Insta360 Go 3S 4K action camera launched in June 2024 as an updated version of the 2.7K Go 3 that debuted a year prior. While last year’s Go Ultra introduced a redesign with a larger sensor and higher frame rates, the Go 3S has stuck around as a smaller but still very capable alternative. To broaden its appeal, the action cam is now available with a new optical viewfinder accessory for framing shots when using it as a handheld camera, but you may be better off splurging on Insta360’s more expensive dock that adds an LCD screen.

The Retro Viewfinder accessory is available today through Insta360’s online store on its own for $47.99, or as part of a new Go 3S Retro Bundle starting at $299.99 that includes the 64GB version of the action cam. That’s cheaper than the $349.99 Standard Bundle that pairs the same version of the Go 3S with Insta360’s Action Pod dock.

Insta360 GO 3S Retro Bundle

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As with most tiny action cameras, the Insta360 Go 3S lacks a screen of its own. You can connect it to a smartphone app to see live previews and adjust camera settings, but the Go 3S is designed to be mounted where you wouldn’t be able to see a screen (like atop a helmet) where it captures nearly all the action in front of you using a wide-angle lens.

The new Retro Viewfinder is an attempt to repurpose the action cam as a handheld shooter that lets you frame subjects like a classic camera. It works similar to the Insta360’s Action Pod where the Go 3S slots into the front of the accessory. There’s no spring-loaded latches to keep it securely attached, but a strong magnet kept the camera in place during a vigorous shake test.

Instead of holding the accessory up to your eye to frame shots, you hold it at chest level and look down into the viewfinder. The front panel of the Go 3S functions as your shutter button, snapping photos with a single press and starting and stopping video recording with a double press. It was designed this way to create a “vintage shooting experience inspired by classic film cameras,” according to Insta360. And while framing and snapping photos this way does have some novelty (at one point I felt a little like Ansel Adams as I framed a row of community mailboxes instead of mountains), Insta360’s execution comes with some frustrations.

Looking down into the Insta360 Retro Viewfinder’s viewfinder.

The viewing angle is extremely limited, and tilting the Retro Viewfinder just 15 to 20 degrees front, back, or side to side results in you seeing nothing at all. The image in the viewfinder is also flipped horizontally. Even after a week of practice, I struggled to intuitively know how to move or adjust the angle of the camera to position a subject exactly where I want them in frame, or to just ensure a shot is level. The process still feels like trial-and-error.

The Go 3S is an excellent camera, but its wide field of view doesn’t help the Retro Viewfinder. As a result, the accessory doesn’t provide an accurate preview of the photos and videos you’re capturing. Walking around my neighborhood one evening, I tried to snap photos that focused on tree lines and a beautiful cloudy sky but ended up with images that included random people, houses, and cars that I deliberately tried to keep out of frame. It’s easy to fix with a quick crop in the Insta360 app, but it feels counterintuitive for an accessory designed to make framing more deliberate. There’s still an element of shoot and see what you get.

Framing is more accurate when capturing selfies with the Retro Viewfinder, but still tricky. You can use the front lens as a selfie mirror, but it’s difficult to frame photos because of dark reflections — especially indoors.

Battery life is limited, even with an included clunky clip-on battery pack/charger that more than doubles the Go 3S’ battery life from 310mAH to over 700mAh. I was able to grab about 150 photos during an hour walk before the camera completely died. Capturing 4K video will drain it even faster, as does connecting it to the Insta360 mobile app.

Changing any settings, including selecting film-emulating filters or different color profiles, requires a direct Wi-Fi connection to your smartphone. The Retro Viewfinder includes a hidden NFC tag that streamlines launching and connecting to the app with a tap (the process still takes about 15 to 20 seconds to fully connect), but it’s still far less convenient than pairing the action camera with Insta360’s Action Pod whose touchscreen provides on-device access to most settings.

The Insta360 Go 3S in the Retro Viewfinder next to the same camera in the Action Pod accessory.

Turning the Insta360 Go 3S into a pocketable handheld camera is a clever idea given how popular tiny retro cameras like Kodak’s Charmera still are. But the execution here isn’t ideal. The Retro Viewfinder succeeds in making the Go 3S easier to hold, but its other functionality is often frustrating. On its own, the accessory is cheap enough to consider if you already own the Go 3S, but spending an extra $50 for a bundle with Insta360’s Action Pod will serve you better in the long run no matter how you plan to use the camera.

Photography by Andrew Liszewski / The Verge