A new generation of researchers now implements new tools into their established research designs, which is both an opportunity for new ways of data finding and a challenge. Many of the new tools and equipment have not been used before, making it difficult to set up a research design with them; moreover, they may pose new, often ethical, implications. Being educated and trained in the disciplines of architecture and urban design, as well as area studies, anthropology, and sociology, the authors’ research focus lies in analysing the complexity of East Asian urban agglomerations (in China and Japan). It is argued that in order to be better equipped to conduct research on the increasing complexity of rapidly growing global cities, it is not only necessary to find new ways of inter-, multi-, and cross-disciplinary research collaborations, but also to incorporate new technological devices that enable researchers to capture the various aspects and facets of today’s cities. The goal is to analyse the use of the action camera from the perspective of two fields – architecture and ethnography – and discuss in what ways that tool reinvents earlier forms of visual data gathering while keeping in mind the new issues that video data gathered by the action camera raises. At a time when researchers have to modernize their toolbox, evaluations for new and creative tools are a necessity to broaden the perspective of urban studies and academic approaches generally. This account of the action camera looked at from multiple disciplines will be a valuable addition in the struggle to reinvent visual data gathering in the digital age for all fields. Broadening the horizon of research methods used in urban studies provides the opportunity to acquire different sets of data as well as new insights, provided the data is properly read and viewed in its appropriate context. Only then is it able to open up new ways of understanding cities. The action camera as a tool to capture information from a complex system, such as the city, is discussed and evaluated critically in this paper in order to create the opportunity for urban researchers and even city builders to add a new facet to existing research approaches.