360 rumors

The state of VR right now is better than what skeptics would like you to believe.  More importantly, things will get even better from here. All the major VR systems have been released: Oculus Rift  (with  Oculus Touch ), HTC Vive , and Playstation VR for the desktop, and Samsung Gear VR and Google Daydream for mobile.  Yet VR is still relatively uncommon, there are still no killer apps, and more importantly, it appears that very few companies are making a lot of money from it.  There are some skeptics who are therefore declaring that VR is a bubble that has burst.  Here's why I'm still optimistic about VR. IS VR A BUBBLE? First, let's talk about some of the reasons that have been used to claim that VR is a bubble that has burst. 1.   VR is still uncommon .  Almost everyone has heard of VR, but there are still very few people who actually have a VR headset outside of the early adopter crowd.  Very few people I know have even a Google Cardbo...

After two months of silence, the Nico360 team issued an update regarding its crowdfunded camera. Nico360 is a crowdfunded camera that is supposed to have many cutting-edge features such as raw support, in an affordable and compact 360 camera. Nico360 was successfully funded in August, raising almost six times its crowdfunding goal.  It was originally promised for delivery in October, which was an unrealistic deadline.  Since then, it has been delayed a few times.  Many Nico360 backers were dismayed by the lack of updates.  Nico360's CEO Jerry Zhao apologized and promised more frequent updates going forward. Here is a summary of the most recent update: - Memory will now use a removable Micro SD card.  It will include a 32GB card. - Shipping of the first batch is scheduled for March 2017.  (In my opinion, this is still too optimistic.) - To make the camera more waterproof, they are increasing the thickness of the case. - The battery capacity increased from...

For experienced photographers and videographers, 360 cameras are perplexing and challenging to work with.  Paradoxically, however, 360 cameras are the perfect cameras for everyone else.  Here are 8 reasons why. 1. I was there For many people, the reason they want to take a photo is to have something to remember a special time or place.  Sure, there 's a postcard or other photo of the place somewhere on the Internet, but taking the photo yourself or having yourself in the photo is a reminder that indeed, "I was there."   In this regard, a 360 camera is arguably the best tool for preserving the memory of a time or place, capturing everyone and everything around it. 2.  Ultimate selfie With a 360 camera, selfies are effortless.  You can easily include yourself in the photo without struggling to frame the shot. 3.  Group photo With a regular camera or a smartphone, taking a group shot usually requires everyone in the group to move closer to pose.  A 3...

If you are using the Ricoh Theta desktop app, please do not update your Adobe AIR to version 24.  There is an incompatibility between the Theta app and version 24 of AIR which will prevent you from viewing photos or videos.  Until Ricoh issues a fix for their software, please hold off on updating Adobe AIR to version 24.

If you're going on a vacation, a 360 camera is a must-have for your trip.  But there are now several 360 cameras on the market.  Which one of them would be the best? The best 360 camera depends on your specific needs: If you are just starting out and want the most affordable 360 camera, that would be the LG 360 Cam (originally $199, on sale for $99 ; reviewed here ).  The LG 360 Cam is compatible with both iOS and Android.  Photos are stitched in-camera, while videos are stitched on your smartphone via an app.  It has decent image quality for both photos and videos.  However, in low light, there is a lot of chroma noise.  You also need to keep it charged at night because the battery drains even during standby. If social media is important to you, and you'd like to be able to share photos and videos easily , and even do a livestream in 360 , the best camera at the moment is the  Insta360 Nano ( $199 ; reviewed here ).  The Nano connects to y...

Insta360 has extended the preorder period for the  Insta360 Air , its 360 camera for your Android phone, while production remains on schedule. Insta360 Air is a 360 camera that attaches to your Android phone.  Because of its attractive price and features, it already far exceeded its crowdfunding campaign goal (currently more than 500%).   In response, Insta360 announced that due to the popularity of the Insta360 Air, they would extend the crowdfunding campaign for another 30 days, giving more people the chance to preorder the Insta360 Air at a substantial 17% discount compared to the MSRP ($99 preorder price vs. $119 MSRP). Insta360 assured current backers that production remains on schedule for delivery in March 2017.  Unlike pie-in-the-sky crowdfunding projects, the Air is being made by Insta360, an established company that has already produced and sold the Insta360 4k and Insta360 Nano cameras. Insta360 posted photos of the first batch of Air cameras, and confir...

Insta360 announced that they will reveal the Insta360 Pro, an 8k 360 video camera, on January 5 at CES 2017.  The Insta360 Pro was announced late August at Berlin IFA  as a camera designed to compete with the 8k GoPro Omni.  The Insta360 Pro is supposed to be more affordable than the GoPro Omni, and also have realtime stitching. I will be attending the Insta360 CES 2017 press conference and will be posting the details ASAP.  And FYI, this will not be the only announcement from Insta360 at CES 2017.  Please stay tuned for other exciting news from Insta360 and CES 2017! Thanks again to Pepe Vazquez for bringing this to my attention!

You can now watch live 360 video on Twitter and Periscope. You can see a video of a 360 livestream here . Currently, only select accounts will be able to create a 360 livestream.  Periscope says they will be "rolling out the feature more broadly during the coming weeks." Twitter's announcement comes on the heels of Facebook's announcement of its 360 livestreaming feature called Live 360 .  There are currently a few 360 cameras that have or will have 360 livestreaming capability, including the Insta360 Nano , 360fly 4k , upcoming Insta360 Air and Giroptic iO .  The Ricoh Theta S also has livestreaming, but requires a USB or HDMI connection to a PC. Thank you very much to Mike Cane ( Atomic Supermen blog ) for bringing this to my attention!

(Sphere) is a new toroidal (donut-shaped) lens for interchangeable lens cameras, and it has an almost fully spherical field of view. 360 lenses for interchangeable lens cameras have typically been catadioptric designs with a large blind spot. (Sphere) is a lens with a new design that has an almost spherical field of view, making it unnecessary to stitch photos or videos.  (Sphere) also enables photographers and videographers to use larger sensors of full frame cameras, for higher image quality compared to consumer 360 cameras with small sensors. Here is a sample video from the (Sphere) lens on a Panasonic GH4: Sphere Optics claims that (Sphere) is fully spherical although to me it looks more like 360 x 300 degrees.  Here is a screen capture of the nadir (note: this is not the maximum resolution). The aperture is fixed at f/8, and focus is also fixed, with a focal distance of around 40 inches.  The lens is 7.8 inches long and weighs around 4 lbs. (19.8 cm ,1...

360 PhotoBall is an Android app that enables you to print 360 photos on paper which you can then assemble into a ball. 360 PhotoBall is available on the Google Play store for $0.99 . Thank you very much to Pepe Vazquez for bringing this to my attention! For a high quality print of your 360 photo, printed seamlessly in full color on a sphere (both on the inside and on the outside), check out Scandy !

360 videos need to be stabilized to avoid making viewers dizzy (especially if viewed in a headset).  However, not all 360 cameras include image stabilization, and the ones that do don't always have effective stabilization.  Fortunately, it's easy to add image stabilization to your 360 videos simply by uploading them to Facebook. Facebook will automatically attempt to stabilize a 360 video when you upload it.  That's part of the reason it takes a while before the 360 video shows up on your post. To test this capability, I took a test video using an Insta360 Nano and Freeline Skates. In the first part of the video, I skated on concrete.  In the second part of the video, I was skating on asphalt. This was a very difficult video test for several reasons: first, the asphalt was little bumpy.  Second, I was turning a lot, not just going straight.  Third, I was holding the camera at various positions and sometimes inverted (to get closer to the skates).  Four...

Vroomcam is a motorized dolly for 360 cameras with stabilization, and can operate autonomously or via remote control. One of the challenges of 360 videos is that they have to remain level and stable to avoid inducing nausea for viewers.  At the same time, 360 cameras can see everywhere around them, therefore traditional stabilization solutions such as a skilled Steadicam operator will be seen on a 360 camera, possibly detracting from the video. Vroomcam is a motorized dolly that addresses both issues.  It has stabilization to keep the camera level, and it can be operated with remote control or autonomously set to follow a subject, thus allowing the camera to move without a visible operator.  Vroomcam can operate on the ground or on an aerial cable. Here is a video demonstrating Vroomcam: Vroomcam costs $20,000 and is available for lease.   Here is the official website . RELATED POSTS: Vantrix partners with Spydercam and Eye-Live

​Finch Shift is a new motion controller designed for your smartphone which is designed to enable your VR-ready smartphone to play apps for the HTC Vive and Oculus Rift . Finch Shift uses a pair of motion controllers and a pair of arm bands.  Each controller and arm band has modified inertial measurement units.  By combining the data from the arm bands and controllers, the software is able to determine the location of the motion controllers without using external cameras or sensors. ​ Here's a video of the Shift being used: Finch claims the Shift can be used with: - smartphone games adapted for the Finch Shift - games designed for HTC Vive and Oculus Rift - non-VR games where you use the Shift as a joystick. ​ I'm not sure how the Shift can enable smartphones to play HTC Vive or Oculus Rift games because of the processing power required, and because smartphones currently don't have positional tracking.  In any case, Finch Shift will be at CES 2017 and I will vis...

I found an LED light that can work for almost any 360 camera! It's an LED light with two arms, which can be made to face almost any direction. The LED light has a clamp that is not wide enough for 360 cameras, but it can clamp on selfie sticks and lightstands which are often used with 360 cameras.  What makes this light useful for 360 cameras is that the light can be used to face in any direction, or to illuminate two directions at the same time. I tried it with a variety of selfie sticks, monopods, and light stands, and it was able to attach to all of them. It has a little bracket inside that I found useful for stabilizing its grip by resting it against the tripod attachment of a light stand. Here are some sample 360 shots (with a Ricoh Theta) using the LED light. Here is a shot where the light is illuminating both the front and the back at the same time. Each LED has two power settings.  Even on the highest setting and with both lamps facing the same direction, the light is ...

Holo Impact: Prologue There are literally hundreds of VR games available on the Steam store for HTC Vive and Oculus Rift.  While many (or even a majority) are not worth playing, there are some excellent games that have escaped the notice of users.  In this series of posts, I'd like to highlight some very good games I've tried that are not very well known (yet). Holo Impact: Prologue (HTC Vive; Oculus Touch).  This is a super awesome shooter (pictured above).  In concept it's somewhat similar to Xortex from the Lab, where you control a space fighter with your motion controller.  But in Holo Impact, you are flying forward.  Yes there are a few games in this genre, but Holo Impact blows them all out of the water.  Besides the spectacular graphics, the gameplay is also fun, and it's a little challenging but not overwhelming (at least in Normal difficulty)! If you like shooters, this is a must-buy for the HTC Vive or Oculus Touch (yes, Holo Impact is ...

Happy Holidays! FYI, I will be on vacation from Thursday (12/29) to Monday (1/2) and I won't have access to the Internet.  I will schedule some posts on those days but I won't be able to respond to messages. Next, I will be in Las Vegas for CES on January 4 and January 5, where I will be posting about the latest news on 360 cameras and VR.  On those days, I might not be able to respond to messages right away either. BTW if you will be at CES and would like to say hello, I will be at the Insta360 booth (LVCC, South Hall 2, #26608) at 3pm on Jan. 5. P.S.  If you're wondering how I took the shot above, here's the accessory I used !

Did you find an Oculus Rift under your Christmas tree?  Here are the best free games to demo your new Oculus Rift ! GAMES Here are some of the best games to demo the Oculus Rift: 1.  Lucky's Tale .  This is a third-person platforming adventure, similar to Super Mario, where a fox is trying to rescue his friend.  In VR, this game looks like a miniature world with characters that have come to life in front of you. 2.  Farlands .  In this game, you are a scientist exploring an alien world.  Your task is to gather information about the creatures in the planet and perhaps even befriend them.  Farlands is a highly immersive experience and it feels like visiting another planet. 3.  Herobound: Spirit Champion .  This is a third-person action adventure where your character is on a quest to rescue elemental spirit to defeat the element of fire which has imprisoned the other elements.  The game is as much about action as solving challenging p...