360 rumors

720VV's O3 is a 360 camera with near-4k resolution and livestreaming. Here are the key specifications: - three lenses - 1/2.3 inch sensors - video resolution:  3500 x 1750 @ 25 fps - livestream or realtime stitching resolution: 2560 x 1280 @ 25 fps - mic jack input - AC adapter available - 3 hours battery life - 380g The manufacturer posted this computer generated picture to illustrate its size: There are sample videos here .  The field of view is not exactly fully spherical because of the large nadir.  I  estimate  around 330 degrees FOV.  The stitching looks very good, although the dynamic range looks quite limited. It appears that the O3 will retail for 7,000 yuan (around US$1,015).  The O3 is being offered on a Chinese crowdfunding site, for 5,000 yuan (around US$725) with an early bird price of 4,000 yuan (around US$580) .   Update :  the price in the US will be $699 .  According to 720VV's representative, they will be shi...

Detu, makers of the F4 camera and the  Sphere 800 hemispherical 360 camera , launched the Detu Twin at CES 2017.  They also hinted at two new 360 cameras. DETU TWIN Final versions of the Detu Twin were available to demo at CES.  The final version looks a little wider than the prototype version I posted about way back in May .   Here it is next to the Theta (any resemblance is coincidental, I'm sure). Here are the final specs: - two 200-degree lenses, fully spherical field of view. - two 4mp "low-illuminated" (BSI?) sensors - f/2 aperture - photo resolution: 8mp - video resolution: 3k @ 30fps (3040 x 1520) - live preview - 360 livestreaming up to 3k resolution - uses removable Micro SD card - 120mm x 46mm x 24mm, 82 grams. Photos are stitched "instantly."  I believe videos are as well, but I haven't confirmed this. Although I was able to use the camera to take photos and videos, I could not actually see the photos and videos themselves.  However, there ...

There's a new low-cost spherical camera on the market called "360 Pro". Here are the key specs: - two 1/4-inch sensors - two 220-degree lenses - f/2 aperture - video resolution: 1280 x 1024 @ 24fps It's good that it's spherical and the distance between the lenses is very small, but I really don't understand its resolution.  Equirectangular videos need to have a 2:1 ratio such as 1920 x 960.  This one has an unusual 5:4 ratio.  I'm not sure how you can view that.  The sensor is also tiny, which likely means that images will be noisy. For the adventurous among you, it's available on eBay from several vendors for as low as $99 : However, if you are merely looking for a low-cost camera, I would instead steer you away from this toward either the LG 360 Cam , the Insta360 Nano , the upcoming Insta360 Air , or even the Elecam 360 .

UCVR Eye is a unique camera that can take 180-degree* 3D panoramic photos and can also be folded in half to take "360-degree" panoramas. The manufacturer claims that the field of view is 120 x 180 per lens, but it seems that it wouldn't be able to take a hemispherical 3D photo - more like 120 degrees.  Thanks to Thomas Popovich for this correction. Claimed specs: Field of view of each lens: 120 degrees Field of view when folded: "360 degrees"  (*panoramic; not fully spherical) Photo resolution: 16mp Video resolution: 4k @ 15fps or 1080p @ 30 fps. uses Micro SD cards up to 32GB A seller explained to me that it can be folded in half, not just at a 90 degree angle.  This seems to be supported by the drawing below. However, because the field of view of each lens is only 120 degrees, I'm confused about how the image would look if it were indeed folded this way.  It would seem to be as though there would be a super wide stitch line in a fully spherical 360 photo...

Teche TE720 (previously called the Teche T2 ) and TE720 Pro are almost spherical 360-degree cameras with high resolution photos.  We now have some additional info, including some sample photos. First of all, Teche has two models - the TE720 and TE720 Pro.  The entry-level model, the TE720, has 96 total megapixels (16 megapixels x 6 sensors) and is $2499. The TE720 Pro has 72 total megapixels (12 megapixels x 6 sensors), is a little more compact, and is made for "harsh environments."   The price is not stated on the website. Both have have five coplanar lenses and one lens for the zenith (there's a blind spot at the nadir).  Both cameras use lenses with a bright f/2.8 aperture. Here is a sample from the TE720:  http://cp.te720.com/Model/start.html Here is a sample from the TE720 Pro:  http://cp.te720.com/qjfc/Start.html For more information,  here is the official website for the Teche TE720 and TE720 Pro. Thank you very much to Peter Murphy for findin...

Teche T2 is a high-resolution 360-degree camera with a claimed 96-megapixel resolution, which appears to based on the fact that it has six sensors, each 16mp and 1/2.3-inch in size.  The Teche is also claimed to have 6k video resolution, although the frame rate is not disclosed. From the lens configuration, the Teche appears to produce cylindrical panoramas instead of spherical panoramas. The price is 15,800 yuan which is around $2,364 at current exchange rates. Here is the official site .  Thank you very much again to reader Andre Pariente for finding this info!

Chinese companies have been following the VR trend and producing 360-degree cameras of their own.  One of the new VR/360 products from China is the Eyesir, a camera that is claimed to have 4k live streaming capability: Eyesir is a fully spherical 360 camera with 4k 30fps video, with 4k live streaming capabilities.  The Eyesir stitches in realtime, unlike some cameras such as the Samsung Gear 360, which must be stitched during postprocessing. It has a claimed 180 minutes battery duration, although it is not clear whether overheating would limit the recording time. Its manufacturer Perfant claims that the Eyesir can do 4k VR live streaming "without connection to PC." Here is a link to the official page. A huge thanks to reader Andre Pariente for spotting this and bringing it to my attention!