360 rumors

Here are sample 360 videos from Sonicam, a professional 3D 360 camera that has 360 spatial surround audio. Sonicam is a professional 3D 360 camera with 64 microphones to provide 360 surround audio.  It can record in 4K 360 video, with realtime stitching and live streaming.   I saw their booth at NAB Show and got to see the Sonicam, which was about the size of a grapefruit. You can now see  sample videos from Sonicam , including samples that demonstrate 360 audio. Sonicam is launching its crowdfunding program on Kickstarter tomorrow, where it is expected to be available for $2,000, which is half of its $4,000 MSRP.

MySight360, a 4k lifelogging camera with impressive image stabilization , has been successfully funded, and its crowdfunding campaign is concluding in a couple of days.  Here are some updates since I originally posted about MySight360. First, here is a new video showing that MySight360's image stabilization will always keep the recorded video horizontal, even if the camera itself changes direction. Second, there's a new video showing how the MySight360 is used with its app. Third, MySight360 reached its stretch goal, so they are making a waterproof case available for an additional $50.  The case is expected to be rated to 10 meters. MySight360's campaign ends on January 19.   You can still contribute $189 toward a MySight360 (versus the retail price of $299) .   As with any crowdfunding campaign, pls. be aware it's not the same as preorder - most crowdfunding projects get delayed and some are discontinued.  Fortunately, MySight360 has a working demo and seems t...

TwoEyes VR is now live on Kickstarter .  The good news is that it's really $199 for the Super Early Bird ($219 to $239 for others).  The not-so-good news is that the shipping is $50.   Ouch.  Nonetheless, even with the $50 shipping, it is currently both the most affordable 3D 360 camera and for backers up to $219, the most affordable 4k 360 camera.  The next cheapest 4k 360 camera is the Samsung Gear 360 at $275 ( reviewed here ). The release date is planned for August 2017 .  The caveat is that it's a crowdfunding project which are usually delayed and moreover, it could fail completely and in the worst case scenario means that you might lose the money you paid. Some updates: - I asked TwoEyesTech about the flickering in their sample video and their Director of Business Operations said the flickering is from the artificial lights used in the room and not the optics or sensor of their camera. - TwoEyes uploaded some new photos, including photos that show ...

Mark your calendars: TwoEyesVR (hands-on here) will launch on Kickstarter on January 16 .  I'm still not sure about the exact price.  The reps said would be $399, but the Kickstarter draft preview still seems to show an early bird price of just $199 (???).  Even at $399, it would be the most affordable 3D 360 camera by a significant margin.  If it really is available at $199, it would not only be the cheapest 3D 360 camera but the lowest cost 4k-capable 360 camera.

​ Superbook , a laptop shell for Android phones, has raised over $2 million in its Kickstarter campaign.  There are just 4 days left in the campaign, so it's your last chance to back the Superbook for $99 (+shipping), +$30 if you want to upgrade the screen to 1080p IPS. Superbook is a laptop shell that uses your smartphone for its processing, leveraging the power of modern VR-capable smartphones.  Because the Superbook shell has no processing power or storage of its own, it is much more affordable compared to previous attempts to create a laptop dock for a smartphone.  You also won't have to worry about syncing your data between your devices. Please note that backing a crowdfunding project is NOT a preorder.  There's a chance the product won't live up to the creators' promises or might not even be delivered at all.  On the other hand, there are also crowdfunded projects that were exactly as described.

​ HTC Vive controllers are sometimes waved around a lot, and you might accidentally hit the wall or ceiling with them .  With a replacement cost of $129.99 per controller , you wouldn't want to damage them. UPDATE: Mamut Skull now available for preorder . Mamut Skull is a protective armor for HTC Vive wand controllers.  It clips easily to the wand. It's specially designed to avoid blocking the sensors.  Here's an interactive 3D model that shows that the Skull won't block the wand's sensors.  (The Vive needs to see at least 3 sensors at any given time in order to track the controller properly.) Mamut also has a stronger wrist strap called the Spine, and a microfiber cloth for keeping the controllers clean, called the Cape. Mamut Skull is currently being crowdfunded on Kickstarter  for delivery in December.

The V One is an ultrathin VR headset announced in April.  At that time, I didn't even post about it because when I saw it, I thought it was too thin to be real.  But the guys at Mashable have now tried the V One headset and -- surprise -- it works.  Not only does it work, but the resolution is far higher than the Oculus Rift, HTC Vive, or Samsung Gear VR, according to Mashable.  The headset will be offered on Kickstarter for $559.  Check out the Mashable article for the details !

Many people have both a smartphone and a laptop.  We use smartphones for a lot of things but when it comes to doing work - with lots of typing and editing - a smartphone is hard to use, so we still need to use a laptop.  Nonetheless, people want to have only one device.  In an attempt to fill that need, we've had tablets, phablets, and laptops that convert to tablets.  But none of those are perfect solutions. An innovative solution to this problem is to use the phone as a laptop.  With all your data in one device, you won't have to worry about syncing.  Similar solutions have been attempted in the past using laptops with built-in docks for phones.  However, they were too expensive and they failed commercially. Now the idea is becoming practical again, thanks to the increasing processing power of smartphones.  Motivated by consumers' desire to use their smartphones for ever-expanding applications, smartphone manufacturers have...