360 rumors

Unclip, a free cloud storage service for 360 videos (similar to Google Photos but for videos) is ending its service and is being merged into Samsung's 360 video sharing platform, Samsung VR (formerly called Milk VR). Unclip is a cloud based storage service for 360 videos that allowed you to upload your 360 videos from any of your devices (phone, desktop, etc.).  It was a convenient way to synchronize files and was very useful for conserving space on mobile devices.  Uploaded photos could also be edited.   See here . Unclip announced that its service would be ending on June 30, after which all previously stored videos and data will be deleted.  Instead, you can upload your videos to Samsung VR , Samsung's 360 video sharing platform.

Insta360 updated the Nano app to add several features, including a tiny planet live stream, stickers, and Snapchat support. As reported by my friend Sarah Redohl at ImmersiveShooter , Insta360 updated the app to version 1.10 and added several new features.  I've tried them out and they're pretty cool! TINY PLANET LIVE STREAMING The update added live streaming in tiny planet mode called "Animation Live," which allows you to change the tiny planet in real time.  To my awareness, Insta360 Nano is the first 360 camera to have that feature.  Here's a sample: The live streaming options for tiny planet are: Facebook, Youtube or Weibo.  I didn't see an option for Twitter / Periscope. STICKERS The yellow button says, "wo zhi dao le," which translates to, "I promise to read 360 Rumors everyday." :) The update also added a myriad of stickers.  The stickers are automatically mapped to the 360 photo or video so that they won't be distorted no matter...

With most 360 sharing platforms, you can share only photos or videos.   Visualpathy is one of the few platforms where you can share both photos and videos.  Uploaded photos and videos can be shared via app, URL, or embedded to your webpage. Check it out!

A couple of weeks ago, Twitter and Periscope had their first  360 livestreaming .  Right now, only select accounts are being allowed to livestream, but Twitter and Periscope are gradually rolling out the feature.   HOW TO DO A 360 LIVESTREAM ON TWITTER AND PERISCOPE  First, you need a compatible camera.  The only camera officially supported right now is the Insta360 Nano (reviewed here) , although there will be support for Insta360 Air (hands-on here) and Giroptic iO (hands-on here) as well when they are released.   If you do have a compatible camera, you'll need a Periscope or Twitter account.  (If you already have a Twitter account, that will work as a Periscope account).   You can then get on the Periscope waitlist here .  According to some Insta360 Nano users, the wait time is only about a week! I've requested to be on the waitlist and will let you guys know as soon as I get approval. Update : I got approval, I've tried the live ...

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!

You can now create Facebook albums with more than one 360 photo or video, and they will each be presented in 360. Previously, you could upload 360 photos or videos to Facebook but you had to do it one at a time by posting to your timeline.  If you posted more than one 360 photo in an album, only one of them would be displayed as 360 while the others would be shown as an equirectangular photo. Now, you can upload several 360 photos or videos to an album and they can each be shown in 360.  Simply create an album and add photos or videos to it as you normally would.  If any of them are 360, they should be recognized as such.  This is much more convenient than uploading 360 photos one at a time to your timeline, besides seeming like you are spamming your friends. Facebook has been very proactive in supporting 360 photos and videos.  Recently, they also announced 360 Live , which will enable 360 livestreaming, and which will be rolled out to all Pages and Profiles in...

Facebook announced that it would add 360 livestreaming capability.  This would enable you to broadcast a livestream in 360, giving your friends and followers a view of what it's like to be where you are at the moment.  But which devices are compatible? Facebook will begin its new 360 livestreaming called Live 360 tomorrow with a 360 livestream from National Geographic tomorrow from the Mars Desert Research Station facility in Utah at 12pm PST.  Eventually, the capability will be rolled out to all Pages and Profiles "in 2017." The next question you're wondering is, which cameras would you be able to use?  There are livestreaming cameras such as the Nokia OZO , LivePlanet , or Orah 4i but they are not intended for consumers. For consumer 360 cameras, there are very few with 360 livestreaming capability.  Fortunately, the consumer 360 camera with the best livestreaming capability also happens to be among the most affordable 360 cameras (with or without livest...

Facebook added two powerful new tools for 360 video creators: a Guide to direct the viewer's attention, and a Heatmap to identify the points of greatest interest. Guide Guide allows the video author to add points of interest in the video.  The perspective will automatically pan to these points of interest, although the viewer will still be able to look at another direction if they so choose.  The viewer can also resume the Guide by clicking or tapping on the compass. The Guide is one way of solving the issue of a viewer getting "lost" in the 360 video and missing the important part of the video. Here are the instructions Facebook posted for using the Guide: • When you upload your video to Facebook, check "This video was recorded in 360° format" • Head to the new "360 Controls" tab • Check the box that says "Enable Guide" • Play through your video to identify the points of interest that you don't want your followers to miss • To add a poin...

Just in time for summer, Ricoh added a charming new 3D butterfly effect for Ricoh Theta photos uploaded to Theta360.com !  The effect is 3D, changing based on the viewers chosen viewpoint. Here is a sample by Katsunori Takamatsu: な〜の〜は〜に〜と〜ま〜れ〜♪ #butterfly3d #theta360 - Spherical Image - RICOH THETA To add the effect, simply add the hashtag #butterfly3d in the description when you upload it to theta360.com . Other effects that Ricoh has enabled include fireflies (#firefly3d) , cherry blossom petals (#sakura3d) , and rain (#rain3d) .

Facebook recently began supporting 360-degree photos. However, the upload process was rather quirky and required dragging and dropping on the desktop . Fortunately, with the Facebook update on July 7, you can now upload 360-degree photos via the mobile app. Just create a new post and tap on the photo icon, and choose a 360-degree photo. When you upload the photo, it will automatically be recognized as a 360-degree photo. I've tested it successfully on Facebook for iOS (version 59.0) with the iPhone 6, and Facebook for Android (version 84.0.0.20.70) with a Samsung S6 running on Android 6.0.1.