360 rumors

Kodak PIXPRO posted a new video highlighting the features of its highly-anticipated Orbit360 camera (also called the 4KVR360). Here is the video! If I recall correctly, this is the same video that they showed at their booth at VRLA. As with the new Orbit360 mini-site , the video places heavy emphasis on the Orbit360's asymmetric lenses, which enable it to function in three different ways: as an ultrawide fisheye, as a hemispherical camera, or as a fully spherical camera. The video also showed a screenshot of the stitching app, which looks like it has the same interface as the current stitching app for the SP360 4K Dual Pro, but with a different name (PIXPRO VR Utility) implying that it is a separate program. One new feature is a "Wi-Fi Control" tab, which is not in the SP360 4K's app.  This seems to imply that there will be a tethered mode, and I *speculate* that it might even be usable for some type of live streaming. As with the current SP360 4K app, the software ha...

I compared four #360consumer cameras with the best low light performance - 2017 Samsung Gear 360 (available here) - Xiaomi Mijia Mi Sphere 360 camera (available here) - Kodak SP360 4K Dual Pro (available here) - Nikon Keymission 360 (available here) . Which camera came out on top?  See the videos for yourself! I wanted to know which 360 camera performs best under indoor lighting (on a late afternoon).  I compared four 4K cameras: -  2017 Samsung Gear 360 (available here) . Currently one of the hottest new 360 cameras.  Ben Claremont found that it beat last year's Gear 360 in low light performance.  How would it fare against other competitors? -  Nikon Keymission 360 (available here) .  In my experience, the Nikon Keymission has pretty good low light quality and that's why I included it here. -  Xiaomi Mijia Mi Sphere 360 camera (available here) .  It's a 360 camera from Xiaomi, co-creators of the Xiaomi Yi action camera.  Not a lot of...

The app for controlling the Kodak Orbit360 has been uploaded, both for iOS and Android. Kodak PIXPRO's highly anticipated Orbit360 (also called 4KVR360) hasn't been released yet but Kodak has already released the phone app for both iOS and Android.  It's called PIXPRO 360 VR Remote Viewer.   Here it is on Android and here is the link for iOS . The app description says, You can connect to KODAK PIXPRO ORBIT360 4K (or KODAK PIXPRO 4KVR360) via this APP, realizing the functions of shooting, recording, changing the shooting parameters, playback and editing the moving images easily.  For iOS, the minimum requirement appears to be an iPhone 5S.  The Google Play Store doesn't specify what the requirements are for Android. A screenshot from the app seems to show that it has a self-timer feature (finally!), a function which had been missing from the Kodak SP360 4K Dual Pro. Another screen shot shows that the app has a simple video editor that will enable you to trim videos (...

How does the 2017 Samsung Gear 360 compare against last year's video quality champ?  Check out these comparison videos. Last year, I found that the Kodak SP360 4k Dual Pro had the best video quality among consumer 360 cameras.  I thought it would be interesting to compare the 2017 Gear 360 against the SP360 4K Dual Pro.  Here's a playlist with a sample from the SP360 4K Dual Pro and another sample from 2017 Gear 360. Here are screenshots (the bluish one is the SP360 4K). For near objects, the SP360 4K Dual Pro was sharper and more detailed. SP360 4K Dual Pro 2017 Gear 360 For distant objects, the SP360 was also more detailed.  In the SP360 sample below, you can see the texture of the far wall. On the 2017 Gear 360, the texture on the wall is not visible. On the other hand, the stitching on the Gear 360 is far superior: SP360 4K Dual Pro stitching 2017 Gear 360 stitching In summary, the Kodak SP360 4k Dual Pro appears to be sharper and more detailed than the 2017 Gear...

I saw several 360 cameras for consumers at CES 2017, but the one that I am most excited about is the Kodak Orbit360 4k .  Here's why. In 2016, there were several 360 cameras, but all of them had one or more significant issues.  For example the Ricoh Theta S has great photos, but its video resolution is too low.  The Samsung Gear 360 has great photos and good videos, but is compatible only with high end Samsung phones, and needs an S7 or a desktop to get the full video quality.  The Nikon Keymission 360 is actionproof and stitches videos in-camera, but it's soft at edges, and has connectivity issues.  Kodak PIXPRO's own SP360 4k Dual Pro stands out for its video quality but it too has many usability issues. The new Orbit360 4k (formerly called the 4KVR360 -- thank goodness for the name change!) is a new intermediate-level 360 camera that seems to check all the boxes. The Orbit360 4k has an unusual design.  It uses the same lens as the SP360 4k with a 235...

One of the 360 cameras I was most excited about at CES 2017 was the Orbit360 4k , Kodak PIXPRO's successor to the SP360 4k Dual Pro .  Here's a video showing the realtime stitching quality: Here is a larger version of the video . In the video above, I was about 3 to 4 feet away from the camera, which was raised around 8 feet above.  Overall, I thought the stitching was quite good.  Obviously at very close distances, the stitching looks harsh but you can't expect Kodak to suspend the laws of physics.  At farther distances, the stitching looks seamless.  At around 3 to 4 feet, the stitching still looks decent.  You have to be pretty much exactly halfway between the lenses before there is noticeable stitching error. exactly half way between the lenses (Reminder: please note that these are photos of a TV showing a livestream -- it is definitely nowhere as good as the actual image quality of the camera.) Note also that this stitching was in realtime, using a tem...

The Kodak Orbit360 4k ( formerly called the 4kVR360 ) is now available for pre-order, and you can get a promo code! UPDATE :  Kodak now stopped taking actual orders, and instead will just take preorders .   If you sign up on their page , they will email you a promo code that will give you a discount. Sorry for not being able to post this morning - I've been crazy busy with all the interesting things I've seen at CES... but this couldn't wait! I've seen the Orbit360 4k and they have a demo unit livestreaming at the Kodak booth.  And it looks pretty darn good! Here are the key specs: dual 20mp sensors one 235-degree lens, and one 155-degree lens f/2.4 aperture on both lenses photo resolution: 7360x3680 with RAW format video resolution: 3840x1920 @ 24fps (desktop stitching) or @15fps (in-camera stitching). As you know, the  SP360 4k has the best video quality among all the cameras I've tested  and one of the Orbit360's lenses is the same as the one in the...

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...