360 rumors

Z Cam is the latest company to join Google's recently announced VR180 program .  Z Cam also showed their VR180 camera called 3D180. Z Cam Founder and Chairman Jason Zhang had this to say: "Z CAM is very well positioned in the VR180 camera market. Our solution's precise synchronization coupled with excellent calibration of the footage delivers amazing immersive experience to viewers. I am very excited that the VR180 era has finally come and we are very committed to entering this market." Z Cam CEO Kinson Loo added, "We are glad to be part of the program and expand our cooperation with Google. VR180 will open up a lot of interesting content opportunities and Z CAM's excellent image quality and ease of use will accelerate market growth. Seeing is believing!" No other details were available such as price or specifications.

Personal View interviewed camera rental company Radiant Images about the Z Cam S1 Pro, a high quality professional 360 camera that uses four Micro Four Thirds sensors paired with iZugar lenses.  Here is the video: The original Z Cam S1 (not shown here) is $2,500 while Z Cam S1 Pro is $8,880.  Neither camera includes the cost of the WonderStitch stitching software ($1,500), or the WonderLive live streaming software which is a separate cost (note that the license is for one camera only and is not transferable ).  Alternatively, the S1 and S1 Pro can be stitched with third party software. Both cameras have 6K resolution but the S1 Pro's larger sensor means that it has higher image quality than the Z Cam S1.

Z Cam's Kinson Loo showed comparison videos between the Z Cam S1 and the Z Cam S1 Pro! The Z Cam S1 is a professional 360 camera with 6K resolution with amazing image quality.   I've posted several impressive examples . Z Cam followed up with the new S1 Pro, which has a similar body but instead uses larger Micro Four Thirds lenses paired with iZugar lenses.  It hasn't been launched officially yet, but I recently posted an S1 Pro sample here . To show the difference in image quality between the two cameras, Z Cam's Kinson Loo posted 360 videos from the two cameras at the same location, in similar lighting conditions. Here is the sample from the S1: Here is the sample from the S1 Pro: What do you think?  Let me know in the comments below!   The Z Cam S1 is $2,499 and the optional WonderStich software is $1,499 .  I don't know yet the S1 Pro's price or availability.

Here are unconfirmed details about the Z Cam V1 Pro, Z Cam's flagship 360 video camera with nine Micro Four Thirds sensors. This information reportedly comes indirectly from the company director, although I can't confirm it. Here are the the reported key specifications of the Z CAM V1 Pro - Cinematic VR Camera Number of Cameras  :   8+1 (coordinated AE & AWB) Lens Specs   :   Premium 190 degree MFT fish eye, f/2.8~11 Image Sensor & ISP   :   4/3” Sony CMOS image sensor Video Format   :   MOV Stitched Output Resolution  :   8K x 4K mono, 7K x 7K stereo ISO : 100~3200, extended to 6400/12800 Frame Rate Supported :  Mono 8K 30fps or 4K 60fps, Stereo 7K 30fps or 4K 60fps Output compression  :   H.264 and H.265 up to 100 Mbps Camera IO  :   Ethernet port (video streaming & control), USB (external audio) Audio/Microphone Specs : 4 X Built in microphone MEMS Storage  :  9 x SD card slots, up to 128...

Z Cam, makers of the remarkable Z Cam S1 and the upcoming Z Cam S1 Pro , are working on a 3D 360 camera.  Here's a sample video in 4k: Z Cam hasn't shown the design of the camera but the footage appears stereoscopic in four directions, so I believe it has at least 8 lenses (at least 2 for each of the cardinal directions). The video was captured in low light but the camera shows very good level of detail.