By contributing editor Chuck Fadely
VSN Mobil was showing off their new V.360 camera, which is already shipping. It’s a single-lens, $449 USD 360-degree water and shock-proof camera that can both record and send out a live stream.
Virtual reality is hot right now. When you play the output from this camera on your smartphone inserted into virtual reality goggles, as you turn your head, you see in different directions. It’s an amazing experience.
It uses a mirror to see in a 360-degree circular arc – but doesn’t capture the view up and down. It will do stills including time lapse, and also works as a nanny cam. It produces a 6480X1080 video up to 30 frames a second.
It can stream over wifi and it also has bluetooth for smartphone control. It records on micro SD cards. It has a tripod socket and a GoPro mount adapter.
Because it uses a single imager, it outputs a single file, no stitching needed. Competing products, like the Ricoh Theta, have multiple lenses, which gives the advantage of recording spherical views, including up and down. It’s a tradeoff.
Here’s an example of footage: (look around in video using mouse or cursor keys)
