The five best 4K 360 cameras around and why VR video may have just got its ‘killer app’
The launch of GoPro’s new Fusion 360-degree camera and its over-capture feature could give VR video the boost it needs to go mainstream. We take a closer look at the tech and the best 4K models on the market
Just as the Apple iPod did for MP3s back in 2001, sometimes it takes a big brand to popularise an existing format. Has GoPro just done that for 360-degree cameras with its latest release, the Fusion?
Immersive technology is becoming more prevalent across digital platforms and spherical 360-degree cameras have been around for a few years. The way they work – two wide-angle “fisheye” lenses set back-to-back – leaves nothing out of the frame, not even the person holding the camera. That has left photographers and videographers grappling for a “killer app” that makes use of the wraparound perspective without confusing the viewer.
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So far the cameras have been a tough sell. But via some clever software, GoPro’s 360-degree action cam could bring this emerging virtual reality (VR) creation format into sharper focus.
The Fusion, unveiled recently alongside GoPro’s flagship Hero6 action cam, is not fully committed to 360-degree capture, but that could be its masterstroke.
It can capture 360-degree video in 5.2K resolution video at 30 frames per second (fps), or in 3K at 60fps. It is waterproof to five metres and has on-board sensors for GPS, compass, accelerometer, gyroscope, Wi-fi, Bluetooth and even 3D audio.
But what the Fusion can also do is something that might revolutionise how all video is shot: over-capture. This mode lets users capture everything in sight, then later manually select an area of the footage, choose the best perspectives, and export it as an ordinary, non-360-degree, 1080p video. Over-capture gets around the main problem of 360-degree footage of the viewer not knowing where to look.