Even without a specific launch date for Samsung’s Gear 360, the price has already been established. This virtual reality camera will have a launch price of $349, a whopping $150 higher than the 360-degree camera offered by LG. However, considering the incredible functionality of this innovative camera, few doubt the price will stop people from buying.
Gear 360 is a twin-lens ball shaped camera designed to capture spherical 30-mexapixel photos. This virtual reality camera can also capture video but with limitation to 3,840 x 1,920 pixels. Even so, when compared to other virtual reality cameras set to launch this year, Samsung’s Gear 360 is getting a tremendous amount of positive attention.
As part of the design for Gear 360 are f/2.0 fisheye lenses capable of covering a 195-degree angle of view. When used in conjunction with the Galaxy S7, as well as other higher end Galaxy smartphones, a full 360 x 180-degree is created. With this, an individual can explore using the fingertips on a touchscreen, the cursor on a computer, or with a virtual reality headset.
Currently, Samsung’s Gear 360 is scheduled to be released sometime during the second quarter of this year. In addition to the two fisheye lenses, Gear 360 boasts stellar features like a water and dust resistant body, standard tripod mount located on the bottom, removable and rechargeable battery, looping video, photo, video, and time-lapse video shooting modes, and a single lens mode used specifically for action cam recording.
The Samsung Gear 360 is also designed with user settings such as wind cut, HDR, ISO limit, EV, sharpness, and white balance. Of course all the connectivity and standard ports wanted are included as well, including a microSD card slot, WiFi, and Bluetooth. For the price of the Gear 360, buyers will also receive a handgrip and small tripod.
At this point, it is hard to predict if the higher price for Samsung’s Gear 360 will have any type of impact on sales. Regardless, most experts believe this virtual reality camera will fall into a niche product market, which is a huge attraction for many. Even though the segment for Gear 360 is becoming increasingly more crowded, the interoperability this virtual reality camera offers with smartphones coupled with the Samsung brand gives it a competitive edge.
Gear 360 is just another example of how hard Samsung continues to push boundaries to enhance the mobile experience. Following in the footsteps of Gear VR, which was released last year, Gear 360 is expected to be extremely successful.