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Sir Elton John in Google VR180; which camera did they use?

Sir Elton John's farewell tour in Google VR180
Sir Elton John’s farewell tour in Google VR180

Sir Elton John is on his final tour, and YouTube is celebrating the tour’s launch with a Google VR180 video that combines both animation and live action video. Check it out!  (Note: to see it in 3D, you need to watch it on your smartphone with a cardboard viewer or similar).

Google VR180 is a new video format announced by Google in June 2017. When viewed on YouTube, the video appears as a static 4K video. But if you tap on the Google Cardboard icon on your smartphone and use a Cardboard (or other VR headset) viewer, you can see it as a 3D 180 video (in 6K or 4K).  At CES 2018, the first Google VR180 cameras for consumers were announced: Yi Horizon (6K VR180) and Lenovo Mirage (4K VR180). I’m really looking forward to their release.

In case you’re wondering which VR180 cameras they used for this video, it’s hard to see but the cameras they used had protruding lenses.

The Google VR180 cameras used in Elton John's video
The Google VR180 cameras used in Elton John’s video

The protruding lenses rule out Lenovo Mirage, Yi Horizon, or Z Cam K1 Pro. Instead it appears that they may have used the iZugar Z2XL180, which has Micro Four Thirds sensors.  Of course, it’s also possible that they used a custom Google VR180 rig.  But if it is indeed the Z2XL180, that would be interesting because the Z2XL180 hasn’t officially been listed as among the Google VR180 cameras, although iZugar has said that the camera was used for Google VR180 videos.  Incidentally, the Z2XL180 is currently on sale for $1999 (normally $2699).

iZugar Z2XL Micro Four Thirds 3D180 camera
iZugar Z2XL Micro Four Thirds 3D180 camera

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Mic Ty

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