360 Camera News and Info

NEW 360 camera coming soon: it’s a Ricoh Theta

New 360 camera coming soon: it's a Ricoh Theta
New 360 camera coming soon: it’s a Ricoh Theta

The next new 360 camera is coming soon and it will be a Ricoh Theta, based on recent permits filed by Ricoh.  When will it be released?  Is it for consumers or prosumers? What features will it have?  I discuss these questions in this video.  UPDATE: here is the design of the new Theta.

In the past couple of weeks, Ricoh filed for a Bluetooth certification and for a permit with China’s Ministry of Industry and Information Technology.  These permits state that the new camera is a 360 camera and that it will be a Ricoh Theta.

Many 360 shooters have been waiting for a true successor to the Theta Z1.  Earlier this year, Ricoh released a version of the Theta Z1 with 51GB, but this new camera appears to be a new camera, not merely a new version of the Theta Z1.

 

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Mic Ty

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      • Hi Mic,

        I’m not sure, to be honest. I liked the idea of the Kandao Qoocam 8k but was put off by the stories of focusing issues and the tricky workflow. It would need to be a noticeable increase in image quality over my Fusion’s 5.2k, otherwise, I’ll just stick with that for the time being.

  • If they release a camera with 8K video and the quality is as good as the Z1 then it’s game over for Insta 360. I’d say game over for Kandao but their reputation is in tatters anyway.

    • Hi Stephen. You’re right but I think it is very doubtful that we’ll see 8k resolution because I haven’t seen a new sony 1 inch sensor with the required resolution. Also, Ricoh prioritizes photo not video.

  • Oh dear, bought a Z1 recently. Explains why it was such an insanely great price (1,150 Australian dollars.) What is highly annoying is that my phone is too old to support the app to control the camera! Have to wait for the TR-1 to arrive in the country to be able to control it without using the self timer at 5 seconds. This is a pain for what I use it for- high shots way above crowds at rallies on a 2.7 metre ( 9 ft) selfie pole. Amazingly, I managed to get good shots yesterday working fast.

  • I’m guessing this is going to sit somewhere in the obvious and huge gap between the SC2 and Z since the V was discontinued. Ricoh has no direct competition for photo workflow and image quality. They have the virtual tour market on lockdown. Only way they can pick up a lot more customers is by improving video quality to at the very least 5.7K at around the price of an Insta 360 1X2. A new V going directly up against a 1X2 would actually make me reconsider buying another Theta which I swore off previously due to poor video quality and primitive build. The competition all have better video quality than any Theta at all price points. Either way great info!