360 Camera News and Info

Do you want Ricoh Theta X’s hidden 8K mode?

Ricoh Theta X has a hidden 8K mode that Ricoh might release
Ricoh Theta X has a hidden 8K mode that Ricoh might release

Ricoh Theta X has a hidden 8K mode and Ricoh is asking if you want it.  UPDATE: another hidden feature here.

Here is the poll.  More info below.

Ricoh Theta X (reviewed here) is a new 360 camera that can shoot 11k photos and stabilized 5.7k videos with no stitching needed.  I also found that it has one of the most detailed photos and has the most detailed videos, which I found to be more detailed than some 8K 360 cameras.

Apparently, Theta X has a trick up its sleeve: a hidden 8K 10fps mode that is accessible only to developers.  10fps videos are virtually unusable for normal videos (unless you want a Charlie Chaplin effect), but they could be usable for Google Street View.

As you know, Google sends out its cars to take photos of streets, which you can use to navigate on Google Maps.  But some photographers also add these “blue line” Google Street View paths of their own.  This is a useful service when an area is difficult to access and hasn’t been updated by Google in a long time.  It is also useful for facilities that have recently been renovated or have changed owners or brands, who may want Google Street View to reflect the change immediately.

There are several ways to create Google Street View blue lines, such as through a 360 camera equipped with a timelapse function.  Another way is to record a 360 video with GPS metadata.  It is for this function that an 8K 10fps mode could be useful.  Ricoh has also stated that it is possible to add StreetView-compatible CAMM metadata to the video, which would add tracking data to the video once per second.

If you are interested in knowing how and why you can publish tours to Google Streetview you can read it here.

But Ricoh is wondering if there are enough people interested in this feature or not.  If there is “strong demand” then they can consider adding it via a future firmware update.  In the past, Ricoh has added features when enough people have asked for it, such as the standalone stitcher for Theta Z1.  Please help out by voting in this poll.

Some people have asked, what is the point of the poll because no one would refuse such a feature.  That’s true, but this is a matter of priorities.  Ricoh Theta division has a limited number of people and a long list of things they want to do.  If not a lot of people express interest, then this feature would be low priority for them.  So participating in the poll and letting them know if you DO want it can encourage them to move it up on their list and help us get it sooner.

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  • Hello,
    please do 8K, definition with dynamic range is the most important character for image quality.
    The lenses designed for Theta are exceptional right to the edges and have very good flare resistance, especially the Z1.
    The photo quality shows the potential, please do the same for video, even if the overheating has to happen faster, it would be a spectacular leap forward for short sequences .
    Maybe a Z2 in the pipeline?
    Frédéric from France

  • I saw a comment on that question about raw. Ben Claremont has spoken with Ricoh and says it will not be added.

  • I read in the specs that in 11K photo mode, the camera can burst up to 7 FPS.

    Why don’t they just enable 11K low frame rate video as they did with the Theta V @ 5 FPS. For walking and cycling GSV captures, I regularly use 1 and 4 FPS with my existing 360 camera. Surely this should be technically possible, just skip 8K and go to a full 11K GSV capture mode with embedded metadata.

    Being an Android based camera, it should also be possible to use an external high precision GNSS hardware solution instead of the camera’s built-in GNSS hardware if needed to capture GSV in poor signal reception locations as I do with my existing 360 camera.

  • I am not just interested, I would not buy this camera if it can only do 5.7K video. Also just 8K video mode is not enough, it must have GSV mode with 8K.

    11K GSV would be better, happy if it is just 3-5 fps

  • Until we have 8k 30fps video at the consumer price point, then I do not think 360 will ever go mainstream. Until then I will continue to wait.

  • With the new Firmware Version 1.20.0, there are two new video modes “8K 10fps” and “8K 2fps”; however these cannot be set through the current Theta app (v2.5).

    Noticed issues:
    – The (.mp4) CAMM metadata still only contain the accelerometer data (same as with Theta V) — the data from onboard GPS data is still not saved during video recording, in a way that allows the file to be uploaded to Street View Studio as is. [checked with ‘exiftool -ee’ version 12.44]
    – Theta app (v2.5) does not seem to support connection to the Tehta X over the Bluetooth – which could have been very useful for remote control start/stop, etc.
    – The Google’s Street Street view can take pictures, and the streaming video preview works. However attempting to use the Interval Mode to capture images, only generates a error message. Video mode option is not available.
    – The clock don’t seem to be automatically synchronized with the GPS; (though there is a plugin to do a one-time update/setting of the internal clock). [Not verified after the FW update.]
    – Yes, the overheating issues are also very real — it can overheat from just being left powered on for a several minutes; though didn’t have much issues with that outdoors in at aprox. 13~15C w/ sunshine.

    While the HW feature list in general seems to suggest that this camera intended to be ideal for use with capturing video for Street VIew (i.e. tick all of the boxes), the SW support for this just inte there yet IMHO. In my opinion, with the update the camera is quite as disappointing as it used to be, but until the GPS/CAMM issue is resolved I cannot recommend this camera; in fact my personal recommendation is to wait until it is at least officially certified Street View Ready.