For those who haven’t been following, earlier Insta360 ONE 4K Action Camera released a montage of cool sample clips to tease its upcoming camera’s bullet-time video capability. What baffled me at the time was how those slow-motion shots orbited around a person with his upright arm seemingly holding onto something, except there was no visible string nor selfie stick to suggest that the camera was being swung around. Well, as it turns out, there’s no need to be disappointed — it actually takes a lot more than just a piece of string to achieve this bullet-time effect.
Format and Resolution
The video Recording either 3,840 x 1,920 at 30 fps or 2,560 x 1,280 at 60 fps, both with LOG format option which is a first for a consumer 360 camera and it can take 24-megapixel stills (6,912 x 3,456) with RAW format option — another first for a consumer Insta360 ONE 4K Action Camera — followed by HDR capture at a later date.The Insta360 ONE 4K Action Camera can shoot spherical content in 3 distinct resolutions – 2K at 30 frames, 3K at 24 frames, and 4K at 15 frames a second. The sample video I’ve produced is at the full 4K, and it’s not too stuttery at that frame rate – probably something to do with Youtube’s video processing as well.
360
Each of the lenses on the Insta360 ONE 4K Action Camera can shoot 8.4-megapixel resolution images for a combined total of 16.8 megapixels per 360 image.The Insta360 ONE 4K Action Camera is capable of shooting 360-degree video in 4K resolution. The video quality is bright and clear with few visible pixels. It looks about as good as a 1080p video shot with a regular camera.
Waterproof
it does come with an 8GB microSD card to get you started. Sports fans will also be delighted to know that the One has an optional IP68 waterproof housing that’s good for depths of up to 30-meter or about 98.4 feet.
Build
Much like the 3K-only Nano, the One can be used as a standalone 360 camera (using the power button or via Bluetooth) or as an iPhone dongle using its retractable Lightning plug. It’s also gained a couple of new use methods. For one, the kit comes with a short plastic tube that houses the device on the deeper end to protect its two lenses, while the shallower end lets you mount the device so that the tube can be used as a stand. Alternatively, you can also mount the camera on any standard tripod, monopod, selfie stick or even the bundled string attachment using its 1/4″-20 screw thread.
Features
One of the main selling points of the One is the aforementioned bullet time mode. This trick is a combination of the device’s six-axis image stabilization, powerful 120 fps capture at 2,048 x 512 (which can be boosted to 240 fps via interpolation using the companion app), some video magic to erase evidence of tethering plus a little bit of manual work using one arm. Once the power button’s triple-tap toggle has been mapped to bullet time capture (via settings in the app), simply mount the One on the bundled string attachment or an optional selfie stick, turn it on, tap its power button three times and then start swinging it above your head at a modest pace (with the risk of getting funny looks from folks nearby). When done, simply hit the power button once to stop recording, and then you can plug the camera into your iPhone for playback, editing and exporting to 720p clips.
Conclusion
As cool as the sample clips look, what remains to be seen is how well these features — especially bullet time — actually work when mere mortals like us give them a go. Alas.If you can buy Insta360 ONE 4K Action Camera you can pre-order it on TOMTOP at $417.00.
Update on September 9, 2017:
Use coupon code: HTY118UST to enjoy 118usd off for this Insta360 One 4K Action camera at $299.
Only valid for USA and Japan users.