Click to view our Accessibility Statement or contact us with accessibility-related questions
Virael
233
Jun 15, 2017
@robdeez As someone who also owns a Theta S (and a bunch of other 360 cams), I agree with your points. But TBH, most of the pros (portability, shooting 360 star trails & other stuff, flexibility, etc) are not exclusive to the Theta S but apply to most other 360 cams as well. The Theta S can shoot intervals, but you're limited to 8 seconds and higher. So if you need to take shorter intervals, sorry. It's also limited to 8gb of storage which cannot be expanded (there's no micro sd slot) unless you're willing to crack it open and do some hard-modding which will break your warranty. And I cannot agree more with your comment on the fragility of the lenses. But to be fair, this applies to most other 360 cams as well (with perhaps the exception of the LG360).
Speaking of which, I find it surprising how I always find myself grabbing the LG360 - the cheapest of the bunch - as my default go-to camera. So to anyone reading this, that's worth considering. You can buy it off Amazon for a price cheaper than this drop (which is just for the SC version that's a step-down from the S). It comes with a nice protective shell (which solves the lens vulnerability) that also doubles as a handle. It also has a micro sd slot so you can expand its capacity as much as you want (I plunked in a 128gb on mine and it can take really extended time lapses and it barely makes a dent on the space). Image quality-wise, I honestly can't see much difference between it and the Theta S.
But don't get me wrong, I'm not ragging on the Theta S. It's a great little 360 cam, it just so happens that there are better and cheaper options. If there's anything it really excels at, it's on streaming. It's extremely easy to set up and quite portable too. The GoPro Omni (I don't own it, my company does) has much better quality but it's a bitch to set up and transport. LOL. Although if this SC version doesn't support streaming (I don't have it so I'm not sure), then it just lost its redeeming feature.
Some notes on the other cameras:
360fly 4K - Best image quality out of all of them, second only to the GoPro Omni - which isn't really portable and doesn't count. No sd card slot, but at least comes with 64gb. Not full 360 degrees. I'm not a fan of its form-factor.
Insta360 Nano - My first one. Probably the worst image quality. Has a micro sd card. Only works with iPhone (you can use it detached though) and will instantly turn your phone into a hand warmer. LOL
Gear 360 (not the latest 2017 version) - Second to the 360fly 4K in terms of image quality. Has a micro sd card lot. Again, I'm not a fan of this form-factor. You need a Samsung phone.