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LG gives spherical video and photos a spin with its 360 Cam

Using two extreme fisheye lenses, this camera promises to capture 2K-resolution video of the world around you.

Joshua Goldman Managing Editor / Advice
Managing Editor Josh Goldman is a laptop expert and has been writing about and reviewing them since built-in Wi-Fi was an optional feature. He also covers almost anything connected to a PC, including keyboards, mice, USB-C docks and PC gaming accessories. In addition, he writes about cameras, including action cams and drones. And while he doesn't consider himself a gamer, he spends entirely too much time playing them.
Expertise Laptops, desktops and computer and PC gaming accessories including keyboards, mice and controllers, cameras, action cameras and drones Credentials
  • More than two decades experience writing about PCs and accessories, and 15 years writing about cameras of all kinds.
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Lynn La Senior Editor / Reviews - Phones
Lynn La covers mobile reviews and news. She previously wrote for The Sacramento Bee, Macworld and The Global Post.
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Joshua Goldman
Lynn La
2 min read

Add another entry into the growing list of 360-degree cameras coming in 2016.

Alongside the G5 smartphone and a long list of other accessories LG revealed today at Mobile World Congress 2016, the South Korean electronics giant has promised its first camera for creating spherical video and pictures, the cleverly named 360 Cam.

No pricing or availability was announced, and details are a bit scarce at the moment, but here's the rundown on the basics of what it'll offer.

LG 360 Cam is a stick with two lenses for VR video and photos (pictures)

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Instead of a ball like the Bublcam or a box like the Nikon KeyMission 360, this two-lens camera looks very similar to Ricoh's Theta cameras, though not as nice, like it was quite possibly a design rejected for being too bulky and unremarkable.

Regardless, at the top you'll find two lenses, each with an angle of view of 200 degrees -- ample coverage for stitching together for a single spherical image. A shutter release just below the lens lets you quickly snap a 360 selfie or grab some 2K-resolution video.

A small sheath-like case is included that protects the lenses when not in use or flips over to the bottom and acts as a handgrip and stand, which is good, because having the shutter release that close to a fisheye lens is going to lead to some giant thumbs. On the camera bottom is also a standard tripod mount.

Your shots will get stored either to its 4GB of internal storage or a microSD card you supply. Or, you can transfer video and photos to your Android device via Bluetooth. If you pick up an LG G5 to use with it, you can connect the 360 Cam using the phone's native "Friends" app, which is basically a device manager for the various G5 accessories. The camera's app can also be used as a remote viewfinder and to control the camera.

That's all the details we have for now, but we'll fill in the blanks as we learn more.