Samsung's new Gear 360 streams 360 live, and finally works with iPhones
The Galaxy S8 and S8+ aren't the only new gadgets Samsung announced at its big Unpacked event on Wednesday.
Along with the new flagship phones, Samsung also took the wraps off a new Gear 360 camera that's smaller and more powerful than the original.
The new Gear 360 now records 360-degree video at true 4K resolution (4,096 x 2,048) compared to the original model, which topped out at 3,840 x 1,920.
More pixels will make for sharper 360 videos, but the two most compelling new features are 360 live streaming to YouTube, Facebook or Samsung VR (a third-party API could open 360 streaming to other services like Periscope), and iPhone support.
With a solid wireless connection, the Gear VR can live stream in 360 at 2K resolution for about two continuous hours. Latency, we're told, will only be about 10-15 seconds.
One of the biggest complaints about the original Gear 360 is that it only works with select premium Samsung Galaxy phones. For the new Gear 360, there's also iPhone support (iPhone 7, 7 Plus, 6S, 6S Plus and SE, running iOS 10), which should make 360 videos more accessible to a larger group of content creators.
Now for some bad news: Live streaming won't support iPhones at launch, only Samsung's flagship Galaxy phones dating back to the Galaxy S6 and the Galaxy A5 and A7.
Along with iPhone support, the new Gear 360 will have improved Windows and macOS support.
Aside from that, the only other new change is to the Gear 360's design. Samsung's shrunken the Gear 360 down from the size of a tennis ball to a golf ball.
The dual cameras are different this time around. Compared to the original, which rocked dual 15-megapixel CMOS image sensors, the Gear 360's got twin 8.4-megapixel sensors with 180-degree fisheye lenses.
he overall device is more compact and easier to pocket thanks to a smaller "head" and a "body" that now houses the tiny display, battery and memory card slot (up to 256GB). The camera's still dust and water-resistant.
The addition of a body means the camera can stand up on a flat surface without a tripod. The camera also comes with a little lanyard with a rubber ring that you can attach to the base of the body to keep it from falling over.
All in all, the Gear 360 looks like a nice refresh, and I hope some of the overheating issues have been resolved. Samsung couldn't provide concrete pricing or release date details, but said it's shooting to launch the camera with the Galaxy S8 (April 21) or shortly after (maybe May), and it'll cost less than the original, which sold for $350.
Raymond Wong is Mashable's Senior Tech Correspondent. He reviews gadgets and tech toys and analyzes the tech industry. Raymond's also a bit of a camera geek, gamer, and fine chocolate lover. Before arriving at Mashable, he was the Deputy Editor of NBC Universal's tech publication DVICE. His writing has appeared on G4TV, BGR, Yahoo and Ubergizmo, to name a few. You can follow Raymond on Twitter @raywongy or Instagram @sourlemons.
