Lenovo is also releasing the first camera based on
Google’s 180 tech. The Lenovo Mirage Camera, which
seems to be geared heavily toward YouTube creators,
packs a pair of fisheye 13MP lenses positioned about
eyes-distance apart, allowing for high-quality 3D vision
that’s perfect for VR viewing. At $299, the camera isn’t
too expensive for creators looking to experiment, but it’s
a worthy question of how big that niche really is. It starts
shipping today.
which is aiming to basically make capturing VR live-
action content a little more palatable to creators. Indeed,
360-degree cameras have certainly gotten a lot of attention,
but creators haven’t really figured out what to do with them
for the most part. Google’s compromise here is to simplify
the medium with a camera that shoots half as much but
isn’t too expensive and delivers crisp 3D 4K video.
In terms of build, the camera is very nice. It doesn’t feel like
it’s overtly high quality, but it’s solid enough and, most
importantly, very pocketable. Like many 360 cameras, battery
life isn’t awesome at two hours, but the battery can be swapped
in and out and the camera comes with a spare, which is very
nice. VR180 means 180 degrees, which you will understand in
photos, especially if your finger creeps to the outer edge of the
top of the camera — it will invade the 180 half-dome.
and live-stream footage from the camera.
It could all be a winning solution, but the question is really
whether this product is popping up a little late. Tons of You
Tube creators have undoubtedly experimented with VR-
focused video and have gotten tied up in the frustrations.
While the number of headsets is still growing, it’s still not
enough that VR viewers can sustain a channel, and while
VR180 videos are visible in “magic window” mode without
a headset as well on mobile and desktop, it obviously loses
the 3D capability as a result, which is kind of the biggest draw.
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