With devices like the Nico360, 360-degree cameras are getting smaller and more portable, but the Orbi Prime looks like one you might forget you're even using. Packed inside a pair of stylish sunglasses are four HD cameras that can capture up to 90 minutes of 360-degree video, leaving the wearer's hands free for biking, paddling, climbing or whatever other capture-worthy activity they're doing.
Extremophiles looking to capture their outdoor adventures in 360 degrees are spoiled for choice: options like the Kodak PixPro 4KVR360 or Samsung's Gear 360 are decent and affordable enough 360 cameras for enthusiasts, while professionals might prefer to fork out US$15 grand for the beefy GoPro Odyssey rig. Of course, if aerial 360 videos are more your jam, drones like the Janus and the Exo360 have you covered.
But Orbi Prime is the first time we've seen the tech incorporated into a pair of smart glasses. The specs feature two 1080p cameras on the front, one on either temple, plus two more on the tip of each arm, facing backwards and outwards. All together, they can capture 4K video at 30 fps for up to 90 minutes, stabilized in real-time to help smooth things out. While the field of view is a full 360 degrees horizontally, only 300 degrees of the upper hemisphere is captured, which means glancing up in a video will grant a view of the sky, but look down and you'll be staring off into a deep, dark void.
Power comes from a pair of 1,000-mAh batteries, rechargeable via micro USB, and also onboard is a reasonable 128 GB of storage space. The specs connect to smartphones over Wi-Fi, where an app allows users to watch, edit and share their videos. Given their outdoorsy nature, the glasses themselves are water-resistant, come with a detachable safety strap to keep them firmly on your noggin, and the lenses are polarized and adaptive. They are shades, after all.
The Indiegogo campaign for the Orbi Prime is wrapping up very soon, but the specs are still available for a pledge of US$229, which also includes a charging case, safety strap, USB connector and a lens cloth. If all goes to plan, the glasses should ship in August 2017.
Check out the campaign video below.
Source: Orbi
