Photography

Ricoh's 360-degree, one shot panoramic camera prototype

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Ricoh's prototype 360-degree one shot panoramic camera on display at CES 2013
A photo taken with Ricoh's new 360-degree one shot panoramic camera
Ricoh's prototype 360-degree one shot panoramic camera
The screen shows a photo taken with Ricoh's new 360-degree one shot panoramic camera
The front view of Ricoh's new 360-degree one shot panoramic camera
A 360-degree photo from Richo's 360-degree one shot panoramic camera
The side of Richo's 360-degree one shot panoramic camera prototype
The top view of Richo's new 360-degree one shot panoramic camera
Ricoh's prototype 360-degree one shot panoramic camera on display at CES 2013
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The sheer scale of CES in Las Vegas means that you are bound to stumble across some unexpected gems while wandering the halls. This 360-degree panoramic camera from Ricoh is a great example of that. The prototype device takes a 360-degree photo with a single click using two 180-degree cameras positioned on opposing sides of its T-shaped body.

The resolution has not been finalized, but the pictures looked quite sharp in the show floor demonstration where a TV was used to display what the camera can do.

The creators point out that the focus here is on simplicity, and being able to grab a whole room with one snap is certainly as simple as it gets.

The current version of the prototype can take single images, but the Ricoh hopes to add burst shots to the device. Recording 360-degree video is also something that may be considered down the road ... but it may be some way off.

There's no official word on pricing as yet, but Ricoh plans to divulge more information closer to the release, which is expected to be before the end of 2013.

View gallery - 8 images
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3 comments
Expanded Viewpoint
Oh come on now!! How can there not be enough room to slip in a few 16Gb chips like are used in flash drives and make the thing into a video camera?!?! If the current case is completely crammed to the gills with innards, then just make the case a little bit bigger in one or two dimensions!! Isn't it possible to daisy chain flash drive chips so that when one is full, it just goes on to the next one??
Randy
Bill Bennett
Does that mean that you are always in the picture? :)
Huddleston
This has already been patented in the United States.
The U.S. Patent can be found here: http://goo.gl/8gtH1