Kodak 360 VR rig for Solo

[erikgraham]

Kind of surprised no one has posted this already. 360 VR is cool. Seems expensive, but the stitching software they include is good value (assuming it works well). Some stitching software like Autopano or ptgui will cost you at least $1,000 (don't quote me on that). So including stitching software is good by Kodak. Still a lot of money though.

SP360 4K AERIAL Pack

 

[Endless Loop]

I have to agree, 360 VR is very cool.
We recently received the Giroptic 360cam that performs all the stitching on-board the camera. It's about the size and shape of a small pear and seems to be very sturdy and well built. Quality of the video and stitching depends on who's review you read. I thought it was rather good.
We wanted to see if it could be used for FPV but unfortunately there is no "live" video out available on the stock unit and the app only allows it while in preview mode so that you can frame your shot. Clips have to be downloaded from the camera to be able to view them and if done via the wireless link, it can take forever. There is also an excessive amount of lag which makes it useless for FPV.
It's $499 but if you're considering this, do a little extra homework before the purchase. For example: You can buy an Ethernet adapter that mounts to the camera for "live video streaming" but you'll also need a POE adapter to use it which is not included. And the "streaming" portion currently only works with one CDN which is a subscription service.
But hey, it's still very cool.

 

[Rusty Jones]

Does anyone see this really taking off? I can see some uses in the construction and real estate fields.

And, what is the quality like?

 

[RichWest]

I set my 85 yo father in front of the video to get his reaction, he couldn't believe it could done, like it was a magic trick...

I watched the example video and it looks really amazing, beyond the focus issue. I can't wrap my brain around an application just yet, but again people are really amazing that come up with this tech. This will only improve and I can't believe the low cost for the Solo setup.

Thanks for the share @erikgraham

 

[erikgraham]

Lately, I've been experimenting with stereo 3D 360 video. For regular 2D 360 I placed a preorder for the Sphericam Home - Sphericam V2

The 3D 360 rig I have is basically 6 GoPro's with super wide angle lenses (from Peau Productions, of course), mounted in a 3D printed ring.

360 video is cool by itself, but adding the 3D component is awesome. Unfortunately the rig I use is too heavy for the Solo to lift.

 

[User Name]

I wonder how 3DRs focus on industrial applications will effect this and products like it. Curious as to whether Kodak sees this as a tool attractive to industrial uses, or brought it to market despite 3DRs new focus because it was too far along to abandon.

It really pains me to see the Solo more or less a commercial failure as far as a consumer product. It had/has so much going for it and this is yet another example of that.

Wonder what the flight times are with this, maybe the two cameras are in the same neighborhood weight wise as a GoPro and the gimbal and their power requirements.

 

[twitchyzero]

i mean the cameras + mount is $999

a Solo with gimbal can be had for $372-599

They'll be lucky if they even sell a handful of these VR rigs.

 

[User Name]

That's like saying a PC can be had for $500, so Autodesk won't sell more than a handful of $5000 licenses to Maya. Or Nvidia won't sell more than a handful of $1000 video cards. These are specialized tools for specific purposes, there's nothing wrong with one component costing more than the base.

And you're not buying a Solo and gimbal for the prices you list unless they're used, at which time your comparative price argument goes out the window.

I'm not saying this will be a hot seller, but this kit comes also comes with handheld mounts, so it's useful to people interested in 360 degree video in general, not only when used on a Solo.

 

[SARDG]

i mean the cameras + mount is $999

a Solo with gimbal can be had for $372-599

They'll be lucky if they even sell a handful of these VR rigs.

I'm simply a hobbyist and am considering this purchase - not specifically for a drone, but also for my Coast Guard patrols on the boat.

Actually, at that price point I see them selling fairly well.

 

[twitchyzero]

the price I listed are brand new...anybody can snag one with a backpack for under $600 with little effort. It's the new market price for a new Solo.

Nope...Solo is Solo. One make and model. PCs range in wide variety of price points and performance brackets. A better comparsion would be a pricey VR set...but a capable rig to run VR is well in the $1000-1500 range...so a $500-800 VR set can still make sense. When the base cost of the capable quadcopter system is $599 and the peripheral is $999...now that's an ugly balance.

"Made For Solo" initiative is basically DoA. Look at the other thread on hoverfly tether. Prop guard = many stories of catastrophic failure. Parachute still MIA. Only the light strip seem to sell half-decently.

I don't see a selfie stick as a justification for the price.

I think it's really backwards to have 2-cameras for 360...if I'm not mistaken most companies that are in the 360 game only require one camera = less post work

I dont doubt there's a use like in Sardg professional case. But almost no hobbyist will be getting this, esp if it means removing the delicate gimbal each time (unless you have 2 Solos).

 

[PdxSteve]

Lately, I've been experimenting with stereo 3D 360 video. For regular 2D 360 I placed a preorder for the Sphericam Home - Sphericam V2

The 3D 360 rig I have is basically 6 GoPro's with super wide angle lenses (from Peau Productions, of course), mounted in a 3D printed ring.

360 video is cool by itself, but adding the 3D component is awesome. Unfortunately the rig I use is too heavy for the Solo to lift.

Or do 3d mapping and then fly wherever you want in 3d space with VR

 

[User Name]

the price I listed are brand new...anybody can snag one with a backpack for under $600 with little effort. It's the new market price for a new Solo.

You said "a Solo with gimbal can be had for $372-599". Please give links to new Solo's with gimbals for those price, otherwise you're full of it.

Nope...Solo is Solo. One make and model.

Irrelevant to the point of specialized accessories costing more than the base system. If you're Bitcoin mining, you put several multi thousand dollar graphics cards in the cheapest system you can put together. There's nothing inherently wrong with a specialized camera system costing more than the Solo. You might take issue with that, but I suspect that has more to do with a lack of interest in 360 degree video in general.

 

[erikgraham]

You said "a Solo with gimbal can be had for $372-599". Please give links to new Solo's with gimbals for those price, otherwise you're full of it.



Irrelevant to the point of specialized accessories costing more than the base system. If you're Bitcoin mining, you put several multi thousand dollar graphics cards in the cheapest system you can put together. There's nothing inherently wrong with a specialized camera system costing more than the Solo. You might take issue with that, but I suspect that has more to do with a lack of interest in 360 degree video in general.

Well it's pretty common to fly $20k or $40k cameras on drones that cost a fraction of the price. So I get your point.

Nonetheless, I actually kind of agree with him. Something just seems weird about spending that much on an accessory for the Solo. Maybe it's just because it seems like the Solo/3DR are going away? What happens in 6 months if you can't get replacement motor pods? Meanwhile you spent $1k on an accessory.

But let's not turn this into a 3DR is dead thread. Enough of that already. As a product, this Kodak system seems pretty cool - and you could always use it without the Solo itself.

 

[PdxSteve]

You said "a Solo with gimbal can be had for $372-599". Please give links to new Solo's with gimbals for those price, otherwise you're full of it.

There was an error on B&H's website selling solo+gimbal for $372. I posted it here and others did on facebook. B&H honored the orders that were made before the mistake was discovered. A totally abnormal situation and has no bearing on Solos true cost.
Here was that thread: B+H Photo selling Solo+Gimbal for $372!!

Solo/Gimbal is still selling for $599 on amazon and it looks like they have stock
https://www.amazon.com/Quadcopter-Bundle-Backpack-Battery-Propellers/dp/B01C7HJ554

 

[twitchyzero]

You said "a Solo with gimbal can be had for $372-599". Please give links to new Solo's with gimbals for those price, otherwise you're full of it.

Irrelevant to the point of specialized accessories costing more than the base system. If you're Bitcoin mining, you put several multi thousand dollar graphics cards in the cheapest system you can put together. There's nothing inherently wrong with a specialized camera system costing more than the Solo. You might take issue with that, but I suspect that has more to do with a lack of interest in 360 degree video in general.

OH, OK

https://www.amazon.com/Quadcopter-B...=UTF8&qid=1472287562&sr=8-1&keywords=solo+3dr
that's WITH backpack + xtra props set

B+H Photo selling Solo+Gimbal for $372!!
quite a few members here got in on that deal

Yep, I'm full of it. What's with the hostile tone?

if you bothered reading my last post it is apparent I've already spoonfed you the info...sorry that your reading comprehension failed you.

Is Solo a set-it-and-forget-it income generator? No, comparing apples to oranges.

Trust me, when this initiative was first announced, I was like "sign me up"...VR content creation is exciting.

No thank you at that price! So what I paid almost $2K for Solo + gimbal + Hero4...the current market pricing for Solo means this VR rig makes no sense from a dollar perspective.

Please PM me if you want to make a bet. I'd say this VR rig for Solo will be discontinued in a few months. Heck, I hope 3DR will still be around then.

Well it's pretty common to fly $20k or $40k cameras on drones that cost a fraction of the price. So I get your point.

Nonetheless, I actually kind of agree with him. Something just seems weird about spending that much on an accessory for the Solo. Maybe it's just because it seems like the Solo/3DR are going away? What happens in 6 months if you can't get replacement motor pods? Meanwhile you spent $1k on an accessory.

But let's not turn this into a 3DR is dead thread. Enough of that already. As a product, this Kodak system seems pretty cool - and you could always use it without the Solo itself.

True but most lift rigs have redundancy aka 6-8+ motors...Solo with its relatively failure prone motors is not a great candidate for anything professional, IMO

BTW PIXPRO is manufactured through JK Imaging, as much as it has the Kodak branding.

I just think this is a silly camera in general. "4K" label here is terrible marketing as isn't even anywhere near UHD resolution...it's 2880x2880, LOL

So many other reuptauble companies can make a camera that can capture 360 with just a single unit.
Product
Nikon KeyMission 360 | 4K Ultra HD 360-Degree Action Camera
Gigabyte Goes Mobile 360mnia, Duos

 

[Jason Stahl]

OH, OK

https://www.amazon.com/Quadcopter-B...=UTF8&qid=1472287562&sr=8-1&keywords=solo+3dr
that's WITH backpack + xtra props set

B+H Photo selling Solo+Gimbal for $372!!
quite a few members here got in on that deal

Yep, I'm full of it. What's with the hostile tone?

if you bothered reading my last post it is apparent I've already spoonfed you the info...sorry that your reading comprehension failed you.

Is Solo a set-it-and-forget-it income generator? No, comparing apples to oranges.

Trust me, when this initiative was first announced, I was like "sign me up"...VR content creation is exciting.

No thank you at that price! So what I paid almost $2K for Solo + gimbal + Hero4...the current market pricing for Solo means this VR rig makes no sense from a dollar perspective.

Please PM me if you want to make a bet. I'd say this VR rig for Solo will be discontinued in a few months. Heck, I hope 3DR will still be around then.



True but most lift rigs have redundancy aka 6-8+ motors...Solo with its relatively failure prone motors is not a great candidate for anything professional, IMO

BTW PIXPRO is manufactured through JK Imaging, as much as it has the Kodak branding.

I just think this is a silly camera in general. "4K" label here is terrible marketing as isn't even anywhere near UHD resolution...it's 2880x2880, LOL

So many other reuptauble companies can make a camera that can capture 360 with just a single unit.
Product
Nikon KeyMission 360 | 4K Ultra HD 360-Degree Action Camera
Gigabyte Goes Mobile 360mnia, Duos

DJI S1000 is $10,000 and then they put a $40,000 camera on it. $35,000 Steadicam with a $200,000 3D rig on it. The film industry does this all the time.

Put the Nikon 360 camera on a Solo and half your view will be the belly of the Solo. At least with the Pixpro, the 2 cameras can sandwich the quad and make it disappear. And remember, the cameras are not Solo-specific, just the $150 mount so it's not like Kodak has a huge infrastructure to maintain.

 

[Dave Tolsky]

In my opinion this is what separates Solo from Phantom. Can you fly a Fiilex light on Phantom? Nope. Can you fly any kind of VR setup on Phantom? Nope. Will you be able to tether Phantom to a continuous power source? Probably not. The open platform is why I'm keeping my Solo and probably selling my Phantom. I will be writing about the PixPro 360 setup for Solo in an upcoming issue of RotorDrone magazine. JK imaging has sent me two dual 4K camera systems and a Solo vibration dampening camera mount. I'm going to be taking the system through it's paces from beginning to the stitching process in post. I hope you all watch for it. Also check out my upcoming article on flying lights with Phantom and Solo in the new Sept./Oct. RotorDrone.

 

[Gabriel Mendiola]

I just want to know what the flight time with the pixpro is?

 

[yt lee]

i mean the cameras + mount is $999

a Solo with gimbal can be had for $372-599

They'll be lucky if they even sell a handful of these VR rigs.

The workstation I use is only few thousand dollars, the software is quarter million dollar with 65K annual maintenance fee.

 

[Dave Tolsky]

I just want to know what the flight time with the pixpro is?

The PixPro will not run off the Solo's power in any way. So flight time will be slightly less due to the increased weight. Very slightly less. No fpv, obviously you're flying blind but if you maintain line of sight you can still shoot amazing pictures.