Facebook do 360° video with 500 extras, a custom camera rig and a hired-out Grand Central Station. Ricoh make a camera (the Theta) you can buy and actually use.
And now at the end of the month anyone with an iPhone and $199 burning a hole in their pockets will be able to film their own 360° extravaganza courtesy of Chinese company Insta360.
The Insta360 Nano, a Lightning-connected add-on pack for the iPhone 6, 6S and Plus models, connects to your iPhone and allows you to shoot, stitch and upload 360° video right from your phone.
![The Insta360 Nano is compatible with iOS devices only for now - you'll need an iPhone 6 or newer.](https://www.newsshooter.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/07/61qqeOIaXOL._SL1000_-600x600.jpg)
The dual-lens rig has a 4K mode, although frame rate is limited to 15fps at that resolution. It will do 3K at 24fps and 2.7K at 30fps though so it’s technically a few pixels ahead of Ricoh’s Theta (currently the camera to beat for no-fuss 360° video).
Sensitivity ranges from ISO 100 to 6400 and the built-in battery lasts ‘theoretically’ for a hundred minutes between charges.
![The Insta360 Nano is compact yet handles stitching internally and outputs .mp4 files.](https://www.newsshooter.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/07/01-fr@2x-356x600.png)
As well as operating attached to an iPhone, the camera can be used on its own, and will record to Micro SD cards. Neatly, the camera’s packaging can be converted into a Google Cardboard VR viewer for watching back your 360° masterpieces.
We haven’t seen a sample of the Insta360 Nano yet but it’s listed on Amazon as being available at the end of the month. Could be a good way to dip your toe in the 360° video water without having to invest in 12 GoPros and a supercomputer to stitch your footage together…