Insta360 ONE RS 1-inch 360 verdict
Summary
The Insta360 ONE RS 1-inch 360 is a step up in quality for 360 cameras, using 1-inch sensors and cameras (co-developed with Leica) to offer better quality than regular 360 cameras. It’s easy to use but powerful and it can do some amazing things. It also feels very well made, and the companion app makes it easy to produce regular ‘flat’ videos. It’s even good value, for a 1-inch sensor 360 camera, but if you’re just trying this stuff out, the Insta360 ONE X2 is much cheaper and for novice users just as good.
I’m a big fan of 360 imaging and in particular Insta360’s constantly inventive camera designs. This latest one is remarkable for featuring dual 1-inch sensors for 6K video capture and 21MP stills.
Usually, 360 cameras use smaller 2/3-inch smartphone size sensors to keep the size and the cost down, so the 1-inch sensors in the Insta360 ONE RS 1-inch 360 promise a big step up in clarity, dynamic range and noise control.
For those who know the Insta360 range, this looks like a beefed-up version of the Insta360 ONE X2 camera, with a slim body as a grip and twin overlapping ‘fisheye’ 180+ degree cameras on the top.
In fact, the ‘RS’ in the name indicates it’s in the modular Insta360 RS family, and it does come apart into three sections which integrate (via an adaptor) with Insta360’s existing RS system. Well, up to a point. Perhaps its biggest potential lies in the future.
What the Insta360 ONE RS 1-inch 360 does offer is brilliant ease of use, a bright and breezy companion app full of inspiration, ideas and how-tos, and a set of quick and intuitive editing tools which can turn your 360 spherical captures into ‘flat’ videos where you can control the panning, subject tracking and camera movements.
360 imaging explained
If you’re new to 360, a few things do need explaining. First, you have to imagine this camera’s captures as being on the inside of a sphere. It can ‘see’ everything around it in every direction. So while it can capture 6K video, which sounds a lot, you won’t be using anything like this if you use your footage to make a regular video – in fact these are rendered in full HD, which is fine, but if you want 4K action footage you’re better off with a 4K action camera.
Second, you can use the Insta360’s video and still capture to produce regular ‘flat’ video and panoramic stills, but you can also use it to produce immersive VR content where users can very literally ‘look where they like’. For this you need a suitable viewing platform and your smartphone and the Insta360 app is the simplest example.
360 VR still images are the simplest to get your head around (or inside). You can look in any direction you like as the camera has captured everything around it.
360 VR video is harder to grasp, and to use because it’s quite disorientating for the viewer. You can look where you like – that’s the control that 360 VR offers – but the events that are being filmed carry on regardless and will usually be in a specific direction. It’s very easy to watch a 360 VR video and be looking the wrong way.
Perhaps the most captivating thing about 360 imaging is that it really doesn’t matter which way you point the camera. In fact, you don’t point it at all, since it ‘sees’ everything around you. What you do need to remember, though, is that your viewpoint is fixed – the camera can see everything around you, but you still need to be standing in the right place.
This, or the Insta360 ONE X2?
The Insta360 ONE RS 1-inch 360 offers all the exciting potential of 360 imaging but with larger, higher quality sensors. It’s a good choice for 360 shooters looking for an upgrade, but for first-timers I’d advise getting the smaller and cheaper Insta360 ONE X2 instead, just to check out the whole concept.
Alternatively, take a look at the Insta360 ONE RS Twin Edition, a modular clip-together system that includes both a regular action cam module and a 360 module
360 imaging sounds (and is) amazing, but it’s not for everyone. See also 6 things to know about 360 cameras.