Dot 360: Eyes In The Back Of My Camera
January 26, 2012 | Posted by Jon Best
Almost a year ago I discovered this device while hitting my stumble button, it is simply an extension for the iPhone that allows you to record video in all directions at once. When played back on the iPhone or browser you can pan around the video as it plays to view 360º of the room. The Dot 360 add-on utilizes the iPhone camera by shooting video into a bowl that reflects a warped circular video of the entire room. The app (called "Looker") then takes that warped video and de-warps it into a recognizable video.
The idea is simple and only requires the add-on that snaps smoothly to the back of the iPhone, and the free app available in the store.
I preordered my Dot around May for a November release and received it just before Christmas, though I'm only now finding the time to really check it out. It's really easy to use and the app has a bunch of nice optional features. My only concern is that the quality on the finished video is not that great, but I'm sure this is something that can be easily improved with app updates as it's still using the iPhone camera which is high quality.