Nokia Announces Details on Their $60,000 Virtual Reality OZO Camera

I wrote about the OZO virtual reality camera that was teased by Nokia earlier this year. Much like Samsung and GoPro, they are taking a big gamble and put a lot of time and energy into virtual reality technology. After months of releasing vague teasers, they have finally announced details on their epic and expensive new camera system. Read below to see the stats.

So, I've cut to the chase and listed the relevant stats and why this camera is important:

• It uses eight synchronized 2K by 2K sensors and lenses. It exports an 8K by 4K 10-bit stitched video file with an sRGB color profile. It's limited to 30 FPS. I wish it allowed for 60 FPS, but I know that would make the video files too big and would offer too many complications during the live export. Learn more about the stats here.
• It has spatial audio capture. It has a bunch of little microphones that record the environment, so when you review the footage, it sounds like you are really there.

• The OZO uses a single interchangeable cartridge that contains the battery system and memory card. With each cartridge, you will be able to record for 45 minutes and walk away with a pre-stitched video file, saving many hours of post-production time. Sadly, each cartridge costs $5,000, which is pretty expensive since each one is nearly 10% of the camera's cost.
• The camera allegedly lets you do a live review of the stitched footage as you film. I hope that's true! It would make filming and directing much more convenient. Current systems won't allow you to live-review footage until after you download and stitch the clips together, which eats up a lot of time. I would love to see it in action!
• It will live stream footage! Much like the Samsung Beyond, which I wrote about last week, you can use this at live events and transmit 360 footage on the spot.
• It allows for wireless camera control via 802.11 Wi-Fi, which is pretty crazy if you think about the bandwidth and processing power in a camera that shoots super high-resolution spherical footage.
• It's under 10 pounds (similar to a Red Epic) and capable of being mounted to a larger drone for those cool virtual reality aerial shots. See the video below. You can also learn more about the OZO's drone mount capability in this great Road To VR article.

​Learn more about the OZO on its website.