GoPro Odyssey is Google’s Jump to Virtual Reality!
Virtual Reality has caught everyone’s attention and even Google is not spared. And with the advent of the wild, behemoth 16-camera virtual reality rig announced by GoPro, one can expect huge strides in the domain. The camera rig was announced at Google’s I/O conference and was named “Odyssey.” As crystal clear from the fact that it consists of 16 cameras, specifically GoPro Hero4 and other gadgets, it is priced at a mind-boggling $15,000! Professional content creators and producers will be able to buy the same after they submit a request application for the same.
The 360-Degree Camera Rig
The price tag of the product is bound to attract rare buyers since most of the amount will be spent in a huge amount of equipment. Buying an GoPro Odyssey would include the best 16 GoPro’s Hero 4 Black cameras, an efficient microphone, the camera rig and the required cables, and the like. The pack will also include a Pelican case to carry all the stuff and will bear warranty and support clauses with an agreement. Production companies can enter the virtual reality game with the gear and would not have to do it by all themselves.
A Part of the Google Jump Ecosystem
- GoPro Odyssey is the first camera rig built specifically for Google’s Jump platform, which was also announced at this year’s I/O conference, which was held in May. GoPro had expressed interest in the same but had not revealed its own plan, until now.
- Jump is an entire virtual reality ecosystem that would help users to create and consume virtual reality content.
- With Jump, Google is exhorting other companies to develop their own 16-camera rig and even develop assembled software for recreating scenes and stitching them with high quality.
- Jump videos are expected to be hosted in YouTube as the site has included 360-degree videos in its arsenal.
An Early-release Program?
There are many reasons why the rig is expected to be an early-release program. The price is definitely one of the reasons since some people or some companies are going to shell this kind of money for a camera rig and its equipment. GoPro and Google are both making foray into the world of 3D, and even venturing into 360-degree virtual reality. By controlling the first 360 degree videos on Jump will help in ensuring that no viewers will ever find any bad or boring content.
Getting on with the Action
- Being an eminent action camera maker, GoPro is going to provide a select group of filmmakers and video enthusiasts with the experience of directing 360-degree virtual reality video.
- The company’s 16 Hero4 cameras can shoot outstanding and immersive 8K video.
- Most filmmakers will be able to upload footage with Google’s cloud-based Jump assembler wherein each clip from the 16 cameras will be stitched to give one video of 360-degree recording.
- The first devices are scheduled to be shipped in November this year as some producers will only be lining up for the same.
- As part of the company’s “limited access program,” Odyssey will be restricted for use and available only in some countries including U.S., Canada, UK, EU, Japan, and even Brazil.
GoPro has no specific criteria of choosing filmmakers but all applicants are required to have a YouTube profile since Google is fast making efforts to leverage the video site as a specialized platform for supporting immersive video and virtual reality in totality.
Dhruvil is a Writer & Marketeer for Nimblechapps, joined in December 2014, based out of Sydney, Australia. He has worked briefly as a Branding and Digital Marketing Manager before moving to Australia. At Nimblechapps, he worked on Social Media Marketing, Branding, Email Marketing and Blogging. Dhruvil studies Business at University of Western Sydney, and also handles Operations for the company in Australia.