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Insta360 launches Android adapter for its 360-degree smartphone camera

The iPhone add-on Insta360 One immersive camera is no longer limited to just Apple fans — on Wednesday, December 6, Insta360 launched an Android adapter for the 360 smartphone camera.

While companies often launch one version and then create a completely new one to support the opposite operating system, Insta360 took a different approach. The Insta360 One for Android is the same exact device as the iOS-compatible camera, only Android users just need to add on a small adapter that converts the camera’s Lightning port attachment to a USB Type-C or Micro USB port.

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With the adapter, the company brings the camera’s full range of features to the Android operating system, offering another option over the company’s Android Insta360 Air add-on camera. The Insta360 One offers 4K recording at 30 fps or 2.5K at the faster 60 fps frame rate along with 24-megapixel still photos, recording from two lenses. The camera also uses built-in six-axis image stabilization.

While the camera can now attach to both iPhone and Android devices, the 360 camera can also record without being attached to the smartphone, which allows for a handful of different features. One of those options is the ability to add the camera to the Insta360 selfie stick and hoist the camera up in the air for drone-free aerial shots.

The iOS app’s features will also soon be available to Android users. Along with controlling the camera, the app includes several editing modes, including the ability to split the 360 video into separate regular aspect ratio videos. Another edit allows users to convert to the standard view while choosing which parts of the 360 view to include when, making it possible to follow the action by cropping from 360. Another option, SmartTrack, will automatically follow a selected subject. Users also aren’t limited to one format for a single video, with the option to switch formats mid-recording, such as when going from immersive to that Tiny Planet effect.

The Android adapter is available for $30 for devices with a USB Type-C or a Micro USB port. Insta360 is also bundling the camera with the adapter for a limited time for $298, bringing the price of the camera to the same level as iOS users who don’t need that adapter. The discount, along with promotional prices for the standard iOS version and the Insta360 Nano and Insta360 Pro, ends on December 17.

Hillary K. Grigonis
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