Insta360 X4: An Objective Technical Review
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- Опубліковано 9 лип 2024
- ADDITIONAL INFO:
A few details got edited out of the review as I was trying to trim it down for time, so here are some additional notes:
1. Low light image quality is improved if you drop the video resolution down to 5.7 K /30, however, if I wanted 5.7 K videos I would have bought the X3 and saved some money. They market this as an 8K camera, so it should perform properly at 8K.
2. One of my beefs with the lens guards is that there is nowhere to put them if you take them off. Nobody makes anything like a contact lens case to hold them. The soft case that comes with the camera has pockets for them, but they will not keep them from falling out or being crushed. I wish someone would make a case for the lens guards.
3. On the iPhone app when exporting there is an option for Dolby Vision. Long story short, you should always turn this on. This will make your videos look more natural and brighter when viewed on an iPhone, or any device that supports HDR. Unfortunately, the Dolby Vision export option is not available in the desktop application.
4. The movie files are absolutely gigantic which can make editing and exporting them on your iPhone very difficult unless you have a lot of free space. This is another reason I prefer to edit on the desktop using a dedicated external hard drive.
5. An entire section got edited out about how and where to upload your 360 videos and photos. Long story short, Kuula is a great place for photos, and unfortunately UA-cam is the best place for videos even though it degrades the video quality tremendously. You can also upload your videos and to Google Photos, however you will have to pay for extra storage because you will use your 15 gigs very quickly. 

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I have been into panoramic photography for over 2 decades going all the way back to when the stitching was basically done by hand, so I've wanted one of these dual-lens panoramic cameras for a long time. However, I never bought one until the Insta360 X4 because the others were either too expensive or not up to the quality (8K) that I needed. So, after watching the initial round of sponsored reviews I decided to take the plunge. At first I was disappointed that reality was different than what those schill reviews led me to expect, but the more I used the camera the more I began to appreciate it despite its shortcomings. I am hoping that Insta360 will address the numerous software issues in the mobile and desktop apps, but even in its current state this is a lot of fun to play with.
0:00 - Intro
0:50 - What is it?
2:05 - The Hardware & Weight
5:58 - Lens Guards
8:13 - Lens Cap
10:15 - Image Sensors
11:40 - Sample Videos
12:38 - Camera Firmware
15:48 - Insta360 Mobile App
19:26 - Insta360 Studio
28:44 - Image Quality
30:40 - Conclusion - Наука та технологія
I feel like I just had a brain massage. No fluff, no hype, no waste of time, right to the point. Thank you!! I think I will be purchasing one of these very soon.
I watched a few reviews, before brought it 😂! Wishing I watched your video 😅! Thank you! Your work explains more in depth, and helps me understand a bit more and better! Much appreciated!👍👍👍🙏🙏🙏
Thank you for a hype-free review. I bought an X4 and I found your video most informative.
I own this camera. I think your video is point on. Not biased, not hateful. Exactly the type of review beneficial to potential buyers. Even as an owner I learnt a few new things.
thanks!
Nice review, not many speak about the AI stitching! Which audio setting do you find works best?
I just leave it on normal. The other settings like the one that isolates your voice do work, but it obviously mangles the audio a bit. I guess it depends on what you’re really doing with the recordings.
Is it currently the best on the market? or do you recommend another 360? great video, I would like you to talk about the accessories 👏
It is arguably the best of the two lens cameras, but obviously it will not compare to one of the pro multi lens cameras that cost many thousands of dollars.
I totally enjoyed this technical video. I have never owned a 360 camera. I really wanted to like this, but with the resolution of the 360 video being only 2.5K I am not sure about this. Maybe when we can get a native 4K 360 resolution I will think about it.
This is probably as good as it gets because to get a cropped 4K movie out of a 360 image you’d need to record at close to 16K which is not practical. The file sizes would be astronomical, and no iPhone or computer would be able to handle it. Recording at 8K is about as high as makes practical sense.
@@BrianGreenstone Interesting, thanks for the explanation.
In single lens mode, DURING recording, can we switch back and forth between lenses.
Please answer ! Thanks in advance
I believe so. I don’t use this in single lens mode since I have better cameras for that, but there is a front-rear toggle button on the screen which I assume you can still press while it’s recording.
You can't. Hopefully they can fix that through software update.
Interesting and objective. One key setting which i have only seen tested in two reviews is the sharpness setting. I know that standard advice for sharpness settings is to use low and maybe add sharpness in editing but with this camera and with all the AI stuff going on, low sharpness seems to throw away the 8k advantage as it loses details as well as sharpness. And details cannot be recovered once lost. Do you have any views on this?
Yeah, I'm using the medium sharpness setting and then bumping it up in Final Cut Pro as a final step. It's definitely a little soft even in the medium setting.
Any idea why the X3 can shoot in LOG, but the X4 can't?
No, but it’s weird, right?