Nikon joins the action camera world, offers 360-degree 4K footage

What we know of the Nikon KeyMission 360

Published: January 5, 2016 at 10:41 pm

A first for the Japanese camera experts, Nikon has just announced its entry into the action camera market. In order to compete with the likes of GoPro and Sony, Nikon’s ‘KeyMission 360’ will offer 360-degree footage in a 4K resolution.

With such a feature, Nikon is making a big splash into a beckoning virtual reality (VR) market, something that both YouTube and Facebook have recently started to support in playback and something that none of the major names in digital cameras are currently offering for consumers.

Related reading: 360-degree Virtual Reality camera tech is coming to a helmet near you

The key to this camera’s 360-degree footage is the use of ultra-wide-angle lenses on two opposite sides. The camera features electronic vibration reduction (think image stabilization), although we believe this is applied to the footage after recording has taken place.

Gadget and lifestyle website ‘The Verge’ are claiming the new Nikon camera to be just a tad larger than GoPro’s hugely popular Session Hero 4 camera.

Quoted to be waterproof to depths of 30 meters (100ft) without the need for additional housing, the KeyMission is also claimed to be shock resistant to 2m (6.6ft) drops, dust proof and ready for low temperatures.

Information on pricing, dimensions, available mounts and exact features are still to be announced. This new action camera is expected to be released from around March 2016.

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First footage from the Nikon KeyMission 360