Performance and Sample Shots
The Theta S is a simple device to use and that’s what we like the most about it. Just power it up, choose a shooting mode, and you can start capturing the environment you’re in. That alone would work and you don’t really need to have a live feed of the image since it basically shoots everything around it — all you have to do is raise it up and press the big circle button.
Although that may be the case, connecting to a smartphone or tablet will let you have manual control on its settings for shooting. ISO, shutter speed, white balance, and exposure value are some of the things you can tweak to achieve that shot that you want. Plus, there’s also the interval shooting mode if you want to create a 360-degree video of a time lapse which we think would be pretty cool (we’ll try to make one and update this post if time permits). Those additional features, for us, are reasons enough to make the app a must-download when you have this device.
Capturing 360-degree photos and viewing them on the app afterwards bring a sense of entertainment since it’s pretty fun to swipe the image around and look at every corner of the image surrounding you. Users can also zoom out of the image which creates a cool spherical version of the surroundings. Check the samples below.
Pre-ride 360-degree group photo #theta360 – Spherical Image – RICOH THETA
MOA Fountain #theta360 – Spherical Image – RICOH THETA
Post from RICOH THETA. #theta360 – Spherical Image – RICOH THETA
The following are sample videos with the Theta S fixed on the ground, mounted on a bicycle, and handheld at night:
Day – Fixed
Day – Bike-mounted
Night – Handheld
What we noticed from the above samples was that video quality wasn’t that great. Colors are a bit dull, and although recorded at Full HD resolution, still isn’t that crisp and detailed. We kind of get where the company is going for, though — being more of a fun, novelty item and not strictly designed for professional use. Its photos, however, have good colors in them with natural exposure.
The company didn’t specify how big its battery capacity is, but during our entire time with it, we didn’t experience running out of juice in the middle of using it. Just be sure to charge it after every shooting session. On the downside, the Theta S is limited to only 8GB of built-in, non-expandable memory. Yes, you could simply transfer the files to your smartphone to free up space, but that would take a long time. It also means that you’re limited to only 8GB of footage when shooting a time lapse or recording videos continuously.
Conclusion
The Ricoh Theta S has a nice, compact build with an easy to navigate buttons which make it a really straightforward device. Its free app is a must-have since it adds more flexibility to shooting and makes it possible to produce additional effects (like time lapse via interval shooting). It has an ample battery life that didn’t leave us hanging while shooting, but video quality doesn’t hit us as impressive. Still, it is an overall fun device to have and everyone we showed it to thought it was pretty cool as well. Its 8GB internal memory is also limiting, so keep in mind to always transfer your files to a local storage after you shoot.
It is priced at Php19,990 and is available thru Camerahaus.
Ricoh Theta S specs:
2x 1/2.3-inch 12M CMOS sensor
14MP output pixel count equivalent
F2.0 lens
Full HD video at 30fps
8GB internal storage (non-expandable)
Wi-Fi
HDMI
44 x 130 x 22.9mm (dimensions)
125 grams
What we liked about it:
- Compact build
- Easy to use
- App is useful
- Ample battery life
- Overall a fun device
What we didn’t like:
- Video quality not that great
- Non-expandable memory
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