There are several things to consider. This video is intended for those who may be somewhat novice to the world of video. But this should also be helpful to those who want to see an in depth comparison between action cameras and the 360 One X. Below is some very technical info. Read it! It will potentially save you lots of time later on!
Some additional info about recording in 5.7k vs 4K on the 360 one x…Recording in 5.7K will give a slightly more crisp look. And actually when a 5.7k clip is edited with the mobile app, it down-samples it to 4K res upon export, but does not lose the clarity of 5.7k. The bitrate is reduced from approx 100mbps to approx 40mbps (compression amount varies). The downsampled 5.7k clips will actually be slightly smaller in file size compared to clips recorded at 4K 50fps. The higher resolution still takes longer to encode and render 5.7k clips in post though (if using a PC). As long as your recording time is 30 minutes or less and you are only going to use the 360 app to edit videos, then 5.7k is fine to use. Just keep in mind what you learned from this video about frame rate. You can use a program on a PC to simulate 60fps with a 30fps clip and it works fairly well, but it can take several hours to do with that high of a resolution.
Here are some things to consider…
Transfer speeds…
-Use the cable to connect to your phone to transfer clips longer than 3 minutes.
-A 3 minute 5.7K clip takes about 2m47s to transfer via wifi (15% longer than 4K)
-A 3 minute 4K clip takes about 2m22s to transfer via wifi
If your mobile device is not too old, the cable transfer is 62% faster than WiFi transfer.
File size…
-A 6minute 45sec 5.7k clip uncompressed is about 4.75Gig
After compression and downsampling to 4K from the app, that clip will be approx 1.75gig
with no appreciable difference in image quality. You wont want to work with a 5.7K
uncompressed clip on your PC as this will take many hours to transfer, encode and
downsample even a short 15min clip, to 4K. So use the app to downsample and export
as it is a lot faster. 360 video is not intended to be used the same way as regular video so the
compression isn’t really a problem.
Encoding and exporting with the app…
-A 3min 4k 50fps clip with no editing or modification takes 6m36s to render
(1m20s if using my PC)
-A 3min 5.7K 30fps clip with no editing or modification takes 3m45s to render
(1m20s if using my PC)
Yes the 5.7k clips are faster to render (stitch) because of downscaling and the lower fps
App encoding compression…
-A 3min 5.7k (compressed to 4k) 30fps clip after export is 1.44gig at 68kbps bitrate
-A 3min 4K 50fps clip after export is 2.22gig at 105kbps bitrate
-A non-stitched 4k 50fps 3min clip raw from camera is 1.8gig
The same clip stitched and exported is 2.2gig (increased file size) (1.81gig if done on PC)
-A non-stitched 5.7k 30fps 3 min clip raw from camera is (2 files – 1 from each camera) 2.1gig
The same clip stitched and exported is 1.44gig (decreased file size) (2.2gig if done on PC)
-If using a PC, the OneX program gives the choice to choose the bitrate upon stitching. You
don’t have that option using the mobile app. Use a PC for better compression control.
Flowstate Stabilization Feature…
-You will notice that if you record in 50fps that there will be a slightly less blurring effect while the camera is in motion compared to 30fps. This video gives the insight as to why that is. But the difference in the blurring effect is minimal. IMO, you can use any resolution and frame rate without worrying about clarity if you plan to use flowstate.
PC users…
-Use your PC! Transfer the files directly from you device via USB or card reader. It’s so much faster.
-Use the Insta360 Studio program to stitch and render. You can downsample the 5.7k clips to 4k and choose the compression (bitrate). Then import to your editor. Don’t bother trying to edit 5.7k video. The video looks just as good after downsampling and Insta360 Studio does it fast. If you are going to convert 30fps to a higher fps using software, export the clips at the original bitrate first, then modify the frame rate with your 3rd party software. Its best to upscale the fps after you downscale the resolution.
Exporting with “Optical Flow” (Premiere Pro CC) to convert to from 30fps to 60fps…
-If you are going set your sequence setting to 1080p 29.97FPS and crop in the video at
actual pixel size, then it’s best to export the completed video first. Import the new exported
file, then change your sequence setting to 59.94fps and select “optical flow” on your clip(s). Its
about 60% faster and typical looks better rather than exporting a 4k resolution video with optical
flow.
Upscale 30fps to 60fps render times…
20s 4k clip – 18m45s
20s 1080p clip – 4m30s
Notes, for a 360 video..
Record 5.7K 30fps – Downscale to 2K
Record 4K 50fps – Downscale to 1080p
Clarity loss is minimal when downsampled.
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