Ricoh launches Theta S 360-degree camera with dual 12MP sensors at Rs 39,995

Ricoh India announced the launch of its handheld 360-degree camera called the Theta S at an event in Mumbai today. The Ricoh Theta S will start selling from Rs 39,995 from 14 December 2015 onwards. It will be selling on Amazon as well as with select Ricoh dealers throughout the country. You can even pre-book the Theta S for Rs 35,995 by paying Rs 7,199 upfront and the remaining amount later on Ricohestore.  The Ricoh Theta S is an improvement over the Ricoh Theta, that was launched two years ago at IFA Berlin. The Ricoh Theta S houses dual 1/2.3-inch 12MP sensors which give a 14MP equivalent output. Both the camera sensors are attached with wide angle fish eye lenses with an f/2.0 aperture. It uses the proprietary ultra-small twin-lens folded-optical system.  The Ricoh Theta S also lets you shoot full HD videos at 25fps or 30fps for a good 25 mins. It comes with 8GB internal storage and there is no microSD card slot. The spherical images can be uploaded to theta360.com and shared via various social media platforms such as Facebook, Twitter and Tumblr as well as can be posted to Google Maps, Google+ and YouTube 360° Channel. It has an ISO range going from 100 to 1600 for still images and video. Apart from this you can download the Theta app from the Google Play Store and Apple Store to view your images as well as do some remote shooting. The live view while shooting offers 10fps on the display of your phone. [caption id=“attachment_288451” align=“aligncenter” width=“640”]  Kazunbo Saiki and Manoj Kumar of Ricoh showing the Theta S camera[/caption] When asked about the focal length of the Theta S, Kazunobu Saiki, group leader of visual revolution business at Ricoh told us that that was a trade secret, but said, “We use a very wide-angle lenses which together gives a 360 degree view. We also make use of dual-prisms which fold the light on the top and bottom. All of the image processing is done on the device itself.” A quick check at some of the EXIF information on some Ricoh Theta S shows that the focal length to be 1.3mm. In addition to the regular Theta app, you also have the option to use Theta+ for image editing images or even taking square or rectangular crops, for sending it directly to social media sites. The Theta S also lets you shoot full HD videos by just switching the camera modes from the right hand side. Matte rubber finish on the Theta S does give it a good grip. Speaking at the launch event, Manoj Kumar, managing director and CEO of Ricoh India said, “The improved camera is four times faster with enhanced image quality. Industries like real estate, architecture, events, travel & leisure will be benefited through this innovative solution which capture’s photographer 360 degrees.”