360° cameras are great for covering all directions simultaneously. You can capture 360° imagery while driving a vehicle or walking.
Some cameras have built-in GPS; others have an accompanying mobile app that records GPS information externally.
Remember that cameras differ in the way they stitch the 360° images. Some cameras do it as you go, while some require you to use a special program to do it. This affects your workflow when uploading to Mapillary. If you need to stitch separately, the whole workflow will be much more time-consuming, even though the result might be of better quality compared to cameras that stitch the imagery on the fly.
For Mapillary purposes it’s best to capture images in video format if driving; otherwise, if you're biking or walking, the time-lapse format is preferable because you save a lot on data volume, reviewing, and upload time.
Recommended devices
Based on experience from our community, partners, and customers, we've identified the 360° cameras that are currently most suitable for Mapillary purposes. If you're thinking of purchasing a 360° camera, we highly recommend that you choose from the following list.
- Best overall consumer device
- Professional and Survey Grade 360° cameras
You may also be able to use other cameras (like the Insta360 X3) but the related workflows may not be as smooth. As a rule, our platform supports 360° imagery if one of the two following conditions is fulfilled:
- The image is equirectangular (2:1 aspect ratio) or
- The image contains GPano Photo Sphere Metadata.