I tried this budget 360 camera and it surprised me – Akaso 360 review

Akaso are known for their budget action cameras, and it makes sense that they should release a 360 camera as a cheaper alternative to the market leaders, GoPro and Insta360. What’s surprising is just how good the quality of the Akaso 360 feels. It’s quite a simple design with the standard dual lenses on the side of the camera body and a very simple touchscreen and record button that shouldn’t pose anyone too much of an issue getting started.

Akaso has really thought about simplicity in use and has given you everything you need to get started, apart from the microSD card that needs to be fitted in order to record footage.

In the box, along with the camera itself, are two batteries, a pouch, a cable, and a brief get-started guide, which is all very useful. You can be up and running with the camera within about five minutes, although you will need to give the battery a top-up first.

Over the years, there have been several different designs of 360 cameras, but the type that has found the most popularity is the dual wide-angled lens design, and Akaso follows this exactly. Essentially, the two lenses capture two video files, and then within the application, either on your iOS or Android device, or on your Mac or PC, it stitches those two videos together to create a 360 video that can then be edited and shared.

Although this camera sits at the budget end of the market, it can shoot 5.7K at 30 frames per second and 72-megapixel stills, which is impressive considering the cost.

One of the features we’ve seen across the board with action cameras is the integration of advanced electronic stabilisation and the use of AI to enhance tracking, and once again, here Akaso have incorporated the latest technology.

The Akaso 360 is a 360 action camera aimed at the entry-level market, with easy-to-use functions and features and an extremely streamlined and robust editing environment for multiple platforms.

The Akaso 360 follows a similar design that we’ve seen with many of the Insta360 cameras, essentially what’s known as a candy bar design. It is just a little larger than a Mars bar. This makes it extremely pocketable and easy to carry around. It also makes it very easy to handle.

When it comes to build quality, even though this is a budget model, the materials and finish are exceptionally good, and this is one of the best products that I’ve seen from AKASO. It stands up well when put side-by-side against GoPro and Insta360 equivalents.

It’s also got a relatively decent weight to it, which is surprising because usually Akaso cameras can be extremely lightweight. In terms of size and weight, it measures 109.8 x 46.9 x 30.8 mm and weighs 180 g. While the camera isn’t waterproof, it is weatherproof, so if you get caught in a downpour, the camera should be fine. However, if you want to go diving, you will need a waterproof case.

Dominating most of the front of the camera is the large touchscreen. While this is good for previewing what you’re shooting and reviewing footage, it is just a little bit dimmer than some of the other models I’ve looked at, and you will need to shade it a little in bright sunlight to see the screen properly. The touchscreen itself was responsive during the test, but there were occasions where it was unresponsive and when changing settings this could be exteremely annoying.

In terms of design, a few other features I really like are the physical buttons on the exterior: a physical start/record button and a power button on the side.

For power and storage, there is a flap on one side of the camera with a security catch; once this is released, you have access to the battery compartment and microSD card slot. As standard, you need to provide the microSD card yourself; it’s not part of the kit. Above that door is a small rubber flap for the USB Type-C cable to be plugged into to charge the battery. The final part of the design is the quarter-inch thread on the base for mounting, and on either side of the body are two microphones for stereo audio.

While the Akaso 360 might be at the budget end of the 360 camera range, it is still packed with features, including impressive 5.7K resolution for 360° video capture through two individual lenses mounted on either side of the body.

Some of the highlights include the invisible selfie stick mode, essentially hiding the selfie stick from view, so it looks like you have your own personal drone rather than holding a stick with the camera on the end.

Built-in is super smooth stabilisation and horizon lock, both of which work exceptionally well, especially considering it’s really an entry-level camera. It also has AI tracking, so if you are moving the camera around while cycling, snowboarding, or during other activities, you can use the AI tracking to ensure that the main focus remains on the subject, making editing far easier later on.

The software also includes smart auto-editing tools that enable you to quickly edit and prepare your videos for uploading to social media and online without needing to spend hours at the computer.

A really nice feature, and just a bit of fun, is the dashboard, which creates overlay speed data that you can add to your videos, adding to the overall depth.

Inside the camera are two 1/2 inch 48-megapixel sensors, which capture the footage on either side of the camera and also enable you to capture 72-megapixel still images.

Navigating the camera is easy thanks to the large 2.29-inch high-resolution touchscreen.

The camera comes with a partner app and software that enables you to edit the footage, and this is one of the most well-rounded and feature-packed options that I’ve come across. Surprisingly, even though this is really a budget camera, it also offers one of the best software solutions I’ve seen, essentially enabling you to shoot the video quickly and frame it later, either on your mobile phone or laptop.

Getting started with the Akaso 360 is quick and easy. Pull aside the rubber flap that covers the USB-C port and plug it in to charge. Once the battery has reached capacity, pop in a microSD card and power on with the button on the right-hand side of the camera body. Then swipe down on the touchscreen, tap the settings button, and scroll down to format to ensure the card is ready for use.

To select the resolution, just swipe up, and you have options from 4K at 24 frames per second to 5.7K at 30 frames per second. Tapping back down on the screen takes you to the main screen. On the actual touchscreen, you have a few direct control options, including switching from timelapse to loop recording, photo, DNG8 AEB, interval shooting, and time fusion. What’s surprising for an entry-level camera is that you can also take full manual control.

If you swipe left, it takes you to advanced exposure settings, where you can choose auto or manual and adjust the shutter speed, ISO, and white balance. These options could be useful when you need to take a little more control over the camera or fix the exposure to avoid too much variation in brightness and darkness.

When it comes to the responsiveness of the touchscreen navigating through the options by swiping across the screen and selecting static options works really well. However, when it comes to swiping to change the resolution or manual settings, the touchscreen becomes a little less responsive, which as I previously stated can get annoying.

Starting recording is done by pushing the large button just underneath the touchscreen. It’s not labelled, but once you know it, it’s obvious and well integrated into the aesthetics of the body. To let you know when it’s recording, there’s an LED light just above which glows green when it’s ready, and once you start recording, it turns to a flashing blue LED, so you always know the status of the camera. This light is reflected on both sides of the body. There’s also a small audio alert to let you know when it starts and stops recording.

Overall, in bright conditions (which we’re lucky to have at the moment in the British summer), the quality of the video is pretty good. However, as soon as you go into low light, for instance, through woodlands, you can really see it start to struggle, and images become quite pixelated.

Once your video is captured, you can then take it into the Akaso app on your mobile phone or onto your desktop PC. What’s surprising here is that in both situations, the app and the software are exceptional: easy to use, intuitive and, more than anything, fun with plenty of options throughout.

There’s also very good compatibility, so it’ll work on iOS, Android, Mac and PC. However, I found that some options, such as Little Planet, aren’t available on the Mac, whereas they are on the PC software, so that’s something to keep in mind.

Through the software, you can quickly apply a range of stabilisation and horizon-level edits, and it does this with relatively good speed. Above all, the reliability and quality of the results within the application are generally good, although if you zoom in, you can start to see some of the grain in the image.

Exporting gives you a media file that you can then upload to YouTube or whichever destination you like. Unlike some of the other manufacturers, it doesn’t have its own dedicated video platform, but you can upload these files directly to YouTube, and they work perfectly well, although there was a slight downgrade in quality, which I also noted with other 360 cameras.

Battery life is good. The two included batteries each last about 60 minutes of recording. While this is relatively decent and you do get two hours, it would be nice if this time could be extended a little more.

Ultimately, considering the price and the fact that this is an entry-level 360 camera, it gives you everything you could want. While it may struggle in low light, the decent quality in bright sunlight, the invisible pole mode, Little Planet mode, and the intuitive software make it an appealing choice for newcomers to 360 cameras.

The Akaso 360 poses a bit of a dilemma: the quality isn’t as good as Insta360 or GoPro, notably so in low-light conditions. However, when it comes to ease of use, it’s a level up. Unlike Insta360 or GoPro, when you access the software, there’s no competition, adverts or deals to distract you from the main focus of what you want to do. The software is incredibly straightforward and intuitive. It really has been designed for those just getting into 360 cameras.

At the price of $199, there is very little not to like, and it’s absolutely perfect if you just want to capture your holiday shots or have a bit of fun with 360° video and don’t want a huge outlay.

However, it is worth highlighting that in bright, sunny conditions, the video quality is pretty good, but as soon as the light levels dip, the quality drops, and the definition and detail quickly reduce. There are a few issues with the touchscreen being a little dim in bright conditions and slightly unresponsive when you want to quickly switch settings.

All things considered, especially taking the cost into account, it makes it a very attractive alternative to the market leaders and considerably cheaper, making it an ideal option if this is your first 360 camera.