Samsung might already gearing up for its next iteration of Gear 360, the company’s 360 camera introduced back in 2016 and then refreshed in 2017 with a new hand-held design. This time around though it appears Samsung is entertaining a different design route, molding the camera into a lovable cartoon character replete with a cute emoji face.
First reported by Dutch publication Let’s Go Digital, Samsung has registered a new patent with the Korea Intellectual Property Rights Information Service (KIPRIS) under the number 3020170013789.
Filed with KIPRIS just last week, the new patent contains design sketches and decidedly ‘marketing ready’ product photos of the camera. Although the patent doesn’t make specific mention of the Gear 360 product line, the cute little robot-like camera wearing a VR headset basically seals the deal.
While it’s uncertain if this is definitively the next iteration of Gear 360, the resemblance in contrast to this year’s model, released in April 2017, is also pretty striking.
Yet more uncertain is how the little top-heavy camera is supposed to keep standing on such a small base, or how it will attach to standard tripods (maybe the base unscrews?), as no information besides product images are available in the actual filing. We’ll just have to wait and see if Samsung is softening its design concept with the jolly little character, or if the patent was really just a proof-of-concept.
Either way, the idea of altering the camera’s appearance to be less device-like and more doll-like is interesting. How will it effect 360 filming? Will subjects feel more comfortable interacting with the camera, treating it more like a person? Is Samsung targeting ‘less serious’ consumers as a result? We can’t say for sure, but we can bet more information will be released sometime next year, because it’s way too early for another Gear 360 iteration.
