The RICOH THETA 360° cameras are used widely in industry for things like high volume automotive sales, construction site documentation and monitoring, real estate visual tours, robotics, and more. Which model works best for your use case? Which model fits your requirements and budget? This guide is intended to make it easier to make a clear decision on which THETA model works for you. If you are buying in large volumes, you can connect with RICOH for sales discounts
Quick Summary
THETA X
Use case: Used car sales, professional photographers, or enthusiasts.
Reason: Newest model, best possible images. Large LCD with easy settings adjustments. Removable battery. Supports plug-ins.
THETA Z1
Use case: Professional photographer, businesses such as construction or real estate, and enthusiasts. This is RICOH's high-end model.
Reason: Largest image sensor which means it's excellent in low-light conditions. Only model that supports DNG/RAW images. Supports live streaming. Supports plug-ins.
THETA SC2
Use case: Consumer. Businesses that are focused on still images but want to reduce cost. This is the cheapest camera of the current models.
Reason: Image and video resolution are same as V. Takes longer to process image inside camera and be ready for next shot. Does not support plug-ins or streaming. Developers should note that SC2 does not work with SDK (as of March 16, 2020).
Quick Links
THETA X - Newest THETA produced by RICOH, highest resolution images, large LCD screen, removable battery. Supports plug-ins. Good for used car sales.
Price: $799.95 - Buy Now!
THETA Z1 - Highest quality camera produced by RICOH, large 1” sensor means great in low-light conditions, API and SDK available, OLED screen. Only model to support DNG/RAW images. Supports plug-ins. Good for VFX. 4K streaming.
Price: $1049.95 - Buy Now!
THETA SC2 - Consumer focused with small informational OLED screen, multiple colors. A THETA SC2 for Business is available with ROOM preset mode suitable for indoor shooting with a large gap in brightness between indoor and outdoors. Does not support plug-ins. Not good for VFX. Does not support live streaming. Does not support wireless LAN client mode.
Price: $299.95 - Buy Now!
Older Models
The S, SC, and m15 are older models. We do not recommend buying them. The V is no longer in production but still used widely.
THETA V - Great value for the price, used widely, API and SDK available, wide range of articles and information on theta360.guide. Supports plug-ins. 4K streaming. No longer in production.
THETA SC - Consumer focused camera, does not have plug-in API access. Does not support plug-ins.
THETA S - Excellent camera, but getting long in the tooth. Video is 2K, which is no longer an acceptable resolution for 360° cameras. Does not support plug-ins.
THETA m15 - Outdated camera that still shows the potential for 360° imagery, but is not appropriate for business use.
Specifications
|
THETA Z1 |
THETA SC2 |
THETA X |
|
|
API |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
|
Plug-in architecture |
Yes |
No |
Yes |
|
Pixels |
20 MP (x2) |
14MP (x2) |
60MP (11008 x 5504, 11K) |
|
Sensor Size: |
1.0-inch Type (x2) |
1/2.3 CMOS (x2) |
1/2.0 type (×2) |
|
Total Memory: |
19GB |
14GB |
Internal memory: Approx. 46GB External: |
|
F-Stop: |
F/2.1 F/3.5 F/5.6 |
F/2.0 |
F2.4 |
|
Weight: |
182g |
104g |
170g |
|
Colors: |
Black |
White, Blue, Pink, Beige |
Metallic Grey |
|
Object Distance: |
40cm – ∞ (from front of lens) |
10cm - ∞ (from front of lens) |
40cm - ∞ (from front of lens) |
|
Still Image Shutter Speed: |
1/25000 to 60 sec. |
[AUTO] 1/25000 - 1/8 sec, [Shutter priority mode] 1/25000 - 1/8 sec [Manual] 1/25000 - 60 sec |
[AUTO] 1/16000 sec to 1/8 sec, [Shutter Priority, ISO Priority] 1/16000 sec to 15 sec, [Manual] 1/16000 sec to 60 sec |
|
Still Image ISO Sensitivity: |
ISO 80 to 6400 |
(Automatic) ISO64 - 1600 The Upper Limit settings, (ISO priority mode) ISO64 - 3200 (Manual mode) ISO64 - 3200 |
[AUTO, Shutter Priority] ISO50 to 3200, The Upper Limit settings ISO100 to 3200, [ISO Priority, Manual] ISO50 to 3200 |
|
Video ISO Sensitivity: |
ISO 80 to 6400 |
50 to 3200 | |
|
Live Streaming ISO: |
ISO 80 to 6400 |
N/A |
50 to 3200 |
|
Video: |
4K |
4K and 2K |
5.7K |
|
Max. Stills Image Resolution: |
6720×3360 |
5376×2688 |
11K: 11008 × 5504 and 5.5K: 5504 × 2752 |
|
Max. Video Resolution: |
3840×1920 / 56 Mbps |
3840×1920 / 54Mbps |
5.7K: 5760 x 2880 /30fps /120Mbps,64Mbps,32Mbps 4K: 3840 × 1920 /60fps /120Mbps,64Mbps,32Mbps 4K: 3840 × 1920 /30fps /100Mbps,54Mbps,32Mbps 2K: 1920 × 960 /30fps /32Mbps,16Mbps,8Mbps |
|
Max. Live Streaming Rates: |
3840×1920 / 120 Mbps |
N/A |
4K 3840 × 1920 /30fps /100Mbps |
|
Video FPS: |
30fps |
30fps |
5.7K @30fps, 4K @60fps and 30fps, 2K @30fps |
|
Photos Per Battery Life: |
Stills: 300 Video: 60 mins |
Still image: Approx. 220 photos Video: 5.7K 30fps Approx. 30 minutes, 4K 30fps Approx. 55 minutes |
|
|
Stills Storage Capacity: |
350 RAW or 2400 JPEG | Approx. 4600 photos (11K) or Approx. 11500 photos (5.5K) | |
|
Max. Recording Time Per Clip: |
Max. 5 minutes / 25 minutes |
Video (time per recording): Max. 5 minutes/Max. 25 minutes | |
|
Total Video Storage Capacity (“Large” Files): |
40 Mins. or 130 Mins.
|
Video (total recording time): 5.7K/30fps/120Mbps: Approx. 50 minutes 5.7K/30fps/64Mbps: Approx. 100 minutes 5.7K/30fps/32Mbps: Approx. 200 minutes 4K/60fps/120Mbps: Approx. 50 minutes 4K/60fps/64Mbps: Approx. 100 minutes 4K/60fps/32Mbps: Approx. 200 minutes 4K/30fps/100Mbps: Approx. 60 minutes 4K/30fps/54Mbps: Approx. 115 minutes 4K/30fps/32Mbps: Approx. 200 minutes 2K/30fps/32Mbps: Approx. 200 minutes 2K/30fps/16Mbps: Approx. 395 minutes 2K/30fps/8Mbps: Approx. 775 minutes |
|
|
Shooting Modes: |
1. Auto 2. Aperture Priority 3. Shutter Priority 4. ISO Priority 5. Manual |
|
|
|
Ports: |
USB Type-C: USB3.0 |
Micro-USB: USB 2.0, microphone terminal |
USB Type-C, USB3.2 gen1 |
|
360º HD Live Streaming: |
✓ |
x |
✓ maximum shooting time for recording 5.7K/30 fps and 4K/60 fps videos is approx. 10 mins |
|
Tripod Mount: |
✓ |
✓ |
✓ |
|
Google Street View Connectivity: |
Not specified |
✓ |
✓ |
|
Long Exposure: |
✓ |
✓ |
✓ |
|
Audio For Video Recording: |
✓ |
✓ |
✓ |
|
4-Channel Microphone: |
✓ |
x |
x |
|
Bluetooth: |
✓ |
✓ |
✓ |
|
Image Stabilization: |
✓ |
✓ | |
|
Multi-Bracket Shooting: |
✓ |
✓ |
|
|
RAW Recording: |
✓ |
x |
x |