From niche to necessary: This is why 360 cameras took off in 2025

While 360 cameras have been around for a hot minute, arguably the technology only properly found its feet for most people with the release of the Insta360 X4 in 2024. So why did it take another year? Let me explain...

Until the X4, 360 cameras were already pretty much there. I'd already written about how cool the tech was for consumers – something you could take on a family vacation.

GoPro had come along with the Max camera and shown the possibilities, then Insta360 refined the concept with the X series – and it was, essentially, established at the point the company's X4 upped the video resolution to 8K.

That means 8K across the dual fisheye cameras that record the spherical view of the whole scene, so we're still not talking masses of resolution – especially if you need to crop into a specific region of the view – but it was still a significant and visible jump up from the 5.7K that leading predecessors the X3 and the GoPro Max offered.

So it sounds like 2024, not 2025, was the year of 360?

Yes, sure, one company gave consumers a great option last year (and it was still Insta360's flagship product coming into this year), but one camera does not an industry make.

Why 2025 is different is because there was suddenly a lot of 360 cameras offering 8K resolution and a variety of features. Suddenly, consumers thinking of entering the market are spoiled for choice – and not just from suspect value brands, either.

DJI and GoPro were among the big names offering a bigger, better selection – while Insta360 had new offerings for consumers, too.

GoPro Max 2

GoPro Max 2: Actually worth the wait

Those of us who had been watching the action camera industry for a long time had started to get a little frustrated by GoPro. The company has brilliant products, but also kept openly hinting that it would replace its 5.7K 360 camera.

After nothing happened for a long time, something arguably even more frustrating happened – the original camera got a very minor update that gave it a USB-C socket so you could at least charge it in this day and age. Fine, but not what we'd been hoping for.

Then… Ta Da! When the Max 2 did arrive for a review in late 2025, it boasted not just 8K but something GoPro called 'True 8K' (spoiler: it's still 8K). Compatible with GoPro's new Enduro batteries and mounts, the camera has impressive image quality and looks thoroughly 'GoPro'.

The company has also mastered replaceable lens glass – very in-keeping with its reputation for ruggedness (it's an important issue for 360 cameras, which took Insta360 several iterations before mastering with the X5).

DJI Osmo 360

DJI Osmo 360: Amazing resolution and features from a newbie

Some might say that DJI – having seen Insta360 building a drone company and already in a battle with GoPro for the best action camera – decided that this battle couldn't be avoided.

Arguably, it's been the most interesting for a lot of reasons. No question it's a great camera. DJI opted to use square imager sensors, which are more capable in lower light. The flipside might be that you'd expect to see a more pronounced blur (thanks to a wider aperture) but I found it did well in my testing.

On the other hand, DJI's reframing software was more obviously a first-generation product – capable but a little less polished, especially compared to Insta360 Studio. Still, with 120MP stills and some surprising discounts early on, DJI shouldn't be discounted.

The other reason the company may be of interest has to do with some rumors about a different 360 camera device… but we've got something else to discuss first.

Insta360 X5

Insta360 X5: Premium camera from the market leader refined

The Insta360 X5 didn't boost the resolution from 8K, but it did make a number of refinements – the principle one being the ability to shoot without using lens guards.

Until this point, using an X-series camera in rougher situations had usually meant protecting the lenses with guards, which in turn tended to affect the shot (especially visible where the image was stitched). The X5 had both replaceable lenses and twist-on/off guards, meaning that the camera could be used in a lot of contexts without too much worry.

With battery life at up to 185 minutes in 'Endurance mode' (though more realistically around an hour and a half), the camera was also just better in terms of processing than its predecessor. And 5.7K can also be shot at 60fps, though at 72MP the stills resolution woudln't match the DJI Osmo 360 that would come later in the year.

Then again, it wouldn't be the last Insta360 camera of 2025…

Cheaper choices

Insta360 X4 Air: Two 8K choices from one company!

Insta360 did release another camera in 2025, but not the (presumably under development somewhere) X6.

No, it was the X4 Air, which cut the camera down to the bare bones, made it even smaller and less powerful than the X4 itself, but crucially kept the 8K video – which it seems Insta360 now feels is a competitive essential.

Akaso 360: A budget brand enters the 360 market

It used to be that the cheapest way to get a 360 camera was to see how far back you could go in the Insta360 X series, but for other action cameras there were always brands out there dedicated to creating specific lower-cost models.

As of this year, one of those brands – Akaso – has delivered a 360 camera, so there is no need to hope someone is still keeping stock of an old Insta360 X3 and that it's being heavily discounted. Instead, you can go straight for the (admittedly also 5.7K maximum) Akaso 360.

360 camera drones

Antigravity A1: The flying 360 camera launched in 2025

I thought it wasn't going to happen. I was even told it wasn't going to happen, but in the end it did. The Antigravity A1 – a drone built with a 360 camera using Insta360 technology – was launched before the end of 2025.

In other words, 360 camera tech has not only taken off with the major action camera brands – it has now literally taken off, too.

Flying the drone requires wearing FPV goggles, so you can turn your head and sensors detect the movement, showing you the view as if you were looking there. That's great, like being a pilot in a cockpit, and takes advantage of FPV technology better than many drones before it – but that's only half the brilliance.

You also get the true advantage of 360 filming: that you can re-direct the camera after the flight, in the edit. Put these two things together and you can fly a difficult and exciting flight through obstacles, but then in the edit keep the view on the subject as you swoop past it.

Having flown this and edited using the software – which is Insta360's – I found it surprisingly easy. This tool has been more refined over time than GoPro's or DJI's. The only real problem (other than the fact that any editing does add a little time) is that it's a bit too fun. This was always a problem with drones, but definitely more so now!

And in 2026?

It's impressive that Antigravity – not market leader DJI – is the company that got this drone out first, but rumors suggest that there might be an Avata 360 from DJI before the end of 2026. And it does seem unlikely that a company so far ahead in other areas of drone tech could be so far behind here.

Otherwise, like many 360 camera users, I'll be hoping against hope that the battery and heat management tech can come along to afford even higher resolution – or, failing that, 60fps at 8K. I suspect something like 11MP sampled down for a sharper 8K than the X5, but still a 7680 x 4320 output limit.

Insta360 has, historically, released a new X series camera around April, so it's not impossible that we'll see a new device then. I can't imagine GoPro will have a new device that quickly, given it took half a decade last time, while DJI is much harder to anticipate.

Other than some optimistic online chat, I've read nothing about either, so I suspect 2026 will be a year of wait and see (or, in other words, now really is the time to join the 360 market because the tech has just climbed a good step and is catching its breath.

Should you buy a 360 camera?

Personally, I think it's a great time, and for creatives with a social and video focus – or with mapping / recording – it's a great way to get ahead. It's just early enough that effects like 'small world' and manipulating framing don't seem overused, which means for a now relatively inexpensive device you can get a lot of impact.

As mentioned above, it seems unlikely that a significant tech change can come. But there is one thing that all the main brands can improve: their software, which comes in the form of phone apps and editing apps for the computer.

In every case (at the moment) these are provided as free downloads, so having the camera won't actually slow you down – it'll get you ahead of the competition when it comes to practicing!

It's also true that the 8K resolution standard means most 360 cameras are effectively good enough to be used as 4K action cameras. So while they might seem a little costly, it might be a cost you don't need to spend twice.

All the key brands also have compatibility with low-cost Bluetooth microphones, keeping editing quick for socials.

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Take a look at the best 360 cameras, along with the best action cameras and the best 8K cameras.