PRAKTICA Luxmedia Z360 Camera User Manual

PRAKTICA Luxmedia Z360 Camera User Manual

User Manual

PRAKTICA International Ltd, 5 Century Point, Halifax Road, High Wycombe, HP12 3SL, United Kingdom
www.praktica.com | care@praktica.com | +44(0)344 822 9940

Copyright

This manual contains proprietary information protected by copyright. All rights are reserved. No part of this manual may be reproduced by any mechanical, electronic or other means, in any form, without prior written permission of the manufacturer. © Copyright 2018

WEEE Notice

Disposal of Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment and/or Battery b yusers in private households in the European Union.
This symbol on the product or on the packaging indicates that this cannot be disposed of as a household waste. You must dispose of your waste equipment and/or battery by handling it over to the applicable take-back scheme for the recycling of electrical and electronic equipment and/or battery. For more information about recycling of this equipment and/or battery, please contact your city office, the shop where you purchased the equipment or your household waste disposal service. The recycling of materials will help to conserve natural resources and ensure that it is recycled in a manner that protects human health and environment.

CE Regulatory Notice

The product herewith complies with the requirements of the Low Voltage Directive 2006/95/EC, the EMC Directive 2004/108/EC, the R&TTE Directive 1999/5/EC and the RoHS Directive 2011/65/EC. This product meets the Basic Restriction limits of 1999/519/EC.

Introduction

The PRAKTICA Luxmedia Z360 Camera immerses you in a world of 360° content; Shoot 4K videos, take exceptionally detailed photos or live stream on social media at the push of a button. The two powerful 180° fisheye lenses and 20MP sensor effortlessly capture details you never thought possible. It’s perfectly pocket-sized and lightweight, making it the ultimate travel essential. When you wirelessly connect your Z360 to your mobile device, you can capture videos and photos remotely. You can also view and share your vidoes and photos using the Pocket360 app.

Camera Information

• Do not take apart or attempt to service the camera yourself. This will invalidate the warranty
• This camera is not waterproof. Do not expose to water or extreme temperatures
• Do not expose the lens to direct sunlight for extended periods of time
• Do not use abrasive chemicals, cleaning solvents or strong detergents to clean the Z360. Wipe with a soft, damp cloth
• When the camera is used for an extended period of time, it is normal for the camera body to feel warm

Function Keys & Interface

1. First time use

•  Please charge the Z360’s built-in battery before use. Simply connect the Micro USB cable provided to the USB terminal of the camera. See (1) above.
• Insert a Micro SD card into the camera’s Micro SD slot (2).

2. Power On/Off

• Press the power button ( )
• When you turn on the camera you will hear two beeps.
• To turn off the camera hold the power button for two seconds and you will hear three beeps

3. Charging

• Connect the Z360 to your PC or mains outlet with the approved PRAKTICA USB adapter* and provided USB Cable.
• When the camera is charging it will show the “Power Charging” icon on the LCD screen (6). The camera status light (11) will also flash green.
• A fully charged battery will record approx: Video: 45mins @ 4k, 70mins @ FHD, Photo: 130 images

4. Connecting to the app

• Download the ‘Hi 360’ App from your app store.
• Ensure all wireless and GPS settings are ON.
• Open the ‘Hi 360’ App and follow the instructions to connect the camera.
• Scan for available devices. Your camera will appear something like ‘MyCameraB0F1EC73C0DD’

5. Capture Mode

Adjusting the mode on the camera
Single Shot ( ) Time Lapse ( ) Recording Video ( )
You can change the camera shooting mode manually and in the app.

• Make sure your Z360 camera is on, then push the Mode button ( )(9).
• Once chosen capture mode is selected, press the shutter button (7) on the front of the camera.

Single Shot mode/Time Lapse – the camera will beep twice to confirm that the photo has been taken.
Video mode – a single beep will sound at the start of a recording and two beeps at the end. Please note: time lapse mode will initially be set to 60 seconds. If you would like to change the interval time, you can alter this on the phone app.
Adjusting the mode on the app
The second way is to connect the Pocket360 App on your smartphone to your camera and change the mode of shooting by selecting the camera or video camera icons (refer to step 5 for full instructions).
Important: Artificial light and objects within 1 metre of your camera can cause imagery to become distorted. For this reason we would recommend mounting your camera onto a tripod or selfie stick and shooting in a naturally lit open space.

6. Playback

On your phone app:

• Click the bottom left icon to view your image gallery. Your content will automatically save to the Z360’s internal memory known as ‘Camera Gallery’. You cannot watch videos in this view.
• In order to view and share your footage you will need to save the image or video to your phone app also known as ‘App Gallery’ by clicking .

For Time Lapse an extra step applies. Click the bottom right symbol to select the frames per second rate (5, 10, 30, 60 FPS) you wish to set your video to. Your Time Lapse video will now appear twice in your Phone Gallery in different formats.
If you receive an error message saying ‘your phone cannot support this video’ your smartphone does not have 4K viewing capabilities. We would recommend privately uploading your video to a social media site from the app (see section 7) or view content on your laptop/computer. Alternatively you can reduce the resolution setting of your camera to 1920x1080p

Choose between the four 360 viewing modes when viewing content:

• Panorama :view the complete 360° field of view as one image
• Gyroscope :pan or tilt the smartphone to view the image from different angles
• Drag :drag across the screen in any direction to view the image from different angles
• VR :display two identical images with 360 motions on a single screen. Recommended to use with a VR headset
  Click on the icon to share content to social media sites, upload to Google Photos, Google Drive and more. Remember not all platforms are compatible with 360 content, refer to section 7 for full details.

On your laptop/computer:

Step 1:

Option 1: Remove your Micro SD card from your camera and insert it into your computer using an SD card reader Option 2: Connect your Z360 to your computer with the USB cable provided
Press and hold the power button on the Z360 for two seconds. The camera will turn off and beep three times.
Hold the power button for an additional two seconds and the camera screen will change. The camera will beep an additional four times. Your camera should then appear on your computer in devices. The LED light on the back of the camera will flash green when it successfully connects to your computer.

Step 2:

Next, download a VR viewing application. There are a number of different options available on the internet. Please visit our website and navigate your way to the Z360 product page. There will be a link in the description for our recommended application. Visit your favourite social media websites and upload your content (refer to step 7).

7 Sharing Content

Upload your photos and videos to the web so your friends and fa2mily can enjoy your content too. Remember not all social media platforms are compatible with 360 content, we would recommend using YouTube and Facebook.
As this technology can be tricky to use we’ve listed a few pointers below:

• It is important to note that initially your uploaded photograph or video may not seem 360
• Please give the website up to 30 minutes to format your content

Uploading from your computer:

• Be patient – if you have filmed in 4K your video will take longer to load
• Your video needs to be fully loaded for the content to appear in full 4K
• YouTube – ensure you select the best quality setting when watching your video

Uploading from your smartphone:

• Phone app – upload content from within the Hi 360 Do not upload from your phone photo album as content will not be 360 enabled.
• YouTube – video resolution can only be adjusted when connected to Wireless
• Live Broadcast – your YouTube account will need to have Live Streaming Login to your YouTube account on your computer and click on Creator Studio – Live Streaming – Activate. Now you can return to your smartphone app. Click on the settings iconand set ‘Capture mode’ to Live Broadcast. Return to the camera screen to initiate Live Streaming. Please bear in mind Live Streaming will use available mobile data.

Usage Notes

• This camera is not Please ensure the card/USB cover is always in place to prevent dust and dirt contamination.
• PC USB charging may not work if the camera has not been used for a long time or when the battery is completely If this is the case, please charge with the approved PRAKTICA USB power adapter.
• Use of Airdrop might slow down wireless performance (AirDrop function is only available in iOS smartphones)

8 Tips and Tricks

1. Use a selfie stick or a tripod when possible; this will reduce stitching errors and you’ll be less likely to get your hand in your photos.
2. The more natural light, the better your image/video. Natural light is key for image quality and
3. Artificial light may lead to bad image/video Light flickering is common within 360° cameras.
4. For best results, ensure your Z360 is set to the highest image or video
5. Objects placed within 1 metre of your camera may become For the best image, place your camera at least 1 metre away.
6. When Live Streaming, remember that you will be using your available mobile data.
7. 4K 360° video files are very large and because of this, the app can To resolve this, simply restart the Pocket360 app.
8. Make sure that both your phone and the camera are fully charged for best performance and streaming

9. FAQ’s

Image stitching doesn’t appear to be working, what can I do?
Try moving all objects at least 1 metre away from the camera. This can cause issues sometimes.
My videos won’t play back in my app library, what can I do?
If you have recorded a video in 4K and your phone is not 4K compatible, you will not be able to view videos on your phone. Either reduce the quality you capture videos at or view your videos on a 4K compatible device or on Facebook or YouTube.
Why are all my photos panoramic when I view them in the Hi 360 App?
Change the mode by clicking the first button at the top right of the menu bar. You can switch between Panorama ( ), Gyroscope (), Drag () and VR ( ) mode.
My videos take a long time to save. Why is this and what can I do about it?
Due to the size of the 4K files and wireless sharing speeds, videos can take a few minutes to upload.
There is a line down the middle of my photos and it looks like one half is brighter than the other. What can I do?
This is caused by artificial lighting and can also be due to an abundance of light being exposed to one of the cameras. This leaves the other camera in shade leading to a two toned image. To solve this issue, try rotating the camera position or provide natural light.
How can I control the camera?
You can control the camera by using the Hi 360 App (which can be found on the App Store or Google Play) or by using the MODE button and SHUTTER button on the Z360 camera.
Why isn’t the video I uploaded to YouTube a 360° video?
It can take up to 30 mins for a video to become 360 enabled on YouTube. Content uploaded from your phone photo album will not be 360 enabled. Make sure you upload 360° content from the Phone app.
My Z360 keeps turning itself off. Why?
This is a battery saving function. The camera will switch itself off after 2 minutes of inactivity.
How do I charge my Z360?
Connect your Z360 to a PC using the USB Cable provided.

Z360 Speciation

Image Sensor                                1/2.3”
Effective Pixels                              5256(H)x3934(V) approx. 20.68 Megapixels
Total Pixel                                     5352(H)x3950(V) approx. 21.14 Megapixels
Lens Type                                      Fixed focus, Fisheye
FOV                                              190° x 2
Focal Length                                 40cm ~ Infinity
Circle                                            4.373mm
Aperture                                       F2.0
Display                                         OLED 0.5
Microphone                                  Stereo/Built in
Battery                                          Li-ion
Battery Capacity                            680mAh
Battery Life                                  130 photos/4K Video – 45 mins/FHD Video – 70 mins
USB                                             Micro USB Type B/USB 2.0
Storage                                         Micro SD Card u1/u3 up to 256GB
Image Size                                   7008×3504/3840×1920/1920×960
Time Lapse                                  5 sec/10 sec/ 30 sec/60 se
Electronic Shutter                        Still; 1/8000 ~ 1/4 sec / Video; 1/12000 ~ 1/30s Function Mode   Broadcast/Take picture/Video/Timelapse
White Balance                              Auto White Balance
ISO                                              Auto (Max. ISO 3200)
EV Compensation                       0EV, -2~ +2 EV
Image File Format                       JPEG
Video Recording                         4K – 3840 (H) x1920 (V) @30fps/ FHD – 1920 (H) x960 (V) @30fps Max. Recording Time 1GB File Size
System Requirements                 Mac OS 10.8+/ Windows 7, 8, 10
Android Version                         5.0+
iOS Version                                10.0+
Waterproof                                 IP54
Shockproof                                 1m
Operating Temp                         0°c ~ 40°c
Operating Relative Humidity      c85%
Dimensions                                 35.2×96.5×16.05mm
Weight                                        75g
Accessories                                  Micro USB Cable, Quick Start Guide (EN), Hand Strap, Attachment for Strap, Carry Bag

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References

• PRAKTICA - World Class Imaging and Optics

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