Google has announced a “Street View ready” certification standard for 360-degree cameras that will make it easier for you to share 360-degree content with friends and family. The online search giant said that 20 cameras with the new certification standard are coming to the market sometime this year.
Once you get your hands on one of them, you’ll be able to download the Street View app and start creating interactive content by walking, running, or even driving. Google will then connect each frame of your video into a Street View experience that will be posted online.
All of the upcoming 360-degree cameras will meet one of four Google’s new standards. Street View mobile-ready devices allow you to post content directly from the app on your smartphone, while Street View auto-ready cameras can be used for creating content while on the road in your car.
Then there’s the Street View VR-ready standard for cameras that collect geometry in addition to generating sets of connected 360 photos, and Street View workflow-ready devices equipped with publishing tools allowing you to upload content directly to your Street View account.
Companies that will release cameras which comply with the new standards include Samsung and GoPro, among others. Unfortunately, a more specific time frame as to when they will be released has not been announced yet.