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Take Hands-Free 360 Degree Panoramic Photos With an iPhone (Video)

Posted by Roblimo on from the round-and-round-she-goes-where-she-stops-nobody-knows dept.

In a way, this app is nothing but a cute gimmick. There are many apps that allow you to make panoramic photos on an iPhone, not to mention the panorama feature built into iOS6 -- and plenty for Android, too. But Cycloramic makes your iPhone spin around while standing on edge (on a smooth surface), which is a fine stunt and a great party trick. And it's endorsed by Steve Wozniak, which is a boast few iPhone apps can make. He calls it "Unexpected, fanciful, and useful all at the same time!" Even if it had no practical value whatsoever, you might want to blow 99 cents on Cyclorama just to watch your phone make you dizzy. Most Android phones won't stand on edge. (Tim's won't and neither will mine.) So an Android version would require a stand. Or at least a pattern so we could make our own stands out of cardboard or sheet plastic. But that's a "maybe," and apparently not likely to come along soon. For the moment we'll just have to envy iPhone owners as their phones magically spin around, taking photos now and then as they turn.

109 comments

  1. Slavertisement. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0, Troll

    Wow. This is awesome! I'm going to go out right now and buy an iPhone and this app, no matter how much it costs! I don't know where my life would be without this feature!

    1. Re:Slavertisement. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 2, Insightful

      Yeah, I'm pretty sure iPhone is dying for users as is this app...

      OR (now stick with me here) this is technically interesting and geeky.

      (Not every article about a product or service is a Slashvertisment)

  2. Are you seriously serious? by i+kan+reed · · Score: -1, Troll

    A toy for spinning a phone? A toy for spinning a phone???

    This is the level of slashvertisement we get? I mean, maybe if there were a novel technology involved. A new algorithm, perhaps. But no we have a fucking toy for spinning a goddamn phone.

    How do these slashvertisements keep getting worse?

    1. Re:Are you seriously serious? by EmagGeek · · Score: 0

      "How do these slashvertisements keep getting worse?"

      Dice.

      Nuff said.

    2. Re:Are you seriously serious? by slackware+3.6 · · Score: 5, Insightful

      It's a cool toy not an advertisement. Try doing something cool youself instead of just being an ass.

    3. Re:Are you seriously serious? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: -1, Flamebait

      I did... I told your mom it's steak and blowjob day.

    4. Re:Are you seriously serious? by dinfinity · · Score: 1

      Actually, it (also?) works by using the vibration characteristics of the iPhone 5:
      http://cycloramic.com/tutorial.html

      It is still stupid and more of a party trick than anything else, but it doesn't require extra hardware.

    5. Re:Are you seriously serious? by ColdWetDog · · Score: 1

      You have some fundamental problem with vibration?

      Jealous or what?

      --
      Faster! Faster! Faster would be better!
    6. Re:Are you seriously serious? by sutabipo · · Score: -1, Offtopic

      http://www.cloud65.com/ If you think Lisa`s story is amazing..., last month my boyfriend basically earned $8289 working sixteen hours a week in their apartment and the're best friend's step-sister`s neighbour done this for 7-months and got paid over $8289 parttime at there labtop. follow the information at this address...

    7. Re:Are you seriously serious? by ottothecow · · Score: 1
      For what its worth, I thought it was pretty cool. I don't have an iphone so I can't do it...but do you know how much automatic panning cameras can cost?

      being able to have your iphone do a perfectly level 360* panorama without any extra equipment is pretty cool. Especially since it is doing a bunch of image processing to decide where to stop (it's not just running the motor until the compass has told it that it has turned around)

      --
      Bottles.
    8. Re:Are you seriously serious? by BasilBrush · · Score: 2

      It's not a toy for spinning a phone. It's software that spins a phone without any additional hardware needed. And does something useful with it too, that couldn't be done without the software. You can't take a panorama of people sitting around a table, by the hand holding method. Nor feature the person that would be holding the phone.

    9. Re:Are you seriously serious? by Greyfox · · Score: 2
      How about both?

      Step 1: Obtain an iPhone.

      Step 2: Get on a skydiving jump plane.

      Step 3: At 10,000 feet hold camera out the door and yell at the pilot to do a 360! Continue to hold the camera being sure not to... whoops!

      Step 4: Obtain a new iPhone. Go to step 2.

      --

      I'm trying to teach myself to set people on fire with my mind... Is it hot in here?

    10. Re:Are you seriously serious? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      You didn't even read the summary? Really, you couldn't even read the summary before you made a comment?

      This is the level of slashdot discussion around here? I mean maybe if there was some actual reading and thought involved. An insightful analysis perhaps, but no. instead we have some person just fucking commenting so they can vent their inadequacies regardless of what can be learned from reading a paragraph in 15 seconds.

      How do these comment sections keep getting worse?

    11. Re:Are you seriously serious? by RespekMyAthorati · · Score: -1, Troll

      Fuck you.

    12. Re:Are you seriously serious? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Taco does not play dice with the feed.

    13. Re:Are you seriously serious? by michelcolman · · Score: 1

      Actually, it does require extra hardware. Except on really incredibly smooth surfaces perhaps, most iPhone 5s will just vibrate without rotating. A tutorial explains that in order to get better results, you should stick a small bit of tape onto the bottom between the microphone and the lightning connector. So yes, it does require hardware: a bit of tape.

    14. Re:Are you seriously serious? by michelcolman · · Score: 1

      Except for that fact that at such short distances there will be a fair amount of distortion with the images not lining up, warping straight lines a bit like the bridges on Apple Maps. And people will move during the time in between shots, no matter how hard they try to remain still, resulting in extra, missing or at the very least warped body parts. But that happens with any other stitching panorama method too.

    15. Re:Are you seriously serious? by cffrost · · Score: 1

      You have some fundamental problem with vibration?

      Is this one of those "chipped teeth" jokes?

      --
      Thank you, Edward Snowden.

      "Arguments from authority are worthless." —Carl Sagan
    16. Re:Are you seriously serious? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      You didn't even read the summary? Really, you couldn't even read the summary before you made a comment?

      This is the level of slashdot discussion around here? I mean maybe if there was some actual reading and thought involved. An insightful analysis perhaps, but no. instead we have some person just fucking commenting so they can vent their inadequacies regardless of what can be learned from reading a paragraph in 15 seconds.

      How do these comment sections keep getting worse?

      Like this.

    17. Re:Are you seriously serious? by BasilBrush · · Score: 1

      Except for that fact that at such short distances there will be a fair amount of distortion with the images not lining up

      The images don't have to line up. They only have to cover a reasonable overlap. It's the job of panorama software to work out how to stitch them together, and they do a good job. And a handheld panorama swipe will be much further out of true than this, which is guided by a flat surface.

      And people will move during the time in between shots, no matter how hard they try to remain still, resulting in extra, missing or at the very least warped body parts.

      That's true. But these days people enjoy photographic artefacts - it's the reason Instagram is so successful. e.g. Some people will deliberately move around the table so they feature in the panorama twice.

    18. Re:Are you seriously serious? by michelcolman · · Score: 1

      The images don't have to line up. They only have to cover a reasonable overlap. It's the job of panorama software to work out how to stitch them together, and they do a good job.

      I tried it, and straight lines relatively close to the camera (a few meters) were warped badly. Edges and objects were often duplicated, torn and/or warped. It only becomes acceptable a bit further out. So if you let the phone rotate on a table, you are guaranteed to get artifacts around the edges of the table and any objects on it. But for an actual "panorama" (far away), it works really well.

  3. Oh yeah sure by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Everyone's upset about this story being a slashvertisement. Toss in a 3D printer and suddenly it's the future of humanity.

    1. Re:Oh yeah sure by lucm · · Score: 1

      Everyone's upset about this story being a slashvertisement. Toss in a 3D printer and suddenly it's the future of humanity.

      A 3D printer that can create rotating paper guns would be even better! Could make a sequel for that Jackal movie with Bruce Willis.

      --
      lucm, indeed.
    2. Re:Oh yeah sure by XxtraLarGe · · Score: 1

      A 3D printer that can create rotating paper guns would be even better! Could make a sequel for that Jackal movie with Bruce Willis.

      You're just trying anything you can to get 3D printers banned, aren't you?

      --
      Taking guns away from the 99% gives the 1% 100% of the power.
  4. Gee, how subtle.... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: -1

    Slashdot: Commercials Targeted At Nerds

  5. Would require more than a stand... by SuperKendall · · Score: 4, Insightful

    The reason this works is because the app knows exactly where the vibration unit is and where it behaves.

    If you had a stand for an Android phone the app would have to be calibrated for the stand, and for the exact model of phone you have.

    --
    "There is more worth loving than we have strength to love." - Brian Jay Stanley
    1. Re:Would require more than a stand... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      I've had numerous old phones that would stand on edge and rotate when vibrated. I'd imagine if it balanced, just controlling the vibration would do much more than you think.

      Too bad I didn't think of this idea when I watched my neat-o phone rotate when a text came in.

    2. Re:Would require more than a stand... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      The reason this works is because the app knows exactly where the vibration unit is and where it behaves.

      And you calibrate for every surface you use as well, no? Or maybe, just maybe, the app will look at a pattern on the picture and recognized when it has turned...

    3. Re:Would require more than a stand... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

      In the age of flip-phones we used to have phone-races at the bar, where we'd set our phones on vibrate, stand them on edge, and have somebody call us.

      captcha: danger

    4. Re:Would require more than a stand... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Also, the different versions of iphones have different vibrators.

    5. Re:Would require more than a stand... by Ksevio · · Score: 1

      Presumably it could calibrate itself as long as the device has a compass/accelerometer and control over the vibration unit. The stand would have to work so the phone spins when it vibrates - I assume the iPhone has the proper shape or something that lets it do that.

    6. Re:Would require more than a stand... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      captcha: danger

      Nobody gives a fuck about your goddamn captcha.

    7. Re:Would require more than a stand... by Chuckstar · · Score: 1

      Yeah, there's no magic to the app. They just turn on the vibrate mechanism. Phone spins by itself when the vibrator is on. The app also hooks into the camera APIs, I guess, so it's not quite as simple as "just" turning on the vibrator. But as far as the spinning feature, it's a byproduct of how the phone is designed; the app isn't doing anything particularly special.

      Don't get me wrong, still a really cool idea. It just doesn't represent some kind of clever hack of vibrate mechanisms.

    8. Re:Would require more than a stand... by BasilBrush · · Score: 1

      I suspect it knows where it is in the panorama by image processing, not compass/accelerator. Because it has to do that image processing anyway.

      The proper shape the iPhone has is a flat bottom edge. Mobile phones tend to rotate when vibrating, but it's only good if it does so with the camera pointing somewhere useful.

    9. Re:Would require more than a stand... by mjwx · · Score: 1

      The reason this works is because the app knows exactly where the vibration unit is and where it behaves.

      If you had a stand for an Android phone the app would have to be calibrated for the stand, and for the exact model of phone you have.

      If you've ever used Android, you'd know that the software handles panoramic photos, you simply move the phone and it automatically takes pictures when it reaches the right area. All a stand has to do is keep the phone level.

      So you, as per usual are full of it.

      --
      Calling someone a "hater" only means you can not rationally rebut their argument.
    10. Re:Would require more than a stand... by sleigher · · Score: 1

      Nobody gives a fuck about your goddamn captcha.

      I used to come to /. for the insightful commentary. Now I come because god damn, fuck yea! Fuck that fucking captcha.

      --
      All points of time and space are connected.
    11. Re:Would require more than a stand... by adolf · · Score: 1

      Because, obviously, it's impossible to quickly try different variations of "spin the phone!" vibratory commands, and make sense of them automatically, because there's no way the app would know exactly how the phone is spinning...and then remember the results for the next time. Right?

      Except it can, because it's also analyzing the output from camera! It can see where the phone is pointing in response to its commands! And it has a set of accelerometers, a compass, and maybe even a gyroscope to help narrow things down if the feedback from camera itself is somehow insufficient! (Doh.)

      Saying it can't work with an Android phone (as long as it can stand on end, which is indeed apparently a rare function) is the same as saying that it can only work with an iPhone 5 on a granite countertop as shown in TFV, and that any other surface must require specific recalibration.... while also saying that it can't work when hand-held (which it does, for many models, as shown in TFV).

      The truth is that it is simply far squishier than that: The assumption is, at its very basis, that the direction that the camera is facing is somewhat random. That you can't imagine how it might work does not mean that others haven't already figured it out.

      I mean, FFS: It's not like iOS has a specific API call that says "Rotate left, seventy-three degrees." It's just a pocket computer with a vibrator and a camera.

      (Google "autostitch" for early incarnations of the technique, with zero feedback, and platform independence, and amazingly good results...considering.)

      --
      Kid-proof tablet..
    12. Re:Would require more than a stand... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      /. c4p7ch45 are awes00m3!

      captcha: delirious

    13. Re:Would require more than a stand... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Nobody gives a fuck about your goddamn captcha.

      I used to come to /. for the insightful commentary. Now I come because god damn, fuck yea! Fuck that fucking captcha.

      captcha: fuckyou

  6. It isn't April Fool's day yet... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    I don't believe it. Go to the table behind the guy and show me, not his prerecorded video.

  7. Here's the video you actually wanted by _xeno_ · · Score: 5, Informative

    Here's the video you were probably expecting to see where the "spins the phone" feature is actually demonstrated rather than just talked about.

    I suppose that's kind of neat, but probably not worth a six minute video in which the feature being talked about is never actually shown off.

    --
    You are in a maze of twisty little relative jumps, all alike.
    1. Re:Here's the video you actually wanted by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Mod parent up.

      Seriously this article and the accompanying video is the worst kind of spam I've ever seen with a link-baity title. There is no video of the actual demo. They went to great lengths to cut out the demo and instead show a lot of crap of the "interviewer" and the other guy talking. No one cares about that.

    2. Re:Here's the video you actually wanted by only_human · · Score: 2

      Here is a video that shows the spinning and then shows you a hack to using a small piece of tape to make it spin faster and smoother on more surfaces
      http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=9R5tPEUts7I

    3. Re:Here's the video you actually wanted by Al+Al+Cool+J · · Score: 1

      Thanks!

      Of course that video is an actual advertisement for the app. So possibly they didn't post it in the story because Slashdot isn't being paid to run commercials for this app. So instead they post an interview to avoid being criticised for running an ad, and they get criticised for not showing the demo. And then they still get criticised for running an ad. lol.

      The Slashdot editors make their share of mistakes, but sometimes I don't think they can win no matter what.

    4. Re:Here's the video you actually wanted by Bill+Dimm · · Score: 1

      Equally important, it doesn't require f*ing Flash to view.

    5. Re:Here's the video you actually wanted by Anonymous Coward · · Score: -1

      Yeah but for 6 whole minutes, the guy gets to show the world that he ownes an iPhone. He holds it up with the expectation that people all around him will be thinking in their heads "hey, look, that guy has an iPhone. He must be a cool hipster dude, and he is well off and rich. I envy him so much. sadface."

      That short ego boost was worth every dollar given to Apple*

      * Hail Apple!

    6. Re:Here's the video you actually wanted by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      They could have not cut the demo out of the video they posted. lol.

    7. Re:Here's the video you actually wanted by jimwatters · · Score: 1

      Where are the panos created of all those people moving around staring at the phone while it was vibrating around? Not shown, because they sucked! Only panos shown were avoid of any people, and nothing very close to the camera.

    8. Re:Here's the video you actually wanted by BasilBrush · · Score: 1

      Yeah, people looking at the camera. That'll never catch on. /s

    9. Re:Here's the video you actually wanted by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Thank you!

  8. Ancient hacking legends by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 2, Interesting

    This brings to mind people who used to code with the physical parameters of the machine in question in mind. Seek times, rotating cylinders, the works.

    1. Re:Ancient hacking legends by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Ditto. It's a shame that people's blind rage of anything remotely Apple related will overshadow the coolness of this hack.

      I don't know how much effective focus/resolution is lost due to the phone's vibration, but I imagine this could also be used to make panoramic 360 degree photos, if even in a gimmicky toy-ish way. Panoramic 360 degree lenses cram all the image data into one photo, plus there's all the distortion that'll knock things down further. Something like this would let you use the entire sensor to take each photo for stitching.

    2. Re:Ancient hacking legends by michelcolman · · Score: 1

      I don't know how much effective focus/resolution is lost due to the phone's vibration

      It stops vibrating to take a picture, then starts vibrating again to rotate further

      Panoramic 360 degree lenses cram all the image data into one photo, plus there's all the distortion that'll knock things down further. Something like this would let you use the entire sensor to take each photo for stitching.

      There's still plenty of distortion though, certainly for objects close to the camera.

  9. This isn't the video you are looking for by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    In a way, this video is nothing but a waste of time.

    1. Re:This isn't the video you are looking for by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      The overwhelming majority of phone apps (regardless the OS) are a waste of time, so it should be right at home.

    2. Re:This isn't the video you are looking for by michelcolman · · Score: 2

      So is posting on Slashdot about people wasting their time.

  10. Old news is exciting! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    And an ad.

  11. Hey iPhone users by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Sit and spin!

    1. Re:Hey iPhone users by larry+bagina · · Score: 1

      meatspin!

      --
      Do you even lift?

      These aren't the 'roids you're looking for.

  12. HDR maps mockup by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

    For starters, this would be great for 3d miniature scenes or build a quick mockup using image-based-lighting by creating a latlong or vertical cross map. My "real" procedure involves shooting RAW via DSLR camera with a tele lens, a cumbersome chrome ball, and tripods.

    I for one, see this as a welcoming "tool" than just a toy.

  13. Panoramic - mainly indoors - meh by Eyezen · · Score: 0

    Exactly how many times would this be useful beyond the inital wow phase? When I think of panoramic pictures, I think of outdoor shots of mountain-scapes, beach scenes or sporting events and the like. Not exactly a lot of level smooth surfaces around those areas. Panoramic shots I've seen of indoor scenes tend to be full of the back of people in crowded spaces in which case the traditional gather round into a tight area for a photo op is preferred.

    1. Re:Panoramic - mainly indoors - meh by RazzleFrog · · Score: 1

      You mean you don't want to take a panorama of your office or bedroom? Or maybe you can just hike to the top of a mountain with a folding table on your back. Better exercise that way.

      Definitely more gimicky than practical.

    2. Re:Panoramic - mainly indoors - meh by GumphMaster · · Score: 1

      Panorama of your next circle jerk perhaps?

      --
      Patent litigation: A doctrine of Mutually Assured Destruction... in which everyone seems willing to push the button
    3. Re:Panoramic - mainly indoors - meh by BasilBrush · · Score: 3, Insightful

      Every time I go to a bar with friends.

      Not only is a handheld panorama incapable of taking a shot of people around a table, ANY kind of handheld panorama misses out the person who's taking the shot. Which is usually the phone owner.

      So it offers a little more than novelty. It offers a couple of things that were not possible with mobile phone panoramas before.

    4. Re:Panoramic - mainly indoors - meh by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      The first person in the shot takes the last picture of the original shooter when the first person in the shot is no longer in the shot.

  14. Can I be on Slashdot... by Graydyn+Young · · Score: 0

    if I make a gimmick app?

    1. Re:Can I be on Slashdot... by i+kan+reed · · Score: 3, Interesting

      If you give Roblimo money, sure!

    2. Re:Can I be on Slashdot... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: -1

      I've heard he accepts blow jobs or cocaine too.

    3. Re:Can I be on Slashdot... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      How much? Two bits just like your mom charges?

    4. Re:Can I be on Slashdot... by Roblimo · · Score: 4, Informative

      Tim makes most of the in-persona videos. I just edit and upload them. And neither of us take money (except from Slashdot) to make them.

      Make an app or device that's amusing, cute, or both... and sure - we might make a video of it and you.

      Not everything needs to be important. You don't like fun stuff?

      Also: just because we like something doesn't make the story or video an ad.

      I see that http://slashdot.org/~i+kan+reed posts mostly negative or sneering comments.

      Some of us enjoy being positive more than being negative.

      Thanks for your input,

      - Robin

    5. Re:Can I be on Slashdot... by 2.7182 · · Score: 1

      It's definitely interesting. These guys wrote some code to do something with the phone that is not what the phone was designed to do and is unexpected. And it is cool that they do it with just what was in the phone. But I did watch a 7 minute video hoping to see the thing do its trick and ended up having to watch it on the website of the company.

    6. Re:Can I be on Slashdot... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Not everything needs to be important. You don't like fun stuff?

      On the Internet? Fuck no. The Internet is serious business.

    7. Re:Can I be on Slashdot... by i+kan+reed · · Score: 1

      So, in the face of that, do you specifically deny that you(or your employers) are payed for what you specifically post on slashdot?

      I mean, the post you were addressing had one premise, and it's odd that you attacked me for my tone rather than addressing the point. I'm well past the point that an attempt at publish shaming is going to shut me up. I'd much rather have answers.

  15. Slashdot hits new low by TheSkepticalOptimist · · Score: 1

    This is a video of a guy talking about a video of a device.

    --
    I haven't thought of anything clever to put here, but then again most of you haven't either.
  16. iPhone is a brick by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    The iPhone has really become a brick, I can't stand the edges on it, and how thick and heavy it is. I much prefer the iPod design. I know the iPhone has some extra stuff and a bigger battery, but I would hardly use all that processing power and other stuff that drains it. I wish they would announce an iPhone Mini, go back to the 16:10 screen, and make it smaller and thinner.

    1. Re:iPhone is a brick by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      What color is the sky in your world? In mine, at 7.6mm thick and 112 grams the iPhone 5 is hardly a "brick". That's thinner and lighter than what is probably its closest competitor, the Samsung Galaxy S III (8.6mm, 133 g).

      The iPhone 4/4S design was relatively heavy. I suspect you're assuming that must be true of the 5 too, without actually having picked one up.

      Also, Apple has never used a 16:10 screen on iPhones. The old resolutions were 480x320 or 960x640 (Retina), which are 3:2 resolutions (or 15:10 if you like).

  17. Fake by Cammi · · Score: 1

    Yeah, panorama is pretty much a fake (the built into ios6). Nobody can hold their arm/hand steady to even take a moving shot.

    1. Re:Fake by Nerdfest · · Score: 1

      The Android "PhotoSphere" app built on the Nexus 4 works quite well, in both panorama and sphere mode. You don't need to be that steady.

    2. Re:Fake by BasilBrush · · Score: 1

      I hope that was a troll. Because surely no one can be that dumb.

    3. Re:Fake by Cammi · · Score: 1

      Lol, you must be new to phones ... try one, and come back, instead of trolling. You are too obvious.

  18. SHITTY VIDEOGRAPHER. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Shitty video stopped watching after 3 seconds.

  19. It's a righteous submission. by JoeCommodore · · Score: 4, Insightful

    Both the article and the app, shows there's more possibilities in ordinary/unexpected things. Excellent hack.

    --
    "Enjoy what you're doing! If it becomes drudgery, you're doing it wrong!" - Jim Butterfield
  20. Can we have the old ./ back once SXSW is done? by RocketRabbit · · Score: 0

    Can we have the old ./ back once SXSW is done? Will these Slashvertisement interviews be a daily feature or are you going to tone it back to say, once a week or two?

    I don't think people would even really object as long as you clearly labeled them as such. As I said the other day (and I know you read it Rob because you responded to me) Reddit has their paid placements highlighted in blue.

    So, how about it Rob? Or are we counting on the "undercover" nature of these Slashvertisements for SEO?

    1. Re:Can we have the old ./ back once SXSW is done? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

      I would normally agree with you about Slashvertisements, but this is a fun and interesting app. Sometimes, an app does something totally different. Talking about it doesn't necessarily mean they are trying to sell it to you. I wouldn't have ever thought to use the vibrations as a feature!

    2. Re:Can we have the old ./ back once SXSW is done? by RocketRabbit · · Score: 1

      This isn't "talking about it" and I hate cell phones, so it's not really my thing either way.

      If you are paying attention you'll notice all the Roblimo Slashvertisement spam and you'll see that lots of folks are not happy with it.

    3. Re:Can we have the old ./ back once SXSW is done? by Roblimo · · Score: 3, Informative

      A suggestion: Why don't you just skip the videos entirely?

      You obviously either don't read or comprehend the intros, and only look at the videos (if you do) to sneer at them.

      Looking at https://slashdot.org/~RocketRabbit, just about anyone can see that you comment on Slashdot almost entirely to sneer at things; you are nearly 100% negative.

      Note that a few noisy/obnoxious people dislike Slashdot videos, but 1000s & often 10s of 1000s of people seem to view and enjoy them.

      If you want to go on being negative, that's up to you. But I strongly urge you to get a happier hobby for your own good.

      Take care,

      - Robin

      PS - The videos aren't paid ads. You know that, right?

    4. Re:Can we have the old ./ back once SXSW is done? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      If you are paying attention, you'll see that a lot of folks on this site like to bitch, and take any opportunity they get to do so. You're one of them!

    5. Re:Can we have the old ./ back once SXSW is done? by RocketRabbit · · Score: 1

      I just find it fun to narrate the action as Slashdot swirls down the toilet bowl.

      You have to understand, Rob, that Slashdot is only worth anything as long as it has readers, submitters, and commenters, and the current trend of whoring Slashdot out for a couple bucks on the street is not popular.

      Anyway I expect that you know as well as I that this is mostly a sign of desperation on the part of Dice to get some sort of revenue flowing. Obviously SlashBI and whatever the hell you're calling the pathetic Slashdot Cloud "informational" site are not turning enough tricks to keep the pimps at Dice happy.

    6. Re:Can we have the old ./ back once SXSW is done? by RocketRabbit · · Score: -1, Troll

      Of course the videos are paid ads. It's one thing to put them put them out there as if they were stories, but please don't expect me to believe that you're just randomly interviewing the proprietors of nifty businesses because you have nothing better to do.

      This is a very happy hobby. I find it tremendously amusing and so do many other posters. If you look at any of your recent Slashvertisements, you'll see that the number of people "sneering" and "being negative" outnumber those who aren't.

      I find it strange that you'd resort to sad, pathetic insinuations - some bordering on slander - to deal with the ill will that you are generating by continuing to post these ill-disguised advertisements. As I said before, though, I doubt you really have much to say in the matter, though - Dice can easily find some other person to wander around and subject themselves to marketing spiels.

    7. Re:Can we have the old ./ back once SXSW is done? by BasilBrush · · Score: 1

      RocketRabbit, you lost that little exchange badly. Roblimo came across as reasonable, you came across as a jerk.

    8. Re:Can we have the old ./ back once SXSW is done? by SternisheFan · · Score: 1
      If you're an editor of any type you gotta' have a thick skin, ask any newspaper editor, it goes with the job. If it's a valid criticism, a good editor will learn from it and become a better one for said critique. If it's just an angry rant by a random fool, a good editor will recognize it as such and not allow it to affect his job. Comes with the territory, water off a duck's back.

      There are always going to be those ''unhappy with themselves / their lives'' types, both here and in everyday life. Miserable s.o.b.'s that try to bring others down to the sad level that they keep themselves in, misery loves company types. I say, 'eff' 'em. Don't let the jerks of life get to you. Keep on doing the good work that you do here for your audience, since the majority of slashdot readers dig these stories, they just won't be the type to say it. All of you /. editors are appreciated by us, The unhappy types feel they need to try to put down others, probably because they're hurting inside themselves. But only if there's some audience, if they're alone, not so 'brave'. (Or they are just dumb kids screwing around, the modern day equivilant of the phony phone call.)

      Thanks again guys, I love this site. S.F. :-)

    9. Re:Can we have the old ./ back once SXSW is done? by RocketRabbit · · Score: 0

      I'm not so sure. Let's wait and see how the next Slashvertisement is received by the masses.

    10. Re:Can we have the old ./ back once SXSW is done? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      . I wouldn't have ever thought to use the vibrations as a feature!

      That's not what she said

  21. Rounded corners by riverat1 · · Score: 1

    I thought iPhones were supposed to have rounded corners. How can they stand on edge? /snark

    1. Re:Rounded corners by wvmarle · · Score: 3, Informative

      That's just because you don't know the difference between a corner and an edge.

    2. Re:Rounded corners by michelcolman · · Score: 1

      Ahhh, see? Everyone keeps complaining about how rounded corners should not be patentable, but now it turns out it's not that straightforward after all, is it?

  22. If you want to get serious about pano video.. by jcr · · Score: 1

    I have a couple of friends working at a company called "EyeSee360". They make pano mirrors ranging from a small optic that snaps onto your iPhone, to serious pro rigs that you can attach to 4K video cameras like Red's new offerings. Google them.

    -jcr

    --
    The only title of honor that a tyrant can grant is "Enemy of the State."
    1. Re:If you want to get serious about pano video.. by BasilBrush · · Score: 1

      Their iPhone mirror has just been undercut by a 99c app.

    2. Re:If you want to get serious about pano video.. by jcr · · Score: 1

      No, the app you're talking about doesn't capture video.

      -jcr

      --
      The only title of honor that a tyrant can grant is "Enemy of the State."
    3. Re:If you want to get serious about pano video.. by BasilBrush · · Score: 1

      True. So it's no use for anyone with a cinema 360 set-up then.

      But hey, I'm being unnecessarily snarky. Good luck to your friends. Genuinely.

  23. Hands free? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Looks to me like a person is holding it with their hand.

  24. yeah right by slashmydots · · Score: 1

    For the moment we'll just have to envy iPhone owners

    Nope. No, we won't.
    By the way, I saw someone use this app months ago and thought it was sort of neat but also a great way to damage your iphone when it takes a tumble.

  25. well it'll at least..... by Pax681 · · Score: 1

    let them fondle their balls while they spasm with fanboi joy at this gimmick :P

  26. all iPhones are not created equal by rjejr · · Score: 0

    The video only works with an iPhone 5. I know a lot of people upgrade religiously after drinking the kool-aid but not all iPhones out there are iPhone 5.

  27. Reap off by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    The iphone 5 won't even stand, yeah it takes pictures it vibrates and make your phone tirn around but let me know how to stand my IPhone 5 on the glass surface and balance itself so it won't fall

    1. Re:Reap off by michelcolman · · Score: 2

      The iPhone 6 will have multiple vibrators precisely for that purpose. It will be able to stand up from a horizontal position and jump onto your bed to wake you up. Except after switching from/to DST of course. Also, new apps will pit iPhones against each other, trying to push each other off the table. Expect extra addons with hammers and circular saws, too.

  28. overkill by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    I'd wager that the same effect could be gotten just with a manual spin onthat plastic stand by using the accelerometer to determine a suitable angular velocity for satisfactory quality capture. Then it could be implemented on aother handsets.

  29. Perfect conditions needed by Autonomous+Crowhard · · Score: 1

    This obviously requires the most perfect conditions to do what this advertisement says it does. I tried it on every table in my home and all I did was shake loose some embedded dust and annoy the cat. The phone never moved.

  30. iPhone camera by jbayston · · Score: 1

    That looks great, but it is a toy, rather than a tool. I can see it being used in vidoes though, just take a panoramic of everything form now on and than turn it into a vid....