Apple has just released iOS 17.2 with the ability to record Spatial Video on the iPhone 15 Pro and Pro Max.
Currently, there is no notice about taking Spatial Photos.
Several iPhone models have already been able to record 3D videos and pictures using the two horizontally aligned lenses, thanks to the i3DMovieCam app. This is ideal for close shots because of the small distance between lenses. Other 3D cameras can produce great results at mid-range, but cannot capture close subjects (less than 2 meters distance) because it would produce eye-strain due to too much separation between images.
So iPhone owners have a great 3D camera for family recordings and Christmas decorations for this holiday season, for example. You don’t need to have the latest iPhone 15 Pro. But, how it compares i3DMovieCam with Apple’s Spatial Video? Let’s find it out:
Full-SBS recordings with good light conditions:
Recordings with low light conditions:
As you can notice, with Apple’s format, there’s a huge difference it stabilization, but also in smoothness, sharpness and even sound quality. Both methods record theoretically at 30fps, but i3DMovieCam seems more like 20fps, and Spatial Video seems more like 40fps. With i3DMovieCam, depth is slightly annoying on close objects and there are some window violations. While Spatial Video is adjusted automatically in real time to avoid these problems.
We have to note that this initial implementation of Spatial Video doesn’t record holographic 3doF video like the Vision Pro will do, is just Stereoscopic video, but enhanced by on-the-fly automatic convergence stored in the metadata. With i3DMovieCam, you can only adjust convergence before starting recording. It is anticipated that the neural processors of the iPhone will produce good depth even in far objects combining AI with the data of the updated LiDAR sensor included on the iPhone 15 Pro, minimum up to a distance of 15 meters (50 ft).
Spatial Video is also more efficient with storage, by saving only differences between the two frames, just like a 3D Blu-ray, and like any digital 2d video does between a frame and the next frame. This allows the same video to be used for 2d and 3D users without any loss of quality in 3D.
But don’t uninstall i3DMovieCam so soon, with i3DMovieCam you can also take 3D photos, and convert the impressive iPhone Cinema mode videos into 3D! Moreover, it is easier to export the images and videos taken with it, to other 3D formats. And with a gimbal or a tripod, i3DMovieCam also produces good 3D videos for iPhone models that aren’t the 15 pro.
Look for our other tutorials, like on how to share Spatial Videos for watching them in any 3D display.