Rumours have been pointing towards Insta360 entering the interchangeable-lens camera market for months, and the company has now confirmed that it is indeed working on mirrorless cameras. More surprisingly, Insta360 CEO and founder Jingkang “JK” Liu revealed that there are actually two different mirrorless cameras in development.
Liu made the revelation in an interview with Mynavi News following the opening of Insta360’s first permanent retail store in Japan, located in Tokyo’s Asakusa district. While he stopped short of sharing specific details, he did tease an unconventional design for at least one of the upcoming cameras.
Not One, But Two
“We are developing two types of mirrorless cameras,” Liu said. “One of them will have a surprising shape that you’ve never even considered before.”
That certainly leaves plenty of room for speculation, especially given Insta360’s history of experimenting with unconventional camera designs. The company is better known for its 360-degree and action cameras, but it has increasingly expanded into other categories, including gimbal cameras.
Insta360’s Continuous Teasing
The confirmation also provides some context to a cryptic teaser posted by Liu on Weibo back in January. Accompanying an image showing an unfamiliar camera, he wrote “Heading towards new focal lengths”, prompting speculation that Insta360 could be preparing its first interchangeable-lens camera.
That speculation gained considerably more weight in April when leaked images showed what appeared to be a conventional Insta360 camera with interchangeable-lens capability. The white-bodied device featured physical controls including a shutter button, command dial and mode dial, while the attached Olympus M.Zuiko 14-42mm lens suggested compatibility with the Micro Four Thirds mount.
The leak therefore appears to have revealed at least one of the two cameras Liu is now referring to. However, it remains unclear whether that particular model is the one with the unusual shape.
AI Will Play A Role
Liu also offered some insight into why Insta360 wants to enter the interchangeable-lens camera market. Rather than simply competing with established camera makers on image quality and traditional controls, the company wants to make these cameras easier for people who have never used an interchangeable-lens camera before.
The CEO said Insta360 aims to achieve this by introducing new technologies and AI, although he did not explain exactly how those features will work. This approach would be consistent with the company’s growing use of AI for features such as automated editing, subject tracking and image processing in its existing cameras.
For now, there is no word on the names, specifications or launch dates of either mirrorless camera. However, with Insta360 now openly confirming their existence, it seems only a matter of time before we get a closer look at what the company has been working on.
(Source: MyNavi News, via DPReviews)
