NOTE: If you are having any trouble installing the app or connecting to the camera, see the Troubleshooting section.

Taking 360 Photos/Videos

  • Download the Samsung Gear 360 mobile app to your cell phone from the App Store/Play Store.
  • Turn on the camera by pressing and holding the red BACK button for a second or two until it makes a sound. If it doesn’t power up, plug in the camera and make sure the battery is charged.
  • Once it’s on, press and hold the MENU button on the camera for a second until the display changes, then press the button repeatedly until “Connect to Android” or “Connect to iOS” appears on the small display. Choose the option appropriate for your phone, then press the red record button on the front to select.
  • Next, open the Samsung Gear 360 app on your device and follow the steps to connect.
  • If you are on Android, make sure Bluetooth is enabled, then tap Connect in the app. If you have trouble connecting, try manually going into Bluetooth settings and selecting the device “Gear 360(76E4)” or “Gear 360(76E5).”
  • If you are on iPhone, make sure Wifi is enabled, then go into Wifi settings and select “Gear 360(76E4)” or “Gear 360(76E5).” If it is the first time you are connecting your phone to the camera, it will ask for the network password.
    • The password will be displayed on the camera’s small menu screen. Enter this into your phone. Once this password is entered, the camera will indicate that you have connected properly.
  • To take photos, select the “Camera” option in the app once connected, then proceed to take photos as you normally would on a smartphone. You can use the MODE button in the app to change the mode to the option that best suits your needs (i.e. switching from photo to video).
    • Alternatively…
      • Use the MENU button on the camera to switch between different types of media you can record.
      • Use the record button on the handle of the camera to take a photo or begin recording. Use the same button to stop recording.
  • Photos/videos taken will automatically appear in the “Gallery” as soon as they have been taken.

Upon finding a preexisting photo in the app, two images will appear side by side. When you open the image, select the icon that says “360”. This will then stitch the two 180 images into one 360 image, allowing them to be seen in 360 degrees.

Save the photo to your camera roll.

When you are finished using the app, navigate back to the main screen, tap the three vertical dots in the upper right, then tap “Disconnect.” Hold down the red BACK button on the camera to turn it off.

Viewing/Uploading Your 360 Images

  • Your photo will be viewable in your camera roll, but if you don’t have a Samsung phone, it might not appear in the same 360 degree format seen in the Gear 360 app. Instead, it will appear as though it were a panorama. To view these images on your phone in 360 format, you may use an app that is able to recognize it as a 360 photo or video and display it as such, such as:
    • Theta
    • Google Photos
  • It is worth noting that there is a Samsung Gear 360 program for desktop and laptop computers to edit 360 photos and videos, but if you only plan on taking photos, there’s little reason to install or use it. The phone app alone works just as well for most purposes.
SAMSUNG

While some sites like Facebook and Vimeo will be able to recognize a 360 photo/video by default, some sites may require you to process the file through an external source. See site specific instructions in the links below.

YouTube: https://support.google.com/youtube/answer/6178631?hl=en

WordPress:https://wordpress.org/plugins/360-video/

Troubleshooting

  • Android
    • Only Samsung phones are supported. If you don’t see the Gear 360 app in the Play Store, your phone is likely not supported.
  • iPhone
    • Not all devices are supported. If you don’t see the Gear 360 app in the App Store, your phone is likely not supported. Even if you are able to install it, you may see an error when you run it, saying not all features are supported, but it should still work.
  • If you follow the instructions above and you are prompted with a login screen that looks like this, follow the steps below to hopefully resolve the issue:
  • In this case, delete the app, restart your phone, reinstall the app, and try again. This seems to fix the problem in most cases.

Samsung Gear 360
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