Touchpad controller chipmaker Elan Microelectronics Corp (義隆電子) is scheduled to showcase its first processors for 360° virtual reality (VR) cameras at the Consumer Electronics Show (CES) opening in Las Vegas on Wednesday.
The chips are to power the 360° Luna camera at the show. The Luna camera, developed by the US company Memora Inc, contends for market share with the likes of GoPro.
The chips were developed by its subsidiary Avionic Technology Co (義晶科技), Elan Microelectronics said during their launch in Taiwan two weeks ago.
“As Facebook and YouTube support the posting and viewing of 360° interactive videos, we believe this 360° camera will fully satisfy customers’ needs to share videos with their friends almost instantly,” Elan Microelectronics said.
The Luna camera allows users to record videos and spherical photos without the need for post-processing procedures, Elan Microelectronics said.
What makes Luna stand out is its affordable price of US$500 per unit, compared with other virtual reality cameras on the market that have almost identical features and cost between US$3,000 and US$30,000, Elan said
The Luna camera, which is the size of a billiard ball, is now available for pre-order, according to Memora’s Web site.
Elan Microelectronics reported a 2.2 percent annual growth in revenue for November at NT$599 million (US$18.12 million). Chips for touch screens and touchpads accounted for 68 percent of the figure.
In the first 11 months of last year, the firm’s revenues shrank 13.38 percent to NT$6.1 billion from NT$7.04 billion in the same period the previous year.
In related news, local chip designer Etron Technology Inc (鈺創) plans to showcase its new 360° VR camera, chips and software to support VR cameras as well as software used for drones, at the show.
With a growing number of VR gadgets coming into the market — including HTC Corp’s (宏達電) Vive — TrendForce Corp (集邦科技) forecasts that global shipments of headsets would soar to 27 million units this year, from 8 million units last year.
The shipment value of VR gadgets and software would soar to a combined US$6.7 billion and to US$70 billion respectively in 2020, the Taipei-based researcher predicted.
Consumers can now view and interact with 360° videos on mobile phones, laptops and even on Apple TVs, with or without wearing VR headsets.
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