360-degree videos, also known as surround video, or immersive videos or spherical videos, are video recordings where a view in every direction is recorded at the same time, shot using an omnidirectional camera or a collection of cameras. The term 360x180 can be used to indicate 360° of azimuth and 180° from nadir to zenith. During playback on normal flat display the viewer has control of the viewing direction like a panorama. It can also be played on a display or projectors arranged in a sphere or some part of a sphere.
Some omnidirectional cameras contain wide-angle lenses on the front and rear to facilitate the recording of 360-degree video.
A Google Cardboard viewer.
Omnidirectional (360-degree) camera
In photography, an omnidirectional camera, also known as 360-degree camera, is a camera having a field of view that covers approximately the entire sphere or at least a full circle in the horizontal plane.
Omnidirectional cameras are important in areas where large visual field coverage is needed, such as in panoramic photography and robotics.
A 360 shot taken by tech journalist Jefferson Graham with a selfie stick
A robot in the RoboCup Midsize league (2005), equipped with an omnidirectional camera.