Finally, a 360-degree camera that can effectively replace my phone for travel vlogging

Almost exactly a year later, the team at Insta360 is back with its latest 360-degree camera: the X5. I previously tested the X4 during a college campus visit with my family and was blown away by how easy it was to use, not to mention the impressive image quality. It was so good that I considered it one of the best vlogging cameras you could buy in 2024.

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So, the question is: how does Insta360 raise the bar with the X5?

The Insta360 X5 is a 360-degree camera system that allows for not only 360-degree video and photos, but also standard imagery in high resolution. Photos can be captured in up to 72 megapixels. Video can be captured up to UHD/4K resolution with higher frame rates reserved for HD or 2.7K resolution. The kicker with X5 is the ability to not only shoot 360-degree footage or flat footage, but now you can shoot either simultaneously, due to great onboard processing.

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I didn’t have much negative feedback regarding the X4, so I doubted the X5 would be any different. The build quality continues to be top-notch with Insta360, as you get a form factor that’s comfortable in hand in portrait mode, landscape mode, or on a tripod mount. The weather sealing is outstanding, offering waterproofing up to 15 meters. 

Holding the X5 not only feels natural but also secure because the material used for the housing is grippy like a great football. 

My only complaint remains with the dual lenses. Insta360 ships two plastic covers for the lenses on the X5, similar to the X4. These covers are designed to provide scratch protection to your X5 lenses. 

I wish the lens housing were more durable and provided scratch resistance without the need for an added piece of equipment. Smartphones and action cameras have figured out a way to integrate lens protection, and hopefully, Insta360 will find a way to do the same.

AI that’s actually useful

As with most consumer tech today, AI is included in some form in the packaging. The same goes for Insta360, which touts the use of AI to help with editing the video footage you captured. The amount of time it takes to analyze the footage will vary. In my instance, the AI took roughly five minutes to analyze six minutes of footage. Not bad.

Room for improvement

As great as the image and video quality look, there’s still some work that can be done regarding speed and efficiency. As previously mentioned, the AI burned through analyzing my video footage pretty quickly, considering it was 360-degree footage and roughly six minutes long. 

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My concerns deal directly with the edited version(s) offered after the AI made its pass. Some things in the footage seemed like obvious edit points or cuts, and the AI decided otherwise. In my example footage, I’m at a local track meet capturing sports photography. I set up the X5 to offer a bird’s eye view of me walking around, shooting the various track and field events. 

I’m obviously carrying two cameras in the footage, yet the AI never thought to snap footage of me, the photographer, in the act of capturing photos. Instead, it panned around the scene looking at coaches walking by or athletes jogging past. Fortunately, you can go into the edit and make updates to the video to better suit your creative vision. 

My next problem is with the export. Smartphone processors are pretty powerful, even older smartphones, such as my Pixel 8 Pro. On the slow end of the scenarios, exporting a one-minute video shouldn’t take more than three minutes. My test video took five minutes to export, and the export was a flat .mp4. It’s not a stereoscopic video designed for VR viewing. That’s a significant amount of time. Yes, the image quality looks great, but there’s still no excuse for it to take that long to export. 

ZDNET’s buying advice

You can get the Insta360 X5 for a starting price of $549 at the time of release. The bundle package, which includes the additional lens protectors, carrying case, selfie stick, an additional battery, and more, can be ordered for $659. Like the X4, I can see this camera being a great piece of kit for creators wanting to offer more dynamic video to their audience. 

Great for vlogging or behind-the-scenes content, allowing even more engagement with their audience. Will this be a top runner for the best vlogging camera of 2025? Time will tell, but I’m sure the X5 will be a serious contender.