Although seriously speaking, this result may be quite implicated by the Google Street View app’s strategy of removing it from the iOS and Android platforms. But it’s still hard to imagine that this Photo Sphere shooting function, which has been released for 11 years, was completely removed from the new Pixel 8 series without any explanation or warning. Continue reading the text of a report that someone discovered that Google had cut off the sensational magical shooting function of Pixel 8 without warning.
Someone discovered that Google had cut off the sensational magical shooting function of Pixel 8 without warning.
Thinking back to the era when Google and other brands strongly promoted VR virtual reality devices – just… the Nexus era, do you still know?
Although the first thing that comes to mind may be the super creative Google Cardboard viewing box. However, in response to the VR craze at that time, in fact, even the Google Camera app specifically brought a magical “Photo Sphere” 360-degree shooting function to the software shooting function – allowing you to use a normal camera lens to take a panoramic photo in all directions by connecting pictures one by one, and even upload it as a Google Street View photo.
▲Image source: Google
Although seriously speaking, such a result may be Google Street View app removal strategy on iOS and Android platformsand was implicated to a considerable extent. But it’s still hard to imagine that this Photo Sphere shooting function, which has been released for 11 years, was completely removed from the new Pixel 8 series without any explanation or warning.
Foreign media 9to5Google unearthed version 9.1 of the Google Camera app installed on the Pixel 8 phone. It was discovered that Photo Sphere is no longer available in the Pixel’s built-in camera app. Although some media further obtained official confirmation that this feature had indeed been removed, the wonderful thing is that Google did not provide any more explanation as to why this feature was removed.
With the launch of Pixel 8, Google has announced many powerful image post-production features that leverage the power of AI, such as magic photo editing, perfect group photos, astrophotography mode, and ultra-high resolution (see more:Google Pixel 8 Pro, Pixel 8 unboxing test: AI is the core of all magic）。
Therefore, even if a 360-degree mapping function like Photo Sphere is a bit old, those who want to use it to record the entire space should still look forward to Google bringing some innovative advancements to this function through the power of AI, right?
▲Image source: Android Police
It can only be said that seeing Apple’s intensive deployment of the mixed reality ecosystem in response to the Vision Pro headset next door, even the iPhone 15 Pro series will provide spatial recording capabilities. Although some people may think that this is another strategy called re-innovation, but it is just a strategy of putting old wine in new bottles. But seeing that Google, which originally regarded similar technologies as a necessary development direction, seems to have no longer been interested in this. I still feel that such differences are quite a wonderful development.
▲Image source: Google
That is to say, in fact, on the previous models of Pixel 7, since the Google Camera version 9.0 (not the 9.1 version on Pixel 8) is currently installed, it is impossible to be sure that if the new version is upgraded in the future, the Photo Sphere function that has been installed for more than ten years will also be castrated – after all, on the Pixel 8, it can be said that it was not there from the beginning. But if it was there originally and was removed… I can only say, wait and see how it changes (or doesn’t change).
I don’t know if you think it’s a big deal or not if this function is cut off, or do you feel like the foreign media that it’s really a pity?
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Source: KOCPC Chinese