I had been looking for a new action cam for quite a long time until I finally found the right one. When Icame across the insta360 ONE RS Starter Kit, I became curious and not so much later I knew that this one would be worth a try and bought it on Aliexpress.

Having an action camera with interchangeable lenses was actually for me a main reason to get this camera.

The camera features turned out to be a good choice from the start and the software seemed easy to use first.

After unboxing, I made myself familiar with the hardware and the basic use of the camera user interface. Due to the small display, you need to tap precisely.

The camera on and itself is a modular camera that allows various lenses for various purposes:

• 4k boost lens for high resolution photos and videos in 4k and 6k
• 360° lens for stunning visual effects
• 1-inch wide angle lens for 5.3K wide-angle shooting

For more technical details, I´d recommend you to check out the insta360 website.

Be witness of the insta360 ONE RS Starter Kit unboxing here:

At first I was still really excited...

If you have only owned a simple action cam or none at all, you will be surprised by the possibilities. It was a real adventure at the beginning to get to know this kind of action cam, to get familiar with the recording possibilities and to try out the visual effects.

To be able to really implement these visual effects, however, I had to buy the 360-degree lens in addition to the Starter Kit. This lens alone cost more than three times the price of my old Xiaomi action cam. But once I had this lens, I could finally get started.

Note: be sure to have a fast SD card. It´s tempting to buy a cheap 2 TB SD card but I can tell from experience that these dont help you here. The display remains black if the sd card is too slow.

...followed by a subtle disillusionment

All in all, everything seemed like I had made an exceptionally good investment despite of the high prices. However, after two months of intensive use, I increasingly had to struggle with various problems, both in terms of hardware and software.
Let's take a look at the insta360 app in particular. This has one or two quirks. If you connect the camera to your phone, the app may no longer display the recordings. This can only be fixed with a tedious workaround. The camera also sometimes shows a peculiar behavior. For example, it simply turns off during operation even with a full battery.
Creating visual effects, for example the ConeLapse mode, is also not always easy. If I select several short shots to create a CineLapse video, some of the selected shots are not included in the generated video.

Check out some of my insta360 shots here

Below you can find some of my selfmade shots with the Insta360 One RS. I took these pictures exclusively with the 360 degree lens and used several visual mdes from the Shot Lab in the insta360 app.

Freeze Throw effect

CineLapse and Sky Swap effect

Pixelize effect

Roll Planet effect

Conclusion

Of course, this article is not a full experience report. There are already enough of them on YouTube and other blogs. Whether the camera is right for everyone I do not know. Originally I just wanted a new better action cam. That there are these many visual effects, I was not clear until the acquisition of the Insta360. Possibly the Gopro is functionally more solid, but what these cameras can do or do better I do not know. In any case, I was convinced by the modular design, so that my action cam does what it should in the end.