The Essential 360 Camera is one of the marquee accessories for Andy Rubin's expandable Essential Phone PH-1. It's a small 360-degree camera that snaps onto the back of the PH-1 magnetically, adding spherical video and imaging capability to the handset. There are some things to like about it—stitching is done in real-time and is, for the most part, done well. But because it only works when attached to the phone, it's almost purely for selfie shots. If that's your thing, it's a solid, reasonably priced add-on. But if you want a more versatile camera that can be used without a phone nearby, the 2017 edition of the Samsung Gear 360 is our Editors' Choice.

Design

The Essential 360 is one of the smallest, lightest 360 cameras out there. It measures about 2.6 by 1.3 by 1.0 inches (HWD) and weighs just 1.2 ounces. Dual lenses sit at the top, flanked by microphones on each side, and the camera itself is finished in white and black plastic, with a silver metal bezel around the lens.

Attaching the camera to your phone is easy. There are two small circular divets on the rear of the PH-1 that correspond to electrical contacts on the camera. Line them up and a strong magnetic connection does the rest—the camera snaps right into place and stays there securely. It's similar in concept to the Moto 360 Camera, which snaps onto the back of compatible Motorola phones and stays attached using magnets, but the Essential take is much smaller—the Moto covers up the entire back of the phone. Of course, the add-ons are not cross-compatible.

Because you have to use your phone to run the camera—it has no battery of its own or controls—it's very selfie oriented. Sure, you can attach a clip to your phone to add a tripod mount, but if you're going to do that, you're better off just getting a 360 camera that can operate independently.

Attaching the camera may be quick, but there's some lag when you start it up. You need to wait about three seconds after launching the PH-1's camera app in order to use the device. In the interim you get a black screen. It's an annoying delay that detracts from an otherwise slick experience.

The app itself is very simple. You get a live feed from the camera on your screen. You can swipe to pan and change what you see. There are on-screen buttons to capture stills or video. That's it—you don't get manual exposure control, and there's no support for live streaming.

Video and Image Quality

The Essential features dual ultra-wide f/1.8 lenses, each backed by a 12MP image sensor. Because there's some overlap in lens coverage you don't get 24MP images. Instead photos are captured at 18.4MP resolution, while video comes in at 4K (3,840 by 1,920) at a fixed 30fps capture rate. The more cinematic 24fps frame rate isn't available as an option.

Video quality is on par with other 4K 360 degree cameras we've seen. But you have to remember that those pixels are being stretched across a sphere, not constrained into a tighter 16:9 video frame. Video quality is much closer to standard definition when stretched this much.

Close-up subjects look pretty good, but objects in the distance are soft and pixelated. Exposure is even throughout the frame—with other cameras, video from one lens is slightly brighter than the other and you can see the difference. The automatic stitching is, for the most part, pretty good. Most of my footage was seamless, but if you look closely in the distance you can spot some errors.

There are four internal microphones for audio capture. I shot test footage on the roof deck of our Manhattan office on a fairly windy day. The mic had no problem suppressing mild breeze and picking up my voice clearly, but it did struggle during strong gusts.

Photos have more resolution than video, and look pretty decent. The exposure is consistent throughout the frame, so you can't see the seam in a clear blue sky. I did notice the same stitching anomalies in stills as in video. Colors seem accurate, and I didn't notice an overwhelming amount of purple or green aberrations in areas of high contrast, an issue with some other 360-degree cameras.

Conclusions

The Essential 360 Camera has a pretty niche audience—PH-1 phone owners who have a deep desire to snap spherical selfies. It has some marks in its favor, notably a very compact design, a workflow that doesn't require you to spend time stitching video together, and a reasonable price tag. But there are also some drawbacks—it only works when attached to your phone, which limits creative potential, and there are some glitches with stitching. If you're a PH-1 owner interested in 360-degree imaging, it's worth consideration. But you can do more with our Editors' Choice Samsung Gear 360, a standalone camera. You'll need to use desktop editing software (or an iPhone) to work with the footage, as the Gear 360's Android app only works on Samsung devices, but you won't be limited to selfies, and the camera will continue to be useful if you decide to change phones.

Best Mobile Phone Accessory Picks

• More Mobile Phone Accessory Reviews
• More from Essential

Further Reading

• What Kind of Screen Protector Should I Get for My Phone?
• Amazon Has the Latest Tile Trackers on Sale for Up to 24 Percent Off
• Apple Launches Free iPhone Battery Case Replacement Program
• New Phone Case Material Promises to Let 5G Signals Flow
• Otterbox Launches EPA-Approved Antimicrobial Screen Protector