Back in January, it was announced that BRG Sports and 360fly would be collaborating to produce a line of high-end smart-helmets with 360-degree video capabilities. BRG includes Bell, Riddell and Giro, and would be combining their helmet-making experience with the 4K, panoramic cameras currently made by 360fly.
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However, it has now been announced that Vista Outdoor, an outdoor sports equipment manufacturer, has acquired the extreme sports division of BRG Sports, including Bell, for $400 million. The questions, for this story at least, will now target whether this will impact the upcoming release of the smart-helmet line.
This ones a little too close for comfort. #lifeuncropped #360degrees #360fly #sailing pic.twitter.com/T3LRYiTv2J
— 360fly (@360fly) February 25, 2016
This, though, does not seem likely- many of the helmet’s characteristics have already been announced. For the seamless sharing of videos, there will be built-in Wi-Fi and Bluetooth capabilities which will be aided by a GPS sensor for location tagging. Through this, instant uploads to social media platforms such as Facebook and YouTube will be enabled, with video editing immediately available.
There has even been mentions of the addition of a Collision Avoidance system, alerting riders to potentially hazardous obstacles which are not in the field of vision.
According to 360fly’s CEO Peter Adderton, this is what will make the helmets really ‘smart’. Of course, having 4K panoramic video will certainly be the dominant feature, but its other purpose will be to enable extra helmet innovations.
“Because our lens is seeing virtually everything in all directions, it allows us to develop and build in additional features that allow the helmet to literally communicate, delivering valuable information regarding the surrounding environment, navigation and other types of data relevant to the rider,” Adderton explained.
The most significant competitor towards this line looks set to be GoPro. Although their products differ, GoPro is an established name, and many won’t look much further. On top of this, it will also come under pressure from the smaller companies with focus on specific sports. Forcite, an Australia-based company producing smart-helmets for snow sports, is just one in an industry which is really heating up.
In the ever-changing world of extreme sports, the application of panoramic, 4K video is perhaps unsurprising. What is more unique is the idea of safety information communicated through the helmet. Vista Outdoor will certainly be hoping that they will cash in on what BRG started.