DJI Osmo 360 Review: A Strong Start

Reliable 360 video performance in most lighting conditions. Built-in storage. Solid mobile and desktop companion apps. Pairs directly with DJI Mic 2 and Mic Mini. Water- and dustproof. Aggressively priced.

Not recommended for underwater use. No user-replaceable lenses. No official US launch in sight.

Despite being DJI’s first entry to the 360 camera market, the Osmo 360 feels like the kind of debut you’d only get from a company that has spent a long time perfecting its craft elsewhere. DJI’s drones and action cameras have been impressing me for years, and its claims about the Osmo 360’s capabilities were bold, so I had high expectations.

After two weeks of using the Osmo 360 in all sorts of conditions—sun, wind, low light, and on the edge of a downpour—it’s clear this is a serious challenger to Insta360’s dominance, even if it can’t fully knock the X5 off its perch.

Rugged and Reliable

The Osmo 360's design immediately feels like a mix of the GoPro Max and the Insta360 X5. The Osmo 360’s stubby body, the twin fisheye lenses bulging on either side, and the utilitarian matte grey finish all scream “rugged,” but the camera’s IP68 rating comes with a caveat: DJI advises against underwater shooting. This isn’t due to a lack of waterproofing (it’s good to a depth of 10 meters) but due to potential video stitching issues. The water foxes the optics, apparently, which is an issue Insta360 has long solved on the X5.

I didn’t take the Osmo 360 for an ocean dip for that reason, but I did get it soaked in heavy rain, which it happily shrugged off. The lack of cheap replaceable lenses is more of a concern. I’m a pretty careful user, but with 360 lenses sticking out the way they do, a scratch is always a possibility. DJI offers replacements via its optional after-sales care program, but the Insta360 X5’s user-swappable design feels like a smarter long-term choice.

I immediately warmed to how easy the Osmo 360 is to use. The two-inch touchscreen is sharp and responsive, the three-button control layout is simple, and I like having both a standard tripod mount and DJI’s magnetic quick-release. Even better, the 128 GB of built-in storage meant I didn’t have to dig out a microSD card for my first day of shooting.

Price-wise, the £410 ($550) launch cost for the Standard Combo undercuts Insta360’s comparable bundles by a fair margin, which only adds to the appeal. This package comes with the camera, one battery, a rubber lens cover, a soft carry case, a cleaning cloth, and a USB-C to USB-C cable. For those who want a more complete starter kit, the Adventure Combo costs £540 ($700) and has all of the above plus a selfie stick, magnetic mount, three batteries, and a charging case.

While the Osmo 360 is available pretty much everywhere else, DJI has decided not to launch in the US “through official channels” at this time, probably due to the tariff situation and DJI’s ongoing difficulties with the US federal government. A DJI spokesperson tells me there is no estimated timeline for a US release, though things could change in the future.

Oddly, you can technically buy the Osmo 360 through retail channels like Amazon, Adorama, and B&H, though stock may be limited. DJI's Mavic 4 Pro drone was similarly available at these retailers at launch a few months ago, but is now out of stock.

Supersized Sensors

Returning to performance, the Osmo 360’s dual 1/1.1-inch square sensors are its main selling point, so I was curious to see if the larger 2.4μm pixels (twice the size of the sensor pixels on the Insta360 X5) and support for 10-bit color made a difference in tricky lighting conditions.

In bright daylight, the Osmo 360’s footage is sharp and detailed, with colors that pop, sometimes too much. On my video of a bicycle ride along the coast, the sky veered into that slightly artificial turquoise you can get when processing becomes a tad over-enthusiastic. Still, the stabilization is rock-solid, and the automatic selfie stick removal works flawlessly. Shooting at 8K 50 frames per second in 360 mode (or 4K 120 fps in single-lens mode) gave me plenty of flexibility for post-shoot reframing, and the D-Log M profile held up well when I graded some clips in post.

SuperNight, the dedicated low-light mode, impresses more than I expected. Walking through dimly lit streets at night, the camera keeps noise in check while retaining detail in shop signs and streetlamp-illuminated areas. Is it as good as Insta360’s PureVideo mode? Not quite, which is surprising given DJI’s apparent hardware advantage. But I’d expect small improvements to come via firmware updates (there’s already been one major update since I started writing this review).

Boost mode, which turns one lens into a wide-angle, high-frame-rate action cam, comes in handy when something more conventional is required. It’s a nice bonus if you don’t want to carry a separate action camera. 360 photos are also available, at up to 120-MP quality, and they’re fine. I don’t think many people will be buying this camera for still photography, but the ability to take a 360 panoramic shot of a striking landscape or cityscape is here, should you need it.

Audio from the four built-in mics works well indoors or outside when the wind is calm, but on breezier bike rides or vlogging strolls, it falls apart fast. I found that, in such situations, the ability to pair the camera with my DJI Mic Mini was a godsend. I could tweak gain, toggle noise cancellation, and monitor the audio levels right on the camera, and even on a gusty day, my voice came through beautifully, clearly, with no wind noise at all. Audio quality increases from 16-bit to 24- or even 32-bit with one of DJI’s wireless mics, too. If you already own a DJI Mic 2 or Mic Mini, this integration alone makes the Osmo 360 a great option.

Battery life is around the same as the Insta360 X5. In my stress test, running the camera at 8K 30 fps, a full charge lasted around 110 minutes, by which time the built-in storage was full.

The software side is where DJI pleasantly surprised me—although given the company’s past form, perhaps I should have expected the assured, stable experience I got. I’ve used the Mimo app with other DJI products like the Action 5 Pro, so pairing and remote control feel familiar. There’s also a solid little editor here, featuring both manual and AI-assisted auto editing. The manual editor can be a little fiddly on a touchscreen interface, but it offers a decent selection of tools for cutting and reframing 360 videos. The auto editor can spit out reframed clips with transitions and music in seconds, though it benefits from a little human help, as it sometimes picks strange angles when left to its own devices.

For more in-depth, hands-on editing, I enjoyed using the new DJI Studio desktop app. Keyframing, subject tracking, filters, background music—it’s all there, and it’s clean and fast enough once I got the hang of the UI. The only thing I found myself missing was some useful transitions to drop in between clips.

After a couple of weeks with it, I don’t think the Osmo 360 replaces the Insta360 X5 as the outright best 360 camera, but it comes close enough that the choice isn’t clear-cut anymore. It doesn’t have the X5’s swappable lenses or the underwater confidence, but it nails usability, produces excellent footage, and integrates beautifully with DJI’s wider ecosystem.

For me, that combination, plus the lower price, makes it an easy recommendation, especially if you’re already in the DJI ecosystem or you’re picking up your first 360 camera. It’s a strong, confident debut, and proof that DJI is here to make the 360 camera space a two-horse race.