Wanted: The Lo-Fi Camera That Snaps 360-Degree Panoramas

For the amateur photographer, snapping a decent 360-degree panorama is practically impossible. You're trying to stand nice and still while you rotate around yourself, pivoting at precise increments so your images don't overlap, and then, just when you're about done -- just when you've about got your epic pano of the French Alps -- some idiot tourist knocks into you and ruins the whole thing. It's only later that you realize your finger was in all the shots, anyway.

Enter the Lomography Spinner 360. The little lo-fi camera takes panoramic shots for you, all you have to do is tug a cord. Hold the camera in one hand like it's a bullhorn, then yank the cord, and whirrrrrr! The camera spins on its own axis 360 degrees. For longer exposures, you can plant the camera on the ground and rotate it yourself; the base is sturdy enough to act like a tripod. Check out a demo here:

The Lomography Spinner 360 is entirely manual. That means you shoot with 35mm film and the images come out with a sprocket-hole look, which is either great or annoying, depending on how you feel about the Urban Outfitters analog-chic aesthetic. Manual also means cheap -- the camera checks in at around $150. A comparably equipped digital camera would cost a hell of a lot more. And the tech whizzes have yet to find a way to keep your damn finger out of the frame.

For more info, go here.