Cycloramic is an app that can take panoramic photos by stitching together several pictures into a sequence. The main selling point is that it’s a hands-free application that works simply by placing your iPhone anywhere.
It doesn’t just take high-quality and high-resolution pictures; it comes with an array of advanced editing options. The advantage it has over other panoramic options on phone cameras is the active compiling software that works more smoothly.
The app was invented by Bruno Francois, who has patented it as picture-taking software. Bruno came to Shark Tank seeking a seed investment and more exposure for the new app.
Are They Still an Active Company?
Yes, the company is active and in business, but another company has acquired it.
How Did the Shark Tank Pitch Go?
Bruno’s initial ask was $90,000 for a 5% stake in the company. He started his pitch by talking about how the software worked with the phone’s internal vibration, using a gyro technique to take a panoramic three-dimensional photo.
The unique selling point, according to Bruno, is the app’s ability to use a phone’s gyro and vibration tech to spin and take pictures on its own. The photos taken at regular intervals will then be stitched together into a single panoramic shot.
Before Francois came to Shark Tank, the app was sold on the App Store, and his sales looked pretty good at $660,000. Bruno added that he’d managed to generate income of $175,000 and was projecting $1 million in sales in the upcoming year. The Sharks were immediately interested in the product, seeing a lot of potential.
Lori Greiner went first with an offer of $200,000 for a 10% stake in the company, which was twice the amount of the initial ask. Bruno was tempted but added that he had a provisional patent in rotation and wanted to hear other offers, despite Greiner’s demand for an immediate answer.
Mark Cuban then decided to join the conversation, wondering how the vibration technology would work for other users. He offered $1 million for a whopping 30% stake in the company.
Daymond offered $250,000 for a 10% stake in the company. Kevin countered this offer with $90,000 for a 15% stake in the royalties of the app only, not in the company. He also added that Bruno should think about the possible ways he could expand the app as well as add other technologies to complement it.
At this stage, every Shark was fully invested in the company. Steve joined Lori, and upped the offer to $250,000 for a 10% stake in the company. This was followed by Daymond’s offer changing to $300,000.Even Kevin raised his offer to $200,000 for a 10% stake with 5% given up after the original investment is returned.
Lori and Steve followed Kevin’s footsteps, changing their offer to $250,000 for a 10% stake in the company with 5% returned after the investment is returned. Daymond wasn’t prepared to back down either, increasing his offer to $350,000 for a 12% stake in the company.
Bruno suggested Lori partner with Mark, which she agreed to do after calling quits on her deal with Steve. They went 50-50 on the offer with Bruno.
Bruno then asked for a whopping $500,000 for a 15% stake in the company. Even though Kevin, Steve and Daymond partnered up, Lori and Steve accepted the final ask, and Bruno left Shark Tank with a solid deal.
Our Review of Cycloramic
We decided to try Cycloramic for ourselves to see how it would fare in practice.
The good news is that the design of the app was simple enough for novices to use. It could easily be set up without a tripod and could get a 180-degree pan of steady shots, plus it automatically stopped taking photos if they went out of the row, showing a red arrow for areas that weren’t supposed to be included. It also offers a range of filters for editing purposes.
The bad news is that it’s a bit on the pricey end and has no free trial option either. You have to keep your hand very steady or the photos will come out blurry, making a tripod a better option. There were some bugs and lagging on different devices that could be resolved by the software team. And a few exposure issues that might’ve mostly been because of the lighting.
Pros and Cons of Cycloramic
Pros of Cycloramic
- Simple design
- Supports a 180-degree pan
- Will guide the user
- A wide variety of artistic and enhancement filters
Cons of Cycloramic
- No free trial option
- Expensive
- A tripod would work better
- Some bugs and lagging
- Exposure changes
Who is Cycloramic for?
Cycloramic is an excellent app for professional travel photographers who want high-resolution images of mountainous scenery and can’t carry their cameras with them. It’s also a good option for any amateur still learning to take good panoramic shots since the app can take photos independently.
Are There Any Alternatives?
Although Cycloramic was a somewhat unique software at its invention, there are now other options for panoramic photo stitching applications.
Bimostitch Panorama Stitcher is one good alternative to the Cycloramic. It has multiple options for stitching together high-res, multi-row, and even 360-degree panoramas. While Cycloramic offers editing software, the built-in editor crops images while preserving resolution on its own. All you have to do is take photos and then leave it to the intuitive software to smartly filter and compile overlapping images and panoramic photos together at a time. This makes it an impressive software that can handle a lot of data at once.
With the Bimostitch, you can easily select the images that you want to stitch together then leave it to the intuitive software to smartly filter and compile overlapping images only. In a matter of minutes, your final panoramic photo will have a resolution of 100 megapixels.
Unlike the Cycloramic, the Bimostitch doesn’t require any built-in gyro technology. It also uses the same vibration feature. It is the perfect option for people who want to submit their photos for publication in a magazine. It is also a lightweight app for people who don’t have a lot of storage space in their phones.
Our Final Thoughts
The Cyclorama is an excellent option for people who like taking photos while traveling or are looking to submit their photos for publishing in a magazine or a newspaper.
