#vr rig

GoPro is finally shipping its massive professional VR rig

After months of delays, the 16-camera virtual reality rig that GoPro built with Google has finally shipped. GoPro tells The Verge that Odyssey, as it's called, has made it out to the first few companies that were vetted as part of a "limited access" pilot program.

GoPro declined to comment on the exact number of customers who have received or even applied to buy Odyssey, but did name VR production companies WEVR, VRSE, Specular, Surreal, Theory, and Two Bit Circus as some of the first to receive the rig.

Odyssey is not your everyday virtual reality capture device. The big, spaceship-like rig costs $15,000 and uses 16 cameras to shoot three-dimensional 360-degree video. The price tag includes 16 of the company's flagship Hero 4 Black cameras, a microphone, the rig structure itself, all the necessary cables, and a Pelican case, as well as a warranty, support, and access to Google's servers.

That makes it an attractive option for all types of filmmakers and companies with a bit of a budget. For comparison, Nokia's all-in-oneHollywood-ready VR camera offers similar capabilities and costs $60,000. GoPro, meanwhile, also sells a six-camera rig (much more like the commonly used homebrewsolutions) for $5,000, and other companies sell rigs for even less — albeit with little to no software support. Other high-end solutions, like the Jaunt One, have no publicly stated price.