Review: Zhiyun’s Smooth II 3-Axis Gimbal Gives iPhone Video Footage Better Stability
Digital image and video stabilization features have been included in modern smartphones for a while now, with each new generation offering improved correction for jumps and jitters that typically occur during handheld shooting.
Still, even the latest handsets can’t quite match the benefits that can be gained from using a motorized mount specifically designed to reduce vibration and unwanted shake.
Smartphone gimbals are made for just this purpose. Phone gimbals look similar to selfie sticks, but incorporate special motorized axes that keep shooting balanced and steady by adjusting for tilt, roll and tracking movements.
One brand that’s been steadily gaining plaudits for its gimbals is Zhiyun. The Chinese firm’s gimbals in its Smooth range have been noted amongst video aficionados for their robust design, multiple operational modes, and relative affordability compared to the competition. Here, we looked at the company’s latest Z1-Smooth II ($329) to see what advantages a gimbal offers for iPhone owners.
Design and Features
The Smooth II 3-axis stabilizer is designed for phones with screen sizes up to seven inches, and comes supplied with a counterweight to balance phones with a lens attachment or those with weightier screens (5.5-inches and above).
Also in the box is a USB to micro-USB charging cable, a 3400mAh rechargeable removable battery, a quick-start user manual (English), a foam camera protection sticker, and a set of ‘contact us’ QR codes.
The mount is made from a tough aluminum alloy that feels sturdy yet surprisingly lightweight. The axes flop about a bit when the device is powered off, so it pays to be careful when you’re carrying it around (especially with a phone attached), but it still feels like it could take a few knocks.
Phones are mounted using the manually adjustable clamp that runs off the tilt axis, which extends from the central roll axis. A thumb screw on the back of the mount lets you tweak the level, based on your phone’s center of gravity. The clamp has quite a bit of force, so I wouldn’t recommend putting an iPhone into it without a bumper or case, but there’s plenty of give to accommodate for this.
The gimbal has three operating modes that work in different ways to counteract your movements and create smoother, more stable video (more on these below).
The operating modes are controlled from the handgrip by pressing down on the joystick, which also functions as a standby button. There’s a separate power switch (which can also start/stop video recording when connected to the iOS app over Bluetooth), an LED power indicator, a micro-USB port, and a shifter lever for camera zoom and front/rear camera switching when using the app.
A cap at the end of the handle screws off to provide access to the replaceable 18650 battery, which charges inside the gimbal when the device is plugged into a power source via USB. At the bottom of the handle is also a 1/4-inch screw thread for attaching the gimbal to a tripod, extension rod, or other camera equipment.
Performance
Getting going with the gimbal was easier than I expected, and the quick-start guide was clear and helpful. Sliding an iPhone 6s into the mount was simple, and didn’t require me to use the supplied counterweight, which is needed if you want to use any of Apple’s 5.5-inch iPhone Plus models. I extended the clamp with my hands, slipped in the handset in the correct orientation, and was good to go.
Pressing and holding the power button for three seconds turned on the device, which raised the phone into a level horizontal or “landscape” position. Repeating this turns off the gimbal, which makes the mount fall down limply. This is why it’s important to apply the foam camera protection sticker to the pan motor axis, because the phone screen can knock against it unless you power off with the gimbal pointed down towards the floor.
The default Pan Following mode offered instant, no-fuss video stabilization, enabling 360-degree freedom of movement at the lower (pan) axis while keeping the horizon level. This allowed me to control the panning direction of the shot from my wrist while the tilt and roll axes corrected for any unintentional wonkiness.
From there, a single press of the joystick enabled Locking mode, which locked the left and right panning motion and kept the camera forward facing regardless of which direction I moved my arm. Panning in this mode is controlled via the joystick, so as long as I didn’t press left or right on it I was able to move around freely without affecting the shooting angle, and even come into shot for a selfie, before completing a full 360-degree rotation around the static upper mount.
Pressing up and down on the joystick in both the above modes allowed me to control the vertical tilt of the camera and move the shot up towards the sky and down to the ground. The only drawback is that there isn’t any way of controlling the speed of the tilt in these two modes, however the Smooth II compensates for this lack with a third mode, activated with a double press of the joystick.
This activates Pan and Pitch Following mode. Now if you bring your wrist in up towards your face or lower it towards the ground, the tilt axis smoothly adjusts to follow the angle of the gimbal at the same speed. The roll axis compensates similarly if you rotate your wrist left and right.
This mode also changes the function of the joystick’s up/down direction, which now allows you to manually adjust the angle of the phone. This gives you some degree of rotational control either side of the standard landscape position (about 25 degrees, give or take). It doesn’t quite roll the camera into a portrait position, but you can use the gimbal to shoot portrait if you hold it parallel to the ground in any of the three modes.
Pressing the joystick once again takes you back to the default mode, while pressing and holding puts the device into standby mode, which can be used to calibrate the gimbal if the tilt/roll/pan angle of the camera deviates slightly from a level position. The calibration process is simple: place the gimbal on a level surface and keep it stationary for 30 seconds. This was performed once and I didn’t have to do it again.
Pressing the joystick again from standby immediately returns the device to normal operation. This proved useful for conserving battery between shots without having to constantly power on and off, which involves a few seconds’ delay as the gimbal configures balance. On that note, I found the battery more than capable of standing up to a couple of days’ use, and Zhiyun’s stated five- to seven-hour battery life actually felt quite conservative.
While it’s not a complicated device to operate, there is a moderate learning curve involved in making the most of the Smooth II’s functions – I dedicated an afternoon to playing with it (see videos), and came away feeling like I had a fair enough grasp of its modes to use them in test shooting. All of the motors and modes functioned silently throughout, so there was no risk of picking up mechanical sounds on my footage. Bear in mind the device has no specified waterproofing, so I would advise against using it in wetter climes.
Bluetooth and Apps
The Bluetooth functionality of the Smooth II is supported by the company’s iOS apps, Zhiyun Camera and Zhiyun Assistant (both English), although there’s relatively little instruction included on how to get the best out of them. That said, they’re not cryptic by any means, and with a bit of fiddling I soon figured out the controls.
The camera app is for shooting video/photos, includes ISO, balance, and exposure settings, and has an option to turn on/off the iPhone’s built-in stabilization mode. With the gimbal connected to the app via Bluetooth, the buttons on the handle control your iPhone’s camera, which turned out to be a lot more convenient than tapping the phone’s touchscreen. Just be sure to give the app access to your photos, otherwise it won’t save your footage. Meanwhile, the Assistant app features an axis monitor and lets you upgrade the firmware, as well as offering finer calibration controls, but these weren’t something I had to bother with.
Bottom Line
Smartphone gimbals are still a niche device, but the Smooth II is a solid, attractive option for anyone wanting to enhance their home/family movies or add a more refined look to video projects. It definitely steadied my test movies over the course of a single afternoon and gave the footage a more watchable, professional feel without the need for any post-processing, and the learning curve wasn’t too difficult either. With additional testing and a better grasp of gimbal technique, I’m sure production values could be raised a lot further.
The device’s performance was impressive overall, as was its battery life, and the price, while not exactly cheap for a phone accessory, is very competitive compared to other gimbals, especially considering the technology this one packs. My only real gripe is that no stowing/carry case is included in the box.
Pros
- Strong, lightweight design
- Very good stabilization modes
- Bluetooth connectivity via app
- Great battery life
Cons
- Sparse app instructions
- No case included
- Expensive for a phone accessory
How to Buy
The Zhiyun Smooth-II 3 Axis Handheld Gimbal Camera Mount comes with a one-year warranty and can be ordered on Amazon for $325 or directly from Zhiyun for $289 plus shipping via the company’s Facebook store.
Note: Zhiyun supplied the gimbal to MacRumors for the purposes of this review. No other compensation was received.
Tags: review, Zhiyun
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Android Pay support may soon be coming to Android Wear
… But you might need to buy a new watch to use it.
With Samsung and Apple already offering NFC payments on their smartwatches, it was only a matter of time until Android Pay caught up with its own wrist-based payment option. And now strings dug up by Android Police from within the latest Google Play Services APK file suggest it might be happening sooner rather than later. (Or at the very least, that Googlers may be testing it out in the wild.)
The strings discovered in an XML file inside the app, which would presumably appear in a menu of some sort, refer to adding an account for Android Pay, and holding the watch over a payment terminal. Pretty obvious what that’s all about, then. Clearly Google is preparing the UI for Android Pay on Android Wear.
However, not all current Android Wear devices will be able to use the feature when it rolls out — perhaps alongside the upcoming Android Wear 2.0 in early 2017 — because many popular models like the Huawei Watch and Moto 360 don’t have NFC support. The most notable watches that do support this essential feature are ASUS’s ZenWatch series. It’s likely any new hardware launching alongside Wear 2.0 would feature NFC, and that Android Pay would be one of the tentpole features of the wide-ranging refresh of Google’s wearable platform.
As for whether Google can make the experience of waving your smartwatch-laden arm over a payment terminal any less awkward than it sounds? We’ll have to wait and see.
Google Play Music’s latest update is two steps forward, one step back
Last week, Google Play Music took its first step towards a long, long overdue overhaul.
The recent Google Play Music update changes only one element of the UI: the home page. Before the update, it was a mix of Recents and Recommendations. Now, Listen Now is entirely recommendations, with only a Recents button in the top right corner to remind you that Play Music is anything but AI-made radio stations… until you switch to Downloaded. Then, Home changes into something far more useful.
In Downloaded Only mode, the home page changes to Downloaded music, showcasing the playlists that you have stored locally, starting with the most recently-used four playlists. There’s also a Shuffle button that pops up right above your playlists, allowing you to quickly shuffle all your offline tunes, but the real gem is hiding at the bottom of the page: Cached music.
Cached music is made up of songs that you listened to once or twice and Play Music downloaded them in case you want to hear them again. Previously, it was impossible to tell what was Cached music as opposed to downloaded as a part of a playlist/album. Listing it is a great first step, but I’m eagerly awaiting the ability to tap a song in here and tap Remove from cached music to clear out songs I don’t want wasting space without emptying the whole cache.
There are honestly some great features in here, but they’re only accessible on Downloaded, which many users never turn on.
You may also notice there is a page indicator just above Downloaded music; if you swipe right, you’ll be treated to another menu we haven’t seen on Play Music before: Other music on this device. Before now, if you had music downloaded on your phone, Google Play Music would show it and play it as if it was part of your cloud library, but you couldn’t tell what was local-only. This menu will be useful, especially when you’re about to migrate to a new device and need to know what needs syncing off the old phone.
There are honestly some great features in here, but they’re only accessible on Downloaded, which many users never turn on, and the regular menus they replace are far less useful (at least to my Station-avoiding tastes). At least these menus encourage me to stay offline and save my data, but should the main page of an app change so completely based on your data status? Is there a happy balance to be re-struck between our personal libraries and cloud recommendations? I think so, but for now, here’s what we’ve got.
We can only hope as more changes come, they’re more consistently useful than Home.
Pokémon Go’s third global in-game event doubles XP for a week
Another opportunity to score more points is coming.
Pokémon Go is one of the biggest successes of 2016, even if interest in the mobile game hasn’t sustained itself since its summer introduction. Certainly, with negative temperatures now creeping up here in Toronto, I certainly have less incentive than a few months ago to get out and level up.
Well, Niantic and The Pokémon Company feel the same way, since it is holding the third global in-game event between November 23 and November 30, where trainers will earn double the XP and Stardust for completing in-game actions. Previous in-game events saw a higher number of ghoulish Pokémon over the Halloween period, as well as double the experience points during set times.
More: Pokémon Go, the ultimate guide
Recently, Pokémon Go was expanded to include eight new countries in the Middle East, including Bahrain, Israel, Jordan, Kuwait, Lebanon, Oman, Qatar, and the United Arab Emirates.
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New Limited Edition ZTE Axon 7 has Force Touch, 6GB RAM and 128GB storage
Updated model lands today for just under $500.
Mid-cycle refreshes are apparently all the rage this year. Just as OnePlus bumps up to the OnePlus 3T, rival ZTE is today rolling out a new limited edition Axon 7 with upgraded specs. The new model will sell for $499.98 through the company’s online store, and boasts 6GB of RAM and 128GB of storage (compared to the original’s 4GB/64GB), along with a pressure-sensitive Force Touch display.
This wouldn’t be the first time we’ve seen Force Touch in an Android phone. A limited edition Huawei Mate S featured the tech in 2015, as did the P9 Plus earlier this year. Today’s Axon presser says Force Touch will allow for a “more intuitive user experience,” but it’s light on details of exactly how it’ll make that happen. (Huawei’s implementation featured iOS-style app shortcuts and the ability to zoom in on photos, among more dubious offerings.)
Besides these three spec changes (and a higher price), you’re getting the exact same phone Daniel Bader reviewed for AC back in August:
The Axon 7 is one of the best phone surprises I’ve had so far in 2016. Like the OnePlus 3, it provides tremendous value for its $400 asking price, and despite a few software quirks is without major compromise.
Not only is it wonderfully compact for a 5.5-inch phone, but it is well-made and nicely designed, replete with an excellent camera setup and superlative sound. If you can overcome the need to have the latest software (or expeditious software updates, for that matter), the ZTE Axon 7 is one of the best unlocked smartphones you can buy today.
More: ZTE Axon 7 review
Carphone Warehouse slashes Google Pixel + Galaxy S7 prices in ‘black tag’ sale
Don’t call it Black Friday.
In the run up to Black Friday, UK retailer Carphone Warehouse has launched four days of “black tag” sales, with substantial discounts on some high-end phones — as well as some older models — both on contract and SIM-free.
A few highlights include:
- Galaxy S7 for £0 upfront on a £24 per month contract — £209 saving.
- Galaxy S7 edge for £79.99 upfront on a £33.49 per month contract — £200 saving.
- Google Pixel for £29.99 upfront on a £35.99 per month contract — £150 saving.
- Google Pixel XL for £129.99 upfront on a £35.99 contract — £150 saving.
- Sony Xperia XZ for £0 upfront on a £28 per month contract — £200 saving.
- Google Pixel SIM-free for £529.99 — £70 off.
- Google Pixel XL SIM-free for £649.99 — £70 off.
- Galaxy S7 edge SIM-free for £529.99 — £100 off.
- Sony Xperia XZ SIM-free for £479.99 — £60 off.
The deals expire at midnight UK time on Thursday (as in 12 a.m. Friday morning), so hit up the link below to check ’em out.
See at Carphone Warehouse
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Google Pixel + Pixel XL
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HTC offering $200 off in Black Friday savings on the HTC 10
Get the HTC 10 for less ahead of Black Friday.
HTC is already getting into the spirit of Black Friday, hoping to attract consumers before the biggest shopping day of the year. They’re offering a $200 discount on the HTC 10 from now until November 29, which brings the price down to a very attractive $499.
You can choose between carrier-locked versions for T-Mobile, Verizon and Sprint, or go with the unlocked option that’s compatible with AT&T’s and T-Mobile’s networks. You’ll also get to choose between a few HTC-exclusive color options — Camellia Red, Topaz Gold, Carbon Gray. The red, in particular, really stands out from the rest.
The HTC 10 runs on Snapdragon 820 with 4GB of Ram and features a 12MP rear UltraPixel 2 camera with front and back OIS, HiFi audio, expandable memory via microSD and a 3,000mAh battery that recharges up to 50% in 30 minutes using Quick Charge 3.0.
This deal is only available until November 29 and only while supplies last, so if you’ve been considering the HTC 10, now is the time to act!
See at HTC
Want a OnePlus 3T early? Get yourself down to O2 on Oxford St this Thursday
OnePlus unveiled its newest handset, the OnePlus 3T, last week. The latest flagship killer from one of the most disruptive brands in the business boasts the Snapdragon 821 processor, a beefy 3,400mAh battery, 6GB RAM, Dash Charge for super-fast charging and a refined Oxygen OS software experience, and all at a fraction of the price it’d cost you for a similarly-specced specced phone from anyone else.
It looks like it’ll be a fantastic phone, and it’s due to be launched in the UK on 28 November. However, there is an opportunity for you to get your hands on it before anyone else by joining the company at its early retail event on 24 November. OnePlus and O2 are hosting a pre-release launch event at the O2 store on Oxford Street where you’ll be able to snag the phone four days before it goes on general sale.
The event kicks off at precisely 3:02pm GMT and you can expect to join a crowd of other enthusiastic OnePlus fans at the O2 store, 134 Oxford Street. Demand is expected to be high for the competitive smartphone, as it has been for its predecessor, the OnePlus 3. In other words: if you really want to be the first, be sure to get down there early.
You’ll be able to buy the phone either with a contract on one of O2’s Refresh plans, or SIM-free. If you’re after the 64GB model, that’ll set you back either £31/month for a plan with 500 minutes and 500MB data, or £42/month for unlimited minutes and 5GB data.
Both plans come with unlimited texts and an up-front cost of £9.99. Meanwhile, there will be a 128GB option which costs just £2/month extra for the same plans, and with no up-front payment. If you’re after a SIM-free phone and no contract, the 64GB phone costs £417.99, while the 128GB versions costs just £456 with O2.
In previous years, OnePlus has only made its phone available to buy direct from its own website, and sometimes requiring you to have an invitation first. In short: partnering with one of the UK’s biggest carriers and offering the phones at a popular store is a big deal for OnePlus. It shows how far the company have come in just a few short years.
If you want to be among the first to get the OnePlus 3T – and meet some fellow OnePlus fans at the same time – you know where to be this Thursday. It’s an opportunity not to be missed.
The NIO EP9 is the ‘world’s fastest’ all-electric supercar
NextEV, despite its name, hasn’t built your next automobile. At least not yet. Instead, it’s created a (somewhat) eco-friendly monster capable of beating the Nürburgring in a staggering 7 minutes and 5 seconds. That, the company claims, is quicker than the previous EV lap record, making it “the fastest electric car in the world.” Big talk, wouldn’t you agree? It’s called the EP9 and is the first car to be launched under NextEV’s new “NIO” brand. The company says further vehicles and products will follow, making NIO more of a lifestyle brand than a straightforward car manufacturer.
The sleek two-seater has four onboard motors and four individual gearboxes, capable of delivering 1 megawatt of power to the wheels. For speed freaks, that means 0 to 100KPH (62MPH) in 2.7 seconds. It will also do 0 to 200KPH (124MPH) in 7.1 seconds and 300KPH (186MPH) in 15.9 seconds. The EP9 can’t, however, complete a quarter mile stretch in under 10 seconds (at 10.1 seconds, it’s pretty close however.) Sorry Dom, but you’ll have to go back to your Dodge Charger for now. The complete car weighs 1735KG, with 635KG devoted to batteries alone. Those power packs are interchangeable too, with a fresh set lasting 427 kilometers (265 miles).
You probably haven’t heard of NextEV before. The little-known Chinese company was set up in 2014 and has been quietly competing in Formula E. The upstart team won the championship in its first year with Nelson Piquet Jr in the cockpit. Much of the vehicle’s engineering has since been adapted for the new EP9 — hence the focus on raw performance. With the equivalent of 1360 PS (1340BHP) under the hood it’s certainly a race track beast, giving Tesla’s top of the line Model S plenty to think about. Heck, Audi’s R8 e-tron and the Rimac Concept One should be worried too.
Fancy buying one? You’re out of luck. As AutoExpress reports, NextEV is only building six cars and they’ve all been snapped up by the company’s founders. Each one reportedly costs $1.2 million to build, so only the most deep-pocketed individuals could have afforded one anyway. Thankfully, NextEV is promising another launch sometime in 2017 — a regular production car (maybe a Model 3 competitor) that should be a tad cheaper.
Source: NIO
Researchers take small step towards proving carbon capture
Researchers believe that they have made a major step towards proving carbon capture and storage is viable. A team in Washington State injected liquified CO2 into a basalt formation — rock that forms after a lava flow has cooled. Two years later, and it’s claimed that the carbon dioxide has solidified into Ankerite, an inert material that should, theoretically, lock the carbon away forever. According to Scientific American, it was originally believed that it would take hundreds of years for the process to occur. The fact that it took just 24 months gives hope to the notion that the technology is workable.
It’s worth pointing out that carbon capture and storage isn’t going to be a magic bullet that saves the world as we know it. After all, this isn’t going to reduce our dependency on our planet’s rapidly-dwindling natural resources, and there’s only so much basalt in the ground. That said, if the process can be perfected on a large scale, it could provide the stopgap necessary for us to transition toward a low-carbon future.
Via: Scientific American
Source: Environmental Letters
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