It's quickly becoming known that the cameras on your phone are capable of handling the massive job of making films -- in fact, Bentley recently used iPhone 5s' to shoot their ad for one of their luxury sedans. Furthermore, there are many accessories and add-ons out there to assist you in the task of making your smartphone cinematography more sophisticated, and ikon's new handheld gimbal stabilizer, designed specifically for smartphones, is another tool to consider. The X3 uses a 3-axis electronic gyro to offer steady movement to users, as well as a lightweight build, without completely emptying their wallets.
Smartphone filmmakers have seen gyro stabilizers hit the market for quite a while, but until late April of this year, we were only given gyros with just 2 axises that still left a little to be desired. Now that a few 3-axis gyros have come through the chute, we're beginning to see more options -- which translates to more potential for the films and videos you want to create on your phones.
ikon's X3 does operate on 3 axises to control the pitch, roll, and yaw. It was designed to be an on-the-go tool, meaning that you're looking at a 2-hour battery life with the its rechargeable lithium-ion battery, as well as a 3-step setup process that seems simple enough, thanks to its single clamp and auto-calibration system. The clamp fits most popular smartphones, including the last two generations of iPhones, Galaxies, Razrs, and HTCs. It's relatively light weight at just 1 1/5 lbs.
Check out how it performs in the video below:
The X3 prices out at $299, so it's not incredibly cheap (though it's comparable to the world's first 3-axis smartphone gyro from DSLR Pros) especially for a piece of smartphone gear. (I'm assuming that most of your projects aren't done on your smartphone -- but if they are -- you're awesome and that's awesome!)
What do you think about the footage? Do you think that ikan's X3 is a good option for smartphone cinematography? Let us know below.
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