Zhiyun - Smooth 4 stabilizer for 3-axis smartphones

Review:

The evolution of smartphone cameras has led to a rapid growth of video-making accessories to allow users to capture video and images in an increasingly professional manner. One of the most sought-after is certainly the gimbal, a device built with a series of universal joints capable of stabilizing the images by counterbalancing the movements due to the instability of the manual shots, thus avoiding to make videos that are moved or blurred even during a run or a walk.

So since I'm a fan of photography and video editing, I decided to try a gimbal for my Huawei P30, but I didn't want to spend much, but at the same time I wanted to buy a quality product, so I chose this fantastic company, leader in the development of stabilizers, purchasing one of its fantastic products, the Smooth 4.

Construction quality and design

The materials used are really of excellent quality, the handle of the gimbal is in matt black plastic with a non-slip printed texture, so as to have a solid and secure grip, the arms where the 3 brushless motors are mounted are made of a material similar to 'aluminum, they are also locked with a snap mechanism, so that the motors do not get ruined by involuntary movements caused by transport.

The attachment of the smartphone is in plastic with an iron core covered with soft rubber, behind it we find a screw that allows you to choose the orientation of the smartphone, vertical or horizontal.

An additional screw, placed on the horizontal arm, allows you to calibrate the weight of the smartphone, extending it or tightening it.

The tripod has small rubber feet and the classic screw on which to screw or the gimbal, any camera.

Functionality and connectivity with the smartphone

The operation is very simple, first of all download the "ZY Play" application which can be downloaded from the relative store of your phone or using the link below:

Meanwhile, we place the smartphone in the accommodation, making a slight calibration thanks to the screw for the counterweight, after which we turn on the stabilizer. Once downloaded, the gimbal automatically connects with Bluetooth to the smartphone, at this point we can make the most of our stabilizer with all its functions.

On the handle, we find several keys, these allow us to change the settings and use all the functions without having to physically touch the phone, let's take a look specifically at the keys on the front and their operation.

Menu / Return key, pressing it once you enter the settings, pressing it again saves and exits, among the settings, we find the possibility to choose the shooting mode and video recording, including "180 ° PANO", which will automatically perform a 180 degree panorama, "3x3 PANO", it is always a panoramic photo, but this time 9 photos will be taken automatically, in a sort of 3x3 table, the "SLO-MO" mode in which a movie will be played at high fps and then slowed down, the TIME-LAPSE and MO-TIMELAPSE modes: the latter allows you to perform timelapses combined with movements organized following previously set "way-points", and finally the VERTIGO function, in which the camera moves towards a subject and enlarges at the same time, or the camera moves away from a subject and enlarges. Also from the same menu, you can change the exposure, set a timer, adjust the video resolution (up to 4K 30fps), set up photo filters, etc..

Parameter, with this key it is possible to show or deactivate the display information.

Change of zoom / Focus, by pressing this button you can switch from adjusting the focus to adjusting the zoom, adjustable from the wheel on the side

Photo button, allows you to take a picture based on the chosen shooting mode.

Video button, allows you to start or stop a video recording, also in this case based on the chosen shooting mode.

Scroll wheel, in addition to allowing you to move around in the menus and settings, depending on where it is clicked, you can use functions, in fact if pressed to the left, it allows you to switch from the internal to the external room, if you click on the right, you will find the resolution button and frame rate, through this button opens the menu to choose the recording resolution and the frames, at the top instead, you can adjust the exposure, and finally at the bottom we find the album button, with this button you can enter photo gallery and recorded videos.

Confirm / LED light, if we are in the settings, pressing it confirms the selection, otherwise with a long press the smartphone's LED flash lights up.

PF / L mode switch, holding it upwards activates the PF (Pan Following) mode, in this way it will follow the movement of the device in a horizontal direction, ie to the right and left. Holding it down, the L (Locked) mode is activated, which will block all 3 axes to keep the frame of the smartphone fixed on a subject.

ON / OFF button, pressing it for 2 seconds turns the stabilizer on or off.

Battery status indicator, we find 4 LEDs that indicate 25%, 50%, 75% and 100% of the charge respectively.

In the back instead, we find a "up / down" button, with double function:

Phone GO mode, sand kept pressed "up", this mode will be activated which will make the gimbal much more reactive, in this way it will be possible to change the shot very quickly, particularly useful when walking fast or capturing fast scenes.

Full Follow Mode, holding down "down", you enter the follow movement mode, the movements of our hand will be followed in a fluid way and also the possibility to trace objects including but not limited to human faces with a much higher precision. Instead, pressing it twice the device returns to the initial position.

Battery

The internal battery of the gimbal lasts from 10 to 12 hours depending on the shooting mode and can be charged via USB Type C, in the connector in the stabilizer handle. Another great feature of this Smooth 4 is the ability to recharge the smartphone while using it with the stabilizer, all thanks to a small micro USB port located behind the arm that holds the smartphone to which you can connect the smartphone charging cable to load the latter

TECHNICAL SPECIFICATIONS:

Standard operating voltage: 7.4 v
Operating temperature: Max 45 ° C / Standard: 25 ° C / Min: -10 ° C
Battery life: 12 h
Recharge time: 3 h
Stabilizer tilt range: 240°
Flow rate mechanical roll: 240°
Burden: Max 210 g / Min: 75 g

In the package we find:

The SMOOTH stabilizer 4
USB type C cable for charging
Tripod
User manual
Warranty certificate

I was really satisfied with the product, thanks also to the perfect quality / price ratio, I can't help but recommend this fantastic product to everyone.

Buy it on Bangood!

Unboxing:

The product arrived in an excellent packaging, which protected the object in question during transport from bumps and damage. Once opened, we find the product packaging, where the product information contained within and the company contact information were printed