DJI Osmo Mobile 2 Smart Phone Gimbal Review

DJI gained worldwide recognition for producing a number of the simplest consumer drones on the market, but their option to diversify and manufacture camera accessories has also been massively successful. The DJI Osmo Mobile, though expensive, was a superb first attempt at producing a smartphone gimbal.

The DJI Osmo Mobile 2 is that the Osmo Mobile’s successor, and it appears DJI have made some big moves to position themselves because the market leader in handheld gimbals. The Osmo Mobile 2 supposedly delivers better stabilization than its predecessor—while costing but half the maximum amount at launch.

As a lover of previous DJI gimbals, it should go without saying i used to be massively excited for the Osmo Mobile 2. At an equivalent time, i used to be skeptical about whether or not DJI could deliver on their promises.

Could DJI really produce the last word smartphone gimbal while pricing it as a budget gimbal? Or did they need to chop some corners to appeal to the more price sensitive consumer? Let’s determine .

DJI Osmo Mobile 2 Smart Phone Gimbal Review

What The Osmo Mobile 2 Does?

Before we dive into the review, let me clear up what exactly a gimbal just like the Osmo Mobile 2 is for.

A gimbal stabilizer is actually a tool that drastically reduces unwanted camera shake.

Even though high end smartphones just like the iPhone X feature advanced optical image stabilization (OIS), the very fact is camera shake will always noticeable when filming things while moving, or when the camera is mounted on a moving object.

3-axis gimbals just like the Osmo Mobile 2 use three brushless motors to regulate three pivots. These pivots move to counteract the changes in orientation of the camera. The resulting video footage is far smoother than any gimbal-less setup.

First Impressions

Out of the box, the DJI Osmo Mobile 2 looked very familiar. it's almost just like its predecessor while being slightly lighter and more compact. That’s obviously a plus, albeit the first Osmo Mobile 2 was compact enough to start with.

Unlike many other gimbals that include a bunch of accessories like frame housing, wrist straps and tripods, the Osmo Mobile 2 features a far more minimalist package. Inside the included carry case you’ll only find the gimbal itself and a micro USB charging cable.

Build Quality

Most smartphone gimbals are made up of plastic, and therefore the Osmo Mobile 2 is not any exception. However, consistent with DJI, the Osmo Mobile 2 is formed from high-strength nylon that's supposedly both lighter and stronger than its predecessor’s plastic.

The Osmo Mobile 2 felt good in my hands. Despite still being plastic, it felt better built than cheaper gimbals just like the Hohem iSteady Mobile. Of course, only time will tell if that's actually the case.

Like its predecessor, the ergonomics of the Osmo Mobile 2’s handgrip is extremely good. It doesn’t feature a rubberized grip or feel quite as comfortable to use because the fancy GoPro Karma, but it’s definitely one among the higher grips around.

As with almost every smartphone gimbal, the DJI Osmo Mobile 2 isn't waterproof so it shouldn’t be taken outside on rainy days or wont to film water sports.

Compatibility and Setup

The DJI Osmo Mobile 2 features a spring loaded clamp that creates mounting your smartphone a breeze. I found it vastly superior to the screw mechanisms found in many other gimbals. this is often an especially welcome feature for a smartphone gimbal, because you’ll constantly be taking your mounting and unmounting your phone.

DJI Osmo Mobile 2 Smart Phone Gimbal Review

I personally tried the gimbal with my old Samsung S7 Edge, iPhone 7 Plus and iPhone X. I didn’t have any issues putting them on, but the iPhone 7 Plus in its TPU case was a touch of a squeeze.

According to DJI, the Osmo Mobile 2 is compatible with all iPhone models, including the new iPhone XS and XR and XS Max. Supporting a maximum payload of 240g, the Osmo Mobile 2 also will be compatible with the overwhelming majority of Androids.

Your phone are often mounted in either horizontally (landscape) or vertically (portrait). The latter is clearly geared towards those users eager to share stories on Instagram Stories or the likes of .

Unfortunately, switching between horizontal and vertical orientations requires you to physically begin your phone, flip the clamp and put it back on. Some smartphone gimbals allow you to modify orientation at the press of a button or flick of the wrist – the Osmo Mobile 2 doesn’t.

Regarding compatibility with accessories, the industry standard quarter-inch thread needle at the bottom of the gimbal makes it easy to mount to tripods and therefore the like.

Controlling The DJI Osmo Mobile 2

Whereas some gimbals cause you to desire you’re piloting a drone, perhaps ironically, DJI’s gimbal control scheme is extremely simple and easy .

The power button isn't only used for turning the device on and off, tapping it three time will reset the gimbal to its default orientation.

There is a fanatical record button which suggests you don’t need to touch your phone’s screen to start out capturing.

The joystick within the middle is employed to regulate the gimbal’s pan and tilt. this is often a flowery way of claiming pointing the camera left, right, up and down.

The range of motion is extremely good, but not the simplest . The Osmo Mobile 2 has roughly a 340-degree range of motion within the pan and tilt axes and may roll 45-degree to either side. this is often far better than tons of gimbals which may only pan 180 degrees, but a number of the newer gimbals are capable repeatedly panning 360 degrees.

Other than that, the left side of the handgrip features a zoom slider. this enables you to regulate the digital zoom while recording video. like most gimbals that provide a physical button to regulate digital zoom, it’s not perfect. In other words, as you concentrate it’ll be a touch choppy and not perfectly smooth.

Gimbal Modes

The Osmo Mobile 2 features two shooting modes which you'll easily switch between:

Follow Mode: during this mode, the Osmo Mobile 2 will follow the user’s movements while eliminating camera shake. Therefore once you pan left or right or tilt up or down, the gimbal will follow your movements, albeit smoothing out those movements for buttery smooth footage.

Free Mode (a.k.a. All Lock): during this mode, the Osmo Mobile 2 will lock the pan, tilt and roll axis. In layman’s terms, the gimbal will attempt to keep the cameras orientation an equivalent , and stay focused on an equivalent object. As an example, you’ll want to be during this mode when you’re filming at a gig, or once you want to use your phone as a dashcam.

With only two gimbal modes, DJI have kept things simple. it's fine for many cases, but some users could be disappointed by the shortage of a pan-follow mode.

Stabilization Performance

Stabilization performance is basically where the DJI Osmo Mobile 2 shines, especially for its price. Videos are even more stable than its expensive predecessor, and suffer from only a few micro-vibrations.

DJI Osmo Mobile 2 Smart Phone Gimbal Review

A common complaint of certain motorized gimbals is that their brushless DC motors are too noisy and audible in recordings footage. The DJI Osmo Mobile 2’s motors are practically silent and that i couldn’t devour any trace of their sound over the ambient sounds in my recordings.

The Osmo Mobile 2’s motors also are fast, meaning they will continue with even the fastest changes of direction. Sometimes you would like the follow speed to be slower, and therefore the smartphone companion app allows you to manually adjust the follow speeds.

DJI Go App

Quite frankly, most of the iOS/Android apps that gimbal manufacturers create for his or her gimbals are rubbish. albeit they add some functionality, I always find myself using the stock camera apps to record.

However, the DJI Go companion app is an exception. With an enormous company like DJI behind it, it feels more polished and really user friendly.

Of course this is often the app you’ll use to calibrate the gimbal, configure settings then forth. However, using the DJI Go app will unlock some exclusive capture modes that are literally worth using.

Firstly, the app allows you to record time-lapse and hyperlapse video. Most of you'll probably be conversant in time-lapses, but a number of you would possibly not be conversant in hyperlapses. In photography, a hyperlapse is actually a motion time-lapse where the camera also moves. DJI’sGo app allows you to take hyperlapses by prompting you to pick the beginning and end position of the camera and therefore the duration of the shot.

Perhaps the apps greatest feature, and have that creates you really want to record video using it, is ‘ActiveTrack’.

ActiveTrack allows you to draw a box around an object and therefore the gimbal will follow that objects movements by means of AI. A usage example would be if you’re a vlogger wandering around your room and need the camera to follow your movements.

For static photography, the app has the subsequent three photo modes:

Photo Timer
Panorama shots
Long exposure shots

The resulting quality of your photo will vary counting on your smartphone, but you'll adjust things just like the white balance through the app.

Finally, I should probably mention the livestream feature within the app. I don’t personally livestream, but if you would like to simply livestream to Facebook live or YouTube, this app has you covered.

Battery Life

The Osmo Mobile 2’s 2600mAh battery is made into the handgrip. Unlike the first Osmo Mobile 2, it’s not removable. Using non-removable batteries seems to be becoming a trend since the discharge of the favored GoPro Karma gimbal stabilizer.

The battery lifetime of the Osmo Mobile 2 is completely fantastic. I’m typically wont to using batteries that last 2-6 hours on one charge. The Osmo Mobile 2 can keep going for up to fifteen hours on one charge. That’s 3 times longer than the first Osmo Mobile.

A full charge will take approximately 3 hours. If you’re ever during a situation where you would like to charge your phone, USB port on the rear of the handgrip will allow you the Osmo Mobile 2 to function as a powerbank.

Conclusion

DJI have outdone themselves with the Osmo Mobile 2. They kept the Osmo Mobile’s winning formula, threw in some tweaks and significantly reduced the worth . i might recommend this gimbal to almost any videographer. those that desire a gimbal to assist them in doing fancy videography techniques, however, might find it a touch basic.

Pros