Zhiyun Smooth 5s Combo Smartphone Gimbal | Gray
(166 reviews)
Upgraded with a powerful built-in fill light and embodying the spirit of Make-It-Real, SMOOTH 5S offers an integrated yet simplified way of filmmaking for everyone. With the classic 3-axis design, you can create inspiring content with no angle limitations. SMOOTH 5S makes your one-man crew.
Upgraded with a powerful built-in fill light and embodying the spirit of Make-It-Real, SMOOTH 5S offers an integrated yet simplified way of filmmaking for everyone. With the classic 3-axis design, you can create inspiring content with no angle limitations. SMOOTH 5S makes your one-man crew.
$429.00
in 1 offers
Zhiyun Smooth 5s Combo Smartphone Gimbal | Gray
$429.00
(166 reviews)
Upgraded with a powerful built-in fill light and embodying the spirit of Make-It-Real, SMOOTH 5S offers an integrated yet simplified way of filmmaking for everyone. With the classic 3-axis design, you can create inspiring content with no angle limitations. SMOOTH 5S makes your one-man crew.
Upgraded with a powerful built-in fill light and embodying the spirit of Make-It-Real, SMOOTH 5S offers an integrated yet simplified way of filmmaking for everyone. With the classic 3-axis design, you can create inspiring content with no angle limitations. SMOOTH 5S makes your one-man crew.
Price comparison
Last updated at 16/07/2025 22:39:33
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Affiliate Disclosure: We may receive a small commission for purchases made through this link at no extra cost to you. This helps support our site. Thank you!
Affiliate Disclosure: We may receive a small commission for purchases made through this link at no extra cost to you. This helps support our site. Thank you!
Affiliate Disclosure: We may receive a small commission for purchases made through this link at no extra cost to you. This helps support our site. Thank you!
Price history
Price history
Reviews
Adding a positive difference to your videos
16 August 2023
Luis
originally posted on bestbuy.com
The Zhiyun-Smooth 56 Gimbal is a great option to include in your video equipment. I am a photo and video aficionado and over the last few years, I was thinking of
introducing a gimbal to keep a more stable video recording and a more professional video. However, I feel that the learning curve for becoming a regular user is quite steep.I
love that the Smooth 5 is coming with the gimbal and the tripod, plus the charging cable. I think that this is the bare minimum starting kit and all is there.Now, what I think is
missing is a real manual for new users. The brochure for quick-first use is less than insufficient. To make sure that you can use it, I strongly recommend (in realit...
introducing a gimbal to keep a more stable video recording and a more professional video. However, I feel that the learning curve for becoming a regular user is quite steep.I
love that the Smooth 5 is coming with the gimbal and the tripod, plus the charging cable. I think that this is the bare minimum starting kit and all is there.Now, what I think is
missing is a real manual for new users. The brochure for quick-first use is less than insufficient. To make sure that you can use it, I strongly recommend (in realit...
Flexible and professional but needs improvements
27 July 2023
gadgeTT
originally posted on bestbuy.com
This is a sturdy handheld phone gimbal with great build quality, good range of motion and a lot more professional features. However; it is cumbersome to set up when used
with larger phones, the buttons and controls are not easy to reach with one hand, and the included phone app has a lot of non-English text. Overall, it works well if you’re a
more advanced videographer who appreciates the greater flexibility and doesn’t mind the rough edges, but beginners and novices might want to look elsewhere.Pros:* Solid
build quality.* Numerous buttons and dials for gimbal control without having to navigate the phone app.* Very long battery life.* Useful built-in fill-light with the a...
with larger phones, the buttons and controls are not easy to reach with one hand, and the included phone app has a lot of non-English text. Overall, it works well if you’re a
more advanced videographer who appreciates the greater flexibility and doesn’t mind the rough edges, but beginners and novices might want to look elsewhere.Pros:* Solid
build quality.* Numerous buttons and dials for gimbal control without having to navigate the phone app.* Very long battery life.* Useful built-in fill-light with the a...
Full Featured Excellent Gimbal for Phone Filming
27 July 2023
holllywoodfrodo
originally posted on bestbuy.com
You'd be hard pressed to find a better professional gimbal for use with your smartphone. A dedicated smartphone gimbal is best because it's quick and easy to get the phone
balanced and ready to go. Zhiyun makes great gimbals - they are one of the top makers. I previously had the Zhiyun Smooth gimbal before upgrading to this 5S model. There
are SO many great features to this gimbal, but here are the main reasons I love it.It only takes a minute to get your phone in, ready to be balanced, power on, and ready to
go. This is important because you want to be able to shoot without wasting a lot of time setting up. The Smooth 5s is really easy - the locking mechanisms for all ...
balanced and ready to go. Zhiyun makes great gimbals - they are one of the top makers. I previously had the Zhiyun Smooth gimbal before upgrading to this 5S model. There
are SO many great features to this gimbal, but here are the main reasons I love it.It only takes a minute to get your phone in, ready to be balanced, power on, and ready to
go. This is important because you want to be able to shoot without wasting a lot of time setting up. The Smooth 5s is really easy - the locking mechanisms for all ...
Specification
| Grip Design | Single Handgrip (Slanted) |
| Load Capacity | 5.3 to 10.6 oz / 150 to 300 g |
| Number of Axes | 3-Axis (Pitch (Tilt), Roll, Yaw (Pan)) |
| Wireless Protocol | Bluetooth 4.2 |
| Mounting | 1 x 1/4"-20 Female |
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Price history
Price history
Reviews
Adding a positive difference to your videos
16 August 2023
The Zhiyun-Smooth 56 Gimbal is a great option to include in your video equipment. I am a photo and video aficionado and over the last few years, I was thinking of introducing a gimbal to keep a more stable video recording and a more professional video. However, I feel that the learning curve for becoming a regular user is quite steep.I love that the Smooth 5 is coming with the gimbal and the tripod, plus the charging cable. I think that this is the bare minimum starting kit and all is there.Now, what I think is missing is a real manual for new users. The brochure for quick-first use is less than insufficient. To make sure that you can use it, I strongly recommend (in reality, I don’t see an alternative) Google for manuals and video tutorials. This will include ... MoreThe Zhiyun-Smooth 56 Gimbal is a great option to include in your video equipment. I am a photo and video aficionado and over the last few years, I was thinking of introducing a gimbal to keep a more stable video recording and a more professional video. However, I feel that the learning curve for becoming a regular user is quite steep.I love that the Smooth 5 is coming with the gimbal and the tripod, plus the charging cable. I think that this is the bare minimum starting kit and all is there.Now, what I think is missing is a real manual for new users. The brochure for quick-first use is less than insufficient. To make sure that you can use it, I strongly recommend (in reality, I don’t see an alternative) Google for manuals and video tutorials. This will include the first balancing of your phone in the gimbal and the pairing.Thankfully, the videos are quite easy to follow, and the pairing is quite fast. Two elements need to be considered:Downloading the ZY seems to be a must. I observed over the last few days using the gimbal that a lot of future professional effects will be more intuitive using it.If your phone is an Android be ready for a less-performing app than if you are the owner of an iPhone. According to some videos available, seems that the Android app is not as complete as the IOs.After the three training videos: for pairing, for basic recording and to understand the different controls, I started to feel the power of the gimbal. Short videos and basic recordings are enough to see the big difference with the new equipment and I love it.In final reflection, I only had 5 days to discover the gimbal but is clear that you need to invest a significant level of hours to obtain the real potential. I dislike when the technology shows weaknesses in the first tests. The five available possibilities and modes of control for recording based on the operator's skills are an invitation to spend hours playing and discovering your investment.My opinion is that the gimbal is promising of great projects ahead and time to discover and enjoy the technology. I think however that a better user manual in the box is compulsory for a better first experience. I also hope that further development for the Android phone should be expected.
Luis
originally posted on bestbuy.comFlexible and professional but needs improvements
27 July 2023
This is a sturdy handheld phone gimbal with great build quality, good range of motion and a lot more professional features. However; it is cumbersome to set up when used with larger phones, the buttons and controls are not easy to reach with one hand, and the included phone app has a lot of non-English text. Overall, it works well if you’re a more advanced videographer who appreciates the greater flexibility and doesn’t mind the rough edges, but beginners and novices might want to look elsewhere.Pros:* Solid build quality.* Numerous buttons and dials for gimbal control without having to navigate the phone app.* Very long battery life.* Useful built-in fill-light with the ability to add 2 more as options.* Fits large phones in cases.* Can charge the phone ... MoreThis is a sturdy handheld phone gimbal with great build quality, good range of motion and a lot more professional features. However; it is cumbersome to set up when used with larger phones, the buttons and controls are not easy to reach with one hand, and the included phone app has a lot of non-English text. Overall, it works well if you’re a more advanced videographer who appreciates the greater flexibility and doesn’t mind the rough edges, but beginners and novices might want to look elsewhere.Pros:* Solid build quality.* Numerous buttons and dials for gimbal control without having to navigate the phone app.* Very long battery life.* Useful built-in fill-light with the ability to add 2 more as options.* Fits large phones in cases.* Can charge the phone from the gimbal’s battery.Cons:* Cannot reach all controls with one hand while holding.* Several apps available and each has different features and functions.* Not as convenient to use with really large phones such as the iPhone 14 Pro Max (in slim case).* ZY Cami app has a lot of Chinese text even when set for US English.* Mode status indicators are very difficult to read off-angle and in daylight.* Battery status uses mode status indicators and is not clear.* Have to manually adjust and rebalance after every use with a larger phone (such as the iPhone 14 Pro Max).* Switching between Portrait and Landscape phone orientation requires complete disassembly and re-setup… at least with larger phones.* The button in the center of the Zoom wheel looks like it should start/stop recording, but it only switches modes of that dial.* Trigger control seems like it should start/stop recording but only enables functions such as subject tracking or sports mode.Let’s start with basic setup… When powered on, the motors will move so it’s best to screw on the provided tripod base and sit the gimbal on a table while setting it up. Then plug it in to a suitable USB brick (not included) via USB-C to charge it up. This is where the design oddities start. At the top edge of the button panel is a thin row of backlit letters that are mainly used to indicate the “mode” of the gimbal; one indicator at a time for each mode - “PF”, “L”, “F”, “POV” and “V”. When being charged, these indicators light up in sequence as the battery is charging. I can understand the product designers thinking it was a great cost-savings to reuse these backlit letters as a battery status gauge, but in practice, it’s just a weird design decision to use these backlit letters to indicate battery level. Anyway, once the gimbal is fully charged, you can start setting it up by mounting your phone and setting up the provided app.Before each use, you need to manually unlock all three motors and then mount your phone in the spring-loaded holder. The main axis has a slide lock on the back of the handle and the other two axes have snap locks that require you to apply moderate rotation force to unlock. Once all three motors are spinning freely, you can mount your phone in the holder. The phone holder can be used in Portrait or Landscape orientation depending on which way you want to shoot with your phone’s cameras. The gimbal cannot switch between Landscape and Portrait while a phone is mounted, so to switch between the two, you have to manually apply a moderate amount of force and rotate the holder 90 degrees before inserting your phone and before turning the gimbal on.Balancing the phone on the gimbal isn’t terribly difficult, but it does require careful attention. Once the phone is clipped in, the roll axis arm needs to be unlocked by turning a knob and the arm must be slid left or right to balance the phone. The balance is different depending on whether you’re shooting in Portrait or Landscape, so you’ll need to do this process whenever your mount or want to rotate your phone. My iPhone 14 Pro Max in a slim case does fit in the holder, but it really stretches the physical and control limits of this gimbal. For example, when mounted and balanced in Landscape orientation, the roll axis arm hits the bottom motor housing when the handle is tilted sharply. Since the gimbal cannot be folded up and locked as-is, the roll axis arm must be loosened up and reset for storage, and then the whole balancing act must be done again the next time you want to use it. Again, not difficult, but certainly not fast or convenient. If you always shoot with the same phone, case and phone lens attachments, you can probably mark the Portrait and Landscape arm positions so you can just adjust the arm to those points directly without having to actually rebalance things.Once the phone is mounted and balanced, you can turn the gimbal on by pressing the power button on the right side. Like most of the other buttons on this gimbal, the power button has no bumps or anything that makes it feel different if you’re hunting for a button by touch while looking at the phone’s screen. If you’re holding the gimbal and watching what you’re filming, you might want to press the Fn button by feeling for it and you might accidentally press the Power button instead… so just be careful. Same applies to the Record button and the nearby Mode button.There are several apps provided for use with the gimbal, but the primary one is ZY Cami. Finding, installing and setting up the ZY Cami app was relatively easy. The app discovered the gimbal’s Bluetooth connection quickly and got paired up without any issues. The app has a lot of features and is relatively straightforward to use, but it is obviously written primarily for the Chinese market and has been incompletely translated into English. There’s some text and buttons still in Chinese even though the app is set for English. This makes it much harder than necessary to use the app. Fortunately, the gimbal has buttons and controls for nearly all of the functions you might need so you don’t have to poke around in the app too much after first-time setup.It takes a while to get used to the large number of buttons and controls on the gimbal, what they do and how they work together. Regardless of whether you hold the gimbal with the left or right hand, it’s unlikely you’ll be able to press all of the buttons without looking down and reaching with your other hand. This makes it a bit more difficult to adjust settings while filming. As mentioned above, the gimbal Mode indicators are a thin strip of backlit letters that are hard to read in bright light (like filming outside) or when viewed from anything other than a straight-on angle. While it’s nice to have all of these buttons, they don’t all work as expected in both of the official apps. I also noticed that when changing modes in the ZY Cami app, the mode indicator on the gimbal itself didn’t always match.The joystick is handy for moving the camera, and the trigger and side knob are useful, but many of the other controls require more attention and practice to use. The main functions of this gimbal work well enough but there are just a lot of odd design decisions that make this gimbal harder to use in practice than necessary.. at least for novices. This is especially true for setting it up and putting it away from each use. With my larger iPhone 14 Pro Max, the roll axis arm position and adjustment knob must be changed every time I use the gimbal which just adds to the time and complexity of getting it ready to use. Small phones might allow the arm position to be set for Landscape or Portrait and left there when folding it up to put the gimbal away, but you still need to adjust the arm position between shooting in Portrait versus Landscape.Overall, this gimbal works reasonably well and has a lot of more flexibility and advanced features, but at the expense of complexity in setup and use. The included ZY Cami app is mostly good, but it’s frustrating to have Chinese text and button labels that an English-only user cannot figure out easily. For those who appreciate the extra features and flexibility, this gimbal works well. For those who just want an easy to use gimbal, perhaps other options might be worth investigating.
gadgeTT
originally posted on bestbuy.comFull Featured Excellent Gimbal for Phone Filming
27 July 2023
You'd be hard pressed to find a better professional gimbal for use with your smartphone. A dedicated smartphone gimbal is best because it's quick and easy to get the phone balanced and ready to go. Zhiyun makes great gimbals - they are one of the top makers. I previously had the Zhiyun Smooth gimbal before upgrading to this 5S model. There are SO many great features to this gimbal, but here are the main reasons I love it.It only takes a minute to get your phone in, ready to be balanced, power on, and ready to go. This is important because you want to be able to shoot without wasting a lot of time setting up. The Smooth 5s is really easy - the locking mechanisms for all the arms are easy on/off.This gimbal has a great display on the front to show you what mode ... MoreYou'd be hard pressed to find a better professional gimbal for use with your smartphone. A dedicated smartphone gimbal is best because it's quick and easy to get the phone balanced and ready to go. Zhiyun makes great gimbals - they are one of the top makers. I previously had the Zhiyun Smooth gimbal before upgrading to this 5S model. There are SO many great features to this gimbal, but here are the main reasons I love it.It only takes a minute to get your phone in, ready to be balanced, power on, and ready to go. This is important because you want to be able to shoot without wasting a lot of time setting up. The Smooth 5s is really easy - the locking mechanisms for all the arms are easy on/off.This gimbal has a great display on the front to show you what mode you are in. There are many other great gimbals that work well, but do not SHOW you the mode, and especially when you're starting off and learning the gimbal and gettting used to it, having that display to KNOW exactly what mode you are in is great.And this gimbal has ALL the modes you need to get great smooth beautiful and cool footage in any situation: Pan Follow, Locked, Follow, Point of View and Vortex. I won't explain here what all those do (there are plenty of tutorials out there for that) but just know these cover all the gimbal modes you'll ever need to get excellent video with your phone! And the Zhiyun Smooth 5s also supports vertical filming as well as horizontal so it's great for people doing Instagram or TikTok videos!In addition to all of the above there are more features using the trigger button on the gimbal to quickly turn the phone around or to trigger a quick mode feature. And there's a button to start recording and a wheel that can be used with the ZY Cami App for Zoom or Focus control. The ZY Cami app has tons of great features and you can use the Smooth 5s with or without that.For advanced smartphone filmmakers, you should know that the Smooth 5s is also compatible with Filmic Pro which is a professional filming app for iPhone.This is overall an excellent gimbal for use with any smartphone! I am using it with my iPhone 14 Pro Max in a case so it will accommodate even large phones with no problem at all. It is nice and as its name same "smooth" and the results are excellent!
holllywoodfrodo
originally posted on bestbuy.comGood Gimbal, Bad App(s)
30 July 2023
I was a little wary to try out the Zhiyun Smooth 5S. I had actually heard of them before and used one of their previous models at my work a few years back, but while the product itself was good, at the time I could not get the app to work. The situation has improved and I was able to use the app, but the way they split the functionality between the Zy Cami and StaCam apps to the point where certain buttons don’t even do anything in Zy Cami is weird and a lot of the pro functionality is locked behind a subscription in StaCam that, confusingly, you have to go back to the Zy Cami app to activate. The gimbal itself is very good and I got good video footage on my Pixel 7 Pro while using it. It’s certainly possible to use the gimbal completely separate from the apps, but ... MoreI was a little wary to try out the Zhiyun Smooth 5S. I had actually heard of them before and used one of their previous models at my work a few years back, but while the product itself was good, at the time I could not get the app to work. The situation has improved and I was able to use the app, but the way they split the functionality between the Zy Cami and StaCam apps to the point where certain buttons don’t even do anything in Zy Cami is weird and a lot of the pro functionality is locked behind a subscription in StaCam that, confusingly, you have to go back to the Zy Cami app to activate. The gimbal itself is very good and I got good video footage on my Pixel 7 Pro while using it. It’s certainly possible to use the gimbal completely separate from the apps, but you lose out on most of the extra functions doing that. Overall I think it’s still good, but I think they need to do some work on the apps by combining everything into one and also improving on the localization as a lot of the content in the app seems mostly focused on the Chinese market.In the box you get the gimbal itself, a mini-tripod that screws into the base, and a USB-C charging cable. No power adapter is included in the box, which is fine with me but something to be aware of. I’m impressed with the overall build quality of the Smooth 5S and it feels well made. The joystick and focus/zoom wheel both feel really great. The buttons feel good, but not fantastic and I think the smaller wheel on the main control panel could be better. The gimbal axes all have solid locking points that are easy to release and rotate as needed and the balancing mechanism with the thumb screw makes it easy to mount your phone and get it into a good position prior to powering it on so it doesn’t have to work as hard to stabilize your phone. Compared to other gimbals I’ve seen the Smooth 5S is a bit larger, though it does add features like optional magnetically-attached fill lights (not included). The rubber grip at the base makes it comfortable to hold, which is important for something like this. The clamp that holds your phone is solid, though I feel like I need 2 hands to hold it open and one hand to push my phone in. I could be doing something wrong here.Powering on the Smooth 5S and using it with my Pixel 7 Pro, I could instantly see how well it stabilized my phone even with relatively quick movements, though I was able to get the axes to lock up with certain movements and that will cause it to go haywire. There are 5 different modes you can swap between using the mode button on the device itself, but without the apps most of the other buttons are not functional. I did notice in my Pixel’s camera app that my phone tends to have a 1-2 degree tilt when using it with the Smooth 5S, but this can be corrected in the ZY Cami app via the Gimbal Calibration in the settings. The Zy Cami capp will cover most basic needs, but it feels a little too basic. You really can only adjust the video resolution and frame rate and nothing else there. The small wheel on the gimbal seems to be used to help navigate the menus, but it only seems to work on certain ones and I found myself resorting to touching my phone screen since I could not depend on the wheel for navigation. The zoom/focus does seem to make use of all 3 cameras on both my Pixel and my iPhone and I could see the lenses switching at the appropriate zoom points, which is cool. The app has some quirks, but is mostly usable. One issue I had with the Android version is that it always defaults back to 1080p/30fps. This does not appear to be an issue on the iPhone app. It could also use some better localization for the US as there are many places you can still see (what I assume are) Chinese characters. In the initial setup on my iPhone for example the last step was shown in only Chinese. It appeared to be a question about where photos are stored, but I wasn’t sure. For the more powerful functions, the StaCam app lets you do things like adjust the ISO and shutter speed. There are a lot more advanced features, but most of them require a subscription to use, which is very annoying for something I feel should just be included.Overall I’d have a hard time recommending the Smooth 5S right now. I do think a lot of the issues are with its apps though and those are solvable, so I’m hopeful this can improve over time.
SamG
originally posted on bestbuy.comgreat gimble with a little practise
7 August 2023
The Zhiyun Smooth 5S is a 3-axis smartphone gimbal that is designed to help you create smooth, stabilized video footage with your phone. It is a great option for vloggers, YouTubers, and anyone else who wants to improve the quality of their mobile videography.Here are some of the pros and cons of the Zhiyun Smooth 5S:Pros:Excellent stabilization: The Smooth 5S does a great job of stabilizing your phone, even when you're walking or running. This results in smooth, shake-free footage that is perfect for vlogging and other types of handheld videography.Wide compatibility: The Smooth 5S can be used with a wide range of smartphones, from small iPhones to large Android phones. It also has a built-in phone clamp that can be adjusted to accommodate different phone ... MoreThe Zhiyun Smooth 5S is a 3-axis smartphone gimbal that is designed to help you create smooth, stabilized video footage with your phone. It is a great option for vloggers, YouTubers, and anyone else who wants to improve the quality of their mobile videography.Here are some of the pros and cons of the Zhiyun Smooth 5S:Pros:Excellent stabilization: The Smooth 5S does a great job of stabilizing your phone, even when you're walking or running. This results in smooth, shake-free footage that is perfect for vlogging and other types of handheld videography.Wide compatibility: The Smooth 5S can be used with a wide range of smartphones, from small iPhones to large Android phones. It also has a built-in phone clamp that can be adjusted to accommodate different phone sizes.Long battery life: The Smooth 5S has a battery life of up to 24 hours, which is more than enough for most vlogging sessions.Intuitive controls: The Smooth 5S has a simple and intuitive control system that is easy to learn and use. You can control the gimbal's movements with the joystick, or you can use the touchscreen buttons on the gimbal itself.Built-in fill light: The Smooth 5S has a built-in fill light that can be used to brighten up your shots in low-light conditions. This is a great feature for vloggers who want to create professional-looking videos even in the dark.Cons:Expensive: The Zhiyun Smooth 5S is more expensive than some other smartphone gimbals on the market.Small mode button: The mode button on the Smooth 5S is very small and can be difficult to press.Apps can be buggy: The Smooth 5S requires the use of two apps, ZY Cami and StaCam. These apps can be buggy at times, and they can sometimes crash.Overall, the Zhiyun Smooth 5S is a great choice for vloggers and YouTubers who want to create smooth, stabilized video footage with their smartphones. It is well-built, easy to use, and has a long battery life. However, it is also more expensive than some other smartphone gimbals on the market.If you're looking for a high-quality smartphone gimbal with excellent stabilization and a long battery life, the Zhiyun Smooth 5S is a great option. However, if you're on a budget, you may want to consider a cheaper gimbal.
UnkinB
originally posted on bestbuy.comIt can handle big phones, but not for everything
2 August 2023
This is a beefy stabilizer. It is loaded with features and when connected with their apps gives access to even more. It can hold some of the largest phones, but at the cost of using the full rotation. The included directions are limited and meant for someone that already understands everything about a stabilizer. If you have never used one, then going to their website, watching some videos and getting the full PDF user guide is where you want to start. Guides on how to properly balance and get started were essential.When you are ready to start recording, you need to know the mode you want to start in, landscape or portrait, and balance it with the included tripod as such. Switching between those modes requires that set up each time. For bigger phones though, I was ... MoreThis is a beefy stabilizer. It is loaded with features and when connected with their apps gives access to even more. It can hold some of the largest phones, but at the cost of using the full rotation. The included directions are limited and meant for someone that already understands everything about a stabilizer. If you have never used one, then going to their website, watching some videos and getting the full PDF user guide is where you want to start. Guides on how to properly balance and get started were essential.When you are ready to start recording, you need to know the mode you want to start in, landscape or portrait, and balance it with the included tripod as such. Switching between those modes requires that set up each time. For bigger phones though, I was using Note10+, getting the perfect balance can end up pushing the adjustment arm until the point that it makes contact with the rotation of the gimbal and when that happens, it just spazzes out on you. So long as you don’t try to make a full rotation, it works as intended. With the included light and adjustable brightness, and the ability to add two more if you get those extra, it can really make a difference in recording.There are 2 apps that they recommend, Zy Cami and StaCam. They are meant to be like entry level and pro versions, but I found the Zy Cami app just to be too bloated, like it wants to be its own social platform with a camera function. StaCam just gets right into being a camera with all the extra functions. Several of the extended functions on the gimbal, like ISO and Disp. buttons don’t even work with Zy Cami. However, using these apps really helps take advantage of all the features.Overall, this is not a get up and start being a pro videographer type device unless you have experience with something similar. It takes a little getting used to and learning the functions. Even though it says it supports larger phones, which it can hold them and stabilize in a specific range, it does have limitations with the biggest phones. Its battery lasts a long time and you can provide charge to your phone through it as well as use the built-in fill light. With all that, it can make for some interesting videos.
DavidJr
originally posted on bestbuy.comLots of great features, cumbersome.
31 July 2023
When looking for a gimbal, you want to make sure it will work for your device, in this case a smartphone. I've tried a couple that didn't quite fit, or you needed to remove the case, until I came upon the Zhiyun Smooth 5S. A strange name, but it held my Moto One 5G quite well, so I figured I would try it. First off, I like how it felt in hand, well built and professional feel. It came with no parts to assemble aside from the tripod mount which attached at the bottom of the unit, where you can place it on a full-size tripod as well. It surprised me as to how cumbersome it was in locked position; certainly not something you can put in your pocket. Others I've seen had a much more compact fold-in with one having a pull-out tripod. The button layout and dials were ... MoreWhen looking for a gimbal, you want to make sure it will work for your device, in this case a smartphone. I've tried a couple that didn't quite fit, or you needed to remove the case, until I came upon the Zhiyun Smooth 5S. A strange name, but it held my Moto One 5G quite well, so I figured I would try it. First off, I like how it felt in hand, well built and professional feel. It came with no parts to assemble aside from the tripod mount which attached at the bottom of the unit, where you can place it on a full-size tripod as well. It surprised me as to how cumbersome it was in locked position; certainly not something you can put in your pocket. Others I've seen had a much more compact fold-in with one having a pull-out tripod. The button layout and dials were mostly easy to reach with the exception of the power and function buttons which were quite difficult to press with one hand. Also, the dial on the opposite side was meant for use with the left hand, likely being awkward for a left-handed person to use. The built-in fill light is quite bright and finely adjustable brightness. The left dial allows for really smooth zooming (button in center does not record) which is always a plus with a smartphone. I like how you could charge the phone while on the mount, provided you have a short usb-c cable. What I didn't like was balancing the phone and spreading the tight clamp to lock it in. It was more time consuming than I expected and to switch it between landscape and portrait, the phone needs to be removed, the clamp twisted and the phone reinserted and rebalanced.The ZY Cami app has a lot of features like focusing with the object moving toward or away from the camera, object tracking, panorama. To access higher features, they want you to pay for a package (Prime or Prime+) yet, because the app is Chinese, it doesn't offer the option of live streaming with FB, IG, or Tiktok, but has what I assume to be Chinese social apps. There's also a substantial amount of Chinese lettering in the app, making me suspicious and insecure of any media processed by the app possibly using Chinese servers.Once the phone is setup and balanced, it does a great job of creating smooth, jitter-free videos, even zoomed in. The tripod is very sturdy and great when you're by yourself and use Follow mode; it's like having a cameraman. When you want to set a follow lock, simply line up the target in the center square and press the trigger once on the back of the unit. There are a lot of buttons on the unit and likely meant more for professionals than the average person. The menu button is a mystery as to the usefulness it has, as pressing it only brings up a tutorial page and pressing it again doesn't switch back. You have to go to the screen and exit out of it, quite useless button.This gimbal has a lot of high-end features and is well built. Had it been for a dedicated camera, it would've been perfect, but as a phone gimbal, it's just too cumbersome and a hassle to use or transport easily. I would recommend this for professional videographers, rather than average p[eople who want a stable selfie-stick.
joecaffe
originally posted on bestbuy.comSilky smooth video
2 August 2023
I'm sure many of you have seen the video that a lot of streamers and youtubers post while walking that seems to have little-to-no bob or weave to the video while moving. Achieving this type of video requires a device such as this called a 'Gimbal stabilizer'. It uses motors and gyroscopes to stablize the camera or phone as much as possible to prevent as much camera movement as possible.I was apprehensive at first using a brand I was not familiar with to create such video, but I have to say I was more than pleasantly surprised, but there are a few small drawbacks.First, I'd say initially the setup is relatively straightforward, that said, some of the caveats come with this. The english version of the app has a number of chinese characters which can make it an ... MoreI'm sure many of you have seen the video that a lot of streamers and youtubers post while walking that seems to have little-to-no bob or weave to the video while moving. Achieving this type of video requires a device such as this called a 'Gimbal stabilizer'. It uses motors and gyroscopes to stablize the camera or phone as much as possible to prevent as much camera movement as possible.I was apprehensive at first using a brand I was not familiar with to create such video, but I have to say I was more than pleasantly surprised, but there are a few small drawbacks.First, I'd say initially the setup is relatively straightforward, that said, some of the caveats come with this. The english version of the app has a number of chinese characters which can make it an interesting experience to navigate. Second, due to the placement of the controls and shape of the handle, sometimes you need to hit some of the buttons with another hand, which is an unfortunate thing as gimbals such as this are designed to be operated one-handedly as much as possible. There's a slight learning curve as it relates to general operation of the device, and I'd recommend spending some time determining how everything works together before going 'out in the field' to actively use it. That said, once you get the hang of it, it can be fun and extremely useful to use.I've used this to record and stream both, allowing me mostly one-handed operation as previously stated while moving around an environment. The Gimbal does deliver on what it is designed to do, with that bit of a learning curve.All in all, I would recommend it if this is the price range that someone is looking at, but there are better options in the higher range.
Beradon
originally posted on bestbuy.comUltimate smartphone stabilizer for stunning videos
25 July 2023
The Zhiyun Smooth 5S is a game-changer when it comes to smartphone stabilizers. From the moment I started using it, I was impressed with its overall performance and features.The stabilizer is incredibly easy to use, and the fun software allows for seamless control and customization of my shots. One of the standout features is the zoom slider on the side, which adds versatility to my filming options. The built-in battery is a major plus, lasting around 7 hours of normal use, and the convenience of recharging it via USB-C is a bonus. When it comes to portability, gimbal collapses into a compact size, making it easy to carry around.The gimbal is made of high-quality materials, giving it a sturdy and durable feel. The appearance is sleek and professional, making it ... MoreThe Zhiyun Smooth 5S is a game-changer when it comes to smartphone stabilizers. From the moment I started using it, I was impressed with its overall performance and features.The stabilizer is incredibly easy to use, and the fun software allows for seamless control and customization of my shots. One of the standout features is the zoom slider on the side, which adds versatility to my filming options. The built-in battery is a major plus, lasting around 7 hours of normal use, and the convenience of recharging it via USB-C is a bonus. When it comes to portability, gimbal collapses into a compact size, making it easy to carry around.The gimbal is made of high-quality materials, giving it a sturdy and durable feel. The appearance is sleek and professional, making it look like a premium piece of equipment. The phone clamp allows me to easily switch between portrait and landscape mode, and the installation direction for the phone's camera is clearly shown in the image, making it foolproof to set up. Connectivity is seamless, and when connected via Bluetooth, I can control my phone's native camera without using the ZY Cami/StaCam app. This function works flawlessly with my phone, which supports photo-taking using the volume button. The single press controls are intuitive and easy to use. I can switch between focus and zoom in the StaCam app or enter the SMART menu and return to the filming interface in the ZY Cami app. The joystick also allows me to control the gimbal's rotation with ease.The addition of the built-in fill light is a game-changer, especially in low-light conditions. It helps in capturing stunning footage even in less than ideal lighting situations. Not to mention, the affordability of this stabilizer is another huge plus, making it an excellent option for both new filmmakers and seasoned professionals alike.I was impressed by its compatibility with larger phones, such as the iPhone 14 Pro Max, ensuring a seamless experience even with the latest devices. Whether shooting in vertical or horizontal mode, the Smooth 5S delivers exceptional results and has become my go-to choice for creative b-roll shots and smooth selfie videos on the move. As for its performance, the 3-axis stabilization is simply incredible, delivering shake-free footage while maintaining the original quality of my videos. It allows me to fully explore camera movement and create cinema-grade shots without any cumbersome setup.One remarkable feature is the Smart Follow function, which lets me remotely control the camera with hand gestures, ensuring that the spotlight stays on my subject as I move. Additionally, the portrait mode switch makes it super convenient to switch between horizontal and vertical modes, supporting most large smartphones effortlessly.Overall, the Zhiyun Smooth 5S 3-Axis Gimbal Stabilizer Standard for Smartphones is a powerful tool that elevates your filming capabilities and ensures professional-looking footage. Whether you're a content creator or an aspiring filmmaker, this stabilizer is a must-have addition to your gear collection.
TechGuru
originally posted on bestbuy.comWhat An Awsesome Addition For Your Smarphone!
4 August 2023
I had never considered buying a gimbal for use with my smartphone and jumped at the chance to try one out when Best Buy offered to send me one for evaluation and review. I received the Zhiyun Smooth 5S 3-Axis Gimble Stabilizer a few days ago and was very impressed with the quality of the unit and the opportunity to expand the capabilities of my smartphone using the device.Upon opening the box, I found the gimbal, a handle that screws into the bottom of the device and becomes a short tripod making it easy to store upright and take still or video photos without having to hold on to it.Setting up the Zhiyun 5S gimbal was not a simple out-of-the-box set up. I read the manual provided by Zhiyun and found it to be quite useless other than it describing the switches ... MoreI had never considered buying a gimbal for use with my smartphone and jumped at the chance to try one out when Best Buy offered to send me one for evaluation and review. I received the Zhiyun Smooth 5S 3-Axis Gimble Stabilizer a few days ago and was very impressed with the quality of the unit and the opportunity to expand the capabilities of my smartphone using the device.Upon opening the box, I found the gimbal, a handle that screws into the bottom of the device and becomes a short tripod making it easy to store upright and take still or video photos without having to hold on to it.Setting up the Zhiyun 5S gimbal was not a simple out-of-the-box set up. I read the manual provided by Zhiyun and found it to be quite useless other than it describing the switches and buttons on the handheld unit. I immediately turned to YouTube and found a number of videos providing much clearer instructions on how to set up, balance and use the gimbal, where to download the Zy Cami software that interfaces with the gimbal and demonstrates how to set it up and begin using it. If you thing this is a plug and play device, you would be incorrect. There is a learning curve involved with this (and any) gimbal device so be prepared to work with it learning more as you go. Some of the videos shown that were taken with the Zhiyun 5S-3 Axle Gimbal Stabilizer device were crazy good! With work, you too can learn how to produce creative cinematic quality videos!The smartphone will fit into the gimbal both vertically and horizontally depending on what your subject matter is and how you want to capture it. The gimbal is rechargeable using a USB-C cable. The gimbal comes with one hard-wired light that is dimmable as needed. Additional magnetic lights are available from Zhiyun.For the money, this is a quality gimbal device I will enjoy learning to use and should last me for years!
backerly
originally posted on bestbuy.comSpecification
| Grip Design | Single Handgrip (Slanted) |
| Load Capacity | 5.3 to 10.6 oz / 150 to 300 g |
| Number of Axes | 3-Axis (Pitch (Tilt), Roll, Yaw (Pan)) |
| Wireless Protocol | Bluetooth 4.2 |
| Mounting | 1 x 1/4"-20 Female |