Zhiyun Smooth 5 Smartphone Gimbal – What You Need to Know

Zhiyun Smooth 5 Smartphone Gimbal – First Impression Highlights

My previous AOCHUAN smartphone gimbal broke into pieces after only 8 months. I did some research before buying a new gimbal and the Zhiyun Smooth 5 Smartphone Gimbal seems to be the best gimbal on the market now, at least for what matters to me.

Today, I will share my initial thoughts after using the Zhiyun Smooth 5 for 2 weeks.

- I don’t like the fact that Zhiyun is forcing us to install the app to activate the Gimbal. I think Zhiyun is doing this to rack up downloads on Google and the Apple pay store.

- Half of the buttons on the Zhiyun Smooth 5 won’t work if you don’t use their app. This is another sneaky business model to force people to use their app.

- The Zhiyun Smooth 5 is well made and feels sturdy. The material and craftmanship don’t feel cheap and are of high quality.

- The stabilization quality is very good. I tested the Zhiyun Smooth 5 in 50 to 70 km/h wind and -20°C temperature without issues. One time, the strong wind flipped my phone from the gimbal, but it happened only once and the wind at that time had hit 70 km/h.

- Various modes (like all follow, lock, vortex, etc.) can be controlled by pressing the mode button on the gimbal, but the problem is that the mode indicator lights are so small that they are very difficult to see outdoors.

- Surprisingly, the Zhiyun Smooth 5 works perfectly with the GoPro 10 action camera, although Zhiyun doesn’t mention this anywhere. I have a full video on this.

I am sharing my Zhiyun Smooth 5 experiences and tips in this video playlist: Zhiyun Smooth 5 Smartphone Gimbal 101- Tips, Tricks, & the Basics