If you’re using this social distancing time to step up your social media video game, then you might be looking for a rig help you get to the next level. Joby is a well-established name in mobile content creation, and the new $200 GorillaPod Mobile Vlogging Kit is a great way to add some stability, light, and better sound to your videos shot on a mobile device. Check out the video below to see and hear how it can help your content.
GorillaPod Mobile Rig
At the core of the kit is the GorillaPod Mobile Rig. With two additional adjustable arms, the Mobile Rig can hold more than just your phone. GoPro mounts, ¼”-20 thread mounts, and cold shoe attachments allow you to quickly make a rig that’s right for the situation you’re shooting in.
What makes the Mobile Vlogging kit is the inclusion of the Wavo Mobile Microphone and Beamo Mini LED light to give you a complete video package.
Wavo Mobile Microphone
Good audio is always essential for videos. Joby has thrown its hat in the audio ring by offering the Wavo and Wavo Mobile microphones. The Vlogging Kit comes with the Wave Mobile which uses a cardioid polar pattern to pick up sound from in front of the microphone rather than all around.
It also has a nice shock mount which, from my trouble installing the microphone into it, appears to be plenty sturdy. The shock mount can be attached to any cold shoe or ¼-20 mount. This even includes the Beamo Mini LED light that we’ll talk about next.
To work with a variety of devices, the Wavo Mobile comes with multiple cables that plug into the back of the mic. There is a 3.5mm cable to work with DSLR type devices, and one to work with smartphones or devices with a TRRS connection. Also included is a Lightning dongle to connect to iPhones.
GorillaPod Mobile Vlogging Kit: Video
The Wavo Mobile definitely has a more directional pick up pattern and focuses the sound. It adds a little more presence and low end, as well. The removable deadcat helps to block wind noise, and the shock mount does a great job of removing impact noises that would otherwise be sent through to a mobile device. Be sure to watch the video and hear how it sounds compared to the built-in mic on my iPhone 8.
Beamo Mini LED
Good lighting is also really important for video, even if it is just getting a little fill light or catch light in your own eyes when filming. The Beamo Mini is a battery-powered, USB-C charging LED light with five different levels of brightness. On full power, it will drain a battery in about 40-minutes and at its lowest setting, the battery should last over 6-hours.
The full power mode is plenty powerful at 1000-lumens, making it a bit hard to look at a camera when mounted to the rig. But with the five steps, it is easy to find the right lighting setting for your situation.
Beyond the light, the Beamo Mini also has a few other tricks up its sleeve. It is rugged and waterproof up to 30-meters, so you don’t need to worry about it getting a little wet, and it also has a magnetic back to it. Snap it to anything metal for some added versatility.
For using multiple Beamo Mini lights at once, Joby also has smart control within the myJoby app. Connecting was simple enough with Bluetooth, and then you can set up groups for multiple lights or just adjust the settings on a single light. It feels a little too cumbersome to use if you’re only using a single light, but I can see how it would be useful to group multiple lights together if you had a rig with more than one.
In Use
If you’re familiar with Joby, then you know all of the different ways you can use it. The appeal of a GorillaPod vs other tripods is that the flexible arms can easily wrap around objects to make it more than just a tripod.
One thing to keep a note of when using, to rotate the camera mount from portrait to landscape, you need to loosen the screw that also tightens the grip. So there is a chance that it will make your phone loose so be sure to tighten it back up. This was inconvenient for me testing, but if you’re actually using this for vlogging you probably set the phone in a single orientation and won’t change it frequently. So it most likely won’t be a big deal.
Wrapping Up
Overall, the Mobile Vlogging Kit combines everything you need for a compact mobile rig into one package. The small Wavo Mobile microphone does a great job of increasing audio quality and the features of the Beamo Mini LED light make it a great addition to any scene.
If you need a bigger rig, be sure to check out our review of the GorillaPod 3K Pro.
Buy a GorillaPod Mobile Vlogging Kit
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