( 34 reviews )
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Posted: 06-24-2009
For the low price, this is an excellent tripod. The main drawbacks of this tripod are the lack of an anchor for a bag, somewhat jerky panning, a less precise leveler (it is a circle with a dot in the middle), and the many plastic parts. I use my tripod with my Canon PowerShot Pro Series S5 IS 8.0MP Digital Camera with 12x Optical Image Stabilized Zoom and it always feels sturdy. Even without a bag, this tripod should be able to handle most cameras, and the rubber feet on the bottom have excellent grip. The legs are metal, but most of the parts of plastic. Despite the shipping weight listed (4 lb), this tripod weighs under 3 lb. The current listed weight is 2.6 lb and when I weighed it I got 2.8 lb. I find it pretty light and easy to take with me, and the plastic is of good quality and very sturdy. The panning isn't super smooth, but unless you need really smooth panning for high quality videos, you probably won't notice any problems. The dot-style leveler also isn't perfect, but it should be fine for eyeballing to make sure that you are not tilting badly. The quick-release head is very handy, and is a feature not always found on cheaper tripods. All in all, for the low price, this is a great tripod and I would purchase it again.
