sounds like the DJI engineers are selling both an aerial platform and a hand held. my experience is the opposite…slightly. I have a zhiyun gimbal and the osmo mobile. the only reason I've bought them is because I really liked the video that came out of using my P3 as a handheld camera. dedicated hand held gimbals are way more portable and easier to handle but the heavier P3 and Mavic seem to add weight and in turn, more stability to the footage.
Polar Pro Katana?
- Thread starter nicoloks
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sounds like the DJI engineers are selling both an aerial platform and a hand held. my experience is the opposite…slightly. I have a zhiyun gimbal and the osmo mobile. the only reason I've bought them is because I really liked the video that came out of using my P3 as a handheld camera. dedicated hand held gimbals are way more portable and easier to handle but the heavier P3 and Mavic seem to add weight and in turn, more stability to the footage.
DronePilotOne
Active Member
Awesome. Will buy it in a heartbeat. It's all about portability. Otherwise I'd buy a Phantom. If my bloody iPhone could fly I wouldn't own a Mavic, either.
I am so far from any kind of expert, but the first thing that comes to my mind is that when we are updating the mavics firmware it sits turned on for 30 to 40 mins and gets very hot underneath while it sits so close to the ground with those tiny fans. So surely using it handheld walking around (and a bit more ground clearance for cooling) should be no worse?
What does the weight of the drone have to do with the smoothness of the video other than maybe slower arm movements??? If you have every removed and reassembles the camera assembly from P3-4 or MP the actual gimbal and camera super light weight and in fact more sensative. Normal walking, running or just quick movements are terrible with the DJI Drone gimbals. While they do slow pan nicely that is about the limit of the good gimbal movement on the DJI drones. The weight of the drone has no impact on camera/gimbal performance.
Look I bought the MP as a dual use fly/hand geld ginbal camera it was not until DJI did not recommend it and I tried it did I abandon that plan and bought a Osmo.
Keep in mind that the arms are folded in with the handheld which likely limits some of the heat sinking, in addition the potential to be in a higher ambient enviroment outdoors.
There are many factors, but one does not change the longer and the hotter the operating temp the shorter the life. That applies to all electronics. Especially if there are any electrolytic capacitors are used which are gel filled so more heat the faster the gel evaporates then it eventually dies.
I’m glad you’ve figured what works best for you. I’m certainly not attacking your opinions and/or experiences. Generally, the heavier an object is, the more stable it is. and yes, slower movements is a product of that weight.
Agreed, the gimbal from a P3/P4/mavic is lighter on it’s own vs. a hand held gimbal + device. What I think helps smooth out walking/up and down motion are the rubber anti-drop bands or grommets that attach the gimbal to the A/C.
PolarPro
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Interesting but why not use a GoPro or something like your iPhone for this kind of shooting?
No disrespect toward Jeff or PolarPro... I have their Cinema Series Lens and love it.
As delicate as the Gimbal seems to be on our Mavic... I don't think I would be using it in this manner as they picture on the site.
The Mavic is a quadcopter/drone and not so much a handheld video camera in my opinion. Of course to each their own... Some people may find this purpose useful, but then we hear Rants on here why their Mavic doesn't work and complain about having to send it in for repair when it wasn't used for the purpose it was designed to be used for.
Just my 2 cents.
To answer your question, different cameras will yield different results. This let
Interesting but why not use a GoPro or something like your iPhone for this kind of shooting?
No disrespect toward Jeff or PolarPro... I have their Cinema Series Lens and love it.
As delicate as the Gimbal seems to be on our Mavic... I don't think I would be using it in this manner as they picture on the site.
The Mavic is a quadcopter/drone and not so much a handheld video camera in my opinion. Of course to each their own... Some people may find this purpose useful, but then we hear Rants on here why their Mavic doesn't work and complain about having to send it in for repair when it wasn't used for the purpose it was designed to be used for.
Just my 2 cents.
The Katana is not intended to replace any other cameras you may own. The purpose of the Katana is to give you the ability to use the Mavic as a ground cam as you personally see fit. You are the videographer, and its up to you to decide how you want each shot to look, and how much gear you want to bring to your location.
It is not our intention to tell you how to use the product, it is our intention to enable you to use the Mavic as a ground cam in your work-flow.
So to answer your question, why was Esty using the Katana/Mavic in that picture:
Because he wanted a quick, smooth, punched in shot, and he didnt want to set up the Ronin and A7s.
Hope that answers the question,
-Jeff from PolarPro
PolarPro
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Great question on the Heat!
DJI has very smart engineers and they designed the Mavic very well. They have a large heat sink on the bottom of the aircraft that pulls heat away from the CPU and GPU, and they have a fan that pushes air over it to dissipate heat when the Mavic is not flying. Its a great design and works very well. So when you notice the Mavic getting warm/hot its actually the heat sink at the bottom, doing exactly what it is supposed to be doing.
Hopefully that answers your question!
-Jeff from PolarPro
I'm not 100% sure that is the answer Lightsout was seeking Jeff, but in all honestly I don't think that is strictly a question for PolarPro (or any DJI accessory manufacturer) to be accountable for answering. I am positive that with or without the Katana (or similar devices) that some Mavic owners will be using their drones for photos and/or video without launching. This form of use should be reasonably expected from a manufacturer of drone based camera platforms in my view (we are not talking racing drones here). So I'd be thinking that if airflow from the rotors/movement is a requirement for ensuring the Mavic stays within safe operating temperatures, then this should be pretty clearly stated in the manual (especially if such an issue were to invalidate warranties or the like). I only had a quick flick through, but can't find any mention of not leaving the drone on without flying for any period (could well be there though).
Anyway, see PolarPro have a new vid up now too. Based more around actual usage than a show reel.
Anyway, see PolarPro have a new vid up now too. Based more around actual usage than a show reel.
I Am very interested in this new system, but I will wait until someone tested it.
Will the Katana be available in Germany?
By the way, there is a nice Gimbal protection in the video but i can't find it on the Polarpro website?
Maybe top secret till now?
Will the Katana be available in Germany?
By the way, there is a nice Gimbal protection in the video but i can't find it on the Polarpro website?
Maybe top secret till now?
PolarPro
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I Am very interested in this new system, but I will wait until someone tested it.
Will the Katana be available in Germany?
By the way, there is a nice Gimbal protection in the video but i can't find it on the Polarpro website?
Maybe top secret till now?
Yes it will be available in Germany through our resellers.
And good eye! that is a gimbal lock we are launching in a few weeks.
-Jeff from PolarPro
PolarPro
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If the question you are worried about is can the Mavic operate safely while not flying the answer is yes. I spent the last 6 months stress testing this. I literally tried to kill a Mavic by running it statically over and over until the battery died. I have done that over 280 times with one and I still have not been able to kill it. Its just a little frustrating when people say that it will damage the drone when they have not tested it themselves.
There heatsink with the internal fan that pushes air over it is very effective and allows the Mavic to run just fine statically. Yes it does get warm, but the heatsink is designed to do just that.
Let me know if you have any other questions!
There should be more videos rolling out here soon, any requests on what you guys would like to see?
We were thinking of doing a real estate video shot end to end with the Mavic.
-Jeff
dewarner
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I think this is an innovative product that will be something many people find useful. It is great that companies are trying to come up with ways to enhance how our cameras can be used. It does not make sense to decide without ever using the product or even seeing an objective review that it will not work or be useful. I have decided to purchase it, and can see a number of ways it will be helpful to me.
GMG
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I don't think any of our employees would use a selfie stick for the Mavic so you wont see that product from us
-Jeff
A friend recently introduced me to someone as "the guy with the world's longest selfie stick". - in other words, the Mavic.
Is there a way to connect an external mic to a Samsung galaxy so as not to get the magic's fan noise?
Much ado about nothing. It is the CPU and GPU that gets hot in the Mavic and what the heat-sink and fan deal with. Any electrolytic cap would be separated from that area and would not be subject to those heat issues. I am not sure which electrolytic that DJI uses, but the good ones can handle 10,000 - 12,000 hours @ 105C.
DJI has built-in functionality to shut the Mavic down if the heat becomes an issue. If you are finding the the Mavic is continually shutting down then there would be cause for concern. PolarPro's post above says they have tested it 280 times? If there was not a single shutdown during that time then I can't see how this is an issue.
I think there is value to this product. The gimbal does provide some stability, certainly more than an iPhone camera. Furthermore, if you are not an expert in color grading, using the Mavic for ground use as well as aerial use enables you to combine the footage with consistent results.
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Personally I love this product. It offers more from the mavic that we all already love. You can argue to the end of the world that other handheld stabilizers are better etc but at the end of the day this is an accessory for a product we already have and a great option for someone who cannot purchase an Osmo etc. I will defiantly be buying one.
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