DJI has unveiled its latest smartphone gimbal, the Osmo Mobile 4 (OM4). Like its predecessors, the OM4 is an ultra-compact three-axis gimbal for keeping your smartphone footage as stable as possible, with a few other unique features baked in.
Visually, the OM4 isn’t much different than its predecessor, the Osmo Mobile 3 (OM3). It is a light grey instead of a darker grey, but aside from the joystick, trigger and grip being a bit more rubberized, the body of the gimbal remains largely unchanged.
The only functional difference is a new mounting system that uses magnets to hold the phone in place. Whereas the OM3 had a built-in clamp, the OM4 has a clamp that can be removed and kept on a smartphone, then snapped back into place when the gimbal is needed. There’s even a small sticker-style mounting bracket that can be semi-permanently attached to a smartphone for even faster operation.
The OM4 works alongside the DJI Mimo app to enable multiple shooting modes, including an improved ActiveTrack 3.0, Gesture Control and pre-programmed movements and modes. Three of the new pre-programmed modes include Dynamic Zoom, Spin Mode and a ‘Clone Me’ panorama mode.
Dynamic Zoom is effectively a digital dolly zoom feature, that allows you to move away from the subject while the DJI Mimo app automatically zooms in, or move in as the app zooms out. Spin mode is an Inception-inspired mode that makes it possible to rotate the smartphone for a spinning effect (although it’s not posisble to do a full 360-degree spin). The ‘Clone Me’ panorama feature is another new mode that will wait between shots of a panorama so you can move into place and be ‘cloned’ in the final image.
Even if you don’t want to use the DJI Mimo app, the OM4 can also control basic camera functions with the stock iOS camera app when connected via Bluetooth.
The DJI Osmo Mobile 4 is available to order from the DJI Store and authorized retailers for $ 149. It comes with a wrist strap, grip tripod and storage pouch.
Articles: Digital Photography Review (dpreview.com)