Chinese brushless gimbal maker Wenpod were showing their latest MD2 3-axis brushless gimbal at the Interbee show in Japan this week. We’ve seen it as a prototype before, but now it looks like it is finally ready to ship. It has an interesting design that is held with your hands below the level of the camera and gimbal. This is similar to inverted modes on other brushless gimbals, except that the handles are less bicycle grip like and more like video game controllers. There are several controls on the handles and these can be used to adjust the speed of follow and which direction the gimbal is pointing.
Because the gimbal has a flat base it allows the mounting of a tripod quick release plate or monopod directly to the gimbal. The design means you can also fit it to a Steadicam arm, or use it with a tripod head as a self-levelling system.
The construction of the MD2 has a lot of plastic and as a result it weighs only 1.5Kg. It doesn’t feel as solid as other high end gimbals, but on the plus side you should be able to carry it for much longer periods of time.
Balancing is toolless and and looks straightforward to do quickly. The calibration is automatic but sadly there is no smartphone app to control of the settings remotely. There is however an optional Kinetic remote control being planned – it wasn’t on show but we assume this is something similar to the MoVI Mimic design.
I liked the fact that the MD2 is really light. Using it in follow mode is easy enough, but aiming the gimbal using the joystick is not as intuitive as my Letus Helix Jr.
It should be available internationally very soon at a price of around $2000 US.
For more details check out the videos below and the Wenpod website.
