By site editor Dan Chung:
The Letus Helix has always been a little different from other brushless gimbals. The clever design is based around correct placement of the optical centre of the lens. The camera can be correctly balanced extremely quickly compared to other designs.
Unlike most gimbals, which are built to run with the camera suspended from above, the Helix is designed ‘right side up’ with a baseplate and handles attached underneath the gimbal. This allows the operator to hold the unit much closer to the chest and in a more natural manner than a regular design. Another advantage of the Helix is that the gimbal has a flat base which can simply be placed on the ground – no special resting stand is needed.
The current Helix can carry a wide range of cinema cameras and DSLRs but with the development of better, smaller mirrorless cameras it isn’t always necessary.
Enter the new Helix Jr. – the shrunken brother of the original model. It is designed as a smaller alternative specifically for cameras like the Panasonic GH4 and Sony a7S. It has a payload of around 7 lbs which is enough for a decent GH4 setup. The gimbal itself weighs a mere 3.5 lbs in handheld mode. Letus claim that a fully set up Helix Jr. with a GH4 onboard weighs in at around 2/3 of the weight of DJI’s Ronin gimbal without a camera on it. Clearly these kind of weight savings will be appreciated by events and documentary shooters who may need to film for prolonged periods without extra rig support.
Here are the specs of the Jr. from Letus:
– It’s made out of magnesium material which is 2/3 the density of aluminum and has better vibration dampening.
– Weighs in at 3.5 lbs on handheld mode
– Weighs under 3 lbs aerial mode
– Payload capacity = 7 lbs +
– 16 inches span handle to handle (handheld mode)
– The Helix Jr can be quickly converted between handheld and aerial mode in less than 3 minutes
The Helix Jr will be available from Letus in 4-6 weeks and pricing will start at $2699 US.
