Do you love mobile photography, but don’t want to spend big on a DSLR or dual-sensor iPhone 7 Plus? For the majority, the solution is to use a smartphone; however, there are drawbacks. One is the inability of auto stabilization to accurately compensate for the involuntary twitching of your hands. As such, results can often be shaky, ruining the final quality of a photo or video. That’s where the Shoulderpod S2 comes in.
What Is The Shoulderpod S2?
According to the manufacturer, which is based in Barcelona, Spain, it is as follows:
“The Shoulderpod S2 is a high-quality handle grip with three functions: Tripod mount, filmmaker handle, and traveler stand. A solid and reliable portable solution for holding your smartphone camera professionally.”
At this point, you may be asking yourself a few questions; we’re going to attempt to answer a few of them below.
How much does it cost?
If your budget isn’t big, but you certainly want to increase the quality of your videos and mobile photography, the good news is that the Shoulderpod S2 isn’t expensive, meaning you can benefit from shake-free use at home or walking the streets.
The accessory comes with free shipping and costs $39.99.
What’s in the box?
The first and most important component is the G1 smartphone grip, also referred to as the tripod mount. It is compatible with all smartphone models ranging from 48 – 98 mm / 1.9 – 3.6 inches in width. This is possible due to a thumbscrew which enables the opening and closing of the grip.
Next, there’s the H1 handle; obviously, this is the piece you hold, to which the other pieces attach. On first holding it, you will feel that it’s been crafted to a high standard. It’s made from Sapeli wood, which offers a natural, yet comfortable grip.
Finally, there’s the wrist strap or the W1; basically, it’s a security precaution made from leather. Should you lose your grip on the Shoulderpod S2, it won’t fall to the ground. The strap will prevent this and allow you to continue with your mobile photography.
Is it easy to put together?
In short, yes, very easy, combining the three mentioned pieces together is child’s play. We’ve seen Lego sets that are more complicated.
All you need to do is take all three pieces out of the box and start by removing the sleeve from the W1 wrist strap. Next, take the H1 handle and attach the wrist strap to its top-end screw. Once you’ve done that, screw on the smartphone grip, but don’t be tempted to do this too tightly. Finally, at one end of the grip is a thumbscrew. Turn it to open up the device and give enough space to place your smartphone. Once you’ve placed your handset, re-tighten the thumbscrew to secure your phone.
And that’s it; you have put together the Shoulderpod S2 and are ready to use it.
Is it easy to use?
Now, we’ll be honest and say we have not completed any extensive field testing of this accessory. However, our first impression of it is that it’s lightweight; the majority comes from the attached smartphone. Even then, it’s a lightweight setup which is extremely portable and can be taken apart in seconds.
As for ease of use, we placed two different handsets in the G1 smartphone grip. The first was the small iPhone 5C, which measures 59.2 mm in width without a case. To be frank, the Shoulderpod S2 was a little awkward when trying to operate the phone; however, that could be put down to the user having small hands.
When operating the device with the W1 wrist strap attached, it felt slightly restrictive, meaning that reaching for the camera button or tapping in a security code meant stretching a little or adjusting the grip. As far as the second handset we tested the Shoulderpod S2 with, that was a much larger device with a 79.2 mm width. This compounded the stretching and grip problem, but it was one that is ultimately solvable due to the repositioning of the camera app onscreen.
We have to point out once again that we’ve had little time to get used to this accessory. So that may be all that is required to solve our initial gripes. Our first impressions are that it does a solid job at stabilizing mobile photography. In fact, it opened up shots and video possibilities we wouldn’t have considered without it.
