Insta360 announces Flow, its first phone stabilizer with advanced capabilities

Insta360 is a company primarily known for its 360-degree action cameras, but the company believes it has a voice in the phone stabilizer space as well. This area has been dominated in recent years by rivals DJI’s Osmo Mobile series of devices, but the new Insta360 Flow aims to offer pretty much everything we see on the recent DJI Osmo Mobile 6, with a number of added benefits. Firstly, the compact design and plethora of included features could be the reason why users might choose the new Flow over DJI’s models, which seem to have been a bit stagnant in recent years.

Insta360 tries to compete with DJI in the phone stabilizer area

Like the DJI variants, Insta360 Flow uses a magnetic system to connect the clips that hold the phone attached to the stabilizer. Unfortunately, the Insta 360 doesn’t have an Apple MagSafe-compatible system either, but requires attaching a proprietary clip. Still, the system seems to be very solid, and unlike DJI’s models, you don’t have to carry around a tripod for those times when you want to put the stabilizer on a surface.

The Insta360 Flow has an integrated tripod hidden in the bottom of the device. And it also has a selfie-stick that lets you extend the length of the stabilizer and paves the way for creative new shots. Of course, and DJI has been offering an extendable arm for a few generations now.

However, it looks like the tracking feature, DeepTrack 3.0, which we’ve seen on Insta360’s 360 action cameras, comes to this gimbal as well, being able to track the subject even after it’s obstructed by other elements in the frame. And the tracking is 360 degrees around the vertical axis, so you can move in any direction and the stabilizer will track you. Interestingly, the Insta360 also has a “cold shoe” slot, where you can attach accessories like an external microphone for better audio quality on your phone, while the top clip allows you to house a proprietary LED light.

The Insta360 Flow’s biggest advantage is that it’s very compact and lightweight and requires only one step to deploy. What’s more, it can accommodate phones weighing between 130 and 300 grams, and the internal 2,900 mAh battery promises 12 hours of battery life and even the ability to charge the phone when needed. The basic model is listed at €170 on specialist retailers, but there’s also a “Creator Kit” version, priced at over €200, which also includes the LED “Spotlight” light, some phone cables and a few other accessories.

source: GSM Arena