This isn’t a huge issue, and the performance from the small gimbal is superb. If you’re wondering why you would bother to use a gimbal with the action cameras when their stabilisation is so good, one point would be the comfort of holding the cameras. The gimbal enables an easy change of position to get low or high angled shots. You also have the advantage of knowing the camera is always pointing forward rather than up and down. Of course, there’s the follow-me mode and vortex, which are just difficult to do handheld, however good the stabilisation. Going for something a little lighter such as the 35mm f/1.8 does give a little more headroom on balance and the speed of reaction. Provided the output level of your power bank is high enough you are able to charge your camera and gimbal while out and about away from a regular power outlet. More and more gimbal brands are starting to reduce the maximum battery life in their gimbals across their whole range to reduce size and weight due to so many people investing in these high output power banks. It offers basic control over your camera, start and stop recording in the case of the Sony A7 III, a built-in video lamp that comes in handy, and a fully-featured comprehensive app for iOS and Android.

Feature-wise the basic list reads much like M3 with the gimbal supporting action cameras, Smartphones and mirrorless cameras fitted with a lightweight lens. Although on the features, whereas the M3 offers the accessories module that clips to the base, the M2 S doesn’t offer this option.If you are planning on using a mirrorless camera body with your gimbal on a regular basis then we would highly recommend that you seriously consider going with the Zhiyun Weebill S over the Zhiyun Crane M2. It is a much better gimbal stabilizer for mirrorless and DSLR cameras and in our opinion is one of, if not the best 3 axis gimbal stabilizer made to date. That said though, if you know that you will only ever be using the lighter point and shoot cameras then the Crane M2 is ideal and the perfect gimbal in our opinion. I found that any lens larger than the 35mm f/1.4 would tip the scales, and even that was pushing it, which is why it’s not on the compatibility list. However, using a smaller lens such as the 35mm f/1.8 was a perfect fit.

Grandes opciones de control con la aplicación gratuita ZY PLAY, que permite manejar remotamente el estabilizador y acceder a funciones tan interesantes como el time-lapse, la captura panorámica o la función de cámara lenta The final point that we want to make about the Zhiyun Crane M2 is that the handle grip is excellent. It is comfortable to minimize aches and pains during use for those longer sessions while also being very easy to grip even if your hand is wet or cold. This makes sure that you always have a firm hold of your gimbal and minimizes the risk of you accidentally dropping it when in use. Our Verdict We are fully aware that we have a number of videographers, vloggers, and social media influencer readers who love their point and shoot and lightweight mirrorless camera rigs we have decided to publish our own, full Zhiyun Crane M2 review. Our goal is that we will be able to help any of our readers who are considering adding this great little 3 axis gimbal to their camera accessories. In reality, though, we have seen so much chatter about the M2 with the vast majority of it being positive that there is a high chance that you are aware of how great this little gimbal actually is.

Our Verdict

Switching over to a mirrorless camera and the balancing process takes a little more time but is still relatively straightforward and successful 99% of the time. If you get it wrong, you get the usual shake as you start to move the camera around.

As with the rest of the ZHIYUN range of Crane gimbals, the set-up for an action camera, Smartphone or camera is very simple. Use the appropriate mount and adapter to bolt into the base of the chosen device, or clamp it in the case of the Smartphone, and then attach it to the gimbal.

There’s also a red record button, but this will only trigger a mirrorless camera that’s physically attached to the gimbal via the supplied cable. For a smartphone you need to tap the onscreen record button manually. At the price, I like the ZHIYUN M2 S a lot, it’s worth every penny for what it does, and the build is suitably solid and offers plenty of flexibility. The M3 may be a better choice if you’re filming with smaller mirrorless with small fixed focal length lenses, smartphones and action cameras. However, if you mainly shoot with a smartphone or action camera and sometimes with a small mirrorless the compact size, price and features of the M2 S make it an ideal solution. Essentially the Crane M2 S is the lighter weight sibling of the M3; it does most of the same things but is slightly more limited by size and the weights of larger cameras. The gimbal performs well, holding a GoPro, Smart Phone or smaller mirrorless with the kit lens without issue. For something so lightweight, this is impressive. This allows you to hot-swap between your point and shoot camera and smartphone as required to change up the type of video footage you are capturing. That said though, if you are planning on exclusively using a smartphone with your Zhiyun Crane M2 then we would recommend that you just go with something like the Zhiyun Smooth 4 instead. Without the need to support the higher weight of a point and shoot camera you would be better going with a cheaper, dedicated smartphone gimbal like the Smooth 4 over the Crane M2.