DJI Osmo Pocket 3 review: Maybe the only vlogging camera you need

last month DJI continued its streak of innovative products with the launch of the osmo pocket 3 it brings some big improvements to the pocket 2 which was already a very popular camera those improvements include a new 1-in sensor that should dramatically improve picture quality and increase low light capability it also has a new flipping screen that automatically changes the aspect ratio along with new track tracking capabilities other new features include 4K 120p video dlog M capability and new improved Focus tracking features well it's certainly more capable than its predecessor it's also considerably more expensive still it could do the majority of logging chores for many creators so let's dive in to find out if it's worth the extra [Music] money dji's osmo pocket 3 is a portable camera that's small enough to carry with you and maneuver in tight spaces it's stabilized by a three-axis gimbal to make shots smooth and fluid it can pan tilt and roll across a wide range of movement at 5.5 in long and 179 GS it's a bit heavier but nearly as compact as its predecessor it resembles it at first glance but a closer look reveals some big changes the first thing that jumps out is the 16x9 2-in screen that has nearly five times the area of the pocket to's display better still it flips sideways and automatically rotates the camera to match so you can shoot in either landscape or portrait modes with no need to dive into settings I wouldn't call the menu system on the pocket strees touchcreen intuitive as it involves either swiping from the sides or touching icons to access functions without a lot of visual cues for guidance you need to memorize all the functions the other noticeable feature is a a larger camera head that houses a 1-in 9.4 megapixel sensor with a true 16 mm diagonal size that's nearly three times that of the pocket 2's 1X 1.7 in sensor knowing DGI we might see the same sensor on upcoming products like the mini drones and osmo action cams the fixed 20 mm equivalent lens has a relatively fast f 2.0 aperture the wide focal length means it's not ideal for part trates or product shots it does have a two time zoom to double that at a cost of some resolution there are now only two physical buttons recorded and gimble control the micro SD card is still on the left side with USBC port on the bottom as before should the position of the ladder be inconvenient the included handle moves it to the side what about the mimo app well its use was required previously for some functions on the pocket too most things can now be done straight from the camera screen apart from Glamour and a few other settings it's still still handy for monitoring and controlling the camera remotely of course the pocket 3 is available by itself or in a Creator combo along with a battery handle mini tripod 0.75 times lens adapter and a carry bag it includes the DJI mik 2 transmitter it pairs automatically with a pocket 3 giving you a useful highquality wireless mic DJI should be announcing the mic 2 as a separate product in the near future the osmo pocket 3's gimbal is designed to provide smooth and stable video operation is very much point and shoot to keep the subject in frame as the Gimbal and autofocus do the rest it's not just the larger sensor that helps the pocket 3 create cinematic video the optical stabilization allows for slower shutter speeds that create natural looking motion blur something that's impossible on action cameras as electronic stabilization isn't compatible with motion blur the gimbal generally does a good job of smoothing video in scenarios ranging from Cars to running to Rapid panning without electronic stabilization though z-axis motion is still present so you'll need to walk smoothly to avoid it like dji's drones the pocket 3 has active track subject tracking you activate it by either double tapping on the subject or selecting them in the mimo app from there the head will tilt and pan to follow a subject and keep it in Focus maybe the coolest new feature of the DJI osmo pocket 3 is the subject tracking mode that kicks in automatically when you switch it into selfie or vlogging mode once activated it'll basically follow you around using the gimbal to swivel around and keep you in the frame while of course automatically keeping keeping you in Focus this feature is obviously a big benefit to vloggers as you can essentially just set up the system on a tripod walk around and you don't need to have a second person or another videographer that's particularly handy as well with the uh DGI mic because you've automatically got sound so you're pretty much ready to go with just a very simple and compact setup another function called Dynamic framing also tracks faces but lets you change the framing at the touch of a button DJI also introduced a new Mode called spinshot that rotates the camera 90 or 180° to create a stylized scene one of the biggest advantages of the osmo pockets 3E and the DJI mik combo is that it's extremely light and discreet and at the same time it has the stabilization and face track plus excellent image and audio quality doesn't really bother anybody it doesn't look like a big camera in terms of making people think that you're filming them in that sense it uh is a pretty unique product in uh that regard the osmo pocket 3 can now shoot 4K at 60 frames per second in normal mode and includes both a dlog m mode and hlg for HDR shooting DJI also added 4K 120p shooting via a special slowmo mode this is Handy for high-speed scenarios particularly when combined with camera moves the mode doesn't support 10B bit and dlog M modes though another new function is low light video mode designed to improve performance in dim scenes in this setting it's limited to 30 frames per second Max and ISO is boosted up to 16,000 compared to just 3200 in regular video mode the hyperlapse and time-lapse settings work the same as on DJI drones giving you a time-lapse option that's great for showing the quick passage of time the other two modes are Panorama for wide shots and of course photos image quality is outstanding for such a tiny device with the 1-in sensor beating almost every smartphone except for maybe Sony's Xperia 1 Pro in normal mode video is sharp and colors are vibrant in photo mode jpads look good straight out of the camera but you can also shoot raw for more flexibility in post the dlog M function boosts dynamic range significantly particularly in high contrast or on Sunny Days it also helps with creative color correction and to match scenes with other cameras particularly dji's own drones and action cams it's easier to adjust than most log modes so I just leave it on all the time the large sensor also makes the pocket 3 much better than before in low light normal video mode goes up to ISO 3200 while low light mode ramps that up to ISO 16,000 letting you film in very dim rooms it also cranks up noise reduction at upper isos though so expect some loss of detail autofocus can be an issue with larger sensor cameras but the pocket 3's phase detect AI system is generally reliable that applies whether you're shooting multiple subjects in fpv mode or using active track or face tracking one big issue is focus breathing though as the frame changes substantially when you focus from a far to a near object if possible it would be good for DJI to add a breathing compensation feature as we've seen on Sony and other cameras with improvements in image quality tracking and other areas dji's osmo pocket 3 is more versatile than ever the new sensor puts it on par with high-end compact cameras and you get incredible Optical stabilization with none of the hassle of an external gimbal it has no major flaws except for the $520 price for that you could get Sony's zv 1f vlogging camera or for $150 more Sony's zv1 with a much larger sensor neither of those can do what the pocket 3 can do but then again the pocket 3 isn't ideal for portraits product shots and other types of content either the pocket 2 was embraced mainly as a second camera for grabbing some stabilized shots the pocket 3 costs $170 more though so it's not something you pick up on a whim DJI is no doubt hoping folks will embrace it as a standalone vlogging camera it can certainly serve that purpose if you really need that stabilization and can afford to pay for it thanks for watching and if you enjoy this video please hit like And subscribe and for more on technology check out and gadget.com [Music]

Channel: Engadget

Views: 89,524

Keywords: engadget, technology, consumer tech, gadgets, science, gear, tech, dji, osmo, dji osmo pocket 3, review, vlog, youtube, vlogging, camera

Id: rVHZSSwPuHE

Length: 9min 19sec (559 seconds)

Published: Mon Dec 04 2023