ZHIYUN Smooth-X gimbal problems and issues you should know about before you buy the stabilizer. You can not use it with a GoPro or any other action cam.
The is a smartphone only 2-axis gimbal. Many people love to use a small gimbal with their GoPro to get wider, and more stable footage. If you don’t pair the ZHIYUN Smooth-X with your phone you can’t even control the gimbal manually. This is a huge letdown.
Before the ZHIYUN Smooth-X will work at all you have to install their ZY Cami app on your phone. Then set up an account with them. You can not use an existing account if you already have one for another ZHIYUN product. The app will only work with your location turned on. Who wants to have a Chinese app tracking your every moment.
I understand that you need dedicated apps to get extra functions like time-lapse and hyperlapse functions. But, if you just want a manual experience without the added spyware this gimbal just will not work.
Thanks to Tuber Ken Heron for the great ZHIYUN Smooth-X review video.
If you want a manual experience without having to install companies phone app I still recommend the original Zhiyun Smooth-Q 3 Axis gimbal. And, you can use your Gopro or other action camera if you want with a cheap gimbal mount.
If you still want the Zhiyun Smooth X Selfie Stick Gimbal you can find one here on the cheap.