Amazon Affiliate Link: amzn.to/4dq09Xk
Price as reviewed: $160
Hobolite Micro LED Lighting Standard Kit with LCD Display, App Control, Barndoor, CRI/TLCI 96+, 2700-6500K Portable Continuous Lighting for Photography, Filming, Live Streaming, Video Conference
This is a premium "micro" light. It weighs right at a half pound, so you could put it on top of a camera, but it is really part of the Hobolite line and has features from its larger brothers that make it more appropriate for a lightstand.
First, it is actively cooled with a fan. The fan is quiet, and won't be an issue as long as it is a few feet away from microphones, but I wouldn't want it right next to a mic on a camera cage. Now, in the settings menu you can turn off the fan, but I expect that if you do that the light may start to heat up and may not be able to produce the full 8 watts of light in the specifications over time.
Second, instead of a cold shoe mount, it has a V shaped quick release plate just like its big brothers. While there is a 1/4-20 socket in the bottom of this plate, it will require an adapter to place it on top of most cameras. So while you can make it work on top of a camera, I think fixed mounting is the primary intended purpose of this light.
Now, the light itself and accessories are very nice. The "standard" package includes a ring of magnets that clips into the "lens mount" on the front. [You can buy a "zoom" lighting lens for it as an accessory or as part of a more expensive package.] This ring of magnets will attach to any of the 3 included accessories. There is a plastic 180 degree frosted dome diffuser, a "spotlight" Fresnel lens, and a very nice set of barn door shutters. The Fresnel lens and barn door shutters also include magnets on the front, so you can daisy chain the accessories together (the diffuser has to be the last item...)
At the highest intensity (100% power - 6500K color temperature, 500Lm) the 7.4 watt hour battery lasted for 59 minutes. It took 10 watt hours to re-charge the battery. The light correctly negotiates USB-C power delivery, drawing a maximum observed 1.5 amps at 5 volts when recharging over a 2 hour period.
Everything about this package looks and feels expensive. The light is bright, all the parts feel good when you move them. Once you understand that the dials can be pushed in, and that a "tap" action is different from a "push and hold" action, the user interface is easy to use. The manual includes only a few pages of instructions, but it repeats it in just about every possible language.
It has a phone app that will remotely control the light, although you can do everything on the light's dial interface, so never NEED to use the phone app unless you want to remote control the light or control it as part of a group or pre-program scenes.
The only thing I don't like about this light is the price. It feels like a fair price for what you get....but there are a lot of much less expensive lights out there that are made of plastic, lighter weight, and have a camera cold shoe on the bottom (with no fan) if you are looking for a camera top light.
So I think this Micro light is best for people who are already in the hobolite ecosystem, and want to be able to control all of their lights from the same app, but also want a small light.
27 окт 2024
