Here's my issue with this kit, SmallRig, who is just as well known as Polar Pro, and makes great quality products, offers the same kit minus the ND filters for $80 (including the handles and remote triggers). If you add moments lens and ND filters you're still coming out cheaper than going with Polar Pro. Polar Pro is charging you for their name, not for the quality of the product. They are making over a 100% profit on these.
Sorry to break it to you guys, I specialize in manufacturing for camera gear and this pricing is pretty reasonable. 100% profit would also be the wrong terminology here. Perhaps it's a 100% markup from their BOM (Bill of Materials) pricing. If that's the case it's actually a steal. In order to be profitable, you really need 2 to 3 to 4x markup to make a product remotely profitable after factoring in all of the many, many other layers of overhead (R&D, manufacturing, shipping to storage facility, warhousing, staff, distributing, marketing, shipping to customer, warranties and returns, etc.). The bigger challenge I've always seen with phone cage costs is the relative cost to the phone itself. In this case, you're paying 25-40% the cost of the camera which does seem high compared to say my RED where as my much more fully built out cinema rig cost a relative fraction of 5-10%. Overall though, just be aware that there are always factors you may not be considering as a consumer when it comes to pricing an item. This looks like a solid product with thoughtful features. Hats off to Polar Pro.
@@brandonpetersen10 of course you’re going take polar pros side, your job is to manufacture and sale camera equipment. Bottom line is regardless of your argument here, someone else is selling the same product made in the same factory at an extremely cheaper price. We are shooting video on a cell phone that will be obsolete in a year. It’s not like RED camera where you will use it for the next 10 years. So far every year polar pro or Apple has changed their design. So you have to buy one of these every year if you upgrade phones. For the price polar pro is charging it doesn’t make sense to pay that much for something that will be obsolete in a years time. Especially when someone else’s is selling the exact same product for an extremely cheaper price.
@@PrestonGladd both SmallRig and Polar Pro are competitors so me throwing my 2 cents in is just to add context. I hear where you’re coming from with a phone obviously being much different than a cinema camera but your phone is a phone first and adds immense value in many ways that a regular camera does not. My bottom line is that the two are in fact different products simply by way that they are marketed and supported in much different ways. There’s always more to the equation than meets the eye. Plus, believe me, I’m all about getting prices as economical for the consumer as well as I’m also a consumer of these products.
I'm still feeling the burn of the filter change from the earlier Litechaser models. I went all in with the litechaser 11 only to find that my filter set that I have is not supported. I know they have stated that this new generation will be forward compatible but the pain is still there. I might buy in later on when it wears off. Looks extremely nice.
As a RUclipsr that uses the iphone to shoot lot of vídeos alongside with my main camera, I no longer get excited with this kind of products. You see, I change my phone every year, getting the new releases because of the camera upgrades. And that means that I would have to buy new gear like this every year, because the changes apple does to the lens sizes and position. And this gear is really expensive to be used only one year. Also, this kind of gear makes it hard to just point an shoot… It takes just as long to assemble as my camera gear. So, for all those reasons, I stop buying it. The only reason why I watched this video is because I like your work.
Yea.... in other words the people who own the business of making this kit are at the Mercy of Apple/Samsung. Its not a scalable business model ; atleast for the phones segment.
I hear you. I bought gear for iPhone 13 Pro but it had a working life of only 9 months. I only got the 14 Pro because I really needed a phone with more storage as my 13 Pro had only 128 GB Check Freewell Sherpa line. They are promising future proof gear. I have it and the VND filters are very good.Actually, I think they are better for iPhone than other Freewell filters because they were designed specifically for iPhone whilst other filters were designed for photographic cameras. You can use the Sherpa with Smallrig universal cage so you can add light and professional sound gear.
I love this system, absolutely amazing. BUT, it’s a no go for me because they only offer compatibility with aging Moment lenses that have not been updated in years and really do not perform well with the latest iPhones. I don’t understand why they don’t partner with companies like Sandmarc, who are updating their lenses for 100% compatibility with the latest phones every year. They should make the lens mount plate swappable the same way SmallRig does so you can have compatibility with Moment, Sandmarc, or even Beastgrip with an adapter.
Thanks for sharing this setup Tyler. I have a iPhone 13 Pro Max and purchased the FilmMakers Kit witch has the 3-5 VND. The VND is made very well as usual but, I have trouble with it due to making sunny mid day blue skies have a grayish-blue cast a quarter of the time. Not sure why this is happening due to taking my time. One thing for sure, I don't get any X type patterns as you would with cheaper glass. I have their filters non-varible filters for my drone which are in a word, Awesome. As always, thank you for all your content! Have a Very Merry Christmas!! 😊
I don’t understand why the video is just on the setup, without showing the impact. Where is the footage showing the improvement in quality between the lenses, stability, and audio with these setups if any.
Interesting system, but I went with the Zacuto Smart Z-Finder (Kickstarter). It provides an eyepiece and shield that help me focus on what I'm shooting. The PolarPro looks good and if I have to do much more Vertical stuff it's probably a better option but not pulling the trigger just yet...
Hey there! Great video! Can you please tell me, does the vnd work with the wide 0.5x lens?? Thank you in advance for letting me know! I’m interested in the kit but that would be a deal breaker if it didn’t work.
I’m wanting to place an order for their LiteChaser Pro case setup, but I noticed though they have “free” shipping. It says you have to pay DHL your duties & tax fees with no explanation on what that’ll cost. Did you run into any issues ordering anything shipped to the USA?
Exactly. I posted a detailed comment explaining why I would not recommend the Polar Pro to anyone. RUclips deleted my comment. I mentioned, for example, that the Polar Pro cage without handles costs £160 and I couldn't find handles to buy separately. Very unfriendly business practice. But you can get a Smallrig cage with two handles for £90.
I'm waiting for Sony or Canon to put some effort into making a "high quality" point and shoot. Solid metal body with a matte black finish. At least 20MP, and a long zoom range of at least 25x. A decent quality 120hz display like the R6, 1080p @ 60fps. It would be nice having a camera that's easy to carry around, but has a wide lens, long range zoom, and macro - all in one. Not that they will see this, but I hope this somehow gets passed over to them. Great videos BTW! 😀
What is the lens adapter you are using to put a filter on it? I have the moment case and the snap on filter adapter but that only works with the in-camera lenses. I would love to have an option to attach a filter to an external lens as I have several.
The cage is too small for an audio mixer such as Beachtek. I use Beachtek with Rode AI to record sound from two different mics (a shotgun and a lavaliere or reporter mic) to two different channels. The polar pro is not good for situations where audio is of paramount importance such as interviews . And it is also not good for situations where you want to use a lens which is better than Moment's lens. I read somewhere that Moment's lenses are not even compatible with iPhone 14 Pro. I don't know if that is reliable, correct information but if it is then you can't use the cage with lenses as the cage is compatible with Moment lenses only. The Polar Pro would be good only to shoot B roll images for the most part. And at a very high price. They ask for too much and offer too little. The cage without handles costs £160, for example, and I couldn't find handles to buy separately. Very unfriendly business practice. You can get a Smallrig cage with two hands and similar to Polar Pro's cage for £90. I use both Smallrig and Beastgrip. P.S. This comment is part of a bigger comment that RUclips had deleted ..
If I happen to have my Sony a1 with me, then I get two more megapixels than the phone I’ve always got in my pocket. Yes, I realize that’s an unfair comparison in some ways, but consider also - a 256gb model at $1,200 vs. the a1 body, 24mm gmaster lens, and 160 and 80 gb cf express type A cards = $8,500 (7x the price.)
Sorry to hear that, where was your comment deleted from? This video is sponsored by PolarPro so it’s only mean to showcase the product, it’s not anonymous objective review.
@@stalman Thanks for letting me know. It was right at the top as it was the newest one. I posted it again and they deleted it again. I thought it could be a glitch so looked for the comment using another browser. No difference. Good that you replied . I've changed my comments accordingly.
So misleading! The video at the start says "Shot on iPhone 14", which is what I have - only to find out that these clips were either shot on an iPhone 14 Pro or Pro Max, which is false advertising, or they were shot on an iPhone 14, and then you proceed to talk about an accessory that is not available on the 14, which makes even less sense, since the entire video's purpose is to showcase the Litechaser 14 Pro. Thumbs DOWN, man.
Here's my issue with this kit, SmallRig, who is just as well known as Polar Pro, and makes great quality products, offers the same kit minus the ND filters for $80 (including the handles and remote triggers). If you add moments lens and ND filters you're still coming out cheaper than going with Polar Pro. Polar Pro is charging you for their name, not for the quality of the product. They are making over a 100% profit on these.
Wow this is such a great point 👏
Great points. The cage is way overpriced.
Sorry to break it to you guys, I specialize in manufacturing for camera gear and this pricing is pretty reasonable. 100% profit would also be the wrong terminology here. Perhaps it's a 100% markup from their BOM (Bill of Materials) pricing. If that's the case it's actually a steal. In order to be profitable, you really need 2 to 3 to 4x markup to make a product remotely profitable after factoring in all of the many, many other layers of overhead (R&D, manufacturing, shipping to storage facility, warhousing, staff, distributing, marketing, shipping to customer, warranties and returns, etc.).
The bigger challenge I've always seen with phone cage costs is the relative cost to the phone itself. In this case, you're paying 25-40% the cost of the camera which does seem high compared to say my RED where as my much more fully built out cinema rig cost a relative fraction of 5-10%. Overall though, just be aware that there are always factors you may not be considering as a consumer when it comes to pricing an item. This looks like a solid product with thoughtful features. Hats off to Polar Pro.
@@brandonpetersen10 of course you’re going take polar pros side, your job is to manufacture and sale camera equipment. Bottom line is regardless of your argument here, someone else is selling the same product made in the same factory at an extremely cheaper price. We are shooting video on a cell phone that will be obsolete in a year. It’s not like RED camera where you will use it for the next 10 years. So far every year polar pro or Apple has changed their design. So you have to buy one of these every year if you upgrade phones. For the price polar pro is charging it doesn’t make sense to pay that much for something that will be obsolete in a years time. Especially when someone else’s is selling the exact same product for an extremely cheaper price.
@@PrestonGladd both SmallRig and Polar Pro are competitors so me throwing my 2 cents in is just to add context. I hear where you’re coming from with a phone obviously being much different than a cinema camera but your phone is a phone first and adds immense value in many ways that a regular camera does not. My bottom line is that the two are in fact different products simply by way that they are marketed and supported in much different ways. There’s always more to the equation than meets the eye. Plus, believe me, I’m all about getting prices as economical for the consumer as well as I’m also a consumer of these products.
I'm still feeling the burn of the filter change from the earlier Litechaser models. I went all in with the litechaser 11 only to find that my filter set that I have is not supported. I know they have stated that this new generation will be forward compatible but the pain is still there. I might buy in later on when it wears off. Looks extremely nice.
As a RUclipsr that uses the iphone to shoot lot of vídeos alongside with my main camera, I no longer get excited with this kind of products. You see, I change my phone every year, getting the new releases because of the camera upgrades. And that means that I would have to buy new gear like this every year, because the changes apple does to the lens sizes and position. And this gear is really expensive to be used only one year. Also, this kind of gear makes it hard to just point an shoot… It takes just as long to assemble as my camera gear. So, for all those reasons, I stop buying it. The only reason why I watched this video is because I like your work.
Yea.... in other words the people who own the business of making this kit are at the Mercy of Apple/Samsung. Its not a scalable business model ; atleast for the phones segment.
I hear you. I bought gear for iPhone 13 Pro but it had a working life of only 9 months. I only got the 14 Pro because I really needed a phone with more storage as my 13 Pro had only 128 GB
Check Freewell Sherpa line. They are promising future proof gear. I have it and the VND filters are very good.Actually, I think they are better for iPhone than other Freewell filters because they were designed specifically for iPhone whilst other filters were designed for photographic cameras.
You can use the Sherpa with Smallrig universal cage so you can add light and professional sound gear.
I love this system, absolutely amazing. BUT, it’s a no go for me because they only offer compatibility with aging Moment lenses that have not been updated in years and really do not perform well with the latest iPhones. I don’t understand why they don’t partner with companies like Sandmarc, who are updating their lenses for 100% compatibility with the latest phones every year. They should make the lens mount plate swappable the same way SmallRig does so you can have compatibility with Moment, Sandmarc, or even Beastgrip with an adapter.
Your videos are the best. Clean and straight forward. Keep ‘em coming!
Yes! I love how professional they are. I hate when channels aren't meant to be comedic, but people make cringe jokes.
Will you be showing the actual footage when you have these systems built? This review is just focusing on the rig build out.
That gear is too expensive
Thanks for sharing this setup Tyler. I have a iPhone 13 Pro Max and purchased the FilmMakers Kit witch has the 3-5 VND. The VND is made very well as usual but, I have trouble with it due to making sunny mid day blue skies have a grayish-blue cast a quarter of the time. Not sure why this is happening due to taking my time. One thing for sure, I don't get any X type patterns as you would with cheaper glass. I have their filters non-varible filters for my drone which are in a word, Awesome. As always, thank you for all your content! Have a Very Merry Christmas!! 😊
I haven't watched your videos in a while and I'm sorry to say but this video was just one big hype up for us the viewer to buy this product x.x
Right you are. I posted a detailed comment explaining why I would not recommend the Polar Pro to anyone. RUclips deleted my comment.
I don’t understand why the video is just on the setup, without showing the impact. Where is the footage showing the improvement in quality between the lenses, stability, and audio with these setups if any.
Seems cool! But it's pretty pricey for how often I would end up using it.
excellent review! Just what I've been looking for.
Interesting system, but I went with the Zacuto Smart Z-Finder (Kickstarter). It provides an eyepiece and shield that help me focus on what I'm shooting. The PolarPro looks good and if I have to do much more Vertical stuff it's probably a better option but not pulling the trigger just yet...
Hey there! Great video! Can you please tell me, does the vnd work with the wide 0.5x lens?? Thank you in advance for letting me know! I’m interested in the kit but that would be a deal breaker if it didn’t work.
awesome looking rig!! thanks for showing us the bits
I always have a doubt about those cages used with a filter: What about the lidar sensor covered? Is it really used for video?
I barely started this video and I’m already so excited. 🙌🏻
Does some filters cover up the rear microphone? I’m guessing you have to use an external microphone?
Are those Phone notifications at around 7:55 ??
Does this system work with older phones? Or other models? Never buying limiting cases again
Does the cage work with other cases (like otterbox, Mous, etc.) or only with their phone case? 1:00
I’m looking for the perfect tripod for cinematic filming with iphone, can you recommend one?
I’m wanting to place an order for their LiteChaser Pro case setup, but I noticed though they have “free” shipping. It says you have to pay DHL your duties & tax fees with no explanation on what that’ll cost. Did you run into any issues ordering anything shipped to the USA?
Magical video.
I can't find the Bluetooth shutter anywhere. No one has stock
Tyler - does one need to use a TRS to TRRS adapter to use the Deity Duo on the iPhone?
Can i adjust the handle for shooting also in vertical mode?
Can you get back on the battery life of pro? Lot says it sucks n pro max is better..
Thanks
This rig will work with Iphone 14 ?
Does this only work on the Iphone 14 pro?
For that kind of money, I'll go with SmallRig.
Exactly. I posted a detailed comment explaining why I would not recommend the Polar Pro to anyone. RUclips deleted my comment.
I mentioned, for example, that the Polar Pro cage without handles costs £160 and I couldn't find handles to buy separately. Very unfriendly business practice.
But you can get a Smallrig cage with two handles for £90.
I'm waiting for Sony or Canon to put some effort into making a "high quality" point and shoot. Solid metal body with a matte black finish. At least 20MP, and a long zoom range of at least 25x. A decent quality 120hz display like the R6, 1080p @ 60fps. It would be nice having a camera that's easy to carry around, but has a wide lens, long range zoom, and macro - all in one. Not that they will see this, but I hope this somehow gets passed over to them. Great videos BTW! 😀
Iphone 15 promax ?
The handles are too small. And when new iphone may not fit.
A month later, still on 92 Reviews at 4.3 stars. Click to see reviews... javascript void. Forgive me for being skeptical.
What is the lens adapter you are using to put a filter on it? I have the moment case and the snap on filter adapter but that only works with the in-camera lenses. I would love to have an option to attach a filter to an external lens as I have several.
haha, never mind... you answered it at the end. I should have waited :/
would the moment lenses fit on the cage?
can you balance just the case and a filter on an osmo 5 or is it too heavy?
I definitely wouldn’t put it on an Osmo. Once it’s rigged up like this I’d put it on a standard camera gimbal
are moment lenses only for pro models?
I want to use pro mics with the iPhone not pro-sumer mics - lots of vids on rigs and pixels and filters what about serious audio
The cage is too small for an audio mixer such as Beachtek. I use Beachtek with Rode AI to record sound from two different mics (a shotgun and a lavaliere or reporter mic) to two different channels. The polar pro is not good for situations where audio is of paramount importance such as interviews . And it is also not good for situations where you want to use a lens which is better than Moment's lens. I read somewhere that Moment's lenses are not even compatible with iPhone 14 Pro. I don't know if that is reliable, correct information but if it is then you can't use the cage with lenses as the cage is compatible with Moment lenses only.
The Polar Pro would be good only to shoot B roll images for the most part. And at a very high price. They ask for too much and offer too little.
The cage without handles costs £160, for example, and I couldn't find handles to buy separately. Very unfriendly business practice.
You can get a Smallrig cage with two hands and similar to Polar Pro's cage for £90. I use both Smallrig and Beastgrip.
P.S. This comment is part of a bigger comment that RUclips had deleted ..
iPhone is "professional" since they had a HEIF/HEVC, Apple ProRAW and Apple ProRes
sponsored :/
only youtubers wouldn’t laugh at this setup
It's bigger than a DSLR.
If I happen to have my Sony a1 with me, then I get two more megapixels than the phone I’ve always got in my pocket.
Yes, I realize that’s an unfair comparison in some ways, but consider also - a 256gb model at $1,200 vs. the a1 body, 24mm gmaster lens, and 160 and 80 gb cf express type A cards = $8,500 (7x the price.)
This video should see all people who ask: WHY Apple's adds are so awesome.
I posted a detailed comment saying that I would not recommend the Polar Pro litechaser to anyone . RUclips deleted my comment.
Sorry to hear that, where was your comment deleted from? This video is sponsored by PolarPro so it’s only mean to showcase the product, it’s not anonymous objective review.
@@stalman Thanks for letting me know. It was right at the top as it was the newest one. I posted it again and they deleted it again. I thought it could be a glitch so looked for the comment using another browser. No difference. Good that you replied . I've changed my comments accordingly.
Does the physical button have a half click function?
am i the only person that just wants to use the cage as a case and run it as a daily xD?
When your mam call you.....😹
If people are asking for a iPhone video for an authentic look, don't you destroy all of that by adding that much gear over the phone?
RUclips deleted my comment! Very antidemocratic . It was strictly technical staff and vocabulary.
So misleading! The video at the start says "Shot on iPhone 14", which is what I have - only to find out that these clips were either shot on an iPhone 14 Pro or Pro Max, which is false advertising, or they were shot on an iPhone 14, and then you proceed to talk about an accessory that is not available on the 14, which makes even less sense, since the entire video's purpose is to showcase the Litechaser 14 Pro.
Thumbs DOWN, man.
Where do i get that full set up?
serious that looks funny just use a camera
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