Zhiyun Quietly Lists Smooth Q2 on Amazon, 3 Days After Kickstarter Ends

Zhiyun Quietly Lists Smooth Q2 on Amazon, 3 Days After Kickstarter Ends

There’s recent controversy and debate amongst smartphone filmmakers. Many are skeptical about the use of crowdfunding platforms such as Kickstarter by wealthy companies. One such company is Moment who, although the biggest name in smartphone conversion lenses, regularly use Kickstarter to launch a new product.

Perhaps envious (or inspired by) of their success, Zhiyun recently used the same platform for their Smooth Q2. Zhiyun are probably the most successful smartphone 3 axis gimbal maker, so far. So many have recently questioned why they need to use a crowdfunding platform.

Kickstarter’s charter says: “Kickstarter’s mission is to help bring creative projects to life. We measure our success as a company by how well we achieve that mission, not by the size of our profits. That’s why we reincorporated Kickstarter as a Benefit Corporation in 2015.”

Well, I think we might question whether the Smooth Q2 was really “brought to life” via Kickstarter. Note also, Kickstarter have listed this campaign as one of their “Projects We Love“.

Now on Amazon

As I was searching online to find out when the Smooth Q2 would be released for regular purchase, I noticed it was already listed on Amazon. Now, normally a company makes a big deal of a new product on launch day. So it seems unusual that Zhiyun hasn’t made too much noise about the release.

In fact, it was a member of Zhiyun’s Facebook group called Samuel Ng who first spotted the gimbal was already on sale. Just one day after the campaign ended. Understandably, Samuel Ng questioned the purpose of “early bird” rewards on Kickstarter.

Some time later, Zhiyun replied:

“We initiated the KS project in order to collect customer feedback in the early stage of production. And we did make some targeted improvements through this way, like the ultra-wide-angle mode. Besides, the premium package is only available on the KS which is quite cost-effective, no distributor or store would give a lower price for that. The mass production has been completed, and Q2 will be shipped after packaging. We plan to ship the goods to HK within one week, and then send them to backers around the world from HK. Thanks for understanding!”

Samuel Ng then enquired: “if the product is shipped from HK, may I know why I’m being charged $78 to ship it to HK?”

Awkward.

Customer Relations Fail

Certainly, when it comes to communicating with their many fans, this has not been Zhiyun’s finest hour. Also, the whole strategy of putting the gimbal on Kickstarter first appears to be exploitation of their customers. And to what benefit? Why not just release the gimbal normally? Previous Zhiyun releases have been successful without Kickstarter, so why change now?

My personal opinion – this comes down to the release of the DJI Osmo Mobile 3. DJI launched their mini, foldable gimbal a few weeks before. It’s compact design makes it a direct competitor to the Smooth Q2. It appears that Zhiyun were afraid DJI would sweep up the compact gimbal buyer’s dollars before theirs was ready.

But it is a Good Gimbal

Having said all that, the Smooth Q2 does look like a worth successor to the previous Smooth Q. One downside compared to the DJI is that the gimbal motor still gets into shot, unless you hold the gimbal “flashlight” style.

As I said, you can now find the Zhiyun Smooth Q2 gimbal on Amazon.

Read more: How Much Weight Can Your Smartphone Gimbal Carry?

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