Customers frequently mention how easy the Ronin-S is to use and set up. They also appreciate its smooth footage, long battery life, and outstanding build quality. However, some users find it to be quite heavy and have concerns about its compatibility with certain cameras.
This summary was generated by AI based on customer reviews.
The vast majority of our reviews come from verified purchases. Reviews from customers may include My Best Buy members, employees, and Tech Insider Network members (as tagged). Select reviewers may receive discounted products, promotional considerations or entries into drawings for honest, helpful reviews.
Page 1 Showing 1-20 of 271 reviews
Pros mentioned:
Quality
Cons mentioned:
Balance, Weight
Rated 5 out of 5 stars
A great gimbal for your dslr or mirrorless camera!
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Posted . Owned for 1 month when reviewed.
This reviewer received promo considerations or sweepstakes entry for writing a review.
I have had this dji gimbal for about a month now and as a recreational video filmographer, it makes your footage more professional. The balancing is usually the hardest part of setting up the gimbal but once that's done you'll know how to do it.
It's heavy, about 7 pounds with my mirror less camera on it. You will get a workout and if you're like me, tire very easily at first. Keep at it, the footage you are able to capture with this gimbal is spectacular. Handheld has its place for certain applications but if you want stabilized, professional looking video you must use a gimbal.
Programming the gimbal with the dji ronin app is easy, and your smart phone can connect to it fast. Setup of each of the three user modes is simple, and doing the infinite roll is always awesome. I don't disassemble my gimbal, instead I carry it in the car whole with the camera on it.
I had an issue with the gimbal where it started shaking horribly and later realized that it had gotten unbalanced. It was super easy to fix and now working good as new. If it shakes, turn it off and rebalance! Youtube is your friend in getting your setup properly balanced.
If on sale, the ronin s is a no brainer but if full price, go ahead with the essentials kit at $559.99. You're not missing $200 worth of stuff VS the ronin s
I would recommend this to a friend
Pros mentioned:
Stabilization
Rated 5 out of 5 stars
Perfect for my Family Cinematic Videos!
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Posted . Owned for 1 month when reviewed.
This reviewer received promo considerations or sweepstakes entry for writing a review.
On May 2019, I purchased this DJI Ronin S for my family vacation last June. The results of my videos was amazingly and cinematically beautiful. DJI scored good on this stabilizer. Received well packaged thru USPS and the set up was easy. You can download the step by step tutorial on the DGI website. The Ronin S app is user friendly. Easy to navigate. I will recommend this to family and friends. Thanks again DJI!
I would recommend this to a friend
Pros mentioned:
Quality
Rated 5 out of 5 stars
A Wonderful Addition to my Studio
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Posted .
This reviewer received promo considerations or sweepstakes entry for writing a review.
Been thinking about a gimbal system for several years but didn’t want to buy a mechanical one for virtually the same price. Finally did it for a production for FOCUS Engineering & Surveying and it is fantastic. The build quality is first class as with all DJI products. Also it just dropped by $200, do it!
I would recommend this to a friend
Cons mentioned:
Weight
Rated 5 out of 5 stars
One awesome gimbal
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Posted .
This reviewer received promo considerations or sweepstakes entry for writing a review.
I've tried other gimbals such as the zhiyun crane and what not. But this bad boy feels great, smooth and can handle some good weight on it. Definitely will give you a work out. Which I guess only bad thing I can say about it is, it's a little heavier than others. But I like it. I use this for my videography hobby and freelance.
I would recommend this to a friend
Pros mentioned:
Quality
Rated 5 out of 5 stars
Ronin s great gimbal
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Posted . Owned for 3 weeks when reviewed.
This reviewer received promo considerations or sweepstakes entry for writing a review.
Saves ur butt!!! Great gimbal.. easy to use once u get hands on it!!! U will love it... the footages looks great !!!!!
I would recommend this to a friend
Cons mentioned:
Weight
Rated 5 out of 5 stars
ON THE GO STABILIZER
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Posted .
This reviewer received promo considerations or sweepstakes entry for writing a review.
I love my RoninS. Yes, it's heavy but manageable, and it's worth it especially for it being a compact stabilizer. Quality!
I would recommend this to a friend
Brand response from DJI Support
Posted .
Hi Steph,
We are glad that you're enjoying your Ronin-S!
Rated 5 out of 5 stars
Canon len
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Posted .
This reviewer received promo considerations or sweepstakes entry for writing a review.
I love the Canon they equipment is strong and hold it value it a good beginning Camera
I would recommend this to a friend
Rated 3 out of 5 stars
Good gimbal could be more adaptable
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Posted . Owned for 1 month when reviewed.
This reviewer received promo considerations or sweepstakes entry for writing a review.
Good gimbal but I had problems with my d5500 being able to use all the features. I think this gimbal should be more adaptable with the cameras before the ronin came out. Great features easy to setup and the weight is good for stability a tripod that could extend could prove useful in the future design of the next model of ronin.
I would recommend this to a friend
Pros mentioned:
Battery life, Quality
Rated 5 out of 5 stars
An Unbiased Review
Posted .
This reviewer received promo considerations or sweepstakes entry for writing a review.
When I first heard news about this gimbal at CES I was instantly excited. I shoot Canon & Sony so hearing that there was a single handed, affordable, small package gimbal coming to market that could support the weight of my camera and lenses (Even RED cameras?!) had piqued my interest to say the least. A follow focus. Room to view the screen while recording. Manfrotto standard plates incorporated. 3 user customizable modes. Sport mode. Low shooting with a pan/tilt lock. A full days battery as well? This thing sounded too good to be true. Ship it.
As soon as I saw preorders were available in May I ordered one right away. I stayed away from the internet and got my hands on it and immediately started to put the new gimbal through its paces to see what this thing could do and if it could live up to everything that DJI hyped it up to be. Needless to say I was absolutely floored by what this thing had to offer, and it didn't disappoint. After a few days of playing around and a couple of gigs I had a pretty good idea of how to use it and learned all of its pro's and albeit few cons.
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I then read the reviews on B&H...... (DJI struck up an exclusive deal and B&H was the first to get the product into peoples hands)
I couldn't believe my eyes. 1 star reviews on a product that, in my honest opinion is re revolutionizing gimbals as a whole. Why?
"My gimbal was DOA, wouldn't start up, terrible product"
"My bad guys, I didn't know I had to turn on the battery and then the gimbal"
"FALSE ADVERTISING, THIS GIMBAL DOESN'T WORK WITH MANFROTTO PLATES!!"
"DJI failed to inform me that the code to connect my gimbal with the app was 12345678, I had to wait TWO WHOLE HOURS ON THE PHONE TO GET AN ANSWER!!!"
"Its too heavy, it should be lighter......"
"THE PROVIDED CABLE DOESN'T ALLOW ME TO FOLLOW FOCUS OR START OR STOP RECORDING, IT'S TERRIBLE, 1000% WOULDN'T RECOMMEND!!"
I don't think I've ever read a more whiney bunch of reviews in my entire life. This gimbal is amazing and the smooth footage you get from the small package is bar none. Everyone sounds like they needed everything handed to them on a silver platter, like, that they may have even needed someone else to operate the gimbal for them because it was just too hard. Allow me to set the bar straight on every single, apparently, 1 star worthy complaint above.
- Here is the link to the manual, read it, its got the answer to every single answer you have. Including how to turn on the gimbal.
https://dl.djicdn.com/downloads/Ronin-S/Ronin-S%20User%20Manual_v1.0.pdf
- Manfrotto plates don't seem to work on the gimbal, true. That is no reason to give a product a terrible rating. Use the provided plate, its compatible with Manfrotto heads. See how easy that was? If you're still sour about it, buy a quick release and attach it to the DJI plate, problem solved. (PICTURED)
- For those uninformed, or haven't read the manual, the password to connect to the ronin as is 12345678. Sorry you had to take so much time out of your day to figure that out so you could use such a great product.
- It's too heavy? Of course it is. It's made with great material, its built like a beast, it has the capability of holding up 8 pound payloads!! Get the shot, set it down, get another shot, set it down. Attach a monopod to it. Work out. Those are just some of the examples on how to better use the heavy gimbal.
- DJI has stated that support for most of the cameras listed would be available in the coming months through updates after negotiations with the camera companies. So sorry it wasn't available from the get go. It's SOOOOO HARD to start recording and end recording on the camera. Set the lens to manual, maintain that distance, or maybe use auto focus, the follow function will come soon, relax.
Now that that's out of the way, lets get onto the finer points of the review!!
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DESIGN
DJI has built something amazing here. Everything is extremely well thought out to the smallest detail. The lower roll arm so that you can view your screen. The ergonomic grip with the battery built into it. The small tripod stand with the rubberized accents for better handling when closed. The plate provided that will work with Manfrotto heads. And who can forget the ports for future accessories to be added to the sides of the grip. DJI knocked it out of the park, the build quality is bar none and you cannot find a better built gimbal in this price range or class.
SETUP
Setup was pretty straight forward. Screw the tripod into the battery grip. Slide the gimbal onto the battery and lock it in. Charge it. Mount the camera and balance it. Having to activate it with the Ronin app was a little annoying but pretty much everything has an app and activation nowadays so it wasn't that big of a deal that I had to. Once it was activated it was off to the races and everything worked great. I did get tired of changing plates out so I bought a Manfrotto QR system for their smaller plate and attached it to the one provided by DJI and now getting the camera on and off takes no more than a second. I provided a picture of that so you can see what I'm talking about.
FEATURES
Follow Focus isn't available yet for the Canon and Sony cameras I use but that wasn't a deal breaker. I've been filming with a Glidecam or handheld for years now so setting a manual focus point and keeping my distance or using Canons DP Autofocus came as second nature. It was easy. A lot of the content I film is pretty high energy so having the Sport mode available was a huge help. Having the 3 User customizable presets was great because I could assign each one to a different kind of shooting style. The trigger to lock the pan/tilt is pretty great because it allowed me to do creative reveals or slider movements without the need for a slider as well as allow me to go into low mode to shoot low.
CONTROLS, OPERATION/HANDLING & PERFORMANCE
The Ronin app has a huge amount of customizable modes so everyone can set the gimbal up for their shooting style. I used the 1stsetting for a very slow moving workflow, to get all of the smoothest and most stable shots I needed. 2ndwas for a faster moving setup for higher energy content filming. The 3rdI adjusted so I could use the roll, being able to get off center and abstract shots can add a lot to your footage and I was glad I had full control of that. It being a 1 handed gimbal will still introduce a bit of up and down shake, I found it best to hold the gimbal straight up and down and walk a little crouched just like I did with the Glidecam. The Ronin M will still have more stability as it is a two handed gimbal, so I cant wait for them to release a two handed attachment for this thing. Double tapping the trigger to reset was great to get to the next shot quicker. I prefer to use the gimbal by moving it with my arms and letting it naturally turn for the shots I need, but the joystick came in handy the few times I decided to use it. Sport mode, activated by holding down M, came in handy when I was following a subject around a crowd or having to move pretty quick. Selfie mode is there and available if you triple tap the trigger, but I don't vlog so I found little use for it. You could press the power button twice quickly to turn the motors off without turning the gimbal off while you have it set down to preserve battery life. I didn't play with the creative functions too much as the gimbal wasn't yet ready to connect to my cameras so ill come back and fill you in more on that once that update rolls out and I can take full advantage of things like motion timlapses, hyperlapses and panoramas.
BATTERY LIFE
I have a pretty heavy setup on the gimbal and was still surprised to find that the gimbal would run for about 9-10 hours no problem. For those that don't know you have to turn the battery on and then the gimbal on. I was very happy to find a USB-C connection for charging the device as I had recently converted all of my gear over to using that.
ACCESSORIES
As of this writing there are no official (or even unofficial come to think of it) accessories out for the Ronin S. Things I'd live to see are spare batteries/grips. A two handed option for the gimbal for when you may need it. A charging dock for the batteries so you don't have to have it hooked up to the gimbal to charge. I'd love to see a soft case that allows you to carry it in a compact way. (Not a big fan of the Styrofoam packaging it came with)
FINAL THOUGHTS
I cannot praise this thing enough. Easily worth the wait and at an unbeatable price of $699, you'd be hard pressed to find anything else out there this well built in this class for its price range. THIS IS the industry standard now for single handed gimbals. There are cheaper options out there like the Zhiyun or the FeiyuTech but unless you're using a pretty light setup, using those are out of the question. I haven't had it a long time but I can say without question that if you're in the market for a one handed gimbal, this is easily the way to go. I am going to continue to use this as my daily driver when it comes to filming video and will be writing an update to this review in the coming months to update you on the gimbal after several hours of use.
I hope this review is what you were looking for and if you've had any doubt about buying this gimbal that I've done well in burying any opposition you had in buying it.
To everyone else reading, Happy Filming!!
I would recommend this to a friend
Pros mentioned:
Battery life, Stabilization
Cons mentioned:
Size, Weight
Rated 4 out of 5 stars
Works well, nice features but heavy
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Posted .
This reviewer received promo considerations or sweepstakes entry for writing a review.
It is a well manufactured and solid gimbal with additional features like Panorama shots and time-lapse (while the gimbal takes care of a movement). However, it is mainly for video and for me it worked so far reliable and does good stabilization.
The only Con I am seeing is its weight and overall size which makes it not ideal for travelling. If shooting for longer periods of time the weight will impact your filmmaking because your arms get tired more quickly than with a light-weight gimbal.
Battery life is fully sufficient for my purposes - it lasts for hours and in my case for days but I am not filming with it for hours in a row and others may have different requirements.
The gimbal consists of three parts: the gimbal itself, the grip, and the stand. That means you can disassemble it for the purpose of travelling to store it in smaller places.
Although I think it is a good gimbal I would remain skeptical about its weight and it might be not the ideal choice among gimbles.
No, I would not recommend this to a friend
Pros mentioned:
Battery life, Ease of use, Quality
Rated 5 out of 5 stars
Perfect Gimbal for DSLRs
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Posted . Owned for 1 year when reviewed.
This reviewer received promo considerations or sweepstakes entry for writing a review.
Like all DJI products, very well made and fun product to use. At first...it's a little intimidating and though to get it set up and dialed in exactly...but once you do, very easy to use.
I watched a couple Youtube videos on basic set up and balancing...and once you figure it out once, you've learned it.
The different modes on the Stabilizer are fun to use. Great for different filming styles. You can keep the shot locked in one place, or can move the camera with the direction of the handle...etc. Many great uses.
But the product does exactly what it says it does. Battery life lasts more than a day of on-and-off usage. Comes with enough accessories and cables for any phone or external monitor.
Even if you only use this to learn from...then upgrade to larger, more expensive gimbals...this one is great to have.
I would recommend this to a friend
Pros mentioned:
Ease of use, Quality
Cons mentioned:
Weight
Rated 5 out of 5 stars
One of the best
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Posted . Owned for 1.5 years when reviewed.
This reviewer received promo considerations or sweepstakes entry for writing a review.
This gimbal is one of the best out there. DJI is consistently updating the firmware and adds new features. I was using a steadicam, but prefer this much more. It sets up quickly and is easy to use. It is a bit heavy, but with a shoulder strap it is much easier to hold for long periods of time. This is the first gimbal I have owned. I did a lot of research before purchasing this. I have used it all over the place to make my video buttery smooth. I would recommend this gimbal for heavier cameras. DJI has since made a lighter version of this gimbal that is geared towards lighter mirrorless cameras.
The only thing I didn't like about this was the price. It was very expensive.
I would recommend this to a friend
Pros mentioned:
Battery life, Quality
Cons mentioned:
Focus wheel, Weight
Rated 4 out of 5 stars
Great tool for production
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Posted . Owned for 9 months when reviewed.
This reviewer received promo considerations or sweepstakes entry for writing a review.
The Ronin S is fantastic for what it is. I’ve used it countless hours. The learning curve is a bit steep as I needed several tutorials on how to balance it.
Pros: build quality, battery life,
Cons: focus wheel not compatible with Sony cameras, heavy
I would recommend this to a friend
Pros mentioned:
Quality
Cons mentioned:
Weight
Rated 5 out of 5 stars
Amazing video stabilizer - "Go RONIN"
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Posted . Owned for 10 months when reviewed.
This reviewer received promo considerations or sweepstakes entry for writing a review.
Based of my hands on Ronin-S, it is a perfect video stabilizer for a professional mirrorless camera like the one that I use is Canon EOS-R. Not all features are compatible, but still great.
It may take some/a lot of time during the initial setup. Once it is balanced and tested using the Ronin app, it is a working horse for an average of 4 hours. (I may be not very happy about the battery life, but still testing on field)
Pros:
- Great smooth footage. Walking shots are absolutely pleasing.
- 360 rotation is perfect but may not be applicable for all.
- Sports mode, while holding down the "M" button is handy when quick maneuvers are required.
Cons:
- It is heavy for sure, after an hour in the shoot I experience wrist and back pain. (FYI) I use a wrist band and a back brace in advance which helps me.
- It doesn't have an arm lock mechanism to lock when in storage without having to return unlock all the screws. I observed that Crane had the axis locks. May be next models will make it.
- Focus ring is not functional with all cameras, in my case for EOS-R I would need an additional lens motor.
I would recommend this to a friend
Cons mentioned:
Balance, Weight
Rated 5 out of 5 stars
The Gimbal I Have Been Waiting For!!!!
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Posted .
This reviewer received promo considerations or sweepstakes entry for writing a review.
I am a professional wedding videographer. I use Canon Mark IVs and Canon L lens. The lens have image stabilization in them, but it still gives me too much shake for my liking. I have been using a Nebula 5100 Slant. This gimbal, until now, has done ok. It is a very small and light gimbal, which is great, however, it lacks pretty much any other features other than camera stabilization and no matter how "on-point" I get the balance it always giving me micro jitters with some camera movements. The Ronin S is the gimbal that I have been waiting for! Camera record, focus wheel, programable motors, timelapse, heavier payload, phone syncing, I can go on and on. This gimbal is easy to balance and I get no micro jitters if all of my balance points are close. The only downside is that this gimbal is noticeably heavier than my 5100 slant. But I will take that trade off in a heart beat. Lastly, the 5100 slant was about $200 more than this gimbal. If you are on the fence about getting this gimbal, don't be, it is a BEAST!
I would recommend this to a friend
Brand response from DJI Support
Posted .
We love it too!
Pros mentioned:
Battery life, Stabilization
Cons mentioned:
Weight
Rated 5 out of 5 stars
Best gimbal I ever bought
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This reviewer received promo considerations or sweepstakes entry for writing a review.
The best lens I ever I bought to date. The stabilization on this gimbal is great and the battery life pretty much last me for a whole day. Although it can be tiring bc of the weight.
I would recommend this to a friend
Pros mentioned:
Battery life, Quality
Cons mentioned:
Weight
Rated 5 out of 5 stars
Favorite Gimbal
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This reviewer received promo considerations or sweepstakes entry for writing a review.
Best gimbal out there. Is strong, great built quality and the battery life is phenomenal. The only thing that some people see as negative is that is a heavy piece of equipment.
I would recommend this to a friend
Pros mentioned:
Battery life, Ease of use
Cons mentioned:
Weight
Rated 4 out of 5 stars
Great quality, but kind of heavy
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Posted . Owned for 1 month when reviewed.
This reviewer received promo considerations or sweepstakes entry for writing a review.
This gimbal is great quality, the battery lasts really long. Took awhile to set it up correctly, but once you get it, it's really easy. It is kind of heavy for a whole day of use, my arm hurt after holding it, but maybe I wasn't used to it yet.
I would recommend this to a friend
Pros mentioned:
Ease of use
Cons mentioned:
Weight
Rated 5 out of 5 stars
best upgrade ever!
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Posted . Owned for 3 months when reviewed.
This reviewer received promo considerations or sweepstakes entry for writing a review.
much needed upgrade! I've done a lot of filmmaking without a gimbal for the longest time. It took about 15-20min to balance the first time. the dji app is very user friendly and easy to use. I've utilized this gimbal on the canon 70d and couldn't be happier. It makes the footage come out so smoothly. The only downside I could think of is it can get heavy at times, but over time you start to get used to it. I highly highly recommend getting this if you're wanting to step up your filmmaking game!
I would recommend this to a friend
Pros mentioned:
Ease of use, Quality
Rated 5 out of 5 stars
Great gimbal, easy to use!
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This reviewer received promo considerations or sweepstakes entry for writing a review.
It was very easy to use and setup! The gimbal feels very high quality and has a lot features to make your shots look amazing!