It’s an ok tripod. My only issue is that the legs do give me issues in staying in its place. If not securely tightened at the grooves to extend it will collapse

The Ulanzi mini tripod is excellent and as my expectations. Multi-function for both digital cameras and iPhone. Most impressive is the compactness and lightweight for traveling with a senior like me.

As a blogger and one that goes coast to coast a lot, a tripod that is easy to carry and having multiple functions is a must.Got this because it is relatively compact, can mount my camera and also has a holder for my phone built in. The phone holder itself is good for an iPhone but not really the pro max size - really tight.When extending the legs, it locks with a slight twist but really doesn't lock in well.One extra feature is taking the centre pole off and using it as a selfie stick. The camera mount is pretty heavy and with an 6.5"+ phone on the end, expect discomfort on long use. I would definitely not recommend it fully extended for that reason and the fact that the thin tube can bend from all the weight.Overall, it's not the best but not the worst.

So the thicker tripod with orange is a competitive brand. I have been on the hunt for a perfect tripod. We are planning on going to Italy for 3 weeks and I specifically wanted something that is collapsible, lightweight, fits into my camera backpack (inside of it), but also sturdy enough to handle my very expensive Nikon. I believe this will be perfect. Size wise it fits excellent into any bag, we also have a small collapsible hiking backpack and this will comfortably fit for our 8+ hour hike. It is also very sturdy for how thin it is. Do I think it is the sturdiest tripod ever, no. Do I trust it completely, no. Is it good enough? Absolutely, I have no doubt that if you tighten it extensively, and make sure it is sturdy before putting on your camera you will be good to go. I plan on putting this up for 5+ hours to film the twilight session of my destination wedding, so I believe it is good enough for that. I wanted to post the comparison shots because I always have to buy two to determine the best, and this was the best option for a long trip.

My first impression on this is very positive. I was considering larger and more expensive carbon fiber tripods but decided to roll the dice on this one given it's supreme compactness, and the fact that I have had good experiences with several other Ulanzi products. I wanted something for travel and interior real estate photography and this looked to check all of my boxes.First, it's very lightweight. The closest carbon fiber alternative I could find was only about 1/4 pound lighter, but it was larger when folded, and yet didn't extend as tall as the Ulanzi, and it cost significantly more. I figure the small difference in weight shouldn't be a deal breaker.The legs and center post are all twist-lock design. The legs have a very reassuring positive click when locking and unlocking, and deploy and retract smoothly. No issues there. The locks on the center post aren't as solid, though. If I'm not careful when moving the stand I accidentally end up twisting the center post and a couple of the sections have come very close to unlocking and dropping. The same unwanted rotation has happened when I was just changing settings on the camera, which meant I had to re-shoot some bracketed shots. Annoying. Also, if you have the center post extended all the way up the to smallest section you can definitely experience some flex, making the camera sway back and forth a little bit, especially in portrait position. I have to use a wireless shutter release or a timer, and make sure that the camera isn't moving. The whole point of using a tripod is for stability at lower shutter speeds, etc., so it's disappointing to have to worry about camera sway. My typical setup is about 2 lbs so heavier cameras will probably have it even worse.In the tallest configuration the footprint on the legs is very small. Frankly it looks alarmingly narrow, but it's proven perfectly stable indoors or on solid/level surfaces. At the same time the tiny footprint was one of the draws for me in the first place. If I need to tuck this rig into a corner in a small room for interior photography I know it will do it. The next width setting on the legs jumps to a very wide stance, but one that would be very stable outdoors. You lose a lot of height you may need at that setting, though. I think they did a decent job of picking the available stance options but they may be hit or miss in some situations.The ball head is nice. It's smooth and the locking knobs are all-metal and good quality, with the pull-to-free-rotate feature to make sure they never have to get in the way. The head locks solid in any position with my rig on it. My only nitpick is that there's only one bubble level on the mount, and it's for the standard landscape configuration. If you roll the head over into the portrait orientation there's no bubble for you. Not a big deal since all modern cameras all have a built in digital line level on screen, but the rest of the tripod is so well thought out that somehow that omission caught me by surprise.I could totally live without the phone mount. I never plan on using it and it gets in the way when trying to adjust the camera into certain positions, or when you're folding the legs back up. I think I can remove it with a tiny Allen key. It probably won't be long before it annoys me enough to try.I appreciate that they included a larger Allen key to tighten up the hardware on the legs and head if they start to loosen. I haven't tried removing the center post and I'm not sure if I ever will since I have no need or desire for a glorified selfie stick or questionable monopod. I could see it possibly coming in handy in case I wanted to flip it so I could drop the camera between the legs for very low angle shots, but even that's unlikely.Bottom line, I really like this tripod overall, but the sketchy center post keeps be from giving it 5 stars. Otherwise I am shocked at how compact, light, and full-featured it is at its price point. As long as it holds up to reasonable wear and tear it will be one of the best values in travel tripods ever, in my opinion.