Even though today is primarily about the Insta360 Flow, I also have to explain in detail why I now bitterly regret buying the DJI Osmo Mobile 6 and have found a much better alternative for my purpose. I bought the DJI gimbal for Computex last year and cursed it the day after I bought the microphone. Along with all the influencing YouTubers, none of whom managed to put together a really in-depth review. By the way, it’s easy to explain why I’m so angry.
To design or not to design? I’m looking for answers
Both gimbals are designed to be as portable as possible and are quick to set up. With just a single hinge mechanism, they’re ready to go without the need for complicated balancing. Both the Insta 360 Flow and the DJI Osmo Mobile 6 use a very similar magnetic metal clamp system. Insta 360 has obviously taken inspiration from DJI here, as both clamps work in an almost identical way. However, the Insta360 Flow has a decisive advantage: the clamp can remain on the gimbal when it is folded up. DJI, on the other hand, offers no way to stow the clamp, making it easier to lose.
Both gimbals are supplied with a small tripod. However, the DJI is a separate unit that is attached to the ground with a tripod screw. The Insta360 Flow, on the other hand, has the tripod integrated directly into the handle of the Flow – it can be pulled out when needed and stowed back into the main body when not in use. On the other hand, the Insta360 Flow tilts back and forth like a lamb’s tail and the small tripod seems clearly overwhelmed with a smartphone as large and, above all, as heavy as an iPhone 15 Max Pro.
Both the Osmo Mobile 6 and the Insta360 Flow have telescopic extension rods that can be pulled out of the upper part of the handle. They are similar in length and both offer a single pivot point to allow greater freedom of movement in the tilt axis. On paper, the Flow appears to be heavier than the Osmo Mobile 6, but in practice it is often lighter. This is because DJI lists the weight of its tripod (72g) separately, whereas the Insta360 Flow’s tripod is integrated into the main body of the gimbal and is not removable.
Most users will leave the tripod screwed on, and in this case the Flow is the lighter option, although the difference is small. A bigger difference is in the physical size. The Osmo Mobile 6 is a very small gimbal, but with the tripod legs it becomes quite long and less portable. The clever design of the Flow allows it to remain smaller than the main body of the Osmo while still retaining tripod functionality. This is because the batteries have moved out of the handle and into the swivel arm – a really clever solution.
The controls are arranged differently for each gimbal, but the functionality remains similar. With the Insta360 Flow, you can use more physical controls for functions in the app, such as media playback, but the joystick is not pressure sensitive, so you can’t pan and tilt at variable speeds. The DJI, on the other hand, allows full analog joystick control, but has less comprehensive app integration for the rest of the controls.
And now we come to the exclusion criteria for the DIJ Osmo Mobile 6
Let’s first look at the physical problems that are inherent in the design of the DIJ Osmo 6 and cannot be fixed by a future update. The collision with long smartphones with microphone plugs is due to the design of the swivel arms, which seems ill-conceived in this respect. It is also not possible to move the smartphone in the clamp, as the centre of gravity would then shift and the gimbal would quickly have stabilization problems.
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The next fundamental point of criticism is the DIJ app, which also had to be installed via a sideload on Android. The general obligation to register on the China server is just one point, the incompleteness of the app for the iPhone is another. I was unable to use any button on the gimbal to switch from the rear camera to the front camera and back again. The function simply doesn’t exist. You have to use expensive third-party apps such as Movie-Pro to switch between the cameras, at least on the smartphone display.
Another annoying thing was the failure in rooms where several DIJ users wanted to use their Osmo in a confined space at the same time. I noticed this last year, especially at Corsair in the showroom, where colleagues switched off their gimbal and mine at the same time, even though my recording was still running. A second time was in the VIP area of Gigabyte, where an influencer standing next to me was ranting like a sparrow because I had stalled him without any intention. How something like this can happen with devices that are not directly paired is unfortunately completely beyond me. Bluetooth should actually be able to separate this.
Interim conclusion
What the Insta360 Flow lacks, however, is the zoom wheel of the Osmo Mobile 6 and a joystick with pressure points. This, together with the more stable (but also bulkier) tripod, are the only arguments in favor of the DIJ Osmo Mobile 6 for me. All other categories, including intuitive operation and performance, go to the Insta360 Flow by a large margin, as we will see in a moment. Which explains the headline sufficiently and I can now turn to the new gimbal in detail. The DIJ is therefore history and disappears back onto the shelf.
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