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Manfrotto 585 Modosteady 3-in-1 Multifunction Camcorder Stabilizer
Reviewed by
Lori Grunin
on 12/10/2007
TP CL BR
TP CL BR

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$99.90

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Add to my list Product summary

The good: Clever, sturdy design.

The bad: Needs a level in the platform; doesn't sufficiently muffle vibration.

The bottom line: Manfrotto's Modosteady Three-in-One cleverly combines a tabletop tripod, a shoulder brace, and a counterbalance stabilizer for shooting video, but most of that's moot if you've got a good optical stabilizer in your camcorder.

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CNET editors' review

  • Reviewed by:
    Lori Grunin
  • Reviewed on: 12/10/2007
  • Released on: 10/18/2007

Manfrotto's Modosteady Three-in-One is an exceedingly clever--perhaps overly clever--multipurpose camcorder support. Capable of serving as a tabletop tripod, shoulder brace, or counterbalance stabilizer, in theory, the Modosteady solves a variety of in-the-field stabilization problems. In practice, it seemed to be less useful than I expected, especially for the price.

Manfrotto Modosteady Three-in-One
Manfrotto Modosteady Three-in-One
Built of sturdy-feeling hard plastic and rubber, the 15.5-ounce Modosteady can unfold from a compact 7.5 inches long by 3.5 inches wide by 4.0 inches tall, crammable into a medium-size camera bag compartment (top), to about 19.5 inches when fully extended (bottom). The four-position armature joints are held together by heavy-duty metal screws.

Manfrotto Modosteady Three-in-One
Although you can't adjust the height of the head, the Modosteady's tabletop tripod serves its purpose.

Manfrotto Modosteady Three-in-One
Although Manfrotto dubs the tripod head plate "quick release," it's really only semiquick; you've got to first unscrew a knob to unlock the plate release. Then you press the knob in and pull the plate out. The plate rotates to accommodate the different handhold types, and the platform slides left and right to better orient the camcorder to your position. However, without a level, it's difficult to tell if you're holding it, well, level.

Manfrotto Modosteady Three-in-One
Between the handle and the ball joint, which holds the platform, sits another ball mechanism with a little play that's intended to provide the head with a floating, shock absorption effect when using it in brace or counterbalance mode. However, quite a bit of vibration still seems to get transmitted to the head, albeit at a slightly different frequency than might otherwise occur.

I shot some video, using the Modosteady, in both braced and counterbalanced mode, with and without the optical image stabilizer enabled (using the Canon HV20) at 10x zoom, to see how much of a difference it makes. As far as I can tell, not much.

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Manfrotto 585 Modosteady 3-in-1 Multifunction Camcorder Stabilizer: $99.90
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B&H Photo-Video
$99.90 Yes 5.0 star rating
Amazon.com
$99.90 Yes 5.0 star rating
J&R Music and Computer World
$99.90 Yes 5.0 star rating
Amazon.com Marketplace
$99.90 Yes 5.0 star rating

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Compare prices for Manfrotto 585 Modosteady 3-in-1 Multifunction Camcorder Stabilizer

Price: $99.90
B&H Photo-Video $99.90
Amazon.com $99.90
J&R Music and Computer World $99.90
Amazon.com Marketplace $99.90
Compare prices from 4 stores
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Manfrotto 585 Modosteady 3-in-1 Multifunction Camcorder Stabilizer

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