Best iPhone Gimbals in 2023 To Prevent Shaky Videos

Want videos that aren’t shaky? These iPhone gimbals will level up your vids.

iPhone gimbals can add stability to your iPhone photography and videography that a device without an apparatus just can’t. 

While it’s true most modern iPhones offer image stabilisation, they can only eliminate so much shakiness. A smartphone gimbal can drastically decrease camera shake and provide professional, smooth video. You don’t even have to break the bank either, so don’t completely rule out a phone stabiliser for video production.

So which gimbals should you get? The DJI and Zhiyun brands are the big contenders so we’ve obviously included them in our round-up, however, there are some lesser-known brands too that provide some amazing features for a fraction of the price.

Whether you want to improve your iPhone 11 camera quality or level up your content creation game, here are our best gimbal for iPhone recommendations to suit all budgets and needs.

Best iPhone Gimbals in 2023

DJI OM 5 Gimbal — £139.95

Best overall gimbal for iPhone

The DJI OM 5 gimbal is one of the smallest gimbals on the market, making it a great iPhone steadicam to carry around in most bags. It’s a little on the expensive side and the battery life isn’t the best (it lasts about six hours), but its footage comes out incredibly smooth, so clearly it’s doing something right.

The DJI Mimo app has tons of cool features too to get the most out of your DJI stabiliser, including tutorials to help you get the most out of your DJI OM 5. Its rubber grip is comfortable and great for handling for hours of filming, plus, its joystick is in a perfect place for panning your iPhone around. 

Its selfie feature is quite useful for wide selfie shots too. It includes an optional magnetic clamp with built-in fill lights, but it just can’t rotate to face you, so you’ll have to spin it around yourself. The fact is has a grip tripod for phone recording is very useful too for extra stability.

One really cool feature of the DJI OM 5 is you can use gesture controls of your choice to make it “ActiveTrack”, which essentially locks onto a subject or person while moving around so it doesn't miss a moment. This would also work great for artistic effects like using a fisheye lens for iPhone. It’s the best gimbal for iPhone and is even sold in the Apple store, where we can give you an extra 10% off!

What’s in the box?

• 1 x DJI OM 5 Gimbal
• 1 x Storage Pouch
• 1 x Grip Tripod
• 1 x Wrist Strap
• 1 x Power Cable
• 1 x Magnetic Phone Clamp
• 1 x Manual.

Technical specs

• Dimensions: 265 mm x 111 mm  x 92mm
• Weight: 290g
• Battery: 1,000mAh
• Energy: 7.74Wh
• Mount: 1/4" Threaded Hole
• App: DJI Mimo.

Pros

• Has a telescope selfie stick
• Very portable.

Cons

• Small battery life.

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Zhiyun Smooth 4 — £95

Best value iPhone gimbal

The Zhiyun Smooth 4 highly compares to the DJI brands and is even comparable to DSLR camera performance too. It’s the best budget gimbal for iPhones when it comes to the value you get.

The Smooth 4 is a 3-axis gimbal that pans to 300 degrees, plus tilts and rolls at both 240 degrees, giving you tons of flexibility. The ZY Play app offers tons of pro features too, like time-lapse, the ability to shoot 4K at 60fps for buttery smooth video, and various HDR filters and scene modes. All with an easy-to-use control panel.

In terms of load, the Zhiyun Smooth 4 gimbal can only handle 210g, which unfortunately excludes iPhones like the iPhone 12 Pro Max (which is one of the best iPhone camera phones out there) and Samsung S21 Ultra. It has a tripod for your phone which could offset some of the weight, but we’d recommend sticking to the load cap if you can.

While a little on the heavy side, it’s hard not to see why because of the features it holds together. It weighs 547g and stretches to 328mm in length, so you’re gonna want a big rucksack, or one that lets you strap the Zhiyun Smooth 4 to the outside of it. It contains 2,000mAh of battery, which equates to roughly 10 hours of shooting, so much more than the DJI. If you’re after an alternative to the DJI OM 5 on a budget, then this is for you. Just keep in mind that it’s not the most compatible with Androids, though.

What’s in the box?

• 1 x Zhiyun Smooth 4 Gimbal
• 1 x Type-C USB Cable
• 1 x Storage Box
• 1 x Tripod
• 1 x User Manual.

Technical specs

• Dimensions: 123mm x 105mm x 328mm
• Weight: 547g
• Battery: 2,000mAh
• Energy: Unknown.
• Mount: Unknown
• App: ZY Play.

Pros

• Smooth video playback
• Tons of features to choose from.

Cons

• Mostly optimised for iPhones, not Androids (though can be used with one).

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MOZA Mini-S — £49.99

Best cheap gimbal

One of the best cheap iPhone gimbals on the market, it’s fantastic for travel due to its size and lightweight build. It folds down to just 130mm by 195, making it fit in most carry-on bags. From a size perspective, when folded, it’s just slightly bigger than an iPhone XS Max.

The MOZA Mini-S has six gimbal modes:

1. Pan Following
2. Tilt Following
3. FPV Mode
4. All-Locked
5. Sport Gear mode
6. Inception mode.

What’s in the box?

• 1 x MOZA Mini-S stabiliser
• 1 x Tripod
• 1 x Manual.

Technical specs

• Dimensions: 116mm x 95mm x 317mm
• Weight: 498g
• Battery: 2,200 mAh
• Energy: 5V 600mAh
• Mount: Unknown
• App: MOZA Genie App.

Pros

• Best value gimbal for iPhone
• Very intuitive.

Cons

• Plastic build may feel quite cheap.

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Hohem iSteady Mobile Plus — £99

Best gimbal for iPhone 12 Pro Max

After a smaller brand gimbal at a lower price? The Hohem iSteady Mobile Plus is the best gimbal for iPhone 12 Pro Max phones and beyond. It’s yet another 3-axis iPhone stabiliser that can tilt, roll and pan smoothly. It only has a 1,800mAh battery life, which is lower than the MOZA and Zhiyun, however, it keeps it running for about 12-hours, which is tons of time for all-day vlogging.

The Hohem iSteady Mobile Plus can hold more weight than say the Zhiyun 4, hence why it’s a good gimbal choice for the iPhone 12 Pro Max in particular. It holds up to 280g, which is very accommodating indeed. The mount itself can pan a whopping 600 degrees, whereas rolling and tilting are capped at 320 degrees, which is pretty mighty for a smaller gimbal brand.

Buttons on the gimbal are well laid out and easy to use. The joystick lets you move your mounted iPhone (or other types of phones) around. It also has a zoom button and various others such as power, record, a trigger for sports mode (which is similar to the MOZA). It has the most common shooting modes too like Pan follow (PF), Pan and Tilt Follow (PTF), All Lock mode (AL), and All Follow (AF).

Despite its plastic build, the Hhoen iSteady Mobile Plus packs a punch and makes for a strong contender when it comes to picking a 3-axis stabiliser iPhone gimbal.

What’s in the box?

• 1 x Hohem iSteady Mobile Plus gimbal
• 1 x Manual.

Technical specs

• Dimensions: 50 x 100 x 200mm
• Weight: 494g
• Battery: 4,000 mAh
• Energy: 5.0 VDC
• Mount: Unknown
• App: Hohem Gimbal.

Pros

• Loads up to 280g
• Has great face-tracking capabilities

Cons

• Zoom functions aren’t the best.

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ULANZI U Rig Pro — £17.99

Best iPhone steadicam for bloggers

If you’re after video stabilisation for film-making and vlogging, then the ULANZI U Rig Pro is the perfect gimbal for your video setup. Though technically not a “gimbal”, it’s still highly recommended as a hand-held stabiliser or steadicam for your iPhone.

Not only does the ULANZI secure your phone, it allows you to hook up an LED panel and even your own tripod. This three cold-shoe mount set-up is different to the iPhone gimbals mentioned above, but if you’re after a more “manual” set-up then this might be for you. The rig is so handy, that you could even fit your iPhone clip-on lens on it too!

The hand-held nature of the ULANZI U Rig Pro allows you to use your body to control the motion and stabilisation of the iPhone gimbal rig. This may seem like a lot of work but is simply down to personal preference. The cost reflects this too, as it’s a cheaper alternative to a typical iPhone gimbal with motors.

It’s got comfortable grips for holding the rig for long periods of time too, so you won’t need to worry about any fatigue.

What’s in the box?

• 1 x U-Rig Pro Smartphone Video Rig 
• 1 x Manual.

Technical specs

• Dimensions: 305mm x 152mm x 152mm
• Weight: 184g
• Battery: None
• Energy: None
• Mount:
  • 3 x Cold Shoe
  • 3 x 1/4"-20
• App: None.

Pros

• Comfortable handheld grips
• Tripod threading for mounted videos

Cons

• Feels quite cheap due to plastic build.

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And those are the best iPhone gimbals for 2023. Shop these smartphone gimbals for less using our Amazon student discounts, plus other student tech deals to save cash on future tech buys.

What is a gimbal?

A gimbal is a type of stabiliser that’s used to add stability to photos and video. It’s a device that lets you set your camera or phone on and allows you to record while moving while removing most if not all camera shake.

What is gimbal lock?

On a 3-axis gimbal (mostly), you’ll run into something known as a gimbal lock. Gimbal lock is the loss of one degree of freedom in a three-gimbal mechanism that occurs when the axes of two of the three gimbals are parallel. This "locks" the system into a rotation, which is what causes your iPhone to turn in the way you need it to.

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