Zhiyun Smooth 5S AI review: follow your every move

The Zhiyun Smooth 5S AI is a 3-axis gimbal (or stabilizer) that enables you to produce cinematic camera moves with your smartphone such as tilts, pans, and cranes (from low to high angles) as well as gliding sideways tracking shots and forward/backward dolly moves. It’s an updated version of the Zhiyun Smooth 5S that we reviewed back in 2022 - the main change being the addition of an AI sensor that enables the tripod-mounted gimbal to tilt and pan so that the attached smartphone follows your every move. AI sensors are becoming very prevalent in gimbals these days, especially with smartphone gimbals such as the Hohem iSteady M6 gimbal.

Established in 2015, Zhiyun has a well-established reputation for designing a series of gimbals, from the smartphone-compatible Smooth series to the high-end Zhiyun Crane series for full-frame camera stabilization.

Zhiyun Smooth 5S AI: Specifications

Zhiyun Smooth 5S AI: Design & Handling

Since April 2022 I’ve tested 16 gimbals for Digital Camera World including the Zhiyun Smooth 5S AI. Like all gimbals the Zhiyun Smooth 5S AI ships with attachable tripod legs that enable you to rest the gimbal on the ground and use the joystick to perform smooth pants and tilts. When you fold the legs this increases the length of the gimbal so you can perform low-angle tracking shots close to the ground and then crane up to a high angle in the same clip.

The key difference between the Smooth 5S AI and the previous Smooth 5S that we reviewed in 2022 is the addition of a magnetic AI sensor. This small sensor attaches to the top or bottom of the spring mount that holds your smartphone. The sensor can recognize a range of hand gestures that cause the gimbal to track your movement (even if you aren’t filming using the ZY Cami app).  If you do use the app you can get the sensor to follow additional hand gesture commands such as triggering the app to start/stop recording.

The gimbal is constructed in a black glossy plastic, which blends nicely with my black and grey iPhone 15 Pro Max. The handle is wrapped in textured silicon which means you can keep a firm grip on the gimbal when you’re making complex moves with it. The control panel at the rear has a translucent panel that gives an intriguing glimpse into the gimbal’s electronic interior. The control panel features a Mode button that toggles the gimbal between modes such as PF (Pan Follow), L (Lock), F (Follow) POV (Point Of View), and V (Vortex). A thin icon panel illuminates the currently selected mode’s initials, though these are too small to see on a sunny day. More on shooting modes in the Performance section.

There’s a chunky and tactile wheel on the left side of the handle. When operating the gimbal through the ZY Cami app you can use the wheel to perform a digital zoom between a wide 0.5x and a 6x close-up. You can use the control panel’s red record button to trigger the ZY Cami app to start/stop recording.

The Zhiyun Smooth 5S AI is relatively compact compared to others on the market. When I first attached my iPhone 15 Pro Max to the spring-mounted universe clamp the phone looked very off-balance due to the shortness of the arm. However, you can slide the roll-axis arm to balance any smartphone and the gimbal handled my iPhone with ease. Unlike high-end gimbals where you have to adjust the pan, tilt, and roll axes to balance the camera, you only need to balance the roll axis on the Smooth 5S AI. This means you can get the stabilizer up and running very quickly.

Zhiyun Smooth 5S AI: Performance

To test the Zhiyun Smooth 5S AI I took it up to the windswept craggy rocks of the Derbyshire Peak District. I also brought my wife along so that I could have someone to track with the gimbal. Despite the very rocky and hilly terrain I was able to test the stabilizer’s various shooting modes and produce smooth gliding footage as I followed my wife’s ascent up the hill. The most useful mode was PF - Pan Follow. This kept the horizon tilt-free at all times. The gimbal would keep the phone pointing forward so that you could perform a low-angle dolly shot close to the ground or crane the phone above head height for a dramatic reveal of the distant countryside.

Check out my supporting video to see the various modes in action. The Smooth 5S AI had no trouble maneuvering my chunky iPhone 15 Pro Max and as you’ll see from my footage there was no vibration or shaking caused by an unbalanced payload.

As well as producing the usual pans, tilts, and rolls (which you get when in POV mode) I wanted to test the new AI sensor, which clips to a magnetic mount above the smartphone. After popping the gimbal on the ground using its mini tripod legs I fired up the iPhone’s native Camera app to keep my gimbal footage looking consistent with other clips shot via that app.

You don’t need to use the ZY Cami app to enjoy most of the AI-sensors features. By making an OK gesture to the AI sensor I was able to get the gimbal to pan to follow me as I jumped from rock to rock or tilt to keep me in the shot when I crouched down low. A palm gesture stopped the gimbal from tracking, so I could walk out of the shot when I’d finished talking (and cut to myself in a new location).  If you do use the ZY Cami app to film you can also make a ‘Yay’ gesture (two fingers in the air) to start and stop the recording.

By and large, the AI sensor did a great job of keeping me in the shot. It only got confused a couple of times when I was standing in front of a very bright sky, but on the whole, there were no major problems with its tracking abilities.

I also enjoyed popping the gimbal on its mini tripod and using the physical joystick on the handle to pan to follow my wife’s movements as she explored the top of the cliff. The joystick enables you to perform smooth pans and tilts at varying speeds. There’s also a button on the control panel that activates the LED fill light on the front of the gimbal’s tilt arm. You can dial in various levels of brightness to help your subject stand out, though as it was a sunny day and I was a couple of meters away from the gimbal I didn’t use this LED feature.

Zhiyun Smooth 5S AI: Verdict

Thanks to the AI sensor you can treat the Zhiyun Smooth 5S AI as a skilled camera operator who can follow your every move. This is a very attractive feature for solo vloggers or documentary presenters who want to add some movement to their ‘talking to camera’ sequences without needing another person to film them.  The various shooting modes enabled me to perform a wide range of smooth professional camera moves (despite moving over rugged terrain). The Zhiyun Smooth 5S AI doesn’t ship with a carry case but as it's nice and compact I was able to pop it into my 25L Gomatic McKinnon Camera Backpack along with the mics, tripods, and other accessories.

✅ Buy it...

• You are a solo smartphone camera operator
• You want a quick and easy balancing experience
• Want to perform pro camera moves

🚫 Don't buy it...

• If you need to plug a mic receiver into a smartphone

Alternatives

Hohem iSteady M6
Costing around the same price as the Zhiyun Smooth 5S AI, the iSteady also uses a magnetic AI tracker to make the tripod-mounted gimbal follow your every move. It also uses an app to perform extra operations such as starting. and stopping the recording. As a bonus, it comes with a carry case (which the Smooth 5S AI doesn’t).

Feiyu Scorp 2
If you’re on a budget but need to maneuver a mirrorless camera (rather than a smartphone)  then the Feiyu Scorp 2  will do the job. I used it to carry a Sony A7 MkIII plus lens which weighed in at just under 1.5 Kg. Like the Zhiyun Smooth 5s AI, the Feiyu Scorp 2 also boasts an AI sensor that can tilt and pan your mirrorless camera to follow your every move.