KraftGeek Variety Tripod review: the ultimate support for vloggers?

The KraftGeek Variety Tripod is a combined selfie stick and tripod designed to hold small cameras or phones, and one of its main selling points is the large number of cold shoes that can be independently rotated to hold all manner of accessories. It will be welcomed by vloggers and other video presenters who need to add lighting and better quality sound recording to their setup.

It also reaches taller than most competing products, at 62.5 inches (a little over five feet), and its two-section legs extend for a wider, and thus more stable, shooting base. All this makes it a real contender as one of the best selfie sticks, mini tripods, and iPhone tripods and smartphone supports available.

KraftGeek Variety Tripod: Specifications

KraftGeek Variety Tripod: Price

The Variety Tripod has a list price of $60 / £45 / AU$86 and is available on Amazon, as well as KraftGeek's website. However, at the time of writing, it was being sold at a discounted price, so keep an eye out for offers. The standalone kit has a ball head for cameras and a universal mount for phones, but it is often bundled with KraftGeek's Flexy Mount, which can hold tablets and other wide devices, too.

It's not the cheapest option on the market, costing a little more than the same company's JustTap Magnetic Phone Tripod, which stretches taller but is strictly for phones – and only ones with a MagSafe connection at that. So, does the Variety Tripod's added versatility make it worth the extra? Let's plough on.

KraftGeek Variety Tripod: Design & Handling

The KraftGeek Variety Tripod measures 12.3 inches when fully stowed and extends simply by pulling the extending column until it reaches the desired height, up to a maximum of 62.5 inches. It's fairly stiff to ensure that it can manage loads of up to 2kg. It can be used as a selfie stick or a tripod, thanks to two-stage pull-out stabilizing legs that form a broad base.

A ball head offers 360 degrees of panning and 110 degrees of tilt for phones and action cams, and a pair of rotating cold shoes at either side allow the attachment of mics, lights, and so on. It comes with a universal phone cradle that flips easily from landscape to portrait orientation and is equipped with a further cold shoe. There's also a Bluetooth controller that connects magnetically to a recess on the main column.

KraftGeek Variety Tripod: Performance

Extending to a decent 62.5ins (158cm), it's designed with shooting to-camera presentations in mind. However, it remains over a foot long when folded for stowage, which is the unavoidable downside of having such a tall maximum reach. As such, it's not going to slip into a spare pocket, but is perfectly carryable if you have a suitable bag.

The ball head rotates smoothly through 360 degrees, while 110 degrees of tilt enable versatile shooting angles. A thumb-operated wheel locking mechanism allows a variety of cameras to be easily attached via a standard 1/4’’-20 tripod mount socket, up to a load capacity of 2kg (4.4 lbs). It's suitable for action cams, compacts, and lightweight mirrorless or DSLR cameras, although I wouldn't go much bigger than a Nikon Z50 II or D3500 and kit lens (or equivalent combos). The ball head is flanked by two cold shoes that rotate through a full 360 degrees, enabling accessories to be positioned as you like and further adding to the Variety Tripod's vlogger-friendly credentials.

For phone shooters, a universal cradle is supplied that screws onto the top of the ball head. This all-metal cradle has a neat design that enables it to flip from horizontal to vertical shooting orientations (or at a jaunty 45º angle, should you wish) and makes it ideal for shooting both B-roll and phone-viewable-friendly video. There's a further cold shoe on the phone mount, should the other two not be enough. You can substitute this cradle with KraftGeek's Flexy Mount for tablets, which is available as an extra or in a bundle with the base kit.

It converts from a selfie stick to a monopod by pressing a button on the bottom that unlocks the three legs to form a 20cm (7.9in) radius base. That's fine for table-top use, but when the center column is fully extended, each leg can be pulled out to create a wider (and more stable) 28cm (11in) radius base.

A Bluetooth remote attaches magnetically to one of the tripod legs. The rechargable device is good for 20,000 shutter activations before it runs out of juice, which can be topped up via USB-C. It's a doddle to connect to any modern smartphone, though it should be noted that this only works with phones, not cameras.

KraftGeek Variety Tripod: Verdict

Aimed squarely at influencers, its 62.5-inch extended height should be tall enough for most to-camera video applications, and it can be used with a wide variety of cameras and phones, plus all manner of accessories, thanks to multiple cold shoes. Attaching mics and lights in this way helps add a professional air to your video productions.

When used as a tripod, its two-stage fold-out legs provide a reasonably solid base, but the center column is a little spindly for my liking, and I'd feel nervous trusting it with anything more than a compact camera. But it does its job admirably as a phone tripod and selfie stick, and I think its main appeal will be to smartphone shooters.

At over a foot long when packed away, it's not the most portable option if you like to tuck things into a pocket, but it's unavoidable in a product that both stretches so tall and provides a decent level ot stability.

Alternatives

KraftGeek JustTap Magnetic Phone Tripod: at digitalcameraworld.com

If you shoot primarily with an iPhone, the KraftGeek JustTap comes with MagSafe for instant attachment, transforms from a selfie stick to a tripod with a tap, and extends even higher, up to a whopping 66 inches.

Benro Tabletop Flex: at digitalcameraworld.com

The Benro Tabletop Flex is a versatile mini-tripod, with both solid and flexible legs enabling it to extend to relatively lofty heights. Its 3kg load rating is generous, too, though it works less well as a selfie stick.