Oben AC1410 review
One of the things I really hate to drag around is a tripod, I think I speak for many of you. It’s not the using the tripod I use but the hassle to bring it with me, the extra weight etc. So most of the times I will just shoot handheld on a slightly (often much) higher ISO than I should, thinking “Oh my I should have brought my tripod”. So a while ago my search began for a very lightweight tripod that was cheap (I don’t use it a lot), sturdy (I also want to use it with my MF camera), Tall (well I’m not small) and most importantly it had to be small enough to flywith and carry with me everywhere.
Of course one could go for a carbon tripod but let’s be honest when you don’t use your tripod a lot and just use it occasionally it’s a load of money and I will never really can justify that, but all the tripods I own now I will never carry with me, enter the Oben AC-1410 4-Section Aluminum Tripod with BA-0 Ball Head. Which at $119.95 is a steal I think. (remember this is including the ballhead/quickrelease and case)
You can get the Oben from B&H, and don’t worry if you don’t live in NY they ship worldwide.
Now as you know I will only post a review from a product when I REALLY love it, and in this case it’s that kind of product. As you can see in the next image it’s delivered in a nice bag that you can attach to your bag or just carry around with you.
As mentioned before it’s a really lightweight tripod (again it’s not carbon) but with 1.4KG including the bullhead I have to say it’s light enough for me to carry around with me all the times. You can add up to 5KG to the ballhead which should be enough for most photographers on the “run”. Of course you can also use it for low angles as you can see here :
The ballhead itself is a very simple one but it works very nice, there are spirit levels on the tripod and ballhead so you can make sure everything is level and the quick release is also available from B&H, my advise is always to get a few of them because some how I always seem to misplace them and I have several devices like my videocamera, DSLR and MF camera that I like to use on different occasions and when using more quick release plates you can just leave them on.
The specs for the tripod are as follows:
| Load Capacity | 11 lb (5 kg) |
| Maximum Height | 60.4″ (153.4 cm) |
| Maximum Height w/o Column Extended | 50″ (127 cm) |
| Minimum Height | 6.5″ (16.5 cm) |
| Folded Length | 21″ (53.3 cm) |
| Weight | 3.25 lb (1.4 kg) |
As you can see it’s all very close to what I think is the perfect tripod for travel, will it stand a tornado ? don’t think so, will it be the lightest tripod around ? don’t think so, but for me this is the tripod I will be using for my travels for the near future, it’s the perfect size collapsed and it’s the perfect height for me, and the price is right.
If you’re like me searching for an occasional tripod to travel with or just a good tripod that is light without having to break your savings account I can highly recommend the Oben AC-1410 4-Section Aluminum Tripod with BA-0 Ball Head, and again B&H ships worldwide so don’t be afraid to order from them, I’ve been doing business with them for some years now and delivery is always fast and service is great.
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Great Tripod review, Frank. While I have, and use, my wonderful Manfrotto, I clearly see the overall advantages of this Oben. For example, when I put a ballhead on the Manfrotto, then the tripod doesn’t fully fit in the case. The Manfrotto clearly is better in terms of stability, but the Oben provides seems to provide that totality of: light, sturdy, size, and inexpensive that makes it a wonderful bargain. I’ll get one, thank you very much. Oh, continued thanks for all your blogs. I do look forward to them on a daily basis.
The Manfrotto (more expensive) will be more sturdy however also harder to carry on an airliner 🙂 I have two Manfrotto’s over here, for travel I just love this one however, that’s also what I mentioned in the review, and I think a lot of people will love the more lighter tripod that’s very small when collapsed and can be carried including the ballhead.
One question. Can it be used just like a monopod (with the legs together) , I have a monopod which I hardly use and a tripod (very cheap one) which always says at home and not used much.
You can use it as a monopod like every tripod.
Yes the ballhead can come off.
I bought one of these….the creep is horrible and has resulted in many blurry images. I confirmed that the tripod was the culprit when I did some long exposure macro shots with my Canon 7D and 100mm macro lens.
Not sure if I got a faulty product or not. Since I purchased used, Oben won’t fix the faulty head without me paying more than it’s worth. The odd thing is, the tripod looked brand new when purchased used…no signs of it being dropped…even the feet were un-scuffed. If you’re going to buy one of these, I’d suggest trying a long exposure macro shot as a creep test.
Check out Benro or MeFoto.
I got the MeFoto after the Oben and although I never had a problem with the Oben I did prefer the MeFoto a lot.
I now own a Benro Carbon Fiber and that for me is the tripod.