ULANZI U-80L Metal Ball Head Camera Mount Arca Swiss 360 Rotating with Quick Release Plate & Cold Shoe, 22lbs/10kg Load for 1/4" Tripod, Monopod, DSLR

I have a SmallRig mini tripod but it didn’t come with a ball head and my spare ball heads fit larger threads. I saw this ULANZI head with a 1/4" thread, and it seemed to be just the right size for my needs. I have a Lumix S5ii within a SmallRig cage. So, it already has an Arca mounting. . The ULANZI is light, well-built and holds my camera with a 70-300mm lens perfectly rigid, with no slippage at the ball whatsoever, even if I apply force to the lens. The tripod flexes first. It is a pretty small item. I particularly like that the clamp screw is flat and not a round, knurled knob. I can get a really good purchase on it to tighten the ball. The ball sounds rough as it moves with a loosened clamp but this probably assists with the 10Kg load capability, increasing the friction. I don’t find the noise to be an issue. Note, there is no panning feature with this mount. You’d have to loosen the clamp to rotate the camera on a full-size tripod. It is not an issue at all for a table-top tripod setup, or maybe a monopod with a small camera, since it is quite small. . The cold shoe mounting is stiff and can be rotated to suit whatever you are fitting there without tools (Allen keys included), such as a light, though it is close to the bottom of the camera. Therefore, it may result in ideal adjustment issues for anything large. I don’t tend to use cold shoe mounts, and if I did, I’d use one of the cage’s shoe mounts. . $25 with a 5% discount coupon is a reasonable price and I can confidently recommend it for table-top applications. For anything else, I’d certainly recommend a much larger diameter ball head with panning. This one just feels tiny.

Bought 3 of these for a specialty camera rig and they work great. Solid build with metal parts and easy to adjust.

I've been happy with ULANZI products in general. The ULANZI U-80L is no exception. I needed a small ball head for a mini tripod to hold a Fuji XT-5. This head fit the bill. Since I use Arca-Swiss mounting plates on almost every camera, the head's Arca clamp was a plus-plus for me. The ball moves smoothly when released and locks solidly. The locking arm can be repositioned by pushing in which is very useful for locking/unlocking the ball if the head is mounted in a tight situation. For the price, I can recommend the ULANZI U-80L.

This ULANZI U-80L Metal Ball Head Camera Mount fits in well with other gear. It feels like it is solidly supporting my gear and allowing me to push the boundary of what can be achieved. Kudos to Ulanzi.

The good news: I like the arca plate that comes with this ballhead. It has anti-off pins and feels very secure when in place. The anti-off pins do make it a little annoying to get on and off, but it’s worth the trade off. The knurling on the knob offers a good grip. I also appreciate that this head has a cold shoe mounted to the side. The cold shoe turns to position as needed, which is great, and this ballhead comes with all the necessary hex keys to tighten all the parts on it, including yhe cold shoe, so if you don’t want it to move, you can tighten it. It is easily able to hold my Canon R5 with a 24-105 f/4 lens. The bad news: This ballhead is loud. It makes a grating, metal-on-metal sound whenever it is moved. It’s enough to be irritating, but not enough to be a deal breaker. I included a video so you can hear the noise. In the video I am moving the ballhead in an obviously exaggerated way. You’ll probably never move it like that, but if you watch the video, I’m sure you’ll get the point: it’s an annoying sound.

It is perfect for my monopod. I like the feature of allowing me to add other equipment to the cold shoe.

Well made, very sturdy, lot of adjustment, and love the quick detach.

I actually use this to hold my MX Brio. I find this very useful as I place it as tightly as possible between my 4k monitors at eye height to maintain eye contact when vlogging/reading on my monitor. I really hate nostril or forehead cams. The Ulanzi ball head allows me to remove the camera when I am not using it to prevent overlapping in front of the monitors while watching a video or whatever. I also have a very nice Fox microphone on the same mini tripod using an extension bar bracket. This allows me to keep the mic just behind the monitors preventing weird focused sounds from the curved 4k monitors. The camera is on an extension to get it above the mic and the Ulanzi on top to adjust to perfection without extra bulk. If necessary I can add a small video light (or second small mic) on the convenient cold shoe if I don't want to use studio lighting. Now if someone would make a Brio quality cam vertically oriented for a reasonable price I would be ecstatic. But the Ulanzi is perfect for my application and the quality is excellent! See also Triple Cold Shoe Mount, Gimbal Microphone Light Extension Bar Bracket Aluminium Alloy with 1/4in and 3/8in Screw Holes for DJI OM 3/2, for Zhiyun Smooth 4, for Feiyu Gimbal Stabilizer(Black) HeiyRC Mini Vlog Tripod for DJI Pocket 3 OM 4 5 Osmo Mobile 2 3, for GoPro Max Hero, for Insta360 X3 X4 X2, ZHIYUN Smooth Hohem Feiyu Stabilizer DSLR Camera Desktop Tabletop Stand Grip Accessories