LastweekatSXSW,IusedmyDJIOsmoPocket3asmyonlycameratocapturefestivalhighlights,exploreAustin'shottestfoodspots,andfilminterviewsandproductdemos. So,howwelldidtheDJIOsmoPocket3perform,anddidweendupregrettingleavingtheSonya7iiiandtherestofourusualgearbehind?WatchthefullYouTubevideotoseethecamerainactionanditsimpressiveresults.

TheDJIOsmoPocket3isanall-in-onecamerawithabuilt-ingimbalthatshootssupersmoothvideoeffortlessly.Itreceivedsignificantupgradesthisyear,includingalarger1-inchsensorthatimproveslow-lightimagequalityanddepthoffield,anda2-inchflip-outscreenthatmakesframingshotsandchangingsettingsabreeze.

ForyearsIhaveusedafull-sizeSonya7siii,aDJIRoningimbal,andzoomlensesliketheSigma24-70asmymainvideokit.Buthonestly,after8+yearsinthisbusiness,mybackisscreaming.Justthethoughtofluggingitaroundduringafewdaysoffestivalswasenoughtomakemebreakoutinasweat.

NotonlydoestheOsmoPocket3weighlessthanmysinglelens,itisalsomucheasiertopack:unlikemyshootingkit,whichtendstotakeupmorethanhalfofmyPGYTechOneMo2camerabag(oneofthebestoptionsforvideographers),theOsmoPocket3andallaccessoriesfitneatlyintoonecompartment.Onthistrip,itreallyhelpedtohavelessluggage.

ThemainreasonIgottheOsmoPocket3isthatIdon'tneedadedicatedgimbaltocapturesmoothfootage;evenacompactgimballiketheDJIRS3Proisinconvenienttocarryaroundandtimeconsumingtosetup;withthePocket3,anall-in-onecameramucheasierandfaster,withequallysmoothresults.

Thisallowedmetofocusonwhatwashappeninginthemoment.Thereisnoneedtousebothhandstomovethecamera,justpointinthegeneraldirectionofwhatyouwanttorecord. Justlikeacellphone,theideawiththeOsmoPocketisthatitisalwaysinyourpocket.Asyouhaveprobablyheardathousandtimes,thebestcameraistheoneyouhavewithyou.WhereaswithmyregularcameraIsometimesquestionedwhetheritwasworthcarryingaroundallday,thePocket3isalwayswithme,readytocapturewhateverIfindinteresting.IthasallowedmetocapturemomentsthatIwouldnormallygooutofmywaytobringotherequipmentwithmetocapture.

Ifyouwanttoupyouraudiogameevenmore,theOsmoPocket3allowsyoutoeasilypairuptotwoDJIMic2sviaBluetooth.OncepairedwiththePocket,youcaneasilymonitorandadjustbothaudiolevelsdirectlyfromthemainscreen.

Itriedthissetupinseveralinterviews.Evenwithouttheoptionallapelconnectedandrelyingonthemicrophone'sinternalaudio,thesoundqualityprovedtobetop-notch.Ialsodidnothavetoworryaboutdisconnectsorinterferenceduringtheinterview,asIcouldsetittoautomaticallyrecord32-bitfloataudiointernallyassoonasIturnediton.

Iamnotabigfanofthepocketcover.Theyaremeanttoprotectthegimbalandfrontscreen,buttheyarenotalwaysquicktoputonandusuallydonotevensecurethecamerasothatitdoesnotfaceoutward.Attheendofthetrip,Ifoundmyselfrepeatedlydiscardingitforaspeedierstart/stopprocess,althoughItriedtotreatthepocketdelicatelywhileitwasinmypocket.

OneofOsmo'stricksistheabilitytoquicklyswitchto"vertical"3Krecording.However,unliketheDJIMini3and4Pro,whicharecomparabletodrones,thelensitselfdoesnotphysicallyrotate.Infact,itjustdigitallycropsthesidestocreatea9x16video.Thismodeisusefulbecauseyoucanquicklymakesureeverythingyouneedisinthecenterframe,butifyoudon'tmindtheextrastepsinediting,shootingwithafullsensorreadoutgivesyouthemostflexibilitylater.

Comingfromamorerobustcamerasetup,Iquicklynoticedthelackoftheabilitytoswaplensesorusethezoomlenstochangeperspectives;thewidefieldofviewoftheOsmoPocket3wasnotenoughtocaptureeverythingIsawontheAustinfoodtourandconcert.Itwasgreat,butIstruggledtorecordsubjectsupcloseorfaraway.

TheOsmo3,whichisroughlyequivalenttoafull-frame20mmf/5.4,hasamoreflatteringdepthoffieldthantheiPhone15Pro's24mmf/6.3equivalentandpunchesaboveitsclass,especiallyinlowlightconditions.Butasyoucanimagine,ImissedthezoomrangeoftheSigma24-70mmlens.ThePocket3hasa2xdigitalcropoption,butitwasn'tasconvenientasmyiPhone's3-lenssetup.Asaresult,IfrequentlypreferredtheiPhone,whichallowsmetoquicklyswitchfocallengths.

AftertestingtheOsmoPocket3foraweekstraight,Ifoundittobeanincredibletravelcamera.CapturingmyexperiencesandbeingabletotakeitwithmewhereverIgo,thiscamerametmyneeds,andyoucanseehowIusedthiscameraatSXSWinthisYouTubevideo.

IplantousetheOsmoPocket3asmymainvideocameraonothertrips,butIwillprobablystillbringthea7siiiandsomesortofzoomlensforadditionalflexibilityandrangewhenneeded.IfDJIevermakesitpossibletoattachazoomlenstothiscamerainthefuture,thatwouldbeadifferentstory.