Manfrotto 196AB-2 2-Section Single Articulated Arm

I really like this thing.I work in TV sports and we always have a need to mount small cameras for various reasons. I was looking for Magic Arm (which I also bought) when I saw this. It's Manfrotto so it should be of good quality, right?. I thought at this price it was worth a try.It works really well mounting small cameras like GoPros and Marshalls (I would NOT mount my DSLR with this arm). I've even tried it with a small radar gun in baseball once.I don't know if I would recommend it in a situation where it might get hit by someone, but if it's in a sheltered location it's hard to beat,You still need a clamp for it ( I use the same Super Clamp as with a Magic Arm) but at this price, you could get about 4 of these for the price of a single magic arm. The magic arm seems like a bit of overkill to clamp a tiny camera to a fence post most times; This works very well for something of that doesn't weight much and you can afford to keep a few of them on hand. Let's face it, even as good as they are, a Magic Arm is a bit pricey if you want to have a few of them.It's actually a slightly longer than my Manfrotto Magic Arm, but I would say it weighs about 1/3 as much. The studs have female threads in them (which doesn't show in the product photos) which makes it easy to mount studs or threaded adapters. One side has 1/4 inch and the other 3/8 inch. I use it with a male to male adapters and it allows me to mount a Marshall camera or a GoPro tripod mount to the stud and save on the normal camera mount bracket. Another nice feature is that the arms can slide in middle joint, so you can effectively lengthen it or shorten it by a good amount. If you want to reduce vibration, make it as short as possible, which isn't really possible with a Magic Arm.It is a nice middle ground between those little 7 and 11 inch arms for monitors and a full size magic arm.It is made from aluminum and plastic so time will tell how rugged it is, but so far, I am very happy with it.

This is the only arm that has held up after using three other brands. Good quality when used with the superclamp. The clamp connector has a flat that locks from twisting (using superclamp set screw) allowing for greater flexibility in mounting location (others can loosen/unscrew if mounted in some positions). This is the one you want if you need it to last.

I paired this with a Manfrotto bracket (Manfrotto 143BKT) that perfectly fits the posts on the ends of each of the arms.The arms are easily adjustable using the knobs (they are plastic and seem sturdy but I would be careful with them) and the arms can be bent and/or twisted to fit almost any need.I have my camera mounted on the bracket and the articulating arm hold my LED light so the light can be thrown exactly where I want.When I'm done, I can loosen the middle joint and fold the arm in half for storage.As with other Manfrotto gear, it seems sturdy and durable!

When you fully extended the arm , it is not very sturdy especially when holding a bit more heavy stuff. It's very convenient and flexible to use but just don't overdue the weight on it or else it doesn't matter how hard you tighten the knob. It'll slowly bend over. The description says 1.5 kilogram but it doesn't say if it's fully extended and/or at what angle.

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Compared to a traditional C-stand arms and Gobo heads, this is smaller and lighter, which may be its strong point. The rods are 1/2" thin-walled metal tubing and the knuckles are 1.375" diameter plastic, but they seem strong and durable, within their limits. The pins on each end only slide out if you take the bolt out of the knuckle. Each pin has a drill hole with 1/4-20 threads on one end. The locks hold well and for 7" monitors, mics or small lights (1-2lbs) it works fine, but isn't beefy enough to hold a heavy object. Due to its small size, it's useful on a DSLR rigs or lightweight lighting. It's more secure than a magic arm, so I'd recommend it as a part of a lightweight kit, due to its usefulness, small size and lightness.

The Manfrotto 196ab-2 Single Articulated Arm is a reasonably priced piece of equipment that has made my table top photography easier. Prior to buying this I was using various DIY things to position a light weight LED light above a subject, sometimes it worked, other times... but that is the very nature of DIY. This arm resolved that problem very well and at 1/4 the cost of a Magic Arm so I'm very pleased. This tool is meant for light weight applications so if you want to mount a 600 WS mono light on it it wont work. Mafrotto also has a 3 section arm with the same construction and obviously with more reach that I may purchase in the near future. If need heavy duty they also have a double. For me that would be over kill. Anyway. highly recommended for light weight work.

A bit thin, but very strong. I like the separately controlled settings. I like this better than the one-knob control. It's way easier to build to an effective position, than to have to be precise with the entire arm before tightening. Because of its thin rods though, it can be a bit bouncy. Great if stillness isn't a key component.