I probably own too many tripods, but I'm consistently on the hunt for the 'ideal' tripod.I started out with the Peak Design tripod -- although, I opted for the alumnium version. I'm pretty heavily invested in Peak Design hardware and have a lot of their mounts so finding something that is compatible with a Peak Design mount is a requirement. The Peak Design is great from a compactness standpoint, and the rotating ball head and control is great. However, I wasn't willing to pay the $$$ for the carbon fiber, and one of the biggest critiques of the Peak Design approach is that there's no pan mode.Next, I picked up a Ulanzi Zero Y -- this one is carbon fiber, offers a pan capability, has a similar profile to the Peak Design, so it's super portable. It does work with the peak design mount, but it only locks the plate in place on one axis, so if you aren't careful, the camera could theoretically slip out or come loose in the mount along the non-secured axis. There are lots of ways to compensate for this, but when you have a nice camera and lens on the tripod, it's something you should not have to worry about. The mount on this is also not a quick release so it relies on the screw for tension. On the plus side, it offers many of the same capabilities as the Peak Design tripod along with mount points for accessories, AND, you can pan with it.So, why buy the Neewer? Well, for one, the price is exceptional. Neewer comes in cheaper than both Ulanzi and Peak Design by a long margin. The quality of build is great - the clips on the leg are made of metal (far better than the plastic clips that break over time with usage). The Neewer comes with a quick mount that works really well with the Peak Design mount, albeit, with some limitations. The quick release is super secure and motion is restricted in all directions. The one downside is that the mount will not necessarily work with other arca style mounts that can have a wider footprint. This is not an issue for me, but just something to call out. The ballhead stem is also slightly different than the other manufacturers. Neewer's stem is round -- the advantage of that is you can actually pan the camera by just loosening the stem lock (although the stem can't be extended when doing this). It was a nice 'feature' to discover.Other than that, the Neewer checks all the boxes -- the carbon fiber material reduces the weight, it has the quick mount, it has the quick positioning ball head, has accessory mount points and much more!
