I tested DJI’s RS 5 gimbal, and it’s the biggest leap since the original Ronin-S

It been a long time since January 2018, when the Ronin-S launched, and since then, single-handed gimbal stabilisers have come a long way. Whilst each new iteration of the Ronin has brought new features and increased usability, at its heart, there has been very little change or evolution. To be honest, I only retired my Ronin-S in August last year as the RS 3 Pro had eventually worn in.

The RS 5 is, of course, the latest iteration. Whilst initially, on the surface at least, it looks similar to the RS4/RS4 Pro, there are actually some useful new features that will definitely appeal to long-term users of DJI gimbals, as well as those who have in the past rejected them because of issues that can arise when balancing. It can be seen as more of an art than a step-by-step process.

This new model, then, the DJI RS 5 is a lightweight commercial single-handed gimbal stabiliser designed to enable you to get more flexible and fluid shots where other filming equipment is just difficult to handle, use, or set up.

The RS 5, like previous iterations, can also be incorporated into larger rigs, so if you are mounting this to a crane or other filming rig, there are modules and extras that will enable you to do that. It’s obviously part of the DJI ecosystem, so it will work with their video transmission gear and focus motors, as well as have tight integration with many camera systems.

This model brings with it a few new features, foremost of which is the enhanced intelligent tracking module. This module has a magnetic clip that attaches to the vertical axis. Once in place, a live view of the scene is captured by the camera and displayed on the touch screen. Here, you’re able to select a subject to follow with your finger, and the gimbal handles the rest, no more trying to track someone with the small joystick. What’s more, the RS 5 features higher torque motors that make it far more forgiving to sudden movements than previous versions.

The RS 5 also marks a time where the use of the DSLR is essentially over, and DJI is marketing this directly at mirrorless camera users. Just as a side note, it still works with DSLR, and I tried it with some old Canon EOS 5D’s and Nikon D750’s, and it worked fine. Whatever camera you decide to use in combination with the DJI RS 5, it’s good to have a payload of up to 3kg. This means you can weigh your mirrorless camera down with monitors and other equipment to give you a fully blown filming rig. The only thing you’ll need to be able to do is have the strength to lift it off the ground once set up.

Essentially, as I went through the review, and I’ve had the gimbal for a couple of weeks, it’s worth stating that if you have the RS4 Mini, then the RS5 is essentially the beefed-up version. Most of the features are very similar, such as the autolock and the tracking module. This particular gimbal is just able to handle heavier cameras and offers far more torque, speed, and agility when it comes to faster-moving subjects. It’s also a great option if you do have the Mini and you’re looking for a natural progression to a larger and more professional system.

I have, over the past eight years, tested every iteration of the Ronin, and most of those reviews can be seen here on CameraJabber. I don’t think there’s one that has slipped through the net. I’ve put a link to most of them below so that they can check them out. Aside from the early Ronin-S and the two Minis, most of the iterations of the RS have launched an RS or RS Pro model, the Pro featuring a carbon fibre arm rather than metal and features on the RS 3 Pro that I use on a regular basis.

While the Pro also has a few other features, historically, I’ve never actually been as keen on the carbon fibre material, mainly because it takes quite considerable amounts of use before it eases up, and makes micro adjustments easy – my RS 3 Pro has been bedded in for a few years and I love it, but checking the original review I noted the comments on the axis movement sticking slightly, obviously now a thing of the past.

With the launch of the RS 5, there doesn’t appear to be a Pro model. If I’m wrong, I’ll update. However, most people that I know have often gone for the standard version due to the ease of use over the Pro version with the carbon arms. Picking up the RS 5, it once again feels solid, but what I love from the outset are those fine-tune knobs that make adjustments so easy. This model is a complete step up when it comes to ease of use, and it’s far more precise.

Going back to the out-of-the-box experience and through the setup, you follow the usual process of unlocking and locking the axis to balance, starting with screwing the micro tripod into the battery grip base. Even here with the micro tripod, DJI has fine-tuned the design. The mini tripod normally requires you to fold out each leg individually. It’s not a huge hassle, but it can be a little bit annoying when you’re trying to put the camera down. Here, you just pull out one leg, and the other two legs follow suit.

Into the battery grip once again goes the main gimbal body, and onto this, if you have the combo kit, you can add the briefcase arm, which has a connector that enables you to use the joystick, trigger, and a few other options on that secondary grip rather than directly on the battery grip itself.

The gimbal head once again features auto-locks, and the construction is extremely rugged. If you buy the focus motor or SDR video transmission system, then it’s all fully equipped, as with the RS4/RS4 Pro, to fit those modules directly onto the unit. On the vertical arm, as per normal, you have the 2 USB Type-C ports, to wire everything in place. On the vertical axis, as we saw on the RS4 Mini, is the intelligent tracking module, and this uses a magnetic clip just to hold it in place, which is very quick and easy to remove and replace when needed.

Once fully assembled, it weighs in at 1.46 kg, and that’s with the grip plates all set and ready. If you want to, then add the briefcase handle, which adds a little bit more, and obviously, whatever the weight of your camera as well adds an extra level of weight.

In this test, with the Sony A7 Mark IV with 24–70mm f/2.8, and having attached the briefcase handle, the whole thing came in at 3.42 kg, so not too substantial a weight, but still enough to make your arms ache after 30 minutes of use.

Whilst I haven’t yet upgraded to a range of cine lenses, which I will do at some point in the near future, for the most part, I utilise standard Sony GM fixed focal lengths. As these lenses are all different in size and weight, those large adjustment knobs are of a definite benefit when it comes to micro adjustments, even when switching between the 14mm and 85mm, where the weight difference is substantial, the ratchet adjuster on the camera base plate does the job.

However, what I did note when changing between two lenses of differing weight, and, for that matter, length, was that the RS 5 was far more capable at the rebalancing due to the torque of the motors. A quick tap of the recalibration once a new lens was mounted before starting to use the gimbal generally did the job without a full rebalance.

What I will say is this is a lightweight to mid-level gimbal, so whilst you can load it up to 3 kg of kit, when you consider that the Sony A7 IV with 24–70mm f/2.8 mounted weighs just over 1.5 kg, and with the added weight of an Atomos Ninja V, battery, cables, DJI Mic 3, and matte box, you’re getting close to the weight limit. However, given all of that, the RS 5 just simply took it in its stride.

Checking through the features, and there’s a lot going on. Primarily, one of the big differences I noted was the touchscreen-based tracking, which just makes using the DJI RS 5 that much easier than previous RS models. For example, if you have someone in front of you and you want to track them, all you need to do with the tracking module attached is select them on the screen. Then essentially, the gimbal handles the rest for you. It couldn’t be easier. Likewise, what it can track is quite spectacular. It’ll recognise pets, vehicles, and I noticed even a book or two, which is impressive.

Going into the other new features of the RS 5 over the RS 4, we have the fine-tuning knobs to enable precise balancing on all the axes. If you own an RS 4 and were asked to name one thing that annoys you about it, it’s probably the balancing. Likewise, really for any previous RS model, however, that balancing is just easier here with the RS 5. It takes no time to balance it because you have that easy balance through those knobs.

One of the other points here is that the battery and fast charging have been vastly improved. The new fast-charging ability reduces the full charge time by up to 60%, so whereas the RS 4 took 2½ hours for a full charge, the RS 5 takes just over an hour.

One of the other features that really stood out to me was the virtual fourth axis, which is available on the gimbal screen. This indicates the up–down jitter of the Z-axis. Whilst this doesn’t correct it automatically, what it does do is give you a visual guide, so if you are a little prone to bobbing when you’re walking, then you can keep an eye on it here and adjust your walk to compensate.

For our review, I’ve taken a look at the combo version of the RS 5, and in the semi-hard case, along with the gimbal itself, comes an electronic briefcase handle. On this, you have full control of the function with the joystick, trigger, record button and camera parameter adjustment. It’s all really neatly laid out and does make it easy to control the gimbal when you’re actually moving about.

The torque of the motor has also been increased, so although the payload limit is 3 kg, you can really notice that. Where, sometimes with previous models, you’d get a little bit of whip if you’re moving the gimbal too fast, now the gimbal can, for the most part, handle it due to the boost in strength and is better able to handle those faster movements.

At present, I am using a beta app, so it’s not fully developed. However, I was able to test out the SDR transmission alongside the gimbal, and again, this worked absolutely superbly. If you are looking to use this in a professional setup or you’re just making movies, then this is just a brilliant addition. When partnered with the RS 5, you have an extremely powerful and relatively inexpensive filming rig.

Alongside the SDR transmission, there’s also the ability to mount the Focus motors, with the usual focus wheel on the battery grip. I also tried to mount the LiDAR Sensor, but I couldn’t really get that to work, and I’m checking with DJI to see if that compatibility will be available with the RS 5. I will point out that my LiDAR sensor is the older version, so it might just not yet be compatible. As I say, I’ll bring you an update as soon as I hear.

I’ve been a massive fan of single-handed gimbal stabilisers since I first came across the Ronin-S back in 2018. After seeing just how easy it was to use and the difference it made to my productions, I instantly went out and bought one. Since then, I’ve gone through a good range trying to find the perfect option, and for the last couple of years, the RS 3 Pro has been my go-to choice and has been exceptionally reliable.

However, there are several things on the RS3 Pro that bug me. Whilst it’s had plenty of use and looks like it, the carbon arm occassionally still irritates me, the adjustment of the balance will sometime be a little tight, for no reason and that might be if they’re not totally clean, it’s rain, cold or too hot, it’s never a major issue and is just something I’m used to. Here, however, with the full metal build of the RS 5, it’s just smooth on the adjustments from the outset and all through the test, even in the freezing cold.

Through the setup, there’s still some assembly, and you still have to attach the mini tripod to the base, but even that, as I’ve mentioned in the build section, has been improved. Attach the main gimbal head to the battery grip, and then the usual mounting plates to the camera and all is assembled and ready to be balanced.

The balancing process has been enhanced. Essentially, put the camera so the lens points upwards, balance; lay the camera horizontally, balance; then unlock the roll, balance; and finally angle the whole system at 45° forward and do the final horizontal axis before powering on and tapping the auto-calibration.

Ordinarily, sliding the position of the axis backwards and forwards until the camera is perfectly balanced can be a little bit tedious. However, here, with the new adjustment knobs, it’s extremely easy to find the point that you need when you’re making those critical first balancing steps. Switching between the first, second, and then back to first just to fine-tune this process with that fine adjustment is just so much easier.

Then, once the camera is balanced, a quick tap of the calibration button and everything works perfectly well. Through this test, I’ve been using a Sony A7 IV with the Sony GM fixed focal length lenses. Unfortunately, they are all different sizes, weights, and lengths, which does mean a little bit of rebalancing, however…

The torque with the RS5 is a step up from the RS 4 and even more so from the RS 3 Pro that I’m used to, so it’s able to compensate a lot better. What I actually ended up doing was balancing it for one of the middle-weight and length lenses, and then there was just enough latitude either way to quickly mount a smaller or larger lens, tap auto calibration, and for the most part, the gimbal was able to compensate, something which is really handy.

Obviously, as soon as the movement started to pick up a bit, a proper balancing was needed, but again, those micro adjustments made through those three knobs on the axes just made the whole process that much easier.

One of my colleagues always worries about the gimbal battery life, which is why we always have two or three in backup. To be honest, the battery life of all the gimbals has always been more than good enough for a full day’s use, and I tend to put them on charge whilst having lunch. Sure enough, here with the RS 5, it lasted for a good two hours of solid use when we used the gimbal for handheld shots. Then, as per usual, it, along with other kits, was plugged into a Bluetti power station for a top-up charge, not that it needed it, and when I came back to check, the RS 5 was once again fully charged, ready to go again.

So for my colleague, any worries about battery life were quickly dispelled. Through a simple one-day shoot, it showed that it’s more than capable of holding up.

Throughout that shoot, I had a Sony A7 IV with the 24–70mm f/2.8 mounted, as mentioned before, but we also swapped between this lighter-weight mirrorless and a Canon EOS R5C with Sirui anamorphic lenses. Even with the substantial additional weight of the R5 C camera/lens combo, along with a monitor, the Ronin was capable of holding and controlling that weight.

I did make sure that, as I swapped between lenses for the anamorphic, I rebalanced to ensure the best possible quality. As visual processing goes for the anamorphic, any imbalance really does become amplified.

Through the test, I focused on using the RS 5 combo kit as it is, but with anything DJI, you have to think of the larger ecosystem, and DJI are very keen on highlighting just how good the SDR video transmission kit is.

As part of the review, there’s plenty of information about the compatibility with existing DJI accessories, so I was keen to utilise this to see if it really worked as well as has been highlighted.

Connecting the SDR video transmission with the RS 5 after a quick firmware update, everything connected smoothly, enabling me to mount the monitor off the gimbal head, lightening the overall load on the gimbal mechanism.

As the accessories are attached, it becomes more obvious what a complete solution this all starts to be, especially if you’re working in a small production team, where you can have several receivers, so multiple people can view what you’re filming, which is handy for production.

One point here is that I did try to get the old LiDAR sensor to work with the manual focus lenses. Whilst, when set up, I could use the focus motor, which I’d calibrated with the manual focus Sirui anamorphic,and the intelligent tracking camera was working smoothly, I couldn’t get the LiDar working. My thought is that it would have been good if the small tracking camera had a LiDar as well, so more of an all-in-one intelligent unit.

Overall, using and watching back the footage, there are several things that really stood out. First on the setup process was just how easy it was to do the micro-adjustments. Next was the power of the motors, which feel substantially more robust and just help to really stabilise the footage even when you’re moving at any speed.

But what really stood out to me, and I was surprised by this, was the little level gauge on the small screen. This essentially just highlights when you’re bobbing up and down and helps you correct your walk so you get far smoother walking, cutting out the bob. It’s a small visual guide rather than any huge technological addition, but it does make a real difference.

I’m impressed that something so small can make such a technical difference to how the footage looks.
Once again, the Ronin single-handed gimbal stabiliser doesn’t fail to impress. Whilst it might not look as flashy as previous iterations, Pro versions with the carbon fibre finish, it’s certainly the most functional all-round.

The DJI RS 5 has come a long way since the launch of the Ronin-S back in 2018. Whilst we’ve had incremental enhancements with each iteration, for me, the biggest improvement was when the Ronin 4 Mini arrived last year. The addition of the intelligent tracking module made a huge difference when you’re using it with smaller mirrorless cameras, it’s just exceptionally good and quick at keeping up with the subject.

Now, to have that same feature on the RS 5 model means that this is a far greater filmmaking accessory than any previous iteration, and for me, it marks the biggest improvement to the technology since the original Ronin-S launched all that time ago.

I also like the fact that they seem to have stripped back all the fancy bits, and even the logo looks a bit more utilitarian than the fancy logo of the previous iterations of the RS model. It’s just: this is a single-handed gimbal stabiliser, and it’s going to stabilise your footage exceptionally well.

Alongside the gimbal, you’ve also got the huge DJI ecosystem, and with this superb SDR video transmission kit and the briefcase handle that comes in the combo kit, there’s very little here not to like.

One of the only flaws is that it’s still relatively heavy. So if you are looking to do a full-day shoot, you’re going to have to do a good workout in order to carry one of these around for a substantial amount of time. But then, there are, of course, additions that will help you take some of that load off, such as an Easyrig.

With the DJI RS 5, if you run a small production company or you film with your mirrorless camera for professional-level productions, then the RS 5 is just a great option. However, if you’re more of an enthusiast or in education, then I’d probably stay with the superb RS 4 Mini, as it has much the same functionality, just on a smaller and lighter scale.

Overall, however, the RS 5 is absolutely superb. With that tracking and greater torque on the motors, it should suit most people who are looking for a way to easily stabilise their footage. And if you couple this with an Easyrig, then you have an exceptional, lightweight and professional form of video stabilisation for almost any level of production.