As I mentioned in my battery pack review, I am fortunate to rely on our field engineers and partners when it comes to predictive design validation, wall measurements and AP on a stick surveys. Having said that, I enjoy going on site a few days a month and staying close to our projects. Which leads me to yet another blog post from the “affordable series”;-)
This time I tested 3 tripods. Key factors I considered were value for money, build quality, and suitability for outdoor surveys ability to hold anything from an indoor or outdoor AP to a camera.
Tripods
Left to right/up to down:
(A) Neewer Stainless Steel Heavy Duty Light Stand 118″/300CM
(B) Phot-R 4m Heavy Duty Photo Studio 2-in-1 Combi Light Boom Stand
(C) Neewer Heavy-Duty Light Stand 13 Feet/4 Meters Spring Cushioned Aluminum Alloy Pro Tripod
The numbers don’t lie
| Tripod A | Tripod B | Tripod C | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Collapsed length | 104 cm | 112 cm | 115 cm |
| Measured max height | 283 cm | 366 cm | 393 cm |
| Weight | 2.45 kg | 2.55 kg | 5.9 kg |
| Price | £65 | £70 | £68 |
| Short summary | Very good, not tall enough for outdoor surveys | Unstable, too light, loose locking mechanism, unsuitable for holding APs | Great value for money, rock-solid, tall, heavier |
Summary
I decided for tripod (C). It is high enough for outdoor surveys, rock-solid, and very stable. I also built an adapter that allows me to easily mount any outdoor Cisco AP (Catalyst, Aironet or Meraki MR). Here is more about my outdoor Meraki MR universal tripod adapter. Stay tuned for the Aironet and Catalyst one.
The only downside is its weight. Also, watch out for packaging. The first one I ordered arrived with the bottom of the box open and the head, where you insert the 1/3″ and 3/8″ adapter, was damaged. So, it took one return to get an undamaged one.
All three tripods are supplied with 1/4″ to 3/8″ adapter.
