The VIJIM LS24 Desk Boom Arm is a solid hollow aluminium alloy three section adjustable multi angle boom arm.
Perfect for mounting a camera, phone or microphone (not exceeding 1.5kgs) on to use for top-down product shots, unboxing videos, effective voice overs, moveable desk mounted cameras, podcast microphones or extra lighting when needed. As you can see the uses are bound only by your innovation.
The boom arm is built with a careful spring balance system, enabling it to be intuitively positioned and hold its place. Most parts are alloy (the arms, brackets, and base), while the adjust dials and cable clips are hard plastic.
The arm is held to a table, desk, or shelf, by a screw tightening clamp. The clamp opens to a maximum width of 50mm and is secured to the desk by a screw that tightens the grip of the clamp. Both internal sides of the clamp are covered in a soft gripping material which will help the clamp to hold but minimise any potential damage to your surface.
Each of the three arm sections are different lengths. The first section (1) (from the base) is 305mm long, if measured from the height of the desk it is attached to, all the way up to the centre of the adjustment dial. The second arm section (2) reaches 370mm from the centre of the lower adjustment dial to the centre of the upper adjustment dial. The final arm (3), between the adjustable angle dials is 320mm in length.
Arm section 1 comes in two parts. The lower part of section 1 is attached to the clamp. Then 248mm from the desk is a join, which the short upper part of section 1 attaches to, this holds the first adjustment dial. The purpose for this join is to allow the entire arm to rotate 360 degrees to suit the user’s needs. Once in position, a screw, positioned at the top of the lower part, can be used to tighten the rest of the arm. The two parts are held together by a bolt that extends from the top part and inserts into a hole in the lower part.
The lower adjustment dial (between section 1 and 2) is spring loaded to a vertical position. It can be pushed into any degree of setting over a 180-degree range (but not the advertised 215-degrees). Once the desired angle is obtained, one simply tightens the large inbuilt screw dial.
The upper adjustment dial (between section 2 and 3) also has a 180-degree range (also not the advertised 215-degrees). This can also be secured by tightening the large inbuilt screw dial. Both inbuilt screw dials are 50mm in diameter. While the arm sections are 24mm wide and are square.
On the top of the VIJIM LS24 Desk Boom Arm, positioned on the end of the third arm section, is a smaller (38mm) inbuilt screw dial which controls the angle of the camera/light/microphone attachment mount. The attachment arm is 70mm from the centre of the small adjustment dial to the base of the mounting screw. It can rotate a full 240 degrees, in line with the axis of the arm’s position.
The attachment itself is quite simple, sporting a ¼ 20” mounting screw, which sits in a 360-degree screw rotating bracket, which can be locked off. It is worth noting the first limitation of the Boom arm is that the mounting screw can only be positioned in relation to the direction the arm is pointing.
So, you can move a camera or light, any of the 360 degrees, but only according to one axis. If you mount a camera from its base plate, underneath the camera, to do a top-down shot, and the arm is on the side of your desk, you can only shoot your subject, on your desk, in a portrait orientation. It would be such an asset to this product if it were able to be positioned 360-degrees on both the horizontal and vertical axis’.
Another slight frustration I experienced is when the boom arm is asked to hold a camera between 1-1.5kg in weight, I found it difficult to tightly secure the camera. Once the camera is screwed nearly all the way into positioned, and lined up with the best angle desired, the 360-degree screw rotating bracket is then tightened up. This is to secure the camera in place, but I found it often failed to hold the weight of the camera at the desired angle.
The VIJIM LS24 Desk Boom Arm is equipped with some very helpful accessories that make mounting easier. In the box you will find a phone mount that has a mount on the bottom and on the back. This enables you to position your phone on any angle for a top-down shot, alleviating the issue I mentioned previously, which you would experience if mounting a camera. The phone clamp is spring loaded and able to hold an iPhone 13 Pro Max easily. It has a cold shoe on top, so you can also mount a light or microphone to accompany any filming you’d like to do on your phone.
Also accompanying the set-up is a:
· ¼ 20” female convertor screw to a 3/8 male screw thread.
· ¼ 20” female convertor screw to a 5/8 male screw thread (good for microphones).
· GoPro mounting adapter and thread.
Finishing off this clever little unit you’ll find three clip brackets on the back of each of the VIJIM LS24 Desk Boom Arm sections which hold in place any cables used by accessories such as microphones, that you are mounting. When using the clips this way, you should note that there are not accompanying grooves on the back of the adjustment dials to accommodate them. This may be a good addition for future models.
A further improvement would have been to be able to have a join on section 2 and section 3, like we find in the base section 1. This would give the user full creative power when choosing which direction, the boom arm can be step up in.
It would also be helpful if the boom arm could easily be folded up, into a small and neat arrangement, so as not to dominate desk space when not in use. Due to the spring loaded arms and the length of each section, you can fold it up somewhat, but not entirely.
In my opinion the arm is built for devices that weight less than 1KG. The Boom Arm itself says it can hold a maximum of 1.5kg, which, I would say, lies beyond its maximum weight bearing capacity. I tried a 1.8kg setup (Nikon Z9 + Nikon 50mm S Prime) and the arm had no chance of holding it while extended. This is something important to keep in mind when you’re contemplating what needs of yours this product can meet.
The VIJIM LS24 Desk Boom Arm looks classy and sleek with a modern design, feels sturdy and well made, secures well to a desk of your choosing, and moves very little once locked off. At $69.95 this product, found here, (https://www.ulanzi.com/products/vijim-ls24-desk-boom-arm?aff=361) will likely solve several problems you may experience while not breaking the budget.
Thank you Ulanzi for sending the VIJIM LS24 Desk Boom Arm to me for review.