Which Carbon Fiber Monopod Suits You Better? We Review the YC Onion PINETA Pro and SmallRig 5565

Monopods used to be just assistive tools for heavy camera setups. Now they can stand on their own. These two monopods take it further by being extra efficient, but which one is better for you?

Carbon fiber monopods have recently emerged as a reliable support option for various fast-paced shooters for both stills and video. Though not entirely new, having a tripod base now allows monopods to function similarly to tripods without taking up so much space. However, they can't be left unattended, as they still have more propensity to fall over than a tripod. On top of this, these newer carbon fiber monopods have been made with a single lock that controls all leg sections with one control mechanism, making using and adjusting them much faster and more efficient. The YC Onion Pineta Pro and the Smallrig 5565 carbon fiber monopods offer that efficiency in two different ways.

Size, Weight, and Payload

The YC Onion PINETA Pro has a minimum height of 79 cm with all sections compressed and the base set to the lower configuration. When fully extended, it reaches up to 149 cm from the base all the way to the top platform. With the FH60S fluid head, it reaches a total of 175 cm, excluding the height of the camera. It weighs 1.78 kg and can hold 10 kg of camera gear; however, the fluid head is only rated at 5 kg.

On the other hand, the SmallRig 5565 Carbon Fiber Video Monopod comes in at 76 cm at minimum working height and goes all the way to 175 cm without any head installed. With the packaged fluid head, it goes a bit higher. With the wider height range, it also comes in heavier at 2.5 kg but can carry up to 15 kg of gear. The fluid head, however, is also rated at 5 kg, which means that with their corresponding fluid head options, the payload is pretty much the same.

Tripod Base

The most crucial part of both of these monopods is the tripod base, which gives the monopod the ability to stand on its own, provided that the ground is stable and no wind would cause it to shake. This tripod base folds up like the legs of common travel tripods and has two height stages that give the entire setup an extra inch of height. When the legs are folded up, the bottom surface is a rubber foot that can be used when using the monopod as a single leg.

On the YC Onion PINETA Pro, the rubber foot can be removed and connected to a screw thread at the end of the main monopod shaft, which allows it to be used without the tripod base, resulting in a lighter and less bulky distal end. On the SmallRig 5565, the foot can't be removed, and using it with a single leg means having the tripod base folded up around the leg.

Both monopods have a pedal that unlocks the leveling joint, which allows the user to level the camera easily, especially if using a fluid head that doesn't have that option. On the PINETA Pro, there's a sliding switch around the end of the leg that controls the friction and the range of motion of this leveling base, while on the SmallRig 5565, the distal end of the leg is like a twist lock that controls the same movement.

Modular Use

Another shared feature of these two monopods is the ability to remove the main leg column and switch to a low-profile tripod. Right below the head are buttons that remove the top platform where the head is connected, and right above the tripod base is another release button that removes the base. Once this is done, the end of the top platform (and the tripod head) can connect seamlessly to the tripod base, which forms a low-profile tripod.

The main difference between these two options is that the YC Onion PINETA Pro has a top platform that can be easily removed from the head so that it can be replaced with other tripod heads if preferred. On the SmallRig 5565, the head and the top platform are fused together. However, an alternate top platform is included in the carrying case, which uses the same standard 3/8" thread to mount any tripod head of choice.

Accessory Mounting

Near the top end of the main shaft is a pair of 1/4" threads accompanied by locking pins on both sides. This allows for additional accessories like a friction arm, external batteries, external monitors, and other tools to be mounted onto the monopod. Since the payload does have more allowance on top of what the ball head can hold, these ports can be used to hold more things, but it is important to pay attention to how the added weight can affect the balance of the entire setup.

Control

The biggest difference between these two monopods is how the locks of the leg joints are controlled. Both options have a single control mechanism for all of the joints of the legs; however, the way they are used differs greatly.

The SmallRig 5565 monopod has a red button that releases the main lever that controls the locks. This lever is lifted up in order to unlock all of the leg sections so that the monopod can be lengthened or shortened easily. Considering the weight of the tripod base, the monopod easily lengthens when the lock is released by gravity, which makes it considerably ergonomic. One notable thing about this lever is that it might feel counter-intuitive that one would have to lift the lever even when pushing the monopod down to shorten. This can also feel considerably smaller compared to how the PINETA Pro works.

The YC Onion PINETA Pro, on the other hand, has a leg release mechanism that resembles the handle brakes of a motorcycle. Once pressed onto the leg, the locks are released and the monopod can be lengthened or shortened in a similar way. It comes with a lock button on the side to prevent accidentally pressing the handle, which is a good precaution but perhaps not as foolproof as that on the SmallRig 5565.

What I Liked About the YC Onion Pineta Pro

• Faster height adjustment with the single locking lever
• Straightforward head replacement
• Thicker carbon fiber rods

What I Liked About the SmallRig 5565

• Foolproof lever lock less likely to result in human error
• Lower minimum working height
• Higher maximum height
• Heavier overall payload