If you are a photographer or snapshot enthusiast, you probably often find yourself in situations where a tripod would come in handy. This is especially true when you wish to include yourself in a group picture. The problem is that lugging around a tripod everywhere you go can be somewhat inconvenient. What if you had a tripod that stowed easily in a gear bag and could stick to almost anything? The MonsterPod claims to do just that. Let’s see if the claims are true.
The MonsterPod is a circular shaped item that has a diameter of 5 inches and weighs in at 6 ounces. Protruding from the center of the pod is a standard tripod sized threaded post. This post is attached to a ball-joint for easy angle adjustments. The top of the MonsterPod base is covered in what appears to be nylon and mesh.
If you remove the included base cover and flip the MonsterPod over, you will find the substance that claims to allow it to stick to ‘almost anything’. The substance is a viscoelastic polymer otherwise known as PodGoo.
The PodGoo is pliable but firm and not particularly sticky or gooey.
Ok we’re almost ready to give the MonsterPod a try. But first you’ll notice the special loop sewn into the outer cover. This loop allows you to obtain leverage when you are peeling the pod off whatever you happen to stick it to.
First you connect your digital camera by screwing it on to the threaded post. You want to make sure that your camera weighs less than 20 ounces. For my testing, I used my brand new (I bought it for my CES trip) FujiFilm FinePix F30 digicam.
You can then swivel or adjust the angle of the camera by pushing it forwards, backwards or sideways. At this point you’re ready to use the MonsterPod. I took mine outside on a sunny but chilly (42 degrees F) afternoon to find some things to stick it to.
The first object that I tried was a big rock beside my garage. Using the instructions included with the MonsterPod, I pressed the base firmly on to the rock and ‘walked’ my fingers around the base to try to stick it to the uneven surface of the rock. After several seconds of this activity, I pulled gently on the camera to see if it was attached. It wasn’t. No matter what I tried, I could not get the MonsterPod to stick to the cold but dry rock. It would sit on the rock though and I had no fear that it would topple over due to the wide base.
The next object I tried was a big Poplar tree in my front yard. Again, I pressed it firmly into the creviced bark surface. This time it stuck just fine! I double checked, pressed all around the base again and then stepped back several feet to take a few pictures. You can barely see it stuck to the tree in the middle of the picture above on the Left. The picture on the Right is a close up. No sooner had I snapped a couple of pictures and started walking back to the tree, that the camera and Pod fell to ground. The camera hit the rocks around the base of the tree and suffered a dent. I decided to keep trying objects and worry about the dent when I got back into the house.
I tried to get the MonsterPod to stick to my HughesNet satellite pole. Nope, didn’t work.
I tried to get the MonsterPod to stick one of the support posts for the roof over my front porch. Nope, that didn’t work either.
Success came when I stuck it to the fender of my 1991 GMC Sonoma pickup truck. Out of all the objects that I tried, this one seemed to work the best.
I was also able to get the MonsterPod to stick to the painted wood siding on my garage. And with that, I headed back indoors to check the wound on my Fuji camera.
First of all, check out the PodGoo base after all of my testing. Yuck, tree bark and other assorted bits of gunk. According to the packaging that came with the MonsterPod, it is washable. I tried to wash off the debris but was not very successful.
Here’s my poor battle worn camera. It still works just fine, but it sucks that it is damaged now :o( To say that I’m a little grumpy and angry with the MonsterPod is an understatement. A quick visit to their website revealed something that made me even more grumpy. There is a video clip on their home page that shows a CNet reporter demoing the MonsterPod. The thing is, the PodGoo doesn’t look like the PodGoo on mine at all. The one in the video looks very much like Silly Putty. Very elastic and gooey looking. I’ve had my MonsterPod since 1/19. Maybe they updated them since then and failed to inform me, I don’t know. All I can say is that I would NOT trust the MonsterPod to stay stuck to anything but very slick surfaces such as clean painted vehicles, windows, etc. Unfortunately I had to be the guinea pig…
Product Information
| Price: | 29.95 |
| Manufacturer: | MonsterPod |
| Retailer: | MonsterPod |
| Requirements: |
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| Pros: |
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Julie, I can’t believe that thing fell off and dented your camera! Arrgghhh!
However, are you sure the goo didn’t need kneading or anything of the sort before it is applied to the bottom of the pod, or is it just not flexible at all? When I saw the CNET video, that’s the first thing that came to my mind, just knead the goo a little bit. The warmth from hands always seems to make stuff like that stickier, but I’m not sure.
Hi Julie,
I’m a long time reader and first time posting!.
I know someone who has a similar product to this and she says that hers told her to knead the goo before she tried to stick it on anything.
Keep up the great work.
-Joey
Tyler & Hollywood:
Nope and Nope. I read the instructions thoroughly before trying the MonsterPod. The color of the PodGoo in the CNET video doesn’t even match mine. Mine is Orange. In the video it is Red. It’s like the material is not even the same at all. The company saw my review and basically just wrote back “Sorry, not sure what happened”. I followed up to ask them about the differences in the product shown on their site and the one they sent me. We’ll see what they say….
While it still sounds like a fairly dubious product, I wonder if at least part of the issue is temperature.
In your pics, I see snow. Does it seem to work better indoors?
Moo,
Frank
Nope. It works the same indoors and out… The instructions on the packaging even say “Versatile: Use in hot or cold weather. The representative for the company wrote back that the model in the video is their OLDER version that could only hold 10oz. The new version (supposedly what I have) can hold 20oz. Ummmm…. yeah.
Sounds pretty weak. I have a similar item sitting in my Amazon shopping cart that I keep putting off purchasing – the Gorillapod flexible tripod, which relies on wrapping ability rather than stickiness. Perhaps it might serve you better?
I wouldn’t trust something like this to hold up my camera. Too iffy, if you ask me.
I just use a small collapsible tripod that extents up to 4 feet, folds down to about 1 ft, fits into a bum-bag or daypack easily, weights 10 oz, and holds my digital camera just fine. And it never topples over or drops my camera onto the ground. It does not do SLRs or big-ass prosumer cams, but holds 10oz cameras just fine, and of course, you can put it anywhere you want instead of hunting for a suitable surface.
You can find them on the net for around $10-20.
Oh my my, thats a Fuji F30! What have you done? 🙁
I love that camera, mine looks like yours now that it has that big ding on the side.
Take care of her, the F50 does not even come close to what that little camera does! 🙂
Oh, here’s a cool little gadget you might dig:
http://www.cyberguys.com/templates/SearchDetail.asp?productID=13047
and
http://www.cyberguys.com/templates/SearchDetail.asp?productID=11727
cheers!
I’ve seen those GorillaPods and wondered how well they work. Do you have one?
I found a really cool device online. I’m considering getting it, and it seems much better than the Monster Pod or gorilla pod. I was wondering if anyone has ever used it. It’s called The Smart Pod (http://thesmartpod.com/) . I would like to hear from anyone who has one.
Hi Julie,
I feel sorry for your camera!
I have a similar MonsterPod, with the same orange stuff.
It works fine with me on practically all surfaces. But with low temperatures (did I see snow on your pictures ?) and also with very hot temperatures, one has to be careful. It is necessary to put quite some pressure on the MonsterPod when attaching on rough surfaces (the orange stuff has to take the shape of the surface). Then try if it sticks well.
As a security measure, I have a small cable on my camera which I attach to the item on which I stick the MonsterPad: just in case…….. So far It has not been necessary, but you never know.
Many thanks!
Great review and thanks for the photos too – These are like the only pictures of the MonsterPod I could find which showed what it actually looks like! Sorry about your digital camera tho.
Cheers,
Mike