On Amazon, you can spend $12,000 on a tripod. You can also spend as little as $20 on a tripod. In this case, you're spending just a bit over $100 and you're getting an excellent all-around tripod. It may not be the most high tech and top of the line product out there, but for the serious photographer or videographer, this is an outstanding solution.I love how tall it can be. I took a photo of myself next to it. I am 175 cm tall. If you put it in the monopod mode, you can make it even taller. It's quite flexible.the main downside of it is that the directions are quite lacking. I took a photo of all the relevant pages. On the other hand, the operation is fairly intuitive so with a bit of fiddling, you should be able to figure out how to make it work. Everything is quite smooth. You don't have a jerky feel to it. Everything seems well-lubricated.I hope the photos are helpful at giving you an idea of what you get. I also like that it comes with a carrying case with a nice handle strap and shoulder strap that is optional. Overall, it's an outstanding value. I recommend it. I have been videoing all over the place. This will be a welcome addition to my arsenal.