The Hähnel Inspire Live View Remote Control is a D-SLR gadget that’s designed to wirelessly transmit a LiveView image of whatever you’re shooting to an independent 3.5in colour screen. Useful for the times when you’re working at a distance from your camera, the Hähnel Inspire Live View Remote Control features a 60m working range, gives you the option of firing the shutter remotely and utilizes a 2.4GHz radio frequency to communicate between the hand-held screen transmitter and the bulky hotshoe receiver.
Setting up the kit is relatively straightforward and once the receiver is attached to the hotshoe the relevant leads need to be plugged in. To transmit the LiveView feed on your D-SLR to the handheld screen you’ll first need to dig out the AV cable that came with your camera as one isn’t supplied. With the AV cable plugged into the phono video socket on the side of the receiver and into the AV socket in the camera, the supplied remote cable can then be attached to your camera’s remote port. Turning the camera’s LiveView on instantly displays the LiveView feed on the handheld screen and the grey button can be depressed halfway to focus and fully depressed to fire the shutter. Testing the range of our Canon-fit unit revealed that it worked consistently up to its 60m limit and if your D-SLR doesn’t feature LiveView, chances are it’s still compatible. At the face of the receiver unit, Hähnel has fitted a miniscule CMOS camera that transmits an image to the screen. The view doesn’t alter as you zoom and doesn’t show your AF point selection like it does when you’re using it with a LiveView feed, but it will give you a rough idea of what’s composed in the frame. Although both units are made from plastic, they feel durable and long lasting. We’d have liked to see a higher resolution LCD in the handheld unit, but on the whole it’s well built and did everything asked of it on test. If wildlife photography is your thing and you’d like to start taking shots without running the risk of disturbing your subject, it’s a remote control that’s definitely worth a look and is respectably priced at £189.
AT A GLANCEPrice: £189
Frequency: 2.4GHz
For use with: Nikon/Canon
Screen Size: 3.5in LCD
Screen Resolution: 320x240
Transmitter
batteries: 4xAAs
Receiver batteries: 4xAAs
Requires: Camera AV cable
www.hahnel.ie