RadioPopper Nano flash trigger will have “most powerful radio on the market”

A video has been published demonstrating the features of RadioPopper’s upcoming “ultimate basic trigger”.

The RadioPopper Nano, first unveiled in April, will be a manual-only radio remote, sitting below the JrX Studio in the manufacturer’s product lineup, which offers the added benefit of manual power control.

In the video — by Kevin Focht of The Creative Orange, a photography education site — a spokesman from RadioPopper introduces the gadget, which will cost “well under $100 [USD] for a unit”. It is the first trigger from the US-based manufacturer with a hotshoe on the receiver, making it possible to connect a speedlight without cables or adapters. There is also a 3.5mm sync port for studio lights or to connect multiple flashes at the same time.

The Nano will have an obscenely long 500-metre operating range, several times that of generic rivals — which usually offer 100 metres or less — and on par with PocketWizards. The motivation behind this is supposedly to have “the best range” and “the highest reliability” with “the most powerful radio on the market”.

“If you’re in a situation where 90% of your range is killed by the environment, that 100-foot [cheaper brand] trigger is now going to be down to like 10-15 feet,” says Matt from RadioPopper. “We want to make sure in any situation you get the shot.”

The device itself is said to be “bulletproof”, with capacitive buttons rather than mechanical ones to reduce the risk of failure. But it isn’t mentioned whether you will be able to use these buttons in the rain or with gloves on — a common bugbear of capacitive screens on smartphones.

The Nano will switch itself off automatically after a period of inactivity, though we aren’t told how long this will be or whether the feature can be disabled. The channel LEDs will double up as battery level indicators and each of the four channels is compatible with those on the JrX series.

Whether the “well under $100” figure means “per receiver” or “per kit” is not made clear. On the company web site the more advanced JrX system is promoted as being priced “from $89”, which isn’t strictly true since a transmitter and receiver together cost just under $170.

According to the video, which was published on 30th May, the RadioPopper Nano will be released “really soon” but the company were not prepared to publish a date yet. There will be a 916MHz version for the North American market and, hopefully, an 866MHz CE model after that. Visit radiopopper.com for further information.

Source: Kevin Focht/The Creative Orange, via Flash Havoc

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