Finding a quality and compact PTZ camera can be a challenge. Fortunately, we know an excellent option, which we will discuss in this OBSBOT Tail Air Streaming Camera Review.
The product is mainly for live-streaming applications. You can enjoy 4K videos up to 30fps for a budget-friendly amount. Moreover, you can also take advantage of its manual exposure controls, advanced AI features, support for NDI-based workflows, and more.
But is this camera any good? To know more about it, continue reading this OBSBOT Tail Air Streaming Camera Review. We will share everything you need to know about it to determine if this product is worth considering.
OBSBOT Tail Air Streaming Camera Packaging
The camera arrived in time for our OBSBOT Tail Air Streaming Camera Review, and we were excited to unbox it. It ships in a sturdy, durable box featuring all the essential information needed to know more about the product.
The camera is well-protected since OBSBOT ensured extra protection inside the box. Other than the Tail Air, it ships with various accessories, including the following:
- Hard Carrying Case
- Adapter (USB-C to A)
- USB-C cable
- Splitter (USB-C to Dual USB-C)
- USB-C (male) to Ethernet and Type-C (female) adapter
OBSBOT Tail Air Streaming Camera Review – Design and Functionality
While studying the product and writing our OBSBOT Tail Air Streaming Camera Review, we took note of its design. The company went full blast designing this product, giving it a metal body with a matte finish.
The Tail Air webcam has a premium and robust quality, setting it apart from most webcams available. Weighing a mere 12 ounces, it features a lightweight construction. Its upper section houses a foldable sensor for easy transportation in your backpack or designated case.
Despite its minimalist design, the Tail Air surprises you with ports, including the following:
- SD card slot
- Micro-HDMI port
- 3.5mm audio connector
- Universal USB-C port
Depending on your specific needs, you can use the USB-C port for charging the webcam. Or, you can establish connections with your router/PC.
While working on this OBSBOT Tail Air Streaming Camera Review, we noticed a magnetic interface for the 360° charging dock. It couples with a 1/4-inch 20-screw thread that seamlessly interfaces with a wide range of tripods.
Positioned just above the USB-C connectors is the power button. Additionally, the camera features discreet indicator lights for its battery percentage. It also has an LED bar for changing colours to signal errors or shifts in camera modes.
Key Features of the OBSBOT Tail Air Streaming Camera
Immersive 4K Resolution Shooting
The product shoots videos in 4K at 30fps and 1090p at 60fps to provide more resolution than HD videos. You can have more detailed footage and optimised editing or live-streaming possibilities.
Starlight Amidst the Darkness
Its larger 2μm px size and enhanced camera components allow the Tail Air to acquire more light. The feature also allows the product to capture more vibrant frames, produce reduced noise videos, and reveal finer details. Additionally, detailed images can be presented even in dimmer environments.
Fab. Speedy. Focused
Using the TOF or Time of Flight technology allows Tail Air to calculate the TOF accurately. It can also accurately measure the distance between your target and the camera.
This feature optimises focus efficiency in low-light and bright shooting by removing the beams of infrared lights.
Your Furry Companion into the Spotlight
OBSBOT successfully enhanced the pet tracking function in the Tail Air. The improvements implemented by the company make the feature more accurate and intelligent. As a result, you can conveniently capture videos of your cat, dog, horse, or any beloved companion.
Always-on Cameraman
The Tail Air can follow the subject smoothly when you activate Human Tracking. It will eliminate the need to adjust the gimbal, allowing hands-free operation. Moreover, it will seamlessly keep the subject in frame, so you can focus on capturing impressive videos.
Manage via Multi-View
The OBSBOT AI algorithm automatically divides the captured video into various grids with AI Director Grids. These include Preset Positions preview and AI Auto Framing grid.
Gesture Control 2.0
Gesture Control 2.0 allows effortless management of the Tail Air. It simplifies video shooting, and its new dynamic gestures make zoom adjustments more seamless and precise.
Multiple Interfaces to Improve Productivity
The Tail Air has several integrated interfaces for abundant compatibility. It allows video signal output directly to a screen or integrates into your live stream workflow.
NDI Connection Arrived
NDI is one of the latest video technologies that combines low-latency and high-quality video, audio, metadata, and controls. You can enjoy all these in one stream with Tail Air since it is compatible with NDI through wireless and Ethernet connectivity. This technology offers unlimited potential for creating efficient live streams for single and multi-camera setups.
Accessories to Enhance Your Experience
You can purchase extra accessories to enhance your experience further with this product. We will share these with you in this OBSBOT Tail Air Streaming Camera Review.
The 360° Rotation base allows you to capture stunning shots in different scenarios. Plus, it prolongs the battery life of the Tail Air for over seven hours.
The remote controller is another must-have accessory for separate purchases. It eliminates the need for the smartphone app, making it handy for efficient streaming workflow.
Specifications
- Size & Weight: 69.65 x 73.25 x 132.5mm (Working State) | 69.65*73.25*135.5mm (Off-State)
- Weight: 344.5g
- Image Sensor: 1/1.8” CMOS
- Macro Pixel Size: 2.0 x 2.0μm
- Effective Pixels: 8.4 million
- Effective Pixel Resolution: 3856 x 2176
- Lens System: 8 Optical Lenses
- ISO range: 100-6400
- Focus: Auto/Manual
- Aperture: ƒ/1.8
- Equivalent Focal Length: 23mm
- White Balance: 2000K-10000K
- Gyroscope: Six-axis
- Photo resolution: 1080P and 4K
- Video Resolution: 1080@60/50/48/30/25/24 fps and 4K@30/25/24 fps,
- Maximum Video Storage Bit Rate: 80Mbps for H624, 80Mbps for H265
- Video Format: H264, H265, MJPEG
Hands-on with the OBSBOT Tail Air Streaming Camera
Our OBSBOT Tail Air Streaming Camera Review will discuss how the smartphone app works and how well the product performs.
The OBSBOT Start smartphone app allows you to access more settings to control the Tail Air. It is a well-made mobile app with a stable and user-friendly interface.
The app allows you to monitor the live image feed, play clips, and save videos to your phone gallery. You can manually adjust camera settings, control the gimbal with the virtual joystick, or switch AI tracking & framing on/off. Aside from that, it has manual and automatic exposure modes and tunable parameters, including EV, ISO, and white balance.
The remote controller is another must-have accessory for separate purchases. It eliminates the need for the smartphone app, making it handy for efficient streaming workflow.
We used this camera for most meetings and video calls in the past week. Overall, we were amazed by how it performed.
Even if it mainly functions as a live-streaming product, it can work as a classic, standalone camera when necessary. It shot excellent 4K UHD videos at 30fps and 1080p at 60fps via the H.264/H.265 codecs. The product also stores these into a micro SD card with a maximum capacity of 512GB.
Aside from HDR support, the Tail Air has 4x digital zoom. It does not ruin the image quality when zooming in and works best with adequate lighting. Under low-light conditions, image noise becomes slightly noticeable.
The AI capabilities of Tail Air impressed us since it made our content creation more exciting. These allowed us to record more captivating dynamic content, especially in hands-on video scenarios like dancing, cooking, or travelling.
The Tail Air proficiently tracks hand movements, maintains stability during fast movements, focuses on objects, and captures long-range shots. Auto Tracking helps us create videos that appear better and more engaging.
Gesture Control 2.0 made the Tail Air more interesting. It allowed us to remotely control the gimbal, activate Auto Tracking, start/stop recording, and zoom in/out. The front LED indicator changed colours, and the camera emitted a particular sound.
Gesture Control 2.0 worked excellently and was handy for streaming and recording videos. The Tail Air was also responsive, and we did not have issues with this feature.
OBSBOT Tail Air Streaming Camera Review Summary
The Tail Air is a versatile streaming camera that excellently maximises the benefits of AI technology. It offers numerous handy features like gesture recognition and auto tracking, which help create impressive video content. Plus, its battery life is sufficient for all-day recording and live streaming.
Although the camera already has multiple features, OBSBOT offers accessories like the remote control and 360° Rotation base. These help improve your workflow and experience in creating content. Plus, these will help make your outputs more dynamic and engaging.
We had a pleasant experience using the product for this OBSBOT Tail Air Streaming Camera Review. It is user-friendly, has excellent video quality, and all functions work well. The streaming camera is highly responsive, and we did not deal with problems when we used Gesture Control 2.0.
The Tail Air is a superior streaming camera for people who often capture videos that involve plenty of movement. It is also an excellent option for newbies in live streaming since it is a user-friendly camera.
Learn more about the Tail Air Streaming Camera when visiting the official product page of OBSBOT.
