Remember when tripods were just gadgets that kept your camera still? One of the latest to go a lot further than that is Tokqi's CO3 Octopus … and no, despite its name, it doesn't have eight legs.
Clearly drawing inspiration from the Joby GorillaPod, the Octopus has three bendy legs that can be wound around objects such as railings or branches to hold a third-party camera in place.
Each of those legs has an articulated aluminum skeleton covered in grippy TPE (Thermoplastic elastomer) rubber. Along with being twisted around things, the legs can also simply be spread out straight – like on a regular tripod – or pulled straight and folded in against one another, allowing the tripod to serve as a camera handle.
Users doing the latter will likely be shooting selfies, a process which is facilitated by the Octopus' integrated telescoping aluminum extension pole. It pulls out to give the tripod a maximum length of 638 mm (25 in), legs included.
At the end of the pole is the ball head, which can be rotated 360 degrees and locked in position. DSLRs and actioncams can be attached directly to its quarter-inch screw mount, while smartphones can be put in an included adjustable-width holder. That holder can be quickly twisted off the head, in case users need to take a phone call, etc while shooting.
The ball head also features a cold shoe mount on one side for attaching peripherals such as lights and shotgun mics, plus it has a receptacle for an included Bluetooth smartphone remote. When detached, the latter can be used to take still photos or start/stop video-recording on a linked Apple or Android phone from a distance of up to 10 m (33 ft). The remote is powered by a replaceable CR2032 coin cell battery.
Should you be interested, the Tokqi CO3 Octopus is currently the subject of a Kickstarter campaign. If all goes according to plan, a pledge of US$59 will get you one – the retail price will be $89.
It can be seen in use, in the video below.
Updated May 8, 2023: The tripod material is TPE, not HDPE, as a reader has helpfully pointed out.
Source: Kickstarter