Induro AT214 Alloy 8M + BHD1 ball head £250, $310

The Induro BHD1 ball head is really impressive, but the legs can feel a bit wobbly at full extension

Like the Gitzo and Sirui tripods on test, this Induro aluminium model has foursection legs. It collapses down to 64cm (with head attached) and extends to an impressive 180cm maximum operating height. Another similarity with the Gitzo and the carbon fibre Sirui tripod is that the leg section locks have a twist, rather than clip, action. Some say that clips are faster to use than twist locks but that’s not our experience. It’s certainly easy to lock or unlock all sections simultaneously with one hand when the legs are at their minimum height.

The standard of engineering feels close to that of the Benro tripods on test, and similarities include three locking angles for each leg, plus a bubble level on the tripod collar. The maximum load rating also matches that of the Benro aluminium tripod, at 10kg. However, the ball head has a higher rating of 12kg and boasts a more elaborate design.

Performance

Despite there being a fairly typical 4mm difference in the diameter of each leg section, extension is a little lacking in smoothness. The bottom sections measure just 16mm in diameter, which has an adverse affect on rigidity. By contrast, the ball head is super-steady and has an adjustable friction damper and pan-only release.