I should also note that, for this review, I did borrow some pocketwizard Plus IIs from my good friend and photographer Fielding Cathcart as well as a PocketWizard Multimax from another friend, co-worker and photographer Gary Weinheimer. Please check out their websites and photography.

PocketWizards – The Current Champion of the Radio Trigger Ring

Traditionally, PocketWizard transceivers have been the industry standard with a very positive reputation for their reliability, simplicity and range. Today, PocketWizards are available in two different flavors: The Plus II ($190 each street) and the uber-expensive MultiMax ($290 each street). With either setup, each individual unit is a transceiver, meaning it can be set to be a transmitter (trigger) or a receiver. This means that the photographer must purchase at least two units to get up and running. The price is one of the main downfalls of the system, especially considering the high cost of two MultiMax units. With a large percentage of photographers using the Plus II units, which are limited to only 4-channels, it is very common for channel conflicts to occur.

MultiMaxs have some major benefits over the Plus IIs, such as 32 built-in channels (vs 4 on the Plus II), an Intervalometer for time lapse photography, multiple flash groups for separating lights and customizable lag time adjustment which can be used for syncing multiple cameras to fire either in sequence or simultaneously. At just under $600 for a pair, however, the units are outside the budget for most.

Elinchrom SkyPort – Enter the Contender

Weighing in at a fraction of both the weight and price of the PocketWizards, Elinchrom’s SkyPort system promises to deliver similar performance and professional reliability with some unique features. As opposed to PocketWizard’s transceiver design, the Skyports are dedicated units: transmitters and receivers. Each unit is available separately or the system can be purchased as a set. The set includes a receiver and a transmitter, as well as a nice molded carrying case (which can accommodate up to four units + cables), a charger with worldwide AC adapters for the receiver, a battery for the transmitter and a slew of sync cables.

First Impressions

These things are small! Both units combined are about half the size of a PocketWizard. The transmitter doesn’t have a hotshoe lock, but seems to slide in very tightly. I’ve seen people use Velcro on top of their prism to reinforce the transmitter. The transmitter has two small switches on its side: one selects the triggering mode, firing on all groups or a specific group, while the other switch selects one of the four groups/subchannels. The main channel selection switches are located in a recessed area on the face of the transmitter and unfortunately the tiny switches are very difficult to adjust with just an index finger. There is a test fire button in addition to the “+” and “-” buttons which are used to control Elinchrom RX style strobes.

The receiver is slightly larger than the transmitter and features the same channel and group selection switches. In the latest version of the receiver, Elinchrom replaced the on/off switch, previously located on the side of the receiver, with a single on/off button on the face of the unit. The button is one of my main complaints, as it can be accidentally pressed. Having to hold the button down for 2-3 seconds would have been a nice feature and would alleviate the worry of killing the battery. The receivers use a miniphone connector for sync and come with small straps for hanging.

Both units have the same aerials which seem like they are a light aluminum surrounded by a flexible plastic. I have to admit that the aerials seem a bit flimsy, but they can withstand some pressure. It is not necessary to have the aerial flipped up at closer distances (normal studio use) and the molded case included with the units should protect them in transport.

Power

Unlike the AA batteries that PocketWizards use, the SkyPort receiver uses a lithium ion rechargeable battery. The unit plugs directly into the wall and charges in about an hour or less (I haven’t timed it because I’ve had to charge very few times). There is a charge indicator light which turns off after the units are fully charged. Elinchrom claims a battery life of up to 30 hours and the units will go to a power-saving stand-by mode after four hours. I see two problems with this system: 1) There is no battery life indicator which is quite important considering… 2) the battery is not user replaceable. My advise is to charge before an important shoot as the batteries will not develop a memory. It should be mentioned that included AC adapter comes with a variety of international adapters and will work throughout most of the world.

The transmitter uses a replaceable CR-2430 battery which is advertised to last up to three months. Elinchrom includes a spare transmitter battery insert, just in case! The transmitter does not have a power on light and this doesn’t help forgetful people like myself who find it difficult to remember to turn things off.

Channels and Groups (Sub-channels)

One of advantages of the system is its multiple channel and group support. Even though the system is advertised as having eight channels, it has the potential for 32 different channel combinations thanks to the four sub channels (groups). There are numerous benefits to having four groups, one being the capability to separate lights. An example would be shooting a basketball game, each hoop could have a strobe in a different group, giving the photographer control to choose which strobes are firing.

As previously mentioned the 4 subchannels can be used in any combination with the 8 primary channels to create up to 32 unique channels which can be extremely helpful when shooting with lots of other photographers. I’ve been to a Strobist meet-up and I know that it can be extremely frustrating to share a channel with 5 other people!

Conversely, if you are the lone photographer, you can easily switch the transmitter to fire all groups at once. As you can see in the photo of the receiver I label my receiver with a group # so I can quickly see which unit is in what group.

In/Outdoor Range, Encryption and Reliability

Elinchrom says that the units will trigger reliably up to 164′ indoors and about 400′ outdoors. Not having the room to test distance inside, I will say that triggering next to other 2.4GHZ devices like my wireless router and phone do not hinder the performance. The units use 40-bit encryption and it seems to work. I also had no problem firing through walls in my small apartment.

Outdoors, the unit works as advertised. I set up an SB-800 at 1/8 power on the side of a long road and paced out 400′. The system worked flawlessly firing multiple shots without missing. I flipped the aerial down and the unit quit triggering. Overall with the aerial up, I got reliable results up to about 415 feet. I didn’t keep moving back because it is was busy street and I’m a little paranoid about my equipment being stolen/messed with.

Sync Speed and Frame Rate

Elinchrom does not advertise the max frame rate of the triggers, but below you can see the SkyPort system firing a Quantum Q-flash (1/64th power) at 8FPS which is as fast as I can shoot with my D300 + EN-EL4a combo, not one miss! The units are said to sync up to 1/1000 of a second, however I cannot test this because of the sync limitation on my D300. 1/320th looks fine and with anything faster my curtain starts getting in the way. These results show that the Skyports will be adequate for sports photography.

User Modifications

Here are a few handy modifications that I found online. These fix most of my complaints on the Skyports:

AA field charger for the receiver
Receiver On/Off button protector
How to better reinforce the transmitter to your camera

Conclusion

While the system is not without its flaws (see cons below), Elinchrom has done very well in creating a reliable radio trigger as an alternative to the popular PocketWizards. Coming in at roughly half the price of the Plus IIs, firing as far away as 415′ and packing 32 possible channels, the Skyports seem like an excellent choice. The Skyports can definitely be improved if Elinchrom would add a transmitter power light, battery indicators for both units, beefier aerials and a hotshoe lock. Considering the ups and downs, I can easily say that I would recommend the Skyports to anyone who can’t afford PocketWizards, wants to save space, or needs more than 4 channels on a reliable trigger.

PROS

• Super small and light weight
• Inexpensive (half the price of the PocketWizards)
• 32 possible channels
• Reliability seems on par with PocketWizards
• Good usable range
• The battery life is excellent and the receivers have rechargeable batteries
• Includes a number of sync cables, international power adapters as well as a nice case

CONS

• Transmitter has no shoe-lock (see work around HERE)
• Poor placement of ON/OFF button (see work around HERE)
• The aerials seem flimsy
• Neither unit has a battery life indicator
• The Receiver does have a Lithium Ion rechargeable battery, it is not interchangeable to my knowledge
• Although a variety of sync cables are included, neither the “set” nor the receiver comes with a miniphone to PC cable (common for small speedlights)
• Hard to change channels with your finger