SmallRig x Potato Jet TRIBEX SE Tripod Review
A fast, field-ready tripod built for landscape and hybrid shooters
Let’s clear this up right from the start.
The SmallRig x Potato Jet TRIBEX SE is not a studio portrait, product or still life tripod. It isn’t trying to be, and judging it by those standards would miss the point entirely. Of course, you could use it for these purposes, but not WHO its was designed for.
Please Note: SmallRig sent this tripod to me for review, but all thoughts on this product are my own.
This tripod is built for landscape photographers and hybrid shooters working on location, people dealing with changing light, uneven ground, wind, weather and the need to move quickly. It prioritises speed, stability and consistency in the field, not micro-adjustments in a controlled studio.
Once you look at it through that lens, the design choices make a lot more sense. But, it could still use some tweaks. The base is great, but the head seems to leave many photographers wanting.
What it’s designed to do
The TRIBEX SE is aimed squarely at outdoor, location-based work, especially for photographers who also shoot video clips alongside stills.
Think:
Landscapes with slow, controlled pans
Environmental video clips
Travel and documentary work
Hybrid shooters who want one tripod that super quick setup
If your work involves careful millimetre-by-millimetre framing, or long still life sessions, this possibly isn’t your tool. If you’re chasing light and conditions, and super quick setup, it just might be.
X-Clutch Handle
The standout feature: X-Clutch hydraulic deployment
The headline feature is the X-Clutch Hydraulic Technology, which allows you to deploy and level the tripod with a single squeeze. And it takes a little bit of getting used to, but after a few tries, it works great. It’s easy to setup and pack down. Hold the tripod with one hand, then with the other drop the Legs. Height is set. You’re ready to shoot. So you still need two hands, but it is much quicker and easier than a standard tripod, which can offer require more than two hands at times.
Out in the landscape, where light changes fast and conditions are rarely perfect, this is a genuine advantage. It removes the fiddly setup phase and lets you focus on composition and timing instead of wrestling leg locks.
SmallRig rates this system for over 20,000 deployment cycles, so it’s clearly designed to be used hard, not babied.
Integrated hydraulic fluid head
The TRIBEX SE uses an integrated hydraulic fluid head with:
6kg head load capacity
4kg fixed counterbalance
Fixed pan and tilt damping
There’s no fine-tuning here, and that’s intentional. The movement is consistent, smooth and predictable, which might work for landscape pans, environmental footage and general field video. But, to be honest, this is where I feel the unit fails. You can pan but not tilt. This might suit videographers, but landscape photographers will probably find it limiting and frustrating.
Build quality and portability
Made from aluminium alloy, the tripod legs are rated to 15kg, giving plenty of stability headroom even if your camera setup is modest.
At 3.7kg, it’s not ultra-light, but the trade-off is confidence in wind and uneven terrain. Folded down to 72cm, it’s compact enough for travel and location work without becoming a burden. Compared to light-weight travel tripods, it feels pretty heavy, but in windy conditions, it was a bonus. Would I want to carry over long distances? Not sure on that either.
Specifications
Material: Aluminium Alloy
Tripod Load Capacity: 15kg
Head Load Capacity: 6kg
Counterbalance: 4kg fixed
Working Height: 23.0 – 166.0cm
Folded Length: 72cm
Net Weight: 3.7kg
Package Weight: 5.4kg
Warranty: 4 years
Features at a glance
X-Clutch hydraulic one-squeeze leg deployment
The integrated hydraulic fluid head can be easily swapped out for an alternative head
Side-ways pan (video mode) and tilt damping (fixed) for consistent movement with the supplied head
Compact folded size for travel
Designed for fast-paced outdoor shooting
Backed by a long 4-year warranty
Pros
Exceptionally fast setup, ideal for changing light (but it does take a few tries to get used to it)
Very stable for outdoor and landscape use, even in windy conditions
Simple, predictable operation
Strong warranty
The integrated head can be swapped out
Rubber feet easily removed and replaced with spiked feet if required
Cons
Not really suitable for studio portrait, product or still life work (with the supplied head), although it could do both
Fixed damping and counterbalance limit fine control
Heavier than minimalist or travel tripods
No articulated arm (although many tripods do not have this feature either, but worth noting)
Hubby in action with the tripod
Sample Images taken on Nikon Z6iii and ND Filter, SOOC. Crisp, sharp and no camera shake evident even on long exposures in windy, gusty conditions. These images were 30 seconds.
What’s included
The Tribex SE Tripod
Integrated hydraulic fluid head & Panning Arm
Carry Bag
Allen Key
Mounting Plate
Final thoughts
The SmallRig x Potato Jet TRIBEX SE is a tripod with a very clear opinion, and maybe that’s a good thing.
It’s built for landscape photographers and hybrid shooters who work outdoors, value speed over tinkering, and want a setup that behaves the same way every time. The one-squeeze deployment and integrated fluid head make it a breeze in fast-changing conditions, even if they rule it out for slow, precision studio work.
If you spend most of your time on location, chasing light and capturing both stills and video, this tripod makes a lot of sense. If your world is controlled lighting and careful micro-adjustments, you’re better off elsewhere. However, even landscape photographers may want to look at changing the head.
To be completely honest, for me it was too heavy and limiting for my normal day-to-day work in the studio, so I handed it to my husband, who prefers landscapes anyway. He enjoys the tripod, but did not like the head either and swapped it out for his Manfrotto head after his first use, using the Manfrotto MHX Pro 3W, but seemingly any Manfrotto head works.
Know what you shoot, and this tripod will either feel perfect or not, keeping in mind you can easily swap the head out for something more user-friendly.
Check out this video to see it in action…
