NERO multi-trigger reviewed

A couple of days ago I was contacted by the creator of Nero triggers and asked to make a review of their acclaimed product for camera multi-trigger and they sent me a unit to test.

They assured me this was a production unit but the hot-shoe mount was not yet completely finished so they had to replace it with a hand made one which fits perfectly on my Canon cameras.

 This is a multi-trigger system for sound, light and moving objects as well as time lapse and laser triggering.

This can work with any camera with the dedicated cable. I was able to test this with Canon 1D MarkIV, Canon 5D MarkII, Canon 5D MarkIII, Canon Powershot G12 and Olympus OM-D E5 all with great success.  

About the device:

NERO is a versatile device for photographers to take special photographs by triggering their SLRs or external flashes.

The device has been designed based on microcontroller technology. It is equipped with built-in light, laser and sound sensors, also incorporates a timer for flexible control of timelapse photography.

The Nero MultiTrigger has 10 built-in functions listed below:

- Lightning Trigger - Sound Trigger
- Sound Trigger with Lock
- Time Lapse (1-10 secs)
- Time Lapse (1-10 mins)
- Laser Trigger with Delay
- Laser Trigger with MultiShot
- Long Exposure
- Super Bulb
- Manual Trigger

So here are my thoughts about this great product that I've been testing day in day out on it's functionality.

Nero Trigger review

The box come in well packed and delivered very fast by DHL express service.

Nero Trigger review

Inside the box you will have a full booklet with the instructions on how to use the unit. You can also download it directly from the NERO page here.

Nero Trigger review

It came with a Canon cable that was under the unit box.

Nero Trigger review

Here is in detail the connection for the 5D and 1D Canon series.

Nero Trigger review

After power the unit it looks like this with a bunch of lights that represent the mode settings.

Nero Trigger review


Here is set to Timelapse Trigger (mins). Each bar represents a mode of the 10 the unit have available.

Nero Trigger review

On one of the sides you have the mode button (M) and the selector button for the active function (C) and a wheel to change the sensitivity of the mode you have chosen.



Nero Trigger review


On the other side of the panel you have the On/Off switch, the Flash input to plug and trigger external flashes and the SLR input to trigger DSLR or other cameras.



Nero Trigger review

On the front of the unit you have the light trigger sensor.

Nero Trigger review

On the base of the unit you have the hot-shoe mount.

Nero Trigger review

This unit came with a hand made hot-shoe but the manufacturer assured me that this was a temporary situation and that the shipping units are coming with a well built hot-shoe. Although this was not a problem to mount it on the camera I did found that was a disappointment to have such a hot-shoe mount for the price you pay for the unit.

Nero Trigger review

Here are the cables I used to test it. Canon 1D & 5D, Canon Powershot 50D/60D and Olympus trigger (Left to Right).

Nero Trigger review

The one shipped with the NERO unit is the one on the bottom and it worked perfectly with my Phottix trigger that takes separate cables to work.

Nero Trigger review

Here is the Phottix unit reversed (Phottix TC-501) so you can order cables from other places in case you have different cameras.

Nero Trigger review

Here is a size measure of the unit in my hand so you will get a feeling how small this unit is.

Nero Trigger review

Another measure of the unit compared with 3 standard AA batteries although the unit takes 2 AAA batteries to operate.

Nero Trigger review

The unit needs a Philips screwdriver so you can replace the batteries has they are inside the sealed plastic cover.

This can be an inconvenient when out in the field and batteries needed to be changed.

Nero Trigger review

When unscrewed the 4 screws here is what you will see.

Nero Trigger review

Let's take a closer look...

Nero Trigger review

When I opened the unit for the first time I also noticed that it was covered with dust and some metal parts were already with rust. Do not know if this is because of the sample unit or if all the production units will come like this.

Nero Trigger review

Take the batteries out and as you can see the unit is a little rusty and with no care for dust. I had to blow the unit out of dust who also led me think that these are made one by one in a hand made in a no sealed environment. 

Nero Trigger review

A closer look at the battery contacts and you can see the rust and dust particles all over.

After a few rocket blown the dust disappeared but the rust still remains, let's see how long it will take before the unit stop working. Only time will tell... hope they will take this in attention for the next built units.

Nero Trigger review

After cleaning the unit it was time to close things up and make it to test.

The unit performed with excellent results for every camera I tested and under the situations it was build to.

I found out, and after playing with it for a while, that the bar system is a little complicated to memory leading you to almost frustration in the field in case you forget the instruction manual, also the fact that you cannot replace batteries on the fly is another inconvenient.

I also wish they could have implemented an external input so you can add and use your own inputs.

I contact NERO about this and they told me that they are preparing another unit with an LCD and an easy access to replaceable batteries without removing the cover.

Hope this will come soon than later has there is another unit on the market with some of this functions and with an LCD.

Features of the unit:

  • Multi-Cable / Camera Capability is now STANDARD. No need to buy another trigger if you have two cameras or when you upgrade to a different model/brand
  • It is possible to trigger Flash or DSLR with standart 2.5 and 3.5 mm interfaces (unique NERO feature)
  • Extremely sensitive optical sensor to detect lightning events
  • Day or night detection of fast lightning events
  • Allow for Image Review after Every Shot
  • Response (lag) time in milliseconds level
  • 10 level sensitivity adjustment and display
  • Optical isolated output to fully protect DSLR from any potential harms
  • Hot shoe mount for most SLR/DSLR cameras
  • Includes Duracell 2xAAA battery
  • Microcontroller-based design
The price of the unit starts at US 117,00 and goes up depending on what functionality you would like on the unit.

You can also buy dedicated cables at their web page for Nikon and Canon models look them here.

This is an excellent product for a specific kind of photography and it's one of the smallest I came across also the price is very good considering the number of things you can do with it.

Extremely recommended!!!

Check out the photo gallery of what you can do with this baby.

Here are some example videos:

Lightning Trigger mode



Sound Trigger mode



Time Lapse mode

3 comments:

Brian Johnson said...

I bought one, and the hot mount is exactly the same one you have. It fits very tight on my Nikon D5100. The only complaints I have about the unit is the difficulty of battery changes, and how fragile the buttons seem. I've used the lightning trigger on a couple storms and it has produced good shots, although, at night I still prefer a timed shot. Some more energized storms will make you end up with 1000 photos. The trigger will shoot no matter where the lightning is.

ruimleal said...

Thank you Brian for your input, thunderstorms I did not get to try it has it's no season for them here in Portugal, glad to know.

I'm in close contact with the company so these are great to know and to report to them as they are watching this.

Thanks

Jonny Carroll said...

This looks awesome! another thing to buy,