A year and a half after its debut on the iPhone 12, MagSafe may not have radically changed how we use our smartphones, but it remains a welcome upgrade for filmmakers and videographers as a secure and easy way to mount their iPhones to filmmaking gear like tripods. With Moment’s new Mobile Filmmaker Cage, MagSafe also becomes an easy way to mount accessories to the iPhone itself when shooting handheld.
There’s no denying that MagSafe made using finicky wireless chargers easier by ensuring the charging coils on a Qi pad and the iPhone were always perfectly aligned. And yes, piggybacking a portable charger on your mobile device is far more convenient than wrangling a cable when you’re out and about. But by far the best use of MagSafe has been as an alternative to the adjustable clamping mechanisms that iPhone filmmakers have had to rely on for attaching the device to tripods, jibs, dollies, and even stabilizers.
Moment was one of the first companies to release MagSafe compatible tripod mounts which made the iPhone 12 completely worth the upgrade for anyone who previously struggled with alternate mounting solutions, and yesterday the company expanded its MagSafe mounts with a handful of new additions that include the Mobile Filmmaker Cage which is compatible with the iPhone 12 and 13 lineups, or older models when using a MagSafe-compatible smartphone case.
![Image: Moment](https://gizmodo.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2022/03/30/8c9bbf15e567176e78d41ab483cdc389.jpg?quality=75?quality=75)
The cage is essentially a rounded rectangular frame made of machined aluminium with a MagSafe attachment that mounts an iPhone in the middle. The frame is perforated with multiple ¼”-20 and ⅜”-16 threaded mounting holes allowing an attached iPhone to be accessorized with lighting, improved microphones, and the cage itself to be augmented with larger handles or other ways for a camera person to hold onto it without having to handle the phone itself. It’s almost like a smaller scale Fig Rig: a passive stabilizer for larger video cameras that makes it easier for an operator to perform smooth handheld motions.
Moment’s Mobile Filmmaker Cage also includes integrated grooves to help with cable management, and it’s compatible with Moment’s wide selection of smartphone lenses when using one of the company’s MagSafe compatible iPhone cases and a pop-in lens mount. The cage is available for pre-order now for $US99 ($137) through Moment’s website.