Godox Ving V850 System Review

Conclusion

The Godox Ving V850, also known as the Neewer TT850 and Cheetah Light V850, is part of the most recent breed of studio speedlights, offering remote power control, high reliability and a good range of features, all for a much lower price than an OEM flash. It is manual only (although V860 versions have been announced, offering TTL for Canon and Nikon). Its unique and distinctive feature is the use of a lithium-ion battery instead of the ubiquitous array of AA batteries, increasing battery life and improving recharge times.

Pros

• 650 pops per charge
• 1.5 seconds recharge time at full power, instant at lower than 1/4
• Constant recharge rate as battery depletes
• Least expensive product on the market (when taking all costs into account)
• High build quality
• Head rotates 180° on both sides, tilts down for better umbrella illumination
• High power, adjustable to 1/128 in 3rd stops
• Up to 16 groups controlled wirelessly
• Simple, easy to use interface
• Accurate battery level indicator
• Four triggering options (hot-shoe, 2.5mm port, optical, radio)
• Proper on/off switch
• Settings are memorised, even after power loss
• Flash stand and carrying bag included
• Very good user manual
• Works with every brand
• Compatible with other Godox light sources (bare-bulb, lamps)

Cons

• Head swivel too stiff
• Lacks a few modes and features when compared to the Cactus RF60
• External trigger instead of built-in
• Transmitter group dial feels a little cheap

Features-wise, the Godox system has a lot going for itself. The speedlight itself is well-featured, but lacks some of the bells and whistles of the RF60 and some other flashes on the market. It is clearly a flash designed for studio work, with more power levels and more fine-tuning than, say, a Pentax AF540. The head’s illumination pattern is perfectly usable but will serve the photographer better behind a light modifier such as an umbrella (the same is true, to a greater extend, of the Cactus flash). The remote covers most bases but lacks the most exotic functions that the Cactus V6 will reportedly offer. The flash does not include a receiver, but battery-less receivers attach to the side of the flash, preserving the position of the head when mounted on a stand (the head can also tilt down). Using a Cells ii as a receiver will dumb trigger any flash on the market.

Where the speedlight really shows its mettle is when it comes to performances. No other flash on the market can deliver as many pops on one charge. No other flash on the market can shoot for so long without seeing any increased delay in the recharge time. No other flash can fire for so long before overheating. Using a battery pack is a solution, but increases the cost, bulk, and requires managing a dozen AA batteries, without fully matching the performances of the V850.

One must also note that the Godox system includes studio lamps and bare-bulb flashes, all of which are compatible with the RF-16s trigger, making it a very complete and flexible studio system.

So it boils down to features versus performance. I am not claiming the Godox system is the best on the market. It is the fastest, however, a full featured system with a unique selling point that is hard to dismiss.

Who is it for?

This flash system is clearly aimed at studio photographers. The flash can be used on a camera and will not let the photographer down, but the flash and triggers make an excellent system when paired with light modifiers of all kinds.

Final Words

Is this the right system for you? I’ll let you decide. I will simply conclude by saying that for me, it has replaced every other flash in my studio.  If you want to try it out yourself, it is available from Gadget Infinity.

© All images featured in this review were created by the author, bdery, and are copyrighted.