00:00:01 John Daub: Come on. Why won't this thing work? There's something wrong with this gimbal. Come on, guy. It's kind of working, but it's leaning. Look, that's not supposed to happen. Are we live? Hey, everybody. Sorry. This is an extremely unusual and very awkward live stream for several reasons, but I'm just going to list one. It's because I don't have a gimbal anymore.

00:00:45 John Daub: This right here in my hand is what I've been using for the last nine or 10 months, the Zhiyun Smooth Q. This gimbal has been amazing. I got it for about $100, about 11,000 or 12,000 yen. Now they're more expensive in Japan, and I got this attachment to it, this little skirt that goes around to attach a microphone and something else. That's what it looks like. I've really liked it, but now one of the motors is dead, and I just cannot balance it. When I move it around, it tips to the side, left and right. It's like you're sick on a boat. That just means it's old. Technology's not supposed to last forever.

00:02:15 John Daub: Hello, James. Hey, guys. Today I had to get a new gimbal, and I'm going to be unboxing it right now. If you saw the thumbnail, you already know what it is. It was the gimbal that I did not want to get. I had no choice because Zhiyun, a really nice company that begins with a Z, this is no longer available in Japan. It's sold out. You can't even buy them. I wanted the exact same one because I can put a light right here. There's a USB port. The handle is really nice to hold. The new one, the Smooth 4, is like holding a book. The shape is bad, but this is so nice. It's got a hole on the bottom to add a tripod. My first DJI Osmo did not have that. It balances perfectly. It's very flexible. The weight payload is good. I added Velcro for a counterweight and wide-angle lens. It worked awesome, but then one day it just died when I needed it.

00:03:39 John Daub: This is the thing with technology and doing location shoots. You have to have a backup plan, a plan B. All you kids watching, always have a plan B and a plan C. The older you get, sometimes you have to turn to plan C. Sometimes plan C is better than plan A and B. With that said, I'm going to get right to it. We got no gimbal, so the only way to do this is just hold it like this. This is the way we did it in 2016, before the gimbal age.

00:04:20 John Daub: This here is the Osmo Mobile 2. I really loved my first DJI Osmo, the Osmo Mobile 1. It was so good that I was waiting for this to come out, but it took forever, so I bought the Zhiyun. And that's my iPhone 6, because I got to use my iPhone 7 to stream. Look! It goes 360! There's nothing to block it. It just keeps rotating, and I love this. I don't need a lot of features. Everything I do is streamed, so all these buttons turn on, turn off. That's it. Now this fell off. It was glued on and just fell off one day. This is the joystick to move it around, but I just don't use it. Everything I use is inside the phone.

00:05:15 John Daub: I got this today in Bic Camera. I usually go to Yodobashi Camera, but I went to Bic Camera today. This was old school. In America it's $119 or $120, but in Japan it cost me 17,000 or 18,000 yen, which is $160, so $40 or $50 more in Japan than in America. Electronics in Japan, despite Japan making a lot of them, are more expensive here than in the United States. The US is a competitive market, so it's always cheaper there, even for things made in Japan.

00:06:08 John Daub: This is the Osmo Mobile 2, and I got this because I had no choice. The Zhiyun is not in stock. They want you to buy their Smooth 4. This is a little bit bigger than the Osmo Mobile 3 or 4. This is really hard to open. I need a knife. People told me my fingernails are gross in the sandwich episode, and this is why, 'cause I got to open stuff. You want to get stuff done? You just gotta rip it open. I'm gonna retitle this "Man struggles to unbox gimbal." Sounds like a good title.

00:07:13 John Daub: Well, I'm glad they made it hard to open. Directions. Okay, check this out. Three, two, one. Ah. You know they don't show this when they do unboxings, do they? Nice, you can keep these. They kind of can come in useful if you don't eat them. One of these wires—I was hoping for USB-C, these are micro-USB. That's okay, I got a million of these. The good thing is they're easy to find. Look at the handle, it feels good in your hands. This is gonna be nice. It's got this—the original DJI Osmo did not have this—where you can add a tripod to the bottom. If you wanted to add a tripod, you had to have this thing attached to the side. I didn't like the color. I didn't want gray, it looks cheap and plastic-y. But it's all they had.

00:08:45 John Daub: All right, let's try this and see if it works. This is called passing the buck to another. See what's different here. How do I do this with one hand? I hope I don't break this one. I didn't break the other, it just died. I seriously wanted another Zhiyun, I just didn't have the choice. Whenever you have a gimbal, before it starts you have to make sure it's balanced. It's not balanced right now. You have to adjust it. Usually you pull it out all the way. There you go, it's pretty much balanced. The secret to gimbals is to always balance them because that saves the battery from overworking, saves the motors from overworking. You have to calibrate it.

00:10:52 John Daub: Does anyone know how to turn on a DJI Osmo Mobile 2? Push the button. I'm so used to the other one. I threw the instruction manual over here. With tech these days, you figure why you even need the instruction manual. It should be so simple you intuitively turn it on, and yet I wasn't able to. It's been six months since my last Osmo. The Osmo 2 is more advanced than the Osmo 1. The biggest problem was the batteries would die in less than an hour, sometimes in the middle of live streams. I had to buy a backup battery. I found English. Powering on: with the Osmo Mobile 2 powered off, press the power/mode button to check battery level, press and hold for one and a half seconds to power on and off. Okay, that sounds easy enough.

00:13:07 John Daub: Weird, usually when you buy something it's got some battery, but not this. She's sleeping. It's charging. I would totally take this back, but I'd have to pay the cost tomorrow with Kanae sleeping—she would not like that. Thank everybody for supporting the live streams. I'm sorry I wasn't able to have good video, like yesterday at Ameyokocho—the camera tilted left and right, so I made it a priority to find a solution. This was the best I could do. A lot of people recommended gimbals, but they weren't out yet. I think next year the gimbal industry is gonna change, but I can't wait—I need something now because this channel is so close to 100,000. We're close to 100,000. We need something now.

00:14:47 John Daub: Gimbals last about eight months. The DJI Osmo 1 lasted seven months, this Zhiyun 10 months. This was good and light, I really liked it. I wish they had it, but they don't make it anymore. Apparently I can't find it in Japan. Look at that—you can do this all day long because it does that. That's what I like, it's safe, it doesn't break. I thought it was indestructible. I guess I was wrong. I'm gonna take some questions about Japan now. I didn't really want to do a very long live stream, but I want to take some questions and see if there's anything I can answer. I'm not sure if I'm going to keep this live stream public, but I like to share what you guys think.

00:15:55 John Daub: I didn't like Zhiyun? Actually I did. I love this. I have the Crane version for my GH4 and GH5 camera—I love it. I had a DJI before but moved to this company because the reviews were great. It is really good. If you could buy the Smooth Q, it's much better than the DJI. Now I just can't find it. I don't use any apps—I'm literally using YouTube. The reason I don't want the Smooth 4 is I don't need the app. I'm not using this to film, I got a camera. The Smooth 4 has this little wheel to zoom in and out, like an Alfred Hitchcock dolly shot. But on an iPhone there's no optical zoom, so you lose quality the more you zoom. Who zooms on a smartphone? Professionals change aperture or shutter speed, but if the lens has no optical zoom, you don't zoom. It's just a gimmick. I didn't want the bigger Smooth 4. The only option that was small, compact, and light was this DJI. DJI gives you a really cheap case—it smells cheap, looks cheap.

00:18:47 John Daub: If you have any questions about Japan and not the gimbal, I will answer them right now because Only in Japan is a show about Japan. I had two people on Patreon quit because they said the live streams had nothing to do with Japan. Quitters. Traveling to Kyoto—is it hard? Traveling to Kyoto is really easy. You go on the shinkansen (bullet train), arrive in two hours, get off, and you're there.

00:19:26 John Daub: Thank everybody yesterday—we had a lot of super chats, so much money that that's what bought this gimbal. Through contributions, this gimbal is here. They still sell the Smooth Q in Germany, but in Japan the website only has the Smooth 4. They don't sell the Q anymore. I'm so tired. The only thing available was this at the store, and I needed it now. Thank you, Sanket. What other adventures in Kyoto other than Imperial Palace and temples? Do you mean attractions? There are food adventures in Kyoto. Kyoto has really good traditional food, especially in Gion—tons of izakaya (pubs) and traditional restaurants. The sky's the limit. You can go cheap to yakitori or izakaya, or expensive shabu-shabu with A5 wagyu for a few hundred dollars.

00:21:20 John Daub: I'm going to Kyoto next week to make an episode on nightlife there. It's unique—not a lot of people know about Kyoto nightlife like Tokyo or Osaka. Does it involve geisha or maiko? I'm not sure. I'll be there one night, film a tour with history. Should be fun. Have you been to Fox Village? No, I'm not a big fan of foxes mingling with humans. Rabbits are different. Make sure you go to Gosei's Bar. Andrew knows a lot about beer. The Taihei Ogen label is a new microbrewery—pretty neat.

00:22:41 John Daub: Caroline, how you doing? Jonathan, I told a ghost story a month and a half ago on the riverside in Tokyo, and I did see a ghost. I don't talk a lot about it, but maybe another time. It's almost midnight, not the time for ghosts. After watching your video, I tried takoyaki and it was hard to eat the octopus. If you're not used to octopus, it's hard, but you just chew it. It's chewy meat, very healthy, no fat. I love takoyaki and octopus—on yakitori, in oden. The tentacles aren't as bad as people think, just chewy. Thank you, Kat, for the super chat.

00:23:48 John Daub: When will we see you driving back roads of the countryside? Next month, for sure—it's a promise. I was going to go this summer but didn't have time. In Ogasawara, you'll see me driving a 50cc scooter—you need a license. I haven't driven in a while, but October and November adventures coming. Kat, you'll be in Japan next two weeks—anything in Kobe besides beef? Mount Rokko (Rokosan)—cable car with beautiful night view, weird unique museums like music box museum. They have the world's biggest music box, botanical garden—B-level attractions that make an A-level. Cable car view at sunset is spectacular. Sannomiya Station has restaurants, but check Kobe beef certification—10-digit number in Wagyu database.

00:26:30 John Daub: If Kobe beef is too cheap, be suspicious. Lunch is most affordable—100 grams should cost at least $100, even in Kobe. Kobe beef is rare, only a few thousand cattle. After, go to Chinatown—one of the most authentic. Japanese Chinatowns are monetized, cleaner version of Chinese food. Then Arima Onsen—one of Japan's top three oldest onsen. Beautiful, traditional, spiritual—spend a night or two. Kobe's harbor is beautiful—1995 earthquake remnants, cracked sidewalk into harbor. Shopping malls, decks to watch boats, monorail to seaside. Also Akashi Kaikyo Bridge (world's longest suspension), Himeji Castle, Suma Beach—best in area. I used to live in Kobe.

00:29:33 John Daub: Hey, Mix. Going to Nagoya next year—what to recommend? Takayama for two days a good side trip? Yes, Hida area—Hida-gyu (beef) is really good. Most traditional place, Hida village for inside look at old Japan. Retains charm despite tourists. Get out of Tokyo. Get a sarubobo (faceless red doll)—creepy cute. Two days works, one night two days enough, though two nights in ryokan better. See Hida village open-air museum, walk streets. Don't overdo it.

00:31:40 John Daub: Have you been to Formula One Grand Prix? Not yet—my friend Andrew goes, ask him. Yamaguchi next month—gift for in-laws? Tough—fugu? They have good seafood, Dassei sake (but available anywhere). Kintai-kyo Bridge in Iwakuni—beautiful with three arches, tons of gifts. Good national parks? Daisetsuzan in Hokkaido near Asahikawa—pristine. Oze in Fukushima—stunning mountains, walkways May to October. Chichibu in Tokyo area, but best is Chichijima in Ogasawara—national park, swim with dolphins, Galapagos of the East. 24-hour ferry, stay a week—rewarding.

00:35:04 John Daub: Miyagi Prefecture? Sendai—gyutan (beef tongue), Matsushima (white cliffs). I lived in Fukushima, went to Sendai as closest big city—manageable size. Cat Island there? Hit hard by tsunami—tourists appreciated on coast up to Iwate. Miyagi needs attention. Best dramatic beaches on Sea of Japan side? Sea of Japan rougher, colder, windier than Pacific. Yonago City beach with Mount Daisen (Fuji-like). Tottori unspoiled, Fukui neat beaches, Obama City beach (old gateway to Japan, first elephant came through). Kyushu like Nagasaki, Saga, Yamaguchi, Shimane good too. Pacific better overall.

00:39:40 John Daub: One more question. Ghost stories in Tokyo midnight river video. Another ghost story might curse me, so maybe not. Caroline went to the one-tree place by taxi—beautiful, did a live stream. Doing halal food in Japan soon—lots of requests from Malaysia, Middle East. Curious about it. Satoyama? Been, but need more time—beautiful, episode option. SMAP fan? Like members, not band—glad they broke up, time to move on. Bet they reunite for Olympics.

00:41:47 John Daub: GoPro? Dropped Hero 5 Black in Ogasawara scuba—sunk 30m, sunset, couldn't retrieve. Sad, ending footage gone. Getting Hero 7 tomorrow—good stabilization, but hate wasting money. Took it out of case for audio—big mistake. Float it next time. Good ski places? Niseko Hokkaido, Hakuba (Nagano)—close to Tokyo, good vibe, Shinkansen then bus. Cool village even if not skiing. Public transport to Mount Fuji winter? Bus from Shinjuku (Keio) to fifth station in summer; winter maybe Shinkansen to Fujinomiya then local bus, or hitchhike/walk.

00:45:43 John Daub: I'm tired, going to bed. Tomorrow YouTube event in Roppongi for Asia YouTubers—invited, like Seoul Creators Summit. Workshops to improve channel. Seishun 18 Kippu (youth 18 ticket)? Did it entire country, no film—came 1998, no video camera then. Local trains see culture, people, sights slower—love them. Lived everywhere as English teacher, know regions naturally. Thanks for hanging out—leave questions in comments, like if you want more Q&A. Support determines if I do again.

00:48:14 John Daub: Andy Ross just joined—sorry, buddy! Hold on. I think we've charged this up. Let's see if it works. Come on, DJI. You have to push twice. Anybody? The other one works better. Hopefully better luck tomorrow. Kept receipt. Battery one bar—figure it tomorrow. Thanks for spending time—good night. See you tomorrow.