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Swarovski iPhone 6S adaptor (1 Viewer)

MoGo

Well-known member
Does anyone know whether Swarovski will be releasing a PA-i6 adaptor that will be compatible with the iPhone 6S?

Thanks
Mike
 
I sent an email to Swarovski customer service to ask if they are going to produce one, below is the reply from one of their customer service advisors:

"My relevant colleagues are working on this issue, but at the moment it can't be said if and when an adapter will be available."

As they do actively encourage phonescoping I would have thought that they would make this a priority. Hopefully it will be available soon, my iPhone 5S contract is up for renewal in May next year...

Mike
 
Mike,

That is interesting. I am not very familiar with the Swaro phonescoping adapter but I should be since one of my colleagues uses one with an Iphone 6 and his ATX 85. I have a 6S and will see if we can get together to see if my phone will fit in his adapter.

FWIW I was curious about the same thing with the Opticron adapters. As it turns out the Opticron Iphone 6 adapter also fits the 6S. Hoping it works the same way for you and the Swaro.
 
Frank,

Thanks for your comment. I have checked the product PA-i6 description on the Swarovski website and they definitely say it will not work with the iPhone 6S.

The 6S is slightly thicker than the 6, and with it being an aluminium adaptor I suppose that will make it very rigid, meaning that there will be no way you can squeeze the 6S into it.

I am a bit disappointed that they do not make this a bit more of a priority, and have expressed this to them.

Mike
 
Mike,

Well, if it is any consolation, the 6 came out a year ago in September and they didn't have the new adapter for it until this past July. My friend made much the same comments as you just did.
 
The additional 0.1mm width and 0.2mm depth of the iPhone 6s aren't enough to make a difference with the Opticron adaptors because the material is somewhat plastic. In fact the 6s is probably a more snug and secure fit in our 6 adaptor as a result.

Because we now have Swarovski products in stock, we can now, in theory, measure up to make adaptors for the STX/ATX or HD eyepieces to work with iPhone 4, 5, 5s, 6 and 6s, Samsung S3, S3 Mini, S4, S5, S5 Mini and S6. However, there's actually apparently very little demand as any time we ask our dealers if they want them, the silence is deafening :)

If we made these available on a "build to order" basis, the price would be about £60/€85/$75 plus local delivery cost. Lead time would be about three weeks from point of order.

Cheers, Pete
 
However, there's actually apparently very little demand as any time we ask our dealers if they want them, the silence is deafening :)

Cheers, Pete

I just don't understand that one Pete. I honestly don't. Phonescoping is so easy and so much fun. I just don't think it has been promoted enough. All of the folks I have talked to or have shared video/pics with on the internet loved them and couldn't believe the results that one could get from a good spotting scope and readily available cell phone.
 

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I would probably buy one for my Swarovski zoom/iPhone 6 combo - (if I could see samples of what it would produce before shelling out!) I did ask Swarovski what their adapter cost and was shocked at the answer!
 
I just don't understand that one Pete. I honestly don't. Phonescoping is so easy and so much fun. I just don't think it has been promoted enough. All of the folks I have talked to or have shared video/pics with on the internet loved them and couldn't believe the results that one could get from a good spotting scope and readily available cell phone.
Frank,
I agree, I used to use a DSLR, but because of having limited time, being critical of my own work etc I sold all the equipment and moved back to just birding and taking a few easy photos with my phone. I am now enjoying birding properly again and all the fun of snapping a few photos with my phone.
Good shots by the way.

Mike
 
The additional 0.1mm width and 0.2mm depth of the iPhone 6s aren't enough to make a difference with the Opticron adaptors because the material is somewhat plastic. In fact the 6s is probably a more snug and secure fit in our 6 adaptor as a result.

Because we now have Swarovski products in stock, we can now, in theory, measure up to make adaptors for the STX/ATX or HD eyepieces to work with iPhone 4, 5, 5s, 6 and 6s, Samsung S3, S3 Mini, S4, S5, S5 Mini and S6. However, there's actually apparently very little demand as any time we ask our dealers if they want them, the silence is deafening :)

If we made these available on a "build to order" basis, the price would be about £60/€85/$75 plus local delivery cost. Lead time would be about three weeks from point of order.

Cheers, Pete
Pete,
Thanks for the information I may come back to you when I upgrade my phone.

Mike
 
I've taken a punt and ordered one complete with the new Bluetooth remote shutter release for my iPhone 6/Swarovski zoom...

Fingers crossed!

Hi John,
I'm interested in how you are getting on with the Phoneskope adaptor, does it work ok, are there any issues you have come across?

Regards
Mike
 
Hi Mike
Mixed so far! - the first adaptor for the Swarovski zoom was too tight - so I concluded that I likely have the older (pre 2009) zoom lens which needs a very slightly bigger adapter. Newprow's (the UK distributor) customer service was excellent. I phoned them a week past Monday and they immediately agreed to send me the other version to try. That arrived last Tuesday just before we left home to visit family. The very quick testing which I've been able to do suggests that this one is uncomfortably tight as well and I'm having trouble centring the image.
So I'm planning to have a further play with it today. I'm going to try a little silicone polish on the adaptor to see if that helps and try the square photo option on the iPhone which I think will help with the image centring issue. They do a universal adaptor as well so that might be the next step if this one is deemed too tight, but that would be disappointing as it's supposed to be designed to fit...

The Bluetooth shutter gizmo works perfectly so that's a keeper even if I switch to another system.

The kit appears to be well made, but having to remove my iPhone from its regular case is a bit of pain - there's no great issue in fitting it and releasing it from the Phoneskope adaptor as that's designed to facilitate it but of course your 'regular' iPhone case is intended to be a 'fit and forget' option so I'm not sure how long it will be before that breaks - but then they cost a couple of quid from eBay so that's not a huge issue.

What really matters of course is ease of use and above all image quality. So far, on my very limited tests photographing a sub station door about 200 ft away (my reference object) the results are encouraging.

More to follow...

John
 
Hi Mike
Mixed so far! - the first adaptor for the Swarovski zoom was too tight - so I concluded that I likely have the older (pre 2009) zoom lens which needs a very slightly bigger adapter. Newprow's (the UK distributor) customer service was excellent. I phoned them a week past Monday and they immediately agreed to send me the other version to try. That arrived last Tuesday just before we left home to visit family. The very quick testing which I've been able to do suggests that this one is uncomfortably tight as well and I'm having trouble centring the image.
So I'm planning to have a further play with it today. I'm going to try a little silicone polish on the adaptor to see if that helps and try the square photo option on the iPhone which I think will help with the image centring issue. They do a universal adaptor as well so that might be the next step if this one is deemed too tight, but that would be disappointing as it's supposed to be designed to fit...

The Bluetooth shutter gizmo works perfectly so that's a keeper even if I switch to another system.

John

Hi John,

Thanks for getting back to me, sorry I've not replied before now.

I was interested to read that you found the adaptor ring for the Swarovski a bit tight, I tried out the Phoneskope adaptor for the Iphone 5S/Swarovski ATX combo at In Focus, Martin Mere and found the same with a couple of adaptors they had. I compared it to the PA-i5 adaptor from Swarovski and found that a much better fit.

Having said that, I've found that the PA-i5 does tend to move a bit too easy when in use, causing it to lift off a bit on the side opposite the phone. I have attached a typical uncropped/untouched photo taken with this combo. The phone was landscape orientation on the left hand side of the scope, you can clearly see that there is more vignetting on the side opposite the phone.

It seems that there are pluses and minuses for whichever adaptor you opt for, has anyone else got a comment on this?

By the way, I like the sound of the Bluetooth gizmo, I might get one.

Thanks
Mike
 

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Tim,

That's good news, thanks for letting us know.

I am changing my contract in a couple of months but will probably opt for the Novagrade adaptor for the following reasons:

1. I want to get the iPhone 6s Plus, it has optical image stabilisation for both photo video.
2. After using the Pa-i5 adaptor for some time I have noticed it does tend to move a bit too easy when in use, causing it to lift off a bit on the side opposite the phone (see previous post in this thread). The Novagrade adaptor does clamp into place.
3. It means I don't need to change my adaptor every time I upgrade the phone.

I'll let you know how I get on.

Regards
Mike
 
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