Hey fellow forum members! I've been looking at this hi-aerial hood for quite sometime. I've read some reviews. It sounds like people who have owned and used both the Hoodman and the Hi-Aerial prefer the Hi-Aerial. I've been holding off ordering because I'm not flying much in the winter and I didn't want to shell out $$ if possibly I need a different size come March when I plan to buy the much anticipated an iPad mini 5. However, I just checked the website and the Hi-Aerial Hood has been 50% off since Dec. 23! Sale ends tomorrow! At 50% off I decided to order one. I can use it with my current iPad Mini 2 and hopefully it will still fit the next gen iPad mini model. As a side note, the iPad Mini 2 works flawless with the Mavic but my kid doesn't always want to give it up... I need to get my own, he he.
I can not personally confirm whether the Hi-Aerial hood is better than the Hoodman, but the reviews look good. If nothing else guys, if you've been looking at the Hoodman but don't want to spend that much, this is a great time to jump on an alternative at a cheaper price! I'm getting mine for $45 free shipping no tax. I'll try to post a review when I get mine and try it out.
Here is all the info I have about the Hi-Aerial Hood:
To place an order, visit the website to figure out what model you want: https://www.mikeharrisaerials.com/hi-aerial-.html . If you want to order, you need to send an email to the seller Mike Harris ( mikeharrisaerials@gmail.com ) and tell him what model you want and your paypal email address. He will in turn email you a paypal invoice for your order to make payment via paypal. I have sent him a few emails and he always personally responds.
Just FYI, I just got another email from Mike Harris with more info. The sale ends at Midnight (MST) on January 1st. I wish I would have noticed this sale on December 23 so I could have given you guys an earlier heads up.
Mike is located in Canada but the product ships from NY, USA. So, it ships free in USA, but I think it must ship free to Canada as well. They seem to cater to Apple products, these products are ready to ship. But they will custom make a hood for Android as well. It takes about a month for custom orders. I believe they charge the same low price for custom orders. The product is made from some stiff material (maybe plastic) that appears to be covered in a vinyl or faux leather. There are magnets in various locations throughout the design that allow for quick assembly and hold it together very well. I very clever design. I'm sure some of you will be concerned about interference from the magnets. That should not be a concern. There are already lots of magnets located in the iPad itself. Also, other hood manufacturers such as those sold by aerialdroneaccessories.com use magnets in their design and have not had any problems. Anyway, Mike liked the product so much for his own personal and commercial use that he became a distributor. I can't wait to get mine!
EDIT: The prices on the website were not changed to reflect the sale. You get 50% off whatever price you see on the website.
Sure they do. As I said above, "they will custom make a hood for android as well." Just ask them to make one for the nvidia shield. Done. It does take about a month for custom orders.