This is a review of the Cactus V2 Remote Triggers from GadgetInfinity.com.

If you are in the market for a wireless remote trigger for your camera, I am sure you have heard about the Pocket Wizard as the defacto tool that every professional photographer usually uses. You have probably heard of the cheap Ebay triggers as well since they cost a lot less and work almost the same. The Cactus V2 is another alternative similar to the Ebay triggers but is sold through a website called GadgetInfinity. This version resolves some of the incompatibilities that version 1 had with certain flash units. I have tried the V1 version Ebay triggers with my Canon Speedlite 430EX and it definitely does not work. The Cactus V2 works a lot better than the V1 with the Canon 430EX but it still has misfires every so often. They also tend to happen when you are setting up so it gets quite annoying. Once you start shooting, however they work a lot better. If you set up multiple lights and the lights will not get triggered 100% everytime but its not too bad.

The standard set comes with one receiver and one trigger and there are four channels that you can set them to. The trigger is mounted on the hot shoe of your camera where the external flash is usually mounted. The receiver can be be used with the external flash or any other light unit either with a PC cord or hot shoe. I have tried the receivers on a Canon 430EX, 580EX and Alien Bee lights as well and it seems to work fine. The set of one trigger and one receiver from GadgetInfinity is currently $32.95 and additional receviers cost either $16.95 or $19.95 depending on which version you get as the older V2 Receiver works fine with Canon Speedlites 580EX and 430EX but the newer version is compatible with more flash units. The V2 set comes with the newer V2 receiver. If you are shooting for money, then they might not be the best solution but for the typical hobbyist, they are a good deal. You can read more about the V2 and purchase it here.

Compatible models:

• Canon SpeedLite 580EX II, 580EX, 550EX, 540EZ, 520EZ, 430EX, 430EZ, 420EX, 420EZ, 380EX;
• Nikon SpeedLite SB-800, SB-600, SB-28, SB-27, SB-26, SB-25, SB-24;
• Olympus FL-50, FL-40, FL-36;
• Pentax AF-540 FGZ, AF-360 FGZ, AF-400 FT, AF-240 FT;
• Sigma EF-500 DG Super, EF-430;
• Sunpak Auto 2000DZ, 622 Pro, 433AF, 433D, 383, 355AFm 344D, 333D;
• Vivitar 285HV (Older Vivitar 285/283 works only with PC sync);
• Other flash models with a trigger voltage of 12V or lower;
• Does not work with V1 receivers or 16-channel trigger receivers