Profoto’s new very compact 100Ws Profoto A2 Monolight strobe is about the size of a can of coke

Profoto has announced a new compact strobe. Designed for off-camera use, the Profoto A2 Monolight is a 100Ws strobe with a recycle time of 0.1-1.6 seconds. It’s a pretty tiny light, measuring in at 7.9cm in diameter and only 12.6cm long, meaning you can easily fit one or several of these into the lens slots of most camera bags.

The flash itself has a colour temperature of 5800K +/-100K with a t.1 flash duration of between 1/26,000 to 1/350 of a second. It also features a 2.1W modelling light at a more tungsten 3500K colour temp. As a portable strobe, it’s powered by a lithium-ion battery that promises 400 flashes on a full charge.

As with most wireless stuff these days, it operates on 2.4Ghz with up to 100 metres of range. Naturally, it’s compatible with Profoto’s AirX TTL wireless system and has a built-in receiver that’s compatible with Profoto Air, Ai TTL and Connect Pro remotes. It also features Bluetooth connectivity for use with your smartphone and the Profoto Camera app.

It features an easy-to-use display on the back end with large numbers, as we’ve come to expect from Profoto, and features a built-in reflector on the front to help create a more natural light spread with a smooth fall-off. That front end is also compatible with all of Profoto’s magnetic Clic modifiers for round head speedlights like the Profoto A1 and Profoto A10.

Surprisingly, perhaps, it’s actually a little cheaper than the Profoto A10. Of course, it doesn’t have to be able to pull double duty as both an on and off-camera flash. This one’s dedicated to being just off-camera. But being compatible with the same magnetic modifiers as the A10, it means Profoto can save a little money (not much) by having just a single A10 and a couple of these rather than a handful of A10s.

As I said, though, you’re not saving much. The Profoto A2 is available to buy now for $995 (the A10 is $1,049 – I told you it wasn’t much). You can find out more on the Profoto website.