Seems like it's twist lock vs clip lock tripod to me, and also the plate itself. I have both twist lock (full size tripod) and clip lock (travel tripod) and from my user experience, to me I'll definitely go for twist lock with arca swiss plate option.

Operation - Prefer twist lock as it feels more natural to me to twist them. But one downside is you will not know if the legs have been properly locked. With some practice tho you will get the feel of it.

Time - Time needed to extend tripod should be more or less the same for twist lock and clip lock.

Cleaning - Twist lock since I can remove all the legs and clean them individually. For clip lock, all I can do is to spray them with water and hope for the best.

Attachment - Arca swiss type since it gives more flexibility. I use L plate for my camera so with arca swiss i can easily mount my camera on it. Not only that, if you have multiple arca swiss plate, you can still use them.

Feature - The Element seems to have more feature than the Befree. I have the Sirui version and really like it a lot. One of the best features to me is that I can remove the centre column and have the ball head attach directly to the tripod to give me more stability.

Btw, little bit out of topic, depends on where you travel and when you would like to use your tripod. If you plan to use it more in crowded area, can consider to get those super clamp, which is especially good in crowded area where you don't have the space. I have one and there are lots of shots that have been made possible with my clamp. And it is pretty light and compact compare to a tripod.

This post has been edited by Grajindo: May 29 2018, 02:28 PM