NAB 2014 roundup: Thunderbolt 2 accessories, DJI Phantom 2 Vision+, 4K video
This week is the annual National Association of Broadcasters show, where a number of Mac and iOS compatible products geared toward professionals have been unveiled, including new Thunderbolt 2 accessories, an upgraded DJI Phantom 2 Vision+ flying camera drone, and a plethora of 4K video recording and playing devices.
LaCie this week unveiled new storage options compatible with Thunderbolt 2, the input/output specification designed by Intel and Apple and featured on all of the latest Macs. Most notably, the new LaCie 8big Rack boasts up to 48 terabytes of storage on eight hard drives, geared for professionals who need capacity when shooting and editing high-resolution 4K video.
Joining that were also the LaCie 5big and 2big Thunderbolt 2 racks. All three products are scheduled to become available this quarter, and pricing has yet to be announced.
Other World Computing has also debuted its new Mercury Elite Pro Dual external Thunderbolt drive with RAID capabilities. Its two-bay design allows up to 8 terabytes of total storage.
Six prosumer models of the OWC Mercury Elite Pro Dual are available, starting at $299.99 for an empty enclosure kit, and extending to $759.99 with 8 terabytes.
Also unveiled this week is the new Elgato Thunderbolt Dock, which allows users to plug in a display, speakers, hard drives and more with a single Thunderbolt cable. It sports three USB 3.0 ports, two Thunderbolt ports, an HDMI port, gigabit Ethernet, and audio in/out.
A version of the Elgato Thunderbolt Dock without a Thunderbolt cable retails for $199.95, while the version with a cable is now available for $229.95.
Finally, HighPoint Technologies also announced a new Thunderbolt 2 storage adapter, the RocketStor 6328L. The eight-channel SATA adapter is claimed to be "the industry's most affordable," supporting any industry standard Mini-SAS and eSATA storage enclosure, including those with integrated RAID capability.
Pricing and availability are yet to be announced, but HighPoint has said the RocketStor 6328L will debut in the second quarter of 2014.
Also this week, Intel unveiled new 10-gigabit Ethernet Thunderbolt Networking, allowing direct peer-to-peer connections between both Mac and PC for quick, huge file transfers. Users with Thunderbolt 2-equipped Macs running the latest version of OS X Mavericks can already take advantage of the feature.
The upgraded Phantom 2 also has a new Wi-Fi module that DJI says can fly up to 2,300 feet without losing connection. The additional distance will come in handy with enhanced speed on the Vision+, which can now fly at up to 50 feet per second.
Even with the upgrades, DJI says the new Phantom 2 Vision+ offers up to 25 minutes of flight time on a single charge. It's available now for $1,299 from reseller partners Amazon and B&H Photo.
AppleInsider took a look at the Phantom 2 Vision earlier this year and found that the high-end iPhone-compatible flying camera justified its price tag as a fun, easy-to-fly drone that's capable of capturing spectacular pictures from impressive heights. That model remains available for $1,179, and comes with an extra battery --?a $160 value.
Recording 4K video on the A7S requires the camera be connected to an external recorder via HDMI, while 1080p video can be stored internally.
Sony has also boasted that its new A7S has a sensitivity range of ISO 50 to 40960, which allows for shooting 4K video in nearly complete darkness. Pricing and availability for the Sony A7S are not yet available.
For watching 4K video, Panasonic this week announced two new massive displays capable of displaying ultra-high-resolution content: the 84-inch TH-84LQ70, and the 98-inch TH-98LQ70. These large-format LED displays with native resolutions of 3,840 by 2,160 pixels are intended for broadcast production, digital signage, control rooms, and other professional applications. Both are scheduled to ship this September.
Blackmagic has also announced its new Design Studio Camera 4K, offering recording resolutions up to 3,840 by 2,160. It also includes a 10-inch LCD and a built-in 4-hour battery and will ship in June for $2,995. An HD-only version that maxes out at 1080p 60 frames per second is currently available for $1,995.
Fleshing out its 4K video options, Blackmagic has also announced the ATEM 2 M/E Production Studio 4K ($3,995), a series of 4K video converters that retail for $295, and the new DeckLink 4K PCI Express capture cards, priced at for $295 and $595.
Thunderbolt 2 announcements
LaCie this week unveiled new storage options compatible with Thunderbolt 2, the input/output specification designed by Intel and Apple and featured on all of the latest Macs. Most notably, the new LaCie 8big Rack boasts up to 48 terabytes of storage on eight hard drives, geared for professionals who need capacity when shooting and editing high-resolution 4K video.
Joining that were also the LaCie 5big and 2big Thunderbolt 2 racks. All three products are scheduled to become available this quarter, and pricing has yet to be announced.
Other World Computing has also debuted its new Mercury Elite Pro Dual external Thunderbolt drive with RAID capabilities. Its two-bay design allows up to 8 terabytes of total storage.
Six prosumer models of the OWC Mercury Elite Pro Dual are available, starting at $299.99 for an empty enclosure kit, and extending to $759.99 with 8 terabytes.
Also unveiled this week is the new Elgato Thunderbolt Dock, which allows users to plug in a display, speakers, hard drives and more with a single Thunderbolt cable. It sports three USB 3.0 ports, two Thunderbolt ports, an HDMI port, gigabit Ethernet, and audio in/out.
A version of the Elgato Thunderbolt Dock without a Thunderbolt cable retails for $199.95, while the version with a cable is now available for $229.95.
Finally, HighPoint Technologies also announced a new Thunderbolt 2 storage adapter, the RocketStor 6328L. The eight-channel SATA adapter is claimed to be "the industry's most affordable," supporting any industry standard Mini-SAS and eSATA storage enclosure, including those with integrated RAID capability.
Pricing and availability are yet to be announced, but HighPoint has said the RocketStor 6328L will debut in the second quarter of 2014.
Also this week, Intel unveiled new 10-gigabit Ethernet Thunderbolt Networking, allowing direct peer-to-peer connections between both Mac and PC for quick, huge file transfers. Users with Thunderbolt 2-equipped Macs running the latest version of OS X Mavericks can already take advantage of the feature.
DJI Phantom 2 Vision+
The latest high-end flying drone from DJI, dubbed the Phantom 2 Vision+, boasts a redesigned three-axis camera gimbal that compensates for motion, allowing for even smoother aerial photography.The upgraded Phantom 2 also has a new Wi-Fi module that DJI says can fly up to 2,300 feet without losing connection. The additional distance will come in handy with enhanced speed on the Vision+, which can now fly at up to 50 feet per second.
Even with the upgrades, DJI says the new Phantom 2 Vision+ offers up to 25 minutes of flight time on a single charge. It's available now for $1,299 from reseller partners Amazon and B&H Photo.
AppleInsider took a look at the Phantom 2 Vision earlier this year and found that the high-end iPhone-compatible flying camera justified its price tag as a fun, easy-to-fly drone that's capable of capturing spectacular pictures from impressive heights. That model remains available for $1,179, and comes with an extra battery --?a $160 value.
4K galore
A common theme among new products unveiled at NAB this week is ultra-high-resolution 4K video. Leading the pack was Sony, which revealed its new A7S mirrorless camera, boasting a full-frame 12-megapixel sensor and 4K-video-capable camera.Recording 4K video on the A7S requires the camera be connected to an external recorder via HDMI, while 1080p video can be stored internally.
Sony has also boasted that its new A7S has a sensitivity range of ISO 50 to 40960, which allows for shooting 4K video in nearly complete darkness. Pricing and availability for the Sony A7S are not yet available.
For watching 4K video, Panasonic this week announced two new massive displays capable of displaying ultra-high-resolution content: the 84-inch TH-84LQ70, and the 98-inch TH-98LQ70. These large-format LED displays with native resolutions of 3,840 by 2,160 pixels are intended for broadcast production, digital signage, control rooms, and other professional applications. Both are scheduled to ship this September.
Blackmagic has also announced its new Design Studio Camera 4K, offering recording resolutions up to 3,840 by 2,160. It also includes a 10-inch LCD and a built-in 4-hour battery and will ship in June for $2,995. An HD-only version that maxes out at 1080p 60 frames per second is currently available for $1,995.
Fleshing out its 4K video options, Blackmagic has also announced the ATEM 2 M/E Production Studio 4K ($3,995), a series of 4K video converters that retail for $295, and the new DeckLink 4K PCI Express capture cards, priced at for $295 and $595.
Comments
I'd love for Apple to buy Blackmagic and ship DaVinci Resolve as part of FCPX and start from scratch with that team and come up with just the best beginners cinema camera you could imaging that would be built from the ground up to work with FCPX, with an Apple level of simplicity and fit and finish. After recently getting into filmmaking it strikes me that this industry is in dire need of help. It's a mess and all you get is 1000 conflicting opinions. They could revolutionise filmmaking and sell a bunch of high end Macs and Mac Pros in the process. So they'd change the world and make money. A win win. A little pipe dream of mine.
And you could bet your bottom dollar they'd have a really cool section for their online store dedicated to the best third party equipment and lenses money you could buy. This camera would have amazing software, would work seamlessly, would have loads of nice hardware touches with great dials that would be addictively clickable.
@Suddenly Newton love your signature.
http://www.caldigit.com/thunderboltstation/
disappointed that next gen gaming consoles are barely able to support 1080p...when 4K is beginning to roll out.
Sweet! We're still in the early days of 4K, but the Blackmagic Studio looks pretty good if it is a complete 4K capture solution (with lens, & ProRes encoder, and 10" monitor) for $2995.
no lens
Sweet! We're still in the early days of 4K, but the Blackmagic Studio looks pretty good if it is a complete 4K capture solution (with lens, & ProRes encoder, and 10" monitor) for $2995. I think the pricing of the Sony a7s was $1700, but you still need an external 4K encoder, which is around $2000.
Probably looking at about $5K for the Sony with lens and recorder for 4K, at least that was an estimate from the guy who did the demo video. That might mean a body price of around $2000 depending on what lens he was thinking of. The $1700 price was leaked early but I think it has been pull back from. The HD from the A7s is also going to be very good, the guy who did the 4K video also did one in HD in very low light conditions at high ISO settings and it looked very good. Even in the 4K temple shot at ISO 12,400 there was just a slight hint of noise, very nice.
This was just a "we still have a camera division" announcement at the convention, there is supposed to be a lot more stuff released by Sony in early May.
Thanks
I think The BMPCC is already close to the ideal beginner's cinema camera. It already records ProRes 422 internally without requiring extra equipment and has adapters for just about any kind of lens mount out there. And it's not terribly expensive for the body. I am not sure how Apple would improve on it.
The BMPCC is kind of in an interesting category by itself. Affordable and ideal for small or one-man productions who would otherwise use pro video cameras for their projects. Above it are cinema cameras used by the industry (Reds, Arris and F55s), where beginners would gain experience by working under a DP on real projects as ACs, then work their way up. They aren't self-taught, but instead learn their craft hands on, it doesn't matter how complex those cameras are. Below that are the "consumer" grade cameras that emphasize simplicity over control. I'm guessing Apple wants to continue making consumer cameras like the iPhone.
As for integrating Resolve into FCPX, I guess it would make sense for a small production house where cost matters, and your editor and colorist are the same person. For industry work, it is not uncommon to have the editor and colorist be different people.
I remember over 18 months ago being looked in the eye by a Blackmagic rep, and being told something along these lines with regards to the Cinema 4k camera.
They promise the same for the just-announced URSA EF camera, but given their track record, I'll believe it when I see it.
I love Blackmagic's solutions, but they need to be realistic about availability dates -- by not setting them.
This type of camera helps to take images from unique points.
For more info : ( http://www.smifu.com/dji-phantom-quadcopter-gopro-her-mount.html )
I get your enthusiasm for everything Apple and all-in-one devices, but this is another case as with your AppleTV wishes that is best left to specialty companies integrating and innovating on their own and at their own pace, but with Apple devices and technologies in the forefront of their endeavors.
I agree
10%(oops!) 100% with <a data-huddler-embed="href" href="/u/76738/Suddenly-Newton" style="display:inline-block;">@Suddenly Newton</a> on this topic...as well as his signature :smokey: