Blackmagic Design announced Blackmagic Video Assist 4K, a portable all in one professional monitor and video recorder that can be used to add professional recording and monitoring to any SDI or HDMI camera. They will be demonstrating it at NAB 2016.
Blackmagic Video Assist 4K features a bright, high resolution 7 inch monitor for checking focus and framing, two high speed recorders for non-stop HD and Ultra HD recording, two extremely high quality XLR microphone inputs for professional audio recording, a built in speaker, and more.
The Blackmagic Video Assist 4K is perfect for customers that need better monitoring and higher quality recording. It works with every type of camera from DSLRs to older tape based camcorders, and even the latest digital film cameras.
Blackmagic Video Assist 4K features two built in high speed UHS-II recorders that work with the latest high performance SD cards, making them fast enough to record Ultra HD video up to 2160p30 on widely available, inexpensive, SD cards. Files are saved as broadcast quality 10-bit 4:2:2 video in either ProRes or DNxHD formats, making them compatible with all popular editing software. You can start editing immediately without having to transcode or convert files.
Recording can be triggered to start and stop using LANC or over HDMI or SDI from the camera. With two built in recorders, customers get non-stop recording because when one card is full it automatically continues onto the next. The new high speed SD cards are compatible with existing SD card readers so they can be mounted directly on a computer for cloning and backup using the DaVinci Resolve software.
Blackmagic Video Assist 4K features two mini XLR inputs with 48V of phantom power so customers can attach external microphones. This totally eliminates the problems with auto gain controls on DSLR cameras. Sound is recorded into the same file as the audio, so customers don’t have to worry about AV sync between separate audio and video files.
The Blackmagic Video Assist 4K features a bright, 7 inch high resolution 1920 x 1200 monitor and touchscreen with a wide 135° viewing angle. The extra resolution of the screen lets customers view 16:9 sources and see critical status information without covering the image. The display is also a touchscreen that lets customers tap and swipe gestures to display camera information, change settings and evaluate audio and video levels.
For power, Blackmagic Video Assist 4K features two standard LP-E6 battery slot that allow hot swapping of batteries while in use, and it can be powered using the 12V DC input. The batteries are discharged serially, so only 1 is used at a time.
The Blackmagic Video Assist 4K is available now for US $895 and will be demonstrated at booth SL217 at NAB 2016.