A year ago, after a successful Kickstarter campaign the first GNARBOXes arrived, and now, 12 months later, the GNARBOX 2.0 SSD hits Kickstarter. Based on user feedback and new in almost every way. In order to bring you up to speed with the GNARBOX 2.0, please make sure to read our initial coverage of the original version of this versatile backup solution. No laptop or phone are required in order to backup like a champ, although with this version 2.0 a smartphone or tablet is strongly recommended. GNARBOX 2.0 The original GNARBOX (please forgive the capital letters… I didn’t came up with that name) was very successful on Kickstarter. But the guys behind it had some troubles once the campaign was over. The creators put it like this: If you were a part of the Kickstarter for GNARBOX 1.0, you know that we encountered significant delays in the design and manufacturing process. The longest delay was a result of our change in the box’s CPU. Over the last 9 months, we’ve vetted possible CPU’s and architectures, ultimately selecting one that meets all of our requirements. We have a clear path to market after working with Intel over the past 3 years, and expect no delays. So that’s good. And without further ado, let us dive into the features and improvements of the brand-new GNARBOX 2.0: At its core it’s still a portable and very versatile, bespoke backup device. It comes in different capacities (128GB, 256GB, 512GB, and 1TB) and will let you backup your valuable footage with ease – and without the need to bring a dedicated laptop for that job. It offers checksum verification and in contrast to the original version it sports an OLED screen. To me, a visual feedback on what’s going on is a very welcomed feature. The GNARBOX 2.0 creates an ad-hoc wifi network to which you can connect with your smartphone or tablet. It also offers two USB-C connectors, a SD card reader & a micro HDMI port. The replaceable (!) Li-Ion battery is rated 3200mAh / 7.4v which lasts for about 5 hours of backuping or 3 hours worth of editing. Editing? Yes, we’ll come to that. The unit itself is rated IP76 which means it’s protected from dust and capable of withstanding water immersion between 15 cm and 1 meter for 30 minutes. A rugged device is a good device when you’re working in the field – and that’s exactly what the GNARBOX 2.0 is made for. The built-in SD card reader transfers your files at 75 MB/s while any card reader fast enough transfers your footage at 450 MB/s via USB-C. The unit itself is driven by a 2.40 GHz Intel Quad Core CPU and a 4-core Intel HD Graphics GPU. 802.11 ac/b/g/n wifi ensures swift connections over the air. Different Apps for Different Jobs The GNARBOX 2.0 is more than one device. Depending on your given job it can adapt to that workflow. The most basic task doesn’t need an app, though: Back up your footage with just the press of a button, complete with checksum verification and visual feedback. For all other, more fancy, workflows: there’s an app for that: Safekeep: With safekeep you can move files across cards, your GNARBOX, hard drives and RAIDs in an easy-to-use interface. Organize your files and folders, rename them or automatically sync them to Dropbox once you have internet access via wifi once you’re back in civilization. The idea here is that you don’t need to bring a laptop but your footage is ready when your home to start working right away. Selects: This one is for photographers. You can quickly preview RAW images while still in the field. This app also provides tools for a quick and basic color correction. A 5-star rating can be applied for pre-selecting good shots. Sequences: Video guys should take a closer look at this app. After offloading your footage to the GNARBOX 2.0, you can review high resolution footage and render into editing formats such as ProRes. Trimming clips, organizeing shots into bins and throwing together a rough-cut is also possible. Once your done you can export any sequence created in the field to Adobe Premiere or Final Cut Pro via XML. Again, no laptop needed here but once you’re back home you can start working on that rough-cut straight away. Showcase: This app is not really meant to be used in the field but once you’re near a giant LCD screen, it could be very handy. This app lets you view your photos or videos on any monitor or television using the microHDMI port. Using your phone or tablet connected to the GNARBOX 2.0 via ad-hoc wifi, it’s easy to navigate the files using thumbnail collections. All files play back in real time. Watch this video for a full 27-minute rundown of all the features of the new GNARBOX 2.0: It is a very versatile little box, indeed. One of the best things is the user-replacable Li-Ion battery which ensures uptime when you need it. Neat! Pricing and Availability I can’t stress this enough: Kickstarter is not a marketplace. It is a place where you can invest into future products which you’ll get at a discounted price in return. These products might or might not see the light of day. Since the guys behind the GNARBOX 2.0 have done it before and they most likely have learned a lot during their original campaign, chances are pretty good to see the GNARBOX 2.0 by the end of 2018. Kickstarter timeline The GNARBOX 2.0 comes in 4 different cpacities which sell (as in: invest) for $299 (128GB), $379 (256GB), $449 (512GB) and $699 (1TB). Each model comes with a spare Li-Ion battery, a wall charger and a charging cable. The campaing still runs until June 2nd and it’s already funded by over 800%. Links: Kickstarter.com What do you think? Is this the device you want to use when you’re working in the field and don’t want to bring your laptop? Share your thoughts in the comments below!

As a manufacturer of camera accessories, coming up with clever ideas that make camera operator lives a little easier  the best thing you can do. And it seems like this is exactly what the 8Sinn Monitor Holder is all about. It seems to be the golden age of monitor/recorders once again. External recorders are becoming the weapon of choice for many indie shooters because they’re capable of unlocking the full potential of modern video cameras, not only since the announcement of ProRes RAW. But how to mount such a device to your camera effectively? Monitor holders can be cumbersome, but this one seems to fit the bill. The 8Sinn Monitor Holder is actually quite simple, yet very handy. It cosists of two arms, a tool-free 1/4“ screw and a mounting thumb screw. The arm mounting to the monitor/recorder rotates 180 degrees. The 8Sinn Monitor Holder is designed to be mounted to the camera itself via a standard NATO rail. That way it’s very versatile and you can attach or detach it very quickly to your rig. The whole thing is made of aluminum alloy which is sturdy and lightweight. To me, this a very handy device which renders weird magic arm constructions obsolete while maintaining a small footprint on your rig. Since the 8Sinn Monitor Holder is such a straightforward accessory it seems almost to be a no brainer to me. You have to make sure that your rig offers the necessary space for it, of course. But since NATO rails are a quite common way of attaching things to a camera cage, you‘ll probably have some of these already attached to your rig anyways. The 8Sinn Monitor Holder is scheduled for delivery now. There are two options to purchase this little device. Either with 60mm NATO rail ($95) or without it ($79). So, if you already have some NATO rails you can save the extra $16. Links: 8Sinn.com Are you tired of wobbly magic arm mountings? What do you think of this handy little helper? Let us know in the comments below!

If you’re a traveling filmmaker, the new Manfrotto Befree Live tripod is well worth a closer look! At NAB 2018 we met Valentina from Manfrotto and she explains everything new about this carbon fiber version of the original Befree tripod. The Live version of the new Manftrotto Befree tripod sports a fluid head so it’s clearly aimed for travelling videographers. Although it’s super compact it can hold up to 4kg (8.8 lbs) and since its lages are made of carbon fibre the Manfrotto Befree is lightweight and sturdy. Manfrotto Befree Live Tripod We’ve already reported about the original Befree tripod here. Now, here at NAB 2018, Manfrotto has some news to share reagarding this lightweight and compact line of tripods. While the standard Befree comes with a ball head for still photography, the Live version is equipped with a tiny, yet pretty impressive, fluid head which can hold (and balance) cameras up to 4kg. All the basic features of a proper fluid head are there: a long plate for balancing the weight of the camera, a levelling column and adjustable dampening for both the pan and the tilt axis. The legs are now made of carbon fiber instead of alluminum. This makes the Manfrotto Befree even more lightweight in comparison to its predecessor. The legs fold up so that the head sits between them so the whole thing is only about 40 cm (15.7 inches) when folded up. Pricing and Availability The new Manfrotto Befree Live tripod, now in carbon fiber, is $349 and it will be available from the end of May this year. That’s about $100 more expensive than the aluminum version of the Befree Live, but the carbon fiber legs could be worth this premium if you’re looking for a really light and sturdy travel tripod. What do you think of this upgrade? Do you already use a Befree tripod on your tavels? Share your thoughts in the comments below!

US based Wooden Camera, member of Vitec Group, has released yet another useful product to their already impressive lineup: The Zip Focus. It’s a straightforward single rod follow focus for both, 15mm and 19mm rods. Ryan Schorman walks us through it and also explains their Push Button Rosettes and a brand new PL mount for the Canon C200. This new, one-sided follow focus is easy to attach, easy to align and has some handy extra features. It’s available for 15mm lightweight rods and for 15mm studio / 19mm rods. We’ve already covered the Push Button Rosettes in this article. Wooden Camera Zip Focus When travelling light, you don’t want to burden yourself with unnecessary extra bulk. Modularity and ease of use is key here. The Zip Focus is such a device. it’s pretty simple on first sight but it comes with some clever features while only taking very little room in your bag. The Zip Focus comes in two models, which are basically the same but with different mounting adapters. One version attaches to your 15mm lightweight support rods, the other to 19mm (or 15mm studio) rods. The 15mm lightweight version is the one you’ll most likely want, simply because a tiny single rod lightweight follow focus makes so much more sense on a lightweight rig instead of being attached to a giant 19mm studio camera package. But it’s still nice to see that the Zip Focus system cater for all your needs. The 15mm LW (left) and the 19mm model of the Zip Focus (right). The Zip Focus comes with two standard marking disks, a hard stop marking disk, a 0.8 gear with 35 tooth and a handy friction gear for photo lenses that don’t have gears on them. No need for extra clip-on gear belts, very neat! The 19mm model comes with an additional 15mm bushing to attach it to 15mm studio rods. The whole system is easy to use and pretty much self-explanatory, really. It attaches to your rod and offers two points of rotation. One on the rod itself and another one between the rod adapter and the gear box. With these adjustable joints you can easily align the unit to your given lens. The gear ratio is set to 1:1 and you can attach a whip or a crank to the Zip Focus, too. In order to work flawlessly with modern photo lenses (which do not offer hard stops) you should use the provided hard stop marking disk. Unlike other solutions on the market, the hard stops are not part of the Zip Focus itself, but of the dedicated marking disc. Pricing and Availability Both models of the Zip Focus are $499. The 15mm LWS version weighs 352g (0.78 lbs), the 19mm/15mm studio version weighs 368g (0.81 lbs). A set of 4 Push Button ARRi Rosettes (two left, two right). The Zip Focus is very compact, measuring only 101.6 x 88.9 x 127 mm ( 4 x 3.5 x 5 in) for the 15mm LWS version and 101.6 x 88.9 x 139.7 mm ( 4 x 3.5 x 5.5 in) for the 19mm/15mm studio version. Both models are available now. The push button ARRI rosettes come in left and right variants and you can purchase them individually, in a set of two (left, right) or set of four (2 left, 2 right). One rosette is $85, the set of two is $160 and the quadruplet is $299. Wooden Camera PL mount on a Canon C200. The PL modification Kit for the Canon C200 is $499. The whole process can be done at home, no need to send the camera in. Furthermore it’s reversible so your warrenty is not in danger here (but it can’t hurt to doublecheck with Canon). Links: Wooden Camera What do you think about this new compact follow focus? Let us know in the comments below!

We’ve already covered the frshly announced Ikan PIVOT 3-axis gimbal in this article. Now, at NAB 2018 in Las Vegas we had the chance to take a closer look at it. Natalie Cheng from Ikan walked us through this little, yet powerful, gimbal. This little guy can hold (and operate) cameras with a weight of up to 8lbs (3,63kg)! Since that’s gonna be quite tough to hold, you can get order a additional dual handgrip as an accessory. Ikan PIVOT 3-Axis Gimbal The market for handheld 3-axis gimbal systems gets quite crowded these days. Manufacturers need to have some nice trick up their sleeves in order to attrackt potential customers. In Ikan’s case it is the high maximum payload of the Ikan PIVOT gimbal. It can hold up to 8lbs. As you can see in the vdeo above they’ve managed to operate a Canon C200 with it. Since this camera weights 3.2lbs (1,5 kg) you should be able to add a lens, a baseplate, some 15mm rods and even a wireless focus of some kind. Very neat! The gimbal itself comes as a classic gimbal-on-a-stick with an angled roll axis in order to preserve a plain view on the back of the camera. Since this gimbal is meant to be used with small mirrorless cameras as well as DSLRs and even bigger cameras, such as the Canon C200, this concept might get pretty fatiguing pretty quickly. In order to distribute the weight a little more evenly, you can get the optional DGH dual grip handle from Ikan. Ikan PIVOT gimgal with attached dual grip handle. This grip handle comes with two little feet which provide a safe stand for your whole gimbal setup. For controlling the device you can download an app from the app store or the Google play store. With this app you can adjust all settings, e.g. the motor controls, comfortably from your smartphone. Pricing and Availability The Ikan PIVOT is available now and it costs around $750. Natalie reports that they just ran out of inventory but more PIVOTs are heading their way already so these should be available really soon. This gimbal seems to be a very interesting device for indie filmmakers. A compact but very powerful handheld gimbal that even holds a camera in the league of a C200 or similarly sized camera? Pretty cool! Links: Ikancorp.com Do you think this could be a good addition to your gear bag? Share your thoughts in the comments below!

We’ve already seen lots of very interesting new tech, software and bright ideas here at NAB 2018. But the new initiative by Tilta, called Tiltaing, might become a whole new host of bright ideas on its own. Let Tilta’s CEO Yang Shao walk you through this “crownfunding website for product ideas”. It’s not quite ready but the website Tiltaing.com is about to launch officially on May, 1st. Tiltaing by Tilta Let’s do a guided meditation, shall we? Imagine one of your usual work days as a filmmaker. Maybe something you’ve done numerous times before. Repetitive, so to say. But wait, what’s that? Every single time you’re HDMI cable breaks just before the actual shoot. Or you constantly (but accidentally, of course) bring empty batteries to the set. Or you’re tired of repeating the same lens-calibrating procedure every time you swap out lenses with your wireless focus control. The possibility of bugging little bits and bobs are literally endless. Tiltaing takes aim to tackle these everyday problems. With your help! And what about the big ideas? Motion-control wizardry! Hovering zero-gravity tripods! 4K RAW recorders the size of a matchbox with a 15-hour battery life! Again, Tiltaing is here to help and again, it needs your help! Tilta will put up to $10,000,000 into this. Here’s the deal to put this pile of money to work: 1) Enter your idea for a product. 2) Get a deal with Tilta. 3) Negotiate the terms. You’ll get up to 50% of the revenue if your idea is great, unique and, most importantly, complete. The more details you can provide in the first place, the better. When your idea for a cool gadget gets green light you now can access Tilta’s vast experience and supplier network in order to make your dream product a reality. The finalized product will be sold through Tiltaing.com directly as well as the established Tilta dealer network all over the planet. Sounds neat? I think, it actually is neat! The idea, at least, is great. It sounds like a potential win-win for both, Tilta and the filmmmaking community. Let’s see how this goes and if Tiltaing will flourish down the line. If yes, it can be a great resource for products sourced from real first-hand experiences (or maybe frustrations). Availability According to Tilta, the domain Tiltaing.com will officially launch on May, 1st. At the time of writing the site is already online, but there’s not much to do, yet. So make sure to check back on May, 1st! I think this is a cool idea and I really hope that some really neat products will come to life this way. Maybe something which you can’t find either on Kickstarter nor at your favorite retailer. Something.. new! The revenue system is still a little shady, though. No further information on patents, intellectual property and the like. I guess we’ll find out in a couple of days. Until then: Pen down your ideas and make sure they are as deatiled as possible. Up to 50% revenue, remember? Links: Website | Tilta.com Do you already have some great ideas for future gadgets? Share them in the comments below.. or don’t. Submit them on May 1st straight to Tiltaing.com! Share your thoughts about this new “service” below, instead!

If you’re already knee-deep into the Teradek ecosystem of wireless video devices, this is good news for you! Here at NAB 2018 we’ve caught up with Teradek’s Michael Galling and he runs us through all the features of the new Bolt XT and LT lines. The Bolt XT and Bolt LT are two completely new lines within the Bolt ecosystem of wireless video transmitters and receivers. However, the good news here is that both lines are compatible with all existing Bolt 3000, Bolt 1000 and Bolt 500 systems. Teradek Bolt XT & LT These two new lines of wireless transmitters and receivers actually have a lot in common, you could think of them as siblings. In this metaphor the Bolt LT would be the younger brother/sister whereas the Bolt XT would be the big girl/boy. Both share the exact same video transmitting performance but when it comes to features, the Bolt XT sports the full package while the Bolt LT focuses on just the essential functions. But because of that it’s more affordable, of course. The Bolt LT starts at around $1.500 which gets you both, the transmitter and the receiver. The transmitter offers video loop-through but tt’s HDMI only. For $500 more you’ll get the same version but with SDI ports for video input (plus loop-through) and output. The Bolt XT, however, gets you more features as well as more SDI/HDMI inputs outputs depending on the chosen model. It offers the same wirelsess transmission performance as the LT line, it’s really about flexibility in terms of video ports and more software features. The Bolt XT offers a 3D LUT engine, a manual frequency selection tool and a built-in 5Ghz spectrum analyzer. This will help a lot if you’re working on busy sets with a lot of interferences around or if you deploy multiple Teradek Bolts at the same time. Now it’ very easy to find the perfect frequency for each device so that nothing interferes with each other. The neat thing is that the unit outputs a visual feedback to a connected monitor. So you know exactly which channel is open and which is occupoied by another device. Furthermore, the Bolt XT line has dual video inputs (HDMI and SDI) on the transmitters plus SDI loop-through. On the receiving side the XT line offers dual SDI outputs plus HDMI out. The receivers have NATO rail mounting built-in and they now come with a 3/8″ mounting port for even more ruggedness. The transmitters got a 3/8″ ARRI pinlock mount. Both lines, the XT and the LT share one more cool feature: Pass-through power with integrated plates! Now you can mount the battery that fits your workflow best directly on to the back of the unit, no Lemo cables needed since the plates are wired directly to the Bolt LT or XT. Choose betwwen V-mount, Gold-mount, Sony-L or Canon LP-E6 battery plates. Neat! What’s Next? Michael sneak peaks a little into the future of wireless video solutions by Teradek and the obvious next step, besides of extended range, is 4K. Since this is 4 times the size of HD, wireless (and zero-delay) video transmission of 4K video is still a quite tricky thing to do. We’ll probably see this technology in a kind of bridge technology scenario first in which big 4K client monitors will be equipped with stationary 4K video receivers. Further down the line the technology will obviously evolve (and shrink in size) so we’ll see portable 4K transmitters and receivers. Pricing and Availabilty The Bolt LT series is priced as follows: Bolt 500 LT (HDMI) $1,490 / Bolt 500 LT (SDI) $1,990 / Bolt 1000 LT (SDI) $3,990. The Bolt XT line is more expensive, obviously, but also more feature-packed. Pricing is: Bolt 500 XT $2,490 / Bolt 1000 XT $4,990 / Bolt 3000 XT $9,990. Head over to Teradek.com for full specifications. Links: Teradek.com Do you use Teradek wireless video devices? What do you think of these new lines of Bolt transmitters and receivers? Share your thoughts in the comments below!

At this NAB show, we caught up with Atomos’ Jeromy Young and he walks us through the brand new ProRes RAW format and everything there is to know about it. Let’s dive right in! ProRes has always been the go-to standard (on a Mac, at least) when it comes to NLE-friendly postproduction workflows since it’s not only an aquisition codec but an intermediate and possibly a delivery codec as well. The all-new ProRes RAW is no exception, it’s RAW for the masses. Apple ProRes RAW Atomos and Apple have teamed up to develop this new format. It’s designed to simplify and streamline the sometimes cumberstone RAW workflow. Every camera manufacturer has its own RAW format and you’ll need to adapt to all kinds of workflows here. The only exception would be cinemaDNG here but that’s not a very NLE-friendly format, too. ProRes RAW, on the other hand, has usability right built-in. It is designed to cover everything from capturing straight to editing and grading. It gets you the usability of ProRes combined with the flexibility of RAW. But keep in mind: Only Apple FinalCut Pro X 10.4.1 supports this new format for the time being. Others will follow, that’s for sure. Sensor data processed in-camera. Video cameras normally process the RAW sensor data (individual sensels in a Bayer pattern) internally and create RGB video pixels which are then being compressed to the recording codec. The processing is baked in and can not be manipulated afterwards. The ProRes RAW workflow on the other hand takes all the RAW data and records it straight to the ProRes RAW format. This enables you to manipulate the demosaicing within FinalCut Pro X. Since the ProRes format is NLE-friendly, no additional rendering or transcoding is needed. You can start editing, grading and fine-tuning right away. ProRes RAW workflow. Two flavours of this new format are available: ProRes RAW could be seen as the equivalent to ProRes 422 HQ in terms of data rate. And then there is ProRes RAW HQ, which is the ProRes 4444 XQ of RAW. We’re looking at a compressed RAW format here and this actually makes a lot of sense. Uncompressed 12-Bit RAW will urge the need of bringing vast arrays of very fast SSDs to your shoots in order to keep up with the data rate. If you want to dig deeper in to the inner workings of ProRes RAW, this whitepaper (PDF) created by Apple might be worth a closer look. Atomos, Apple & DJI The more recent Atomos monitors/recorders have ProRes RAW support built-in already. You can download new firmware versions which enable the support for ProRes RAW for the Shogun Inferno and Sumo 19 monitors/recorders right now. You can download these here. These firmware updates enable you to record very high quality RAW data up to 12-Bit (depends on your cameras’ capabilities, of course) straight to ProRes RAW. Furthermore the freshly announced Atomos Ninja V is at least capable of recording ProRes RAW, too. It’s not licensed for that yet but I guess it’s only a matter of time (and a matter of cameras being able to output RAW over HDMI). A bunch of cinema cameras capable of outputting RAW data. Is yours among them? DJI have some updates ready for their X7 camera, too. You’ll need to wait just a littler for this, though. It should be ready in May this year. I’d say compressed and ready-to-edit RAW straight from a very portable drone camera sounds pretty impressive! All in all ProRes RAW could be the solution for others to follow. No more different proprietary RAW formats for each and every camera and no more ridiculously large file sizes with uncompressed RAW formats. Let’s see where this is leading us in terms of RAW and HDR workflows. Links: Apple whitepaper (PDF) | Atomos.com | DJI.com What do you think of this move by Apple? Does RAW finally become mainstream? Share your thoughts in the comments below!