GEAR BUYERS’ GUIDE
BIRDDOG X5 ULTRA £2760/$2995 birddog.tv
BIRDDOG KBD CONTROLLER £1318/$1295 birddog.tv
BIRDDOG XL ULTRA £6839/$6995 birddog.tv
The Birddog X5 Ultra uses Sony’s latest image sensor, paired with advanced AI- assisted autofocus and subject detection to keep shots sharp in busy environments. The X5 Ultra supports NDI HX3, SRT, USB webcam and traditional broadcast connections, so it’s good for live sports, corporate events and hybrid workflows. Its new motor drive system allows ultra-smooth and precise pan, tilt and zoom movements, while the large daylight-visible tally system ensures clear on-set communication. It also includes dual e-ink displays for easy identification and maintenance, built- in NDI decoding and
Birddog’s next-generation KBD Controller has a rugged, ergonomic build and a large screen displaying up to four cameras. A streamlined menu offers access to essentials like camera pairing, while its built-in tally display integrates with mixers like TriCaster or vMix, showing the live camera right on the keyboard. With tactile feedback for camera switching, it’s intuitive and easy for extended use. It adapts to set-ups with NDI, Visca, Onvif, RS-232 and RS-422 connectivity. Advancements include easier access, configuration and joystick calibration. The large screen lets you monitor up to four cameras at the same time or focus on one in full screen mode. In one new useful feature, you can set up one camera and instantly copy those settings to another Birddog X cam.
The brand- new Birddog XL Ultra blends the
flexibility of robotic control with the image quality of large-sensor cinema systems. At its heart is a 4/3in CMOS sensor, supported by a 20x optical zoom. A secondary 1/1.8in panoramic sensor built into the base offers simultaneous wide- angle coverage, effectively giving operators two cameras in one. Designed for high-end broadcast, studios and virtual production, the XL Ultra offers dual 4K/60p outputs with simultaneous NDI streaming. Advanced AI tracking makes sure subjects are framed naturally. Built-in ND filters, genlock and timecode support and an optical low-pass filter (OLPF) solidifies its professional pedigree.
compatibility with Birddog’s suite of apps and cloud services. With intuitive controls
and extensive protocol support, the X5 Ultra is ideal for demanding, high-end productions.
CANON CR-N700 £8749/$8749 canon.co.uk
LUMENS VC-TR60A £1896/$1999 mylumens.com
Canon’s CR-N700 has just won the Pro Moviemaker Gear of the Year award for best PTZ because it’s a camera designed for broadcast and live events, bringing high- end features to a compact body. It records UHD 4K/60p in 4:2:2 10-bit HDR, offering an easy HDR workflow. At its core is a one-inch CMOS sensor with 8.29 megapixels, paired with the powerful Digic DV7 processor, while built-in ND filters provide extra flexibility in changing light conditions. A major highlight
The Lumens VC-TR60A uses dual lenses and voice-tracking technology to automatically follow the speaker around the room. An array of directional sound sensors detects active voices, guiding the robotic zoom head to frame the current speaker and smoothly adjust as others join the conversation. The camera supports a reference audio input via USB or line-in, ensuring reliable voice tracking. It can combine the outputs of its two lenses into a picture-in-picture feed, delivering a wide-angle view and a close-up simultaneously over HDMI and USB. Also, it outputs two
CANON RC-IP1000 PTZ £4674/$5549 canon.co.uk
Canon’s RC-IP1000 is the brand’s chief PTZ controller, compatible with all of Canon’s high-end PTZ models and built for professional broadcast environments. Supporting both IP and serial communication, it enables remote access and control of up to 200 cameras. A seven-inch LCD touchscreen provides input monitoring and live viewing, with the ability to display up to nine camera feeds simultaneously. Connectivity includes HDMI out, 12G-SDI in/out, Serial RJ45, LAN/PoE+, two USB ports and dual GPIO D-Sub. The ergonomic joystick provides fine-tuned pan, tilt and zoom, with a customisable button on top. Operators also get 42 buttons and 14 dials for quick access to key functions such as iris, gamma, white- balance and focus.
is the renowned Dual Pixel CMOS AF with EOS iTR AF X, ensuring reliable focus even with moving subjects. The 15x optical zoom can be extended to
video streams, one panoramic and one from the robotic head into IP-based production software,
20x digitally, or up to 30x in HD using Advanced Zoom.
giving producers flexible options for events or broadcast environments.
Connectivity is future-ready, with 12G-SDI alongside support for SRT, NDI HX and FreeD protocols.
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PRO MOVIEMAKER
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