GEAR BUYERS’ GUIDE
SMALLHD ULTRA 5
£2586/$2199 smallhd.com
SmallHD’s Smart 5 series includes the Ultra 5, Cine 5 and Indie 5 displays, powered by PageOS 5 software toolkit that includes exposure assist functions, waveforms and false colour. The Ultra 5 touchscreen has front-facing buttons, great for control in cold weather while wearing gloves. The 440ppi screen has a brightness level of 3000 nits, and a resolution of 1920x1080 at 10-bit 4:2:2. Included are Rec. 709 colour processing, two 3G-SDI ports and two HDMI 2.0 sockets, plus an Ethernet port, a locking power connector and a locking five-pin USB for pro cine camera connections. Gold or V-Mount micro battery plates offer a compact power solution – or there’s a two-pin power cable. Pros: Bright, professional screen; great for outdoors Cons: No recording
PNBE 7IN MONITOR £179/$199 pnbe.org/monitors
that you have to solder up yourself, which is a bit unusual. The screen is a 1920x1080 IPS LCD panel with a contrast ratio of 1200:1 and viewing angle of 160°. You can change the colour temperature, HDR or gamma of the display, and the monitor takes up to two standard NP-F batteries. It does offer tools such as histogram, false colour, peaking, zebras and lots more – but no waveforms. And you can zoom in on the screen in 1.5, 2, 3 and 4x magnifications, uploading up to six 3D LUTs via a USB drive.
This PNBE is a seven-inch, LCD colour HDR monitor that’s bright, takes battery or mains power and is made in Europe. The young company offers field monitors in a range of sizes and specs, and we tried the seven-inch, 2000-nit, HDMI-only model. The low prices are because PNBE is a non- profit organisation of Italian and Spanish cinematographers that sells products to filmmakers at cost price. Coming included with the PNBE are a decent fitted carry case, proper instruction manual, coldshoe monitor mount, full-size to mini HDMI cable and 3.5mm jack cable
Pros: Bright screen, very affordable
Cons: No touchscreen, no recording
SWIT CM-55C £210/$285 proav.co.uk
audio meters, as well as focusing aids such as quick zoom-in and pan. At the rear is a battery slot that accepts both Sony NP-F and Canon LP-E6 batteries, while an onboard DC lets you run mains power via an adapter. A tilt arm bracket and sunhood are included. There’s a joystick to navigate menus and make setting changes, plus 3.5mm audio output and SD slot for firmware upgrades and 3D LUT uploads.
Sometimes a compact, lightweight, inexpensive 5.5in monitor is all you need. The Swit CM-55C is a Full HD, HDMI on- camera monitor with a display resolution of 1920x1080, contrast ratio of 1000:1, and brightness of 450 nits. Wide viewing angles of 178° make it very easy for multiple crew members to review footage at once, and the monitor’s HDMI input supports all the way up to UHD 4K/30p. The CM-55C features monitoring tools including histogram, false colour and
Pros: Small, light and well-priced
Cons: No touchscreen or recording
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