18Apr SmallHD DP4 4 inch monitor.
SmallHD makes some great monitors, but their flagship model the DP6 is well over $900. So unless you do a lot of paid work, or have money to burn, the DP6 might be a little out of your price range. It seems SmallHD had this in mind when they announced the DP4.
The SmallHD DP4 is a 4.3 inch monitor with a resolution of 800×480, a 6 hour battery life (using 2 canon LP-E6 batteries), HDMI pass through, and all of the software features of the DP6 including focus assist and peaking. The $549 price tag still seems a little high, but a good field monitor is an investment and something that should out last your camera.
I’m not a big fan of EVF adapters, but for an extra $200 you can add a snap on viewfinder to the monitor if thats your thing. The option to use multiple battery types is a big plus and the HDMI pass through could be handy if you want to add an HDMI transmitter down stream.
SmallHD also seems to be taking a Jab at the Sony CLM-v55 for not having proper DSLR Scaling. This is one of the biggest complaints I’ve heard from people who bought the CLM-v55, but the Sony CLM-v55 has dropped down to $322 new. With the price drop of the CLM-v55 and the extra accessories (hood, hot shoe mount, and hdmi cable), Sony could still give the SmallHD DP4 a run for its money.
I have 3 completely usable Field monitors right now so I probably wont be upgrading, but either monitor could be a great buy if you have money in your budget for it.
April 18th, 2011 at 10:27 pm
Zacuto products are usually out of my price range, but after doing some reading and watching some videos of their EVF in action, I think it is worth saving the money and buying.
In one video they drop it from 12 feet TWICE, and it still functions properly. That was the least impressive of the little devices features. What do you think of it?
April 19th, 2011 at 6:05 am
The Zacuto monitor looks nice, but I’m not a huge fan of EVF adapters in general. Zacuto products are always made very well, and their prices reflect that. The SmallHD monitor is slightly larger with the same resolution and most of the same features. $125 more buys you a rugged case from Zacuto, if you need that feature then it’s worth it.
April 21st, 2011 at 8:12 am
I don’t regret my DP6 purchase near as much as I do my DP1x (now used as a client or director’s monitor). But with battery mounted, it’s more than I want to place hang off the hotshoe of my 5D2. I was doing a demo of the Okii FF with a 16×9 HDMI TV hooked up to the camera, and realized how much I appreciate the auto-scaling on the DP6, not to mention the resolution is astonishing for critical focus.