New recorder Sidekick HD

[David Rogers]

Just saw the Sidekick HD. I like some of its features, small, runs on V-mount or AB, uses SSD drives and has a built in monitor. Don't know the price point at this time. I wonder if CD has some new tricks up their sleeves for the Nano. I have the XDR, but a Nano with a built in monitor and an attachable power source when needed would be very very nice.

David Rogers
Nashvegas

[Simon Wood]

I've posted what C-D is up to on this post, called the Gemini:

http://www.dvinfo.net/forum/converge...h-request.html

[David Schmerin]

This is certainly an exciting time to be looking at new external digital recorders and how they will be progressing.

3G technology now allows us to do over a single port what once required two. I saw the NAB posting about the announced Gemini and see this as an exciting prospect. Both the KiPro Mini and The SideKick HD look respectable for their price point, standards, and feature sets. I also hope to see some surprise announcements at NAB from other manufactures and for the number of fish in the digital recorder pond to grow.

Also let's not overlook Sony's SR-R1 (Sony's new digital 4-4-4 recorder) which my guess is will range in the $20k price point. Yes, substantially more expensive then the Cinedeck or The Gemini (and so geared towards the higher end professional) but it records to Sony's new 1TB/5Gbs digital memory cards over 3G... How cool is that?

Looking at cameras like The F3; Considering what this camera is capable of compared to what the camera can record natively, not having an external recorder seems almost criminal.

My Two Cents From The Peanut Gallery,

David Schmerin

[David Rogers]

I saw the Sidekick HD recorder. I hope CD has some tricks up their sleeves. I am currently a Flash XDR owner. A Nano with a built in monitor and power plate (V mount or AB) like the Sidekick would be killer. Maybe NAB will reveal some new CD product changes.

Thanks
David Rogers

[Bruce Schultz]

check this out

http://www.dvinfo.net/forum/converge...h-request.html

nice work C-D, looking fwd to news and details over the next few days and weeks.

[David Rogers]

Bruce that is great news. Sounds like a super recorder with the missing features for a great price.

Thanks
David

[Chris Hurd]

Discussion thread for the Convergent Design Gemini 4:4:4 located at http://www.dvinfo.net/forum/converge...i-4-4-4-a.html

[Michael B. McGee]

at around $2,500 and capable of 4:2:2, 10-bit, and up to 220Mbs. i'm very curious to see if anyone has used this yet.

http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/755016-REG/Fast_Forward_Video_301_TA090_1_sideKick_HD_Portable_Digital.html

[James Houk]

Considering it's a preorder item, I doubt it.

But the pricing means it's likely to get it's rear end kicked by the Atmos Ninja/Samurai, and the Pix220/240.

Sure, it's $100 cheaper than a Pix240 and includes a 128gb SSD - but it doesn't offer the extra screen resolution or more importantly - the AES/analog XLR inputs.

[Steve Kimmel]

Anyone tried the Sidekick yet? Seems like a pretty small/light recorder with an LCD and SSD cards.

[Ned Soltz]

I had one for review a couple of months ago. Shot a test ProRes HQ sequence. Note that only standard codec is ProRes 422. HQ was something like a $100 add on. Supposedly a DNxHD extra cost download was in the works. The Sidekick formats SSD (standard 128gb SSD) in Fat32. When I copied the .mov files to my raid, I noted that 4 Fat32 segments were missing. Upon further investigation, I discovered these were on the SSD, but named with some kind of weird naming convention. FFV asked me to return the eval unit, saying there was either something wrong with the SSD or the Sidekick itself. That was October. I have not heard a word from them since.

Ned Soltz

[Steve Kimmel]

Doesn't sound very encouraging!

[Ned Soltz]

I've basically written off the product.

[Ned Soltz]

And just as I say that, FFV contacted me about sending another eval unit, saying they found a firmware bug that caused my problem. Always willing to give a second chance when a vendor asks. I'll report more when I actually receive it.

[Chris Dickinson]

It looks over-priced to me, as it not that much cheaper than the PIX240 - it looks very 'plasticy' in comparison, and also has less functionality - less inputs, less codec options etc...

Chris