Photokina report day 1 - the Samsung NX1 (4K mirrorless camera with H.265)

[Glenn Thomas]

A bit of an ugly camera (just like their phones), but if they can get the tech part of it running smoothly, it could be a good option. I'm curious though what the dynamic range would be like? And if Samsung have cine profiles or even simple tweaks like being sble to turn down the contrast etc?

I'm also wondering how long it will take NLEs like Vegas to support h.265, and if other camera companies will start using it too.

[Guest Ebrahim Saadawi]

My question is: what's the catch?!

There must be something here as it seems too good to be true. Does it like fall to pieces above ISO 800? Horrible aliasing and moire? Terribly overheats? Has a worse user enterface than Nikons? Picture profile locked on an over-sharpened / over contrasty setting? Worse rolling shutter than the A7s?

It seems like what I always wanted my GH4 to be; have a s35 sensor and better lowlight performance and an even more efficient codec.

[rrjj]

In parallel with the above recording time limitation question, are there any issues with over-heating? If so, how is increased temperature handled during recording?

[Andrew Reid]

@Andrew - Can you find out if it has a full electronic shutter mode? Shutter isn't mentioned in any specs I've seen.

 

Yes e-shutter is in there. I saw a switch to enable it in the menus.

[Andrew Reid]

Is H265 compatible with any editing software like premiere yet?

 

No. Samsung need to work more closely with Adobe and Apple to get support and quick. Very important we can edit the native files directly. I don't like transcoding especially when it turns a 910MB efficient file into a 26GB behemoth!

[samuel.cabral]

Too soon to ask if the it has a flat picture profile and 4:3 aspect ratio?
It would be awesome for anamorphic lenses users.

[Fatalfury]

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/article-2756847/Who-goes-Samsung-reveals-robot-sentry-set-eye-North-Korea.html

 

Where is Canonikons equivalent? You have 20 seconds to comply.

[wernst]

The h.265 codec is not any faint innovation but a true video revolution. Even Sony and Panny, the only noticeable and remianing "Video  Players" didn't manage to implement this codec up to now. All video folks, who are now running behind 4k video, will be frustrated as soon as they start editing their valuable 4k footage: Monster files digested in slow PC's. H.265 is the forward  looking solution for all future 4k video application.  

 

But I am really surprised about Samsung's statement to a question raised whether e.g. Adobe's PremPro would support importing h.265 coded files taken on the NX1. Samsung (to Michael Boldin, see forum): " I'm afraid we don not have exact information on the features available on Adobe Premiere  Pro. Please contact Adobe support for exact information"    

???

Did Samsung implement the h.265 codec without any thorough marketing analysis which workflow solutions will support this codec? Without broad support for 4k/h.265 video editing any decision for the NX1 has to be considered carefully. 

[andy4nothin]

Cheers @Andrew re: electronic shutter. Could be useful for timelapse.

 

BTW, thanks for gleaning all this info. I was looking forward to getting an A7s, but I'm going to hang on a while now. I just sold one camera system, so I want to buy a decent replacement. If low light performance of the NX1 sits somewhere between the GH4 and A7s, I would be tempted.

[Stab]

Is there also an option to shoot h.264 or AVCHD? 

 

I shoot weddings and sometimes have to do quick edits. And I'm not going to transcode hundreds of clips before I start editing.

 

Or is native h.265 doable to edit in Premiere? Or simply not supported at all?

[Stab]

Just downloaded some H265 clips (not shot with Samsung NX1) and there is no way for me to even play back the clips. VLC player can't open them, Premiere CS6 can't open them.

 

I really hope this camera also has other recording modes. Are h.265 clips even practical yet?

[sandro]

My question is: what's the catch?!

There must be something here as it seems too good to be true. Does it like fall to pieces above ISO 800? Horrible aliasing and moire? Terribly overheats? Has a worse user enterface than Nikons? Picture profile locked on an over-sharpened / over contrasty setting? Worse rolling shutter than the A7s?

It seems like what I always wanted my GH4 to be; have a s35 sensor and better lowlight performance and an even more efficient codec.

 

Those are the most important and relevant questions but I doubt Samsung will ever answer those :D We need reviews from independent sources.

[tusoli5]

H265, at last!!!! now war has begun !

[Santiago de la Rosa]

If you want a h265 player, you can download it here https://github.com/strukturag/vlc-2.1/releases/tag/2.1.4-libde265-3

 

To encode to h265, first you need is codecs. Here it´s codecs and an app https://www.videolan.org/developers/x265.html

 

We need a better implementation support ASAP

[1meter60 Film]

Maybe a good question could be, if there is a crop mode, where you can read out pixels one by one.

Especially in 4k/UHD mode.

 

Thanks for your help

[tymeo]

What are the options of the Samsung ProRes transcoding app ? Prores HQ, proxy, downsampling from 4k to 1080p 4:4:4, 4:2:2 ? Does the 29:59 time limit worldwide or only for europeans customers?

[ChristieEnglish]

Please ask about video audio recording with the microphone.  Is the microphone jack a stereo microphone jack or is it mono?  

 

Also, while recording video and audio with the microphone jack, does the recorded audio have the same hissing noise that occurs in other cameras such as the Panasonic GH4?

[Madcypher]

Hello,

 

The spec sheets don't list the bitrates for video, can you confirm 100% that there is an 80Mbs "Pro" option?

 

Thanks.

[Rob Bannister]

Exactly what I was thinking Andrew, if you need to transcode this stuff it takes away the benefit of H265, I guess not entirely at least the footprint is smaller out in the field but it just wastes time and then using the files you will need proxies and drive space. Hopefully they can get native support in the next version of Premiere and the heavy lifting can be unloaded to the GPU.

 

I will say i have been using the Kinemini with Cineform which the next version of premiere is adding better support for...anyways I really love that workflow now. But even then we need H265 support its really hard to distribute 4k online right now.

 

No. Samsung need to work more closely with Adobe and Apple to get support and quick. Very important we can edit the native files directly. I don't like transcoding especially when it turns a 910MB efficient file into a 26GB behemoth!

[Michael Dontigney]

h.265 will be supported by all the major NLEs. I would be surprised if it wasn't supported fully in the next update to Adobe CC. That said with fast SDXC -II cards Samsung could unleash that codec and give us 4:4:4 10bit as it's supported by h.265. The entire reason people wanted RAW was for the 10bit.... this camera could do it using it's native codec. That would be a real game changer.