Atomos announced a unique accessory to turn your phone into an Atomos Ninja monitors/recorder: the Atomos Ninja Phone. If you already own an iPhone 15 Pro/Pro Max and a mirrorless camera, this might be the least expensive way to get ProRes recording from a camera with interchangeable lenses.
The iPhone has a great screen, so it makes sense to use it as a monitor for your compact camera when shooting video. But most of those compact mirrorless cameras use highly compressed formats when recording video. This makes it difficult to make necessary adjustments to the picture in post-production. The Atomos Ninja Phone accessory seeks to solve that problem.
Atomos unveils the Ninja Phone
The Ninja Phone attempts to bridge the gap between your iPhone 15 Pro and your mirrorless camera. A “co-processor” unit clips into the back of a custom iPhone case. Both the unit and the case have locking mechanisms for the USB-C and HDMI cables that need to go between the two devices. The Ninja Phone is powered by a single Sony NP battery.
The Ninja Phone converts the video signal out of your camera’s HDMI feed into a stream that goes into your iPhone’s USB-C port. The Atomos app then records that video to your phone’s internal storage (you might want to opt for an iPhone with a large internal capacity) as ProRes and also 10 bit H.265 simultaneously. Additionally, you can stream your video feed to Atomos’ Cloud Service via 5G or Wi-Fi.
The Ninja Phone delivers app gives shooters access to Atomos’ array of tools. Users can select focus and exposure overlays that may be a big improvement over the tools on their mirrorless camera.
Atomos also included support for external USB-C mics through a jack on the back of the unit. The Nina Phone will match the sample rate of your microphone and lock the audio to video on the output.
The iPhone’s incredible screen
Some may not realize it, but the iPhone’s screen is better than many stand-alone monitors. Apple has equipped the iPhone with an HDR OLED display that can hit a peak brightness of 1600nits. This makes the phone easy to see in broad daylight. The iPhone’s 2,000,000:1 contrast ratio delivers excellent contrast. And the Super Retina XDR display boasts a spec of 460ppi . This means the display on the iPhone will be more crisp when zoomed in.
Shooting Vertical Video
Atomos has included a 9:16 feature to help shooters compose their shots for social media. The app automatically adjusts to the proper orientation.
Limitations: 1080p 60fps
It’s critically important to note that the Ninja Phone’s performance tops out at 1080p 60fps. Creators will have to weigh this limitation against 4K options with more highly compressed codecs, like H.265, that are available within many cameras.
Here are the specifications for the output from the Ninja Phone to the iPhone
- ProRes HQ / ProRes 422 / ProRes LT / ProRes Proxy / H.265 Main 10 / H.265 8b / H.264 8b
- 1080p 60 / 59.94 / 50 / 30 / 29.97 / 25 / 24 / 23.98fps
- 720p 60 / 59.94 / 50fps
Is it practical?
Getting ProRes recording out of smaller mirrorless cameras is great. However, the 1080p limit may be a limiting factor for many. The ability to easily stream to major platforms from your mirrorless camera may be the strongest selling point of this device. While the iPhone does have an excellent screen, 1600nits is the peak brightness; so you may find that the sustained brightness of the iPhone is just a bit dimmer than you’d like in broad daylight.
On a recent corporate shoot, I was asked if I could stream the interview to a third party who could chime in with suggested questions. The third-party was on the phone, and the interviewer had an Airpod in their ear. We streamed the audio, but we needed another crew member or additional gear without a quick and easy way of streaming video and audio together. The Ninja Phone would have been a great solution for this use case if only for the streaming capability.
Pricing and availability
The Atomos Ninja Phone will be priced at $399 and is available for pre-order now.
For more information visit Atomos’ website.
What do you think about using Atomos Ninja Phone so you can use your iPhone as a monitor and recorder on set? Let us know in the comments below!
