Atomos has announced the launch of a new generation of its Ninja camera-mounted monitor-recorders. The Atomos Ninja and Atomos Ninja Ultra have a new AtomOS 11 operating system and include more video codecs as standard. Atomos says that the Ninja is aimed at DSLR and mirrorless cameras owners, while Ninja Ultra is designed for camera to cloud technology and cinematic workflows.
Main features
The Ninja and Ninja Ultra have 5.2-inch 1080p touchscreen displays with a screen brightness of 1000 cd/m². The Ninja and Ninja Ultra also now include more video codecs as standard. These include 6K ProRes RAW, ProRes, DNxHD and H.265, which was previously only available as a paid option. The Ninja Ultra also supports 8K ProRes RAW. In addition, with the Ninja Ultra, you can record full-quality files to ProRes RAW up to 4K 60p while at the same time recording HD 60p to H.265. With both devices, you record your video to SSDs using the Atomos Master Caddy system.
Design
Outwardly, the Atomos Ninja and Ninja Ultra have the same screen size and body as the previous versions. This is good as it means that the new devices are backwards-compatible with the previous versions, so you can still use all your existing Atomos or third party accessories. The Ninja and Ninja Ultra are also lightweight, weighing only 0.79 pounds (360 g). This means they won’t make your camera set up too heavy when shooting handheld. Unusually, the Ninja and Ninja Ultra are only available in a ‘camo’ color scheme at the time of launch, rather than the usual black.
AtomOS 11
Atomos says that the operating system for the Ninja and Ninja Ultra has been completely overhauled with the release of AtomOS 11. As well as a cleaner look, the AtomOS 11 is faster thanks to optimized hardware performance. The new operating system also gives you a lot of new features as well. These include EL Zone exposure referenced colorized image, ARRI False Color and new scheduled playback and recording tools.
Atomos RemoteView
If you add the optional Atomos Connect expansion module to your Ninja or Ninja Ultra, you can access Atomos RemoteView. This means you can wirelessly share live views from your device with other Atomos monitors, as well as with iPads, Macs and Apple TVs. In addition, for Ninja Ultra, the Atomos Connect module provides a lower latency, higher throughput and more stable connection with Wi-Fi 6E. The Ninja only supports Wi-Fi 6.
What we think
The new Ninja and Ninja Ultra might look the same as the old models but there’s been a big improvement on the inside. The support for even higher resolution ProRes RAW codecs means that you can get the most out of your camera’s sensor. H265 support without the need for an additional payment is good to see as well. In addition, AtomOS 11 delivers important new features such as ARRI False Color. For most video shooters, the Ninja will give you all you need. However if you work with camera to cloud recordings then the Ninja Ultra could be worth the extra dollars.
Pricing and availability
Atomos says that the new Ninja and Ninja Ultra will be available from early September 2023. The Ninja is priced at $599 and the Ninja Ultra costs $799.
