You may know SWIT mainly as a battery manufacturer, but their new 5.5-inch monitor is pretty sweet. Today was my final day at IBC 2016, and as I was strolling through Hall 12, walking by the Swit booth, I noticed they had lined up a few monitors. One of them was their latest 5.5-inch S-1053F Full HD pro monitor, which should fit basically any camera used in a professional capacity from a mirrorless, DSLR to a pro Super 35 camcorder like an FS5 or Canon C100 Mark II. The monitor is pretty slick with 1920 x 1080 LCD display with Optical bonding, which contributes for the very slick surface, a solid all metal housing, SDI to HDMI converter, Waveform, Vector scope, focus assist – making it a good all rounder at least on paper for general video production.
SWIT S-1053F 5.5-inch Full HD Features
- 5.5” LCD, 1920 × 1080 Full HD resolution Display
- Optical bonding LCD panel
- All metal housing, thinner and robust
- 2K/3G/HD/SD-SDI input and loop out
- HDMI input and converted to SDI out
- Locking HDMI connector
- 16-ch Embedded audio meters with alert
- Select any 2 audio channels to output
- Waveform Y/Cb/Cr/R/G/B and single line
- Vector scope, histogram R/G/B/Y
- Peaking focus assist (dual colour)
- AFD, timecode, H/V delay, Zebra stripes
- Marker 4:3, 13:9, 14:9, 15:9, 1.85:1, 2.35:1
- False colour, R/G/B/Mono, 100% colour bar
- Various DV battery plate install
- Can receive firmware updates via USB input on side
The SWIT S-1053F also features a 160 degree viewing angle and a 1000:1 contrast – the monitor was quite punchy on their stand. It may not be a touch screen, but the conveniently place three assignable buttons on top provide access to all key functions including: Waveform, false colour, peaking, markers etc. Also the SDI and and OUT in addition to the HDMI input provides a versatile loop-out solution for providing a signal to additional monitoring units such an EVF or director’s monitor from cameras with a single SDI output such as the Sony FS5.
Here’s some crappy cell phone photos I took at the SWIT stand:
SWIT S-1053F 5.5-inch Full HD Specifications
| Display Size | 5.5 inches | |
| Display area | 120.96×68.04mm | |
| Resolution | 1920×1080 | |
| Aspect ratio | 16:9 (4:3 adjustable) | |
| Brightness | 400cd/m2 | |
| Contrast | 1000:1 | |
| Color | 16.77 million colors | |
| Viewing angle | Horizontal: 160°Vertical: 160° | |
| Input | ||
| BNC ×1 | 2K/3G/HD/SD-SDI input | |
| HDMI ×1 | HDMI 1.3 input | |
| Micro USB ×1 | Firmware upgrade | |
| Output | ||
| BNC ×1 | 2K/3G/HD/SD-SDI loop output or HDMI converted to SDI output | |
| 3.5mm ×1 | SDI, HDMI embedded audio output | |
| Video Format | ||
| SDI | SMPTE 2048-2 | 2048×1080p (23.98 / 24 / 25 / 29.97 / 30 / 50 / 59.94 / 60) |
| 2048×1080i (50 / 59.94 / 60) | ||
| SMPTE-425M | 1080p (60 / 59.94 / 50) | |
| SMPTE-274M | 1080i (60 / 59.94 / 50) | |
| 1080p (30 / 29.97 / 25 / 24 / 23.98) | ||
| SMPTE-RP211 | 1080psf (30 / 29.97 / 25 / 24 / 23.98) | |
| SMPTE-296M | 720p (60 / 59.94 / 50) | |
| SMPTE-125M | 480i (59.94) | |
| ITU-R BT.656 | 576i (50) | |
| HDMI | 480i/ 576i / 480p / 576p | |
| 1080i (60 / 59.94 / 50) | ||
| 720p (60 / 59.94 / 50) | ||
| 1080p (60 / 59.94 / 50 / 30 / 29.97 / 25 / 24 / 23.98) | ||
| General | ||
| Working voltage | DC / battery 6.5V-36V | |
| Power consumption | 12W | |
| Working temperature | -10°C～+50°C | |
| Working humidity | 10%～90% | |
| Storage temperature | -15°C～+60°C | |
| Storage humidity | 10%～90% | |
| Dimensions | 151×91×32mm | |
| Net weight (main body) | 375g | |
Another cool thing about the SWIT S-1053F is the wide range of options users have when choosing a battery to power the unit. It supports DC 6.5-24V input via a 5.5mm lockable DC socket, and receives its power via the SWIT S-7003 plate for use with a variety of batteries, including popular Sony NP-F, Canon BP-945, Sony BPU60/U30 and more:
| Model of plate | Compatible batteries |
| S-7003F | SONY NP-F970/770, SWIT S-8972, S-8970, |
| S-7003U | SONY BP-U60/U30, SWIT S-8U63, S-8U93 |
| S-7003D | Panasonic CGA-D54/D28, VW-VBD58, SWIT S-8D62, S-8D58 |
| S-7003B | Panasonic VW-VBG6, SWIT S-8BG6 |
| S-7003V | JVC BN-VF823, SWIT S-8823 |
| S-7003i | SSL-JVC50, SWIT S-8i50 |
| S-7003C | Canon BP-945/970G, SWIT S-8845, S-8945 |
| S-7003E | Canon LP-E6, SWIT S-8PE6 |
At the moment you can order the SWIT S-1053FB (with the Panasonic VW-VBG6 battery plate) for $840 from B&H. Delivery is expected towards end of September.
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No support for LUTs though which is annoying.
This is the perfect sized monitor IMHO. The 7″ beasts make hand holding the camera at strange angles even more awkward.
But yowzers, $840? That price doesn’t make any sense to me. Thats $460 away from the Atomos Flame touchscreen HDR 4K monitor/recorder. And just a few hundred dollars away from the PIX-E5H touchscreen 4K monitor and recorder (which is the benchmark for 5″ sub $3K monitor/recorders). For $850 you can get a SmallHD monitor with LUT support and design features that are in another league.
If this monitor has something special that similar monitors costing $350 don’t have, they should market those special features better.