RED's been busy again, this time bringing its most loved sensor to its most affordable DRAGON configuration yet. Utilizing a portion of that 6K sensor, the SCARLET-W shoots 5K at 60fps, 4K at 150fps, and 2K at 300fps with REDCODE RAW and will shoot RAW plus scaled 2K ProRes HQ at 60fps. Additionally, it comes with the built-in wireless, 3D LUTs, and same system compatibility of the rest of the DSMC² lineup.
The SCARLET-W also boasts 16.5 stops of dynamic range, interchangeable mounts, and an upgrade path to WEAPON. RED is accepting $1,000 deposits for both cameras today.
Both the SCARLET-W and the SCARLET-W Monochrome are priced at $9,950 brain-only (with your choice of OLPF), although the SCARLET-W is available in various packages starting at $14,500, or $12,000 to current SCARLET DRAGON owners.
A small tidbit from NoFilmSchool's first look (where you can find all kinds of great details) into the SCARLET-W includes that it also features a new grey color to help distinguish it from other units on set as many users and rental houses have apparently requested. If you're wondering how the SCARLET-W fits into the lineup, here's the gist of it from NoFilmSchool's interview with RED's Jarred Land:
...All of our DSMC² line of cameras have the DRAGON sensor in common, so intercutting footage between the entire line is pretty seamless. RAVEN was designed to be an entry point to the RED ecosystem and, just as importantly, be as light as possible for gimbal and drone work. The SCARLET-W was designed with a filmmaker in mind, borrowing a lot of technology from our top shelf cameras at a very disruptive price point.
So there you have it: one standard and one monochrome super-cost-effective-cinema-machine (I can't believe I'm saying that about a $10,000 camera). Of course, useable kits could easily cost twice that, but if you're in the market for something at this level, you know it's an intriguing proposition.
Interesting releases lately from a bunch of manufacturers. This from red and the fs7 from Sony as well as the c300ii have really changed he landscape of affordable high end video equipment.
My take is this, as a photographer I need to own my equipment because I work so frequently and travel quite a bit. In contrast on the video projects I work on where I need a much more capable system I cannot justify ownership of these camera systems when placed in the context of the rental kit pricing. For 250-1000$ per day you can have a Red setup Any production. For me personally I would need to do 50-75 serious video jobs a year to make owning cameras like this financially worth it.