RED KOMODO Firmware Update Teased – Gio Scope, .R3D ELQ and More

Firmware Update

by Francesco AndreolaDecember 7^th, 2022

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Jarred Land, President and Co-Owner at RED Digital Cinema, has recently provided a sneak peek of an upcoming firmware update for the company’s “entry-level” cinema camera, the RED KOMODO. The update will likely bring back the Gio Scope exposure tool and add a lower-quality .R3D setting.

Rumors of a forthcoming RED KOMODO update have been circulating on the internet for a while now, and more official hints have recently made their way to Jarred Land’s social platforms.

Back in February, the camera got a few nice additions, such as Timelapse Mode and under-cranked recording, with firmware 1.6.4, but apparently, there’s a lot of room to grow. So let’s take a look at what might be just around the corner!

RED KOMODO upcoming firmware update: Gio Scope

With the transition from the DSMC2 lineup to the new DSMC3 cameras (namely KOMODO, V-RAPTOR, V-RAPTOR XL, and now V-RAPTOR S35), the most loyal RED users have noticed that some useful features went missing.

That’s the case for Gio Scope, a RAW-based false color tool that breaks down the sensor’s dynamic range into 16 increments, while not being affected by ISO settings, WB, or LUTs. On DSMC2 cameras, it is particularly helpful for judging exposure, especially when dealing with critical highlight areas. Indeed, the brightest 16th step is further split up into 8 sub-increments to better display highlight roll-off.

Well, it looks like Gio Scope will soon make a glorious comeback, and the RED KOMODO will be the first camera in the DSMC3 family to welcome back this tool. According to Jarred Land, it is likely that Gio Scope will also come with the V-RAPTOR models in the future, but this implementation will take “a while”.

ELQ REDCODE RAW and AF improvements

Just like the RED V-RAPTOR did with firmware 1.3.4, the KOMODO will soon get support for a fourth REDCODE RAW quality setting, called ELQ. Sitting next to the existing HQ, MQ, and LQ options, ELQ will produce more compressed, smaller files.

As a RED KOMODO owner myself, I’m really looking forward to this addition, as it will help save precious storage space when shooting lengthy interviews and takes, but without sacrificing the benefits of RAW. Also, it can come in handy for lower-budget gigs in which image quality is not a priority.

Lastly, to a user asking if any autofocus improvement is coming, RED’s CEO answered with a telegraphic “Yes!”. The camera’s autofocus capabilities have recently been enhanced with face detection autofocus, though this is currently only available in-app via RED Control (iOS/Android).

Price and availability

This looks like a promising update, but I’m sure KOMODO users have a long list of feature requests that they would like to see included in this upcoming build. There’s no official word on a potential release date. However, Jarred Land stated that the RED team is working hard on this new build, but there is no promise of a “Christmas miracle”. We’ll patiently wait and keep you posted as soon as it officially rolls out to the masses.

Meanwhile, the camera is available to purchase from B&H and CVP at the official retail price of $5,995.

What are some essential features you would like to see on your RED KOMODO? Do you often rely on the Gio Scope tool when shooting with DSMC2 cameras? Let us know your thoughts in the comment section below!