SmallHD Cine 18 & OLED 27 Production Monitors and PageOS 5 Explained

by Olaf von VossMay 2^nd, 2022

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NAB 2022 is already in the rearview mirror, but we have a few more interesting interviews here about the latest gear for filmmakers. SmallHD showed its Cine 18 and OLED 27 production monitors, and we had the opportunity to check them out in person.

More monitors from SmallHD! To get you started, let’s review the company’s three main lines of (production) monitors: the Cine line, the OLED line, and the Vision line of monitors. Each line has its own features and, of course, comes in different sizes.

The main goal was to provide each filmmaker with a proper monitor for their specific needs, regardless of their role on set. For example, the Cine line stands for high brightness and outdoor viewability. OLED panels offer high contrast ratios and true blacks, and the Vision line is all about HDR monitoring on set.

SmallHD Cine 18 production monitor

The SmallHD Cine 18 production monitor (read our initial coverage here) has a very bright 1100nits panel. The previous 17-inch model (1703 P3X) had to be discontinued because the manufacturer stopped producing the panel needed, so SmallHD had to source an equivalent panel, but one that matched the color science of the previous 1703 model. The Cine 18 offers the following specifications:

• Brightness: 1100nits
• Screen Size: 18.4in / 46.7cm
• Bit Depth: 10-bit (8+2)
• Color: 100% REC. 709 / 98% DCI-P3
• Resolution: 3840 x 2160

So you get a high-quality (and very bright) 18-inch LCD panel with fine-tuned colors. In addition, all SmallHD production monitors use the same underlying operating system, called PageOS. That’s another advantage of having different SmallHD monitors on set for different needs: they all operate the same in terms of the menu system and general UI/UX.

SmallHD OLED 27

The OLED family consists of the already available OLED 22 and the brand new OLED 27 monitor (read our initial coverage here). The 22-incher has a 300nit panel, which is a bit low for a real HDR workflow, though, which rather requires a 600nits panel.

The new SmallHD OLED 27 monitor offers 550nits of brightness, which is of course much closer to the desired 600-nits value. Here’s a quick rundown of the SmallHD OLED 27 production monitor specifications:

• Contrast Ratio: >1,000,000:1
• Screen Size: 26.9in / 68.3cm
• Bit Depth: True 10-bit
• Color: 110% DCI-P3 / 135% Rec. 709
• Resolution: 3840 x 2160
• Brightness: Up to 550nits

PageOS 5

SmallHD has released a preview of the new PageOS 5, which is the operating system for all their monitors. The main new feature that filmmakers have frequently requested is Multi-view, which is available for all 4k production monitors. This mode provides a quad split view of multiple cameras feeds at once.

Another new feature is camera control (available separately as a plugin), which has been completely revamped to make it even more streamlined and intuitive. Now it is possible to utilize both camera control and all SmallHD monitoring tools at the same time. Before, it was more of an either-or situation. Camera Control is available for RED cameras, ARRI cameras, as well as for the Sony VENICE.

Another big update is EL Zones. This is basically a false-color mode, but it works in stops rather than IRE values. You can define your custom zones and then check how many stops over or under your exposure really is. A very nice and helpful feature in my book!

The new PageOS 5 will be available for free for all monitors that now run PageOS 4. So very old models like the DP.6 (I still have one of those!) will not run PageOS, but all models from around 2016 onwards will.

Pricing

The new SmallHD Cine 18 production monitor sells for $5,999 and the OLED 27 sells for $11,999. Both models are already available for pre-order and should ship very soon. The PageOS 5 update will be available for free and should also be available very soon.

Link: SmallHD

Disclaimer: This article and the video were made in cooperation with SmallHD

What do you think? Do you use SmallHD monitors for your projects? Share your experiences in the comments below!