Zacuto Kameleon EVF Announced – 1080p Resolution, HDMI & SDI, Lemo Power Input

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by Tim FokMarch 13^th, 2019

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Zacuto has announced the Kameleon, a new Micro EVF featuring higher pixel density, Lemo power input as well as supporting both HDMI and SDI. (This product was previously sold as JTZ Kameleon X01K)

EDIT: Zacuto contacted us and gave us the following additional information: The top says it was previously sold as JTZ. That isn’t accurate- it’s not the same product because the Kameleon is redesigned quite a bit and improved over the test preproduction run that was known as the X01K. We made lots of software changes, optic improvements, Zacuto’s anti-fog, eyecup and much more.

Zacuto has been in the Electronic View Finder (EVF) game for some years now. Previous to this announcement they had three in their line – The Gratical HD, Gratical X and Gratical Eye.

The new Kameleon breaks naming convention, sharing features from both the Gratical Eye and Gratical HD.

The Kameleon 1920X1080p display is the highest pixel count yet from Zacuto. With a screen resolution of 3103 PPI/ 6.5 million pixels versus 2687/5.4 to all Gratical models.

It still has a contrast ratio of 10,000:1, 60Hz refresh rate and 24-bit RGB color depth.

The suggested retail price of $1950 puts it right inline with the current price of the Gratical Eye, the major featuring difference being the additional HDMI port (that accepts 4K).

The Kameleon is new in ergonomics, closest in size to the Gratical Eye, mostly down to the fact it does not account for a battery solution (Like the Gratical HD/X), a 4-pin Lemo powers the Kameleon with a voltage range of 7-20V.

The inclusion of a HDMI port will likely be the most significant feature – this was removed for the Gratical Eye, but unlike the 4-ports (SDI in/out, HDMI in/out) found on the Gratical HD, the Kameleon features one SDI and one HDMI.

Also added is a USB-C port.

A joystick plus 4 hot-keys on the top controls the Zacuto menu system, hosting multiple features for exposure & focus assistance, as well as anamorphic squeezes, frame line, custom scaling audio meters and 1D & 3S LUT imports.

Other physical features include a diopter ring plus additional drop in diopters, anti-fog lens, auto-closing eyecups and an ARRI rosette on both sides for mounting.

To sum this all up, the Zacuto Kameleon comes with an improved pixel density screen, sitting a little under the Gratical HD by losing the battery solution and extra HDMI and SDI ports, but gains HDMI and USC-C on the Gratical Eye whilst maintaining it’s price point.

What do you think about the Zacuto Kameleon EVF? Are you in the market for a new viewfinder? What do you think of their Gratical products?