First Shipments Due in Late November

Another Thunderbolt-enabled device is almost ready for Prime Time, this time part of a go-anywhere RED workflow. Sonnet Technologies announced today that it participated in a technology demo with RED Digital Cinema during IBC in Amsterdam earlier this month that will bring 4K RGB playback and real-time transcoded R3D files to any new Mac computer, including laptops. In the demo, RED installed its RED Rocket card in Sonnet’s upcoming Echo Express PCIe 2.0 expansion chassis and connected it via a Thunderbolt cable to a MacBook Pro.

The resulting raw R3D files were transcoded in real time without any dropped frames. If these results prove stable, this kind of setup would eliminate the need on RED productions for Fibre or SAS connections, large storage systems and additional production monitors and give TDs and effects supervisors much more freedom to move with a show on location.

"The ability to combine the versatility of a MacBook Pro, the speed of fast external storage, and the power of the RED Rocket in a portable package really is the holy grail for many on-set data technicians working on RED jobs day in and day out on big movies, TV shows, and commercials," said RED’s Ted Schilowitz in a statement. "Now, all it takes is a new MacBook Pro, some portable Thunderbolt storage, and a RED Rocket installed in the small, lightweight Thunderbolt expansion chassis from Sonnet."

Sonnet first showed the Echo Express alongside its Thunderbolt-enabled RAIDs during NAB. The chassis features two Thunderbolt ports, a x16 PCIe slot and a 75-watt power supply. The company expects to begin shipments in late November. A price is still to be determined.

The RED Rocket card first became available in 2009 and ships today for $4,750.

For more information:

Sonnet Technologies
RED Digital Cinema