Blackmagic Video Assist 7 12G HDR review: all-round high-end performance

Blackmagic is a big player in the video industry, not least for its amazing Davinci Resolve software. But the company also produces editing controllers and high-end video monitors/recorders, including the Blackmagic Video Assist 7 12G HDR. 

I've been sitting on the fence about whether or not I need a video monitor, but after using the Video Assist 7 12G HDR I can see some huge benefits for myself and anyone who shoots a lot of video. So, aside from the generous size of the screen and the features, which we'll discuss later, one of the Video Assist 7 12G HDR's key features is its ability to capture 4K Raw codecs at up to 60fps, aiming it squarely at professional users rather than enthusiasts, with a price that confirms this.

I can confidently say that it's one of the best on-camera monitors, and this professional-level monitor with Raw recording and its size, make it most suitable for studio work and location work where a team of people needs to view the action. As opposed to individuals taking a more run-and-gun approach to video work. 

You could attach this monitor to a hotshoe attachment, but this may put stress on the camera due to the weight. Plus, additional weight when one or two batteries are attached, but it would work perfectly well attached to a camera cage, a magic arm attached to the tripod, or on a separate tripod.

Blackmagic Video Assist 7 12G HDR: Specifications

Blackmagic Video Assist 7 12G HDR: Price

The Blackmagic Video Assist 7 12G HDR has been around for four years now, but it's still going strong and, as you'd expect, the price has reduced slightly since launch. It's still a professionally priced monitor at $795 / £759, but that's not too bad when you consider that it can record 4K Raw footage. 

What's more, it's not a great deal more expensive than smaller comparable monitors, which makes it pretty good value for money given the size and features of the monitor. The Video Assist 7in 12G HDR is available from multiple photo and video retailers, as well as online retailers including Amazon.

In the kit you get a USB battery charger and a 12v wall adaptor, but no batteries or mounting devices, so you'll have to supply these yourself. This probably won’t be an issue for most professionals, but a magic arm or mini tripod would be a nice inclusion that would also be useful.

Blackmagic Video Assist 7 12G HDR: Design & Handling

Blackmagic Video Assist monitors pretty much all look the same, with the main difference being the sizes of the 5-inch and 7-inch models, whereas the smaller monitors have fewer slots and connections. The Video Assist 7 12G HDR is quite a beast at 193x356x37mm / 7.6x5.14x1.45 inches and weighs in at 835g / 29.5oz without any batteries. Add one or two batteries on the back and the size and weight naturally increases further.

The batteries are hot-swappable so you can keep shooting without downtime, but you will need plenty of spare NP-F570 batteries to shoot all day. If you’re shooting indoors, however, you can use the included 12v adaptor for power. So, while this isn’t the most portable of monitors when compared to Blackmagic's 5-inch models, the ability to use batteries remains a necessity for times when a power source isn’t available.

The screen itself is luxuriously large and bright with a maximum brightness of 2500nits, which makes it possible to use the monitor in bright conditions. The screen resolution is 1920x1200px, despite the 4K recording resolution, but this doesn’t cause any issues in use and the screen is, forgive my enthusiasm, an absolute joy to use and nice and sharp to boot. But despite its bright and sharp screen, a monitor hood would, however, still be useful for reducing glare.

The touchscreen is also perfectly responsive and alongside the intuitive user interface, it's incredibly comfortable and easy to use despite being a high-end professional accessory. This, it has to be said is an accomplishment on the part of Blackmagic, and means that anyone who understands video settings can use it out of the box without worrying about instructions – it's that easy to use.

There are plenty of connections and ports including HDMI and SDI inputs and outputs, two balanced mini XLR connectors with phantom power if you'd prefer not to record sound through the camera, a 3.5mm headphone jack, and a USB-C port. With the latter, you can also connect an SSD to take advantage of higher storage capacity, but there's no mounting option for hard drives on the monitor.

Blackmagic Video Assist 7 12G HDR: Performance

The Video Assist 7 12G HDR can record HD and 4K DCI up to 60fps in 10-bit broadcast quality footage. Raw codecs include 4:2:2 ProRes and DNxHD, and with a selection of cameras listed on the Blackmagic website, Blackmagic Raw can also be recorded. Plus, as HDR in the name suggests, HDR10 and Hybrid Log Gamma are supported. You can also use the monitor purely as a monitor by recording from your camera directly, but this ultimately defeats the purpose of buying it.

The screen provides all the information you need with several options for features such as guides to be shown on-screen. Scopes are available to assist with exposure and focus, and exposure scopes can be viewed in isolation, overlaid on the record screen, or with a small box of the camera view over the scopes. These make it incredibly quick, easy, and comfortable to focus, adjust exposure, and monitor exposure, thus increasing precision and working speed.

A useful feature that some will love and others will be indifferent about is the ability to apply LUTs to your footage. LUTs can be imported into the monitor using the Blackmagic Video Assist Setup software on your computer. Once installed, they can be applied to the on-screen image to give you an idea of how color-graded footage will look or hard-coded into footage when shooting with the Blackmagic Raw codec. But remember, to use this codec you must be using a supported camera.

I had the screen initially set to capture in Blackmagic Raw and since my camera isn’t supported, I was faced with a black screen and a small message informing me of an incompatible codec. But once I'd changed over to DNxHD the on-screen image roared into life and I was able to begin shooting. 

Blackmagic Video Assist 7 12G HDR: Verdict

It's often said that size doesn’t matter, but the sharp and bright 7-inch touchscreen on the Blackmagic Video Assist 7 12G HDR is an absolute joy to use. With such a large and clear on-screen with up to a whopping 2500nits of brightness, the prospect of going back to the average 3-inch camera screen quickly becomes something of a nightmare.

Beyond the excellent and easy-to-use user interface, the scopes for assessing exposure and focusing make precision incredibly easy to achieve. Then there's up to 4K 60fps broadcast quality Raw footage that can be recorded with LUTs overlaid or hard-coded into Blackmagic Raw. There's so much to like here, but in all honesty, it won't be for everyone.

A 7-inch monitor like this is large and heavy on top of lenses, a camera cage, and all of the other accessories you may have attached to your camera. So, if this is too much for you, there is a 5-inch version – the Blackmagic Video Assist 5 12G HDR – that's perfect for run-and-gun handheld shooting, where size and weight are often an important consideration. 

Alternatives

Blackmagic Video Assist 5 3G
If you're on a tight budget and only require 1080p Raw video capture, the Blackmagic Video Assist 5 3G is a lower-end model that comes in at less than half the price of the Video Assist 7 12G HDR.

Atomos Shinobi
Some videographers are happy recording video in camera, and if this is you the Atomos Shinobi is a 5.2-inch monitor with a reasonably bright 1000nits screen with a compact design.