15″ Portable Monitor for VIDEO Production!
Ok, this is a bit unusual item for me to review but as many of you following my channel are into video production, I thought I share with you why I chose this monitor to be a part of my kit and how I use it.

I have been approached by AndyCine asking me if I would like to review one of their small, on camera video monitors but I had a look what else they do and I found this.

I must say that this monitor was supplied to me by AndyCine for this review, however I wasn’t asked or paid to say anything specific about it so it is my honest and unbiased opinion about it.

So, this is Wimaxit monitor, Wimaxit is a sub brand of AndyCine and this is a simple, portable, USB-C powered, 15″ monitor.
I decided to incorporate this into my kit because until now I would use a small TV set for monitoring on locations and even here, recording my YouTube videos. I’m using it right now.

Small 7″ – 9″ monitors, little camera flip screens are all great when you are close to them, this close, but when you need to check the focusing, framing, exposure, white balance by just a glance from the distance, I personally prefer a larger screen.

So for a while now, when I’ve been filming interviews or pretty much anything static from the tripod I’d hook up a small Samsung TV to the output port of my Atomos Ninja V and that not only allows me to see camera feed on a bigger screen but also allows anyone else in the room to see what is being filmed. That includes the subject being filmed, I can easily turn the screen around for them to see what the shot looks like and what they look like before we start filming but ….

There are a fundamental problems with that method. Firstly, I always needed a power outlet to connect my TV screen to. Not always available close by and it’s just sometimes not practical to run long extension leads when setting up quick shots.
Also my Samsung TV is very clever, too clever – no matter what I set white balance manually on camera, I literally could look green on Ninja V screen, the TV would correct it automatically and make the picture and the skin tone look about right.
Yes, great function when you are watching TV but not so great when you need to be in control of what you are actually recording.

So, this is when this monitor comes in. I have been using it for few weeks now and it works for me absolutely great.

Firstly, I can power it from USB power bank. I don’t need to worry about power sockets or extension leads and it is very power efficient. I can run it for hours from one of these cheap power bricks.
Secondly, the picture is not altered in any way when being displayed – I see exactly what is coming from the camera.

There is more … I had no way of mounting my TV screen to anything so it would usually sit on a table or a chair near by but this monitor is very light so I have decided to buy one of these cheap laptop stands with wheels from Amazon for it. Now, not only I can adjust the hight where the monitor is but also move it easily around when moving the camera and the tripod and all of it is portable, foldable for location shooting.

Ok, the screen is NOT bright enough for outside shooting but I would only use this set-up indoors anyway.

I’ve been also using it when filming all of my b-roll recently for the lens reviews. I simply set-it up on the side and can easier get the framing and focus, especially on macro shots, then looking at the Atomos screen, which very often is not even mounted to the camera and used only as a recorder, not the monitor.

The price of this monitor is £159 pounds in UK or $159 dollars in US so it is very affordable and for me that takes away some worry about anything happening to it on the shoots – obviously I don’t want to smash it on purpose but there is less stress of ‘what if’.
Because of the price and the size of it, it is also vaiable option to use one with every camera in multi camera setup – especially if you filming by yourself and need to see the feed from the other camera from the distance.

It could also be used with wireless video transmitter system for even more portable monitoring – unlike me – I still use meters of HDMI cable instead, old school.

So let’s run through the specs quickly:
-15.6″ 60Hz display
-Full 1080p resolution
-Built in speakers – although not great sounding, they are there if you need to play anything back. My clients want to often see the footage of them talking back and I do not get the sound out of Ninja V without the headphones and when you get 2-3 people in the room, the speakers, even though not great, help a lot.
-178º angle of view which makes it a little bit easier for other people to see the screen clearly from the sides.
– 3 USB-C sockets and one Mini HDMI
– and it weighs 3.3lb – 1.5kg
It is certainly light and thin enough to stick in one of my Peli cases with rest of the gear to transport it.

There is menu system to control the monitor’s functions. It does the job but it is a little bit clunky and hard to navigate but once you set it up to your needs, you don’t really need to keep adjusting it every time you use the screen.

And it is of course a monitor that can be used as a second screen with your laptop, it can be powered and connected to MacBook Pro with just one cable.
You can mirror your phone onto it for photo/video viewing, I think great particularly for watching Netflix or YouTube from your phone with someone else when travelling … or for connecting any HDMI device like a game console although I don’t know why you’d need a portable screen to plug in something that needs power from the mains anyway but you can … if you wanted to.

I needed this as a solution for portable monitoring to go alongside my Atomos Ninja V and it does the job very well for me.
The picture is NOT great, spectacular or mind blowing but if you don’t have un-realistic expectations about the performance you gonna get from this, then this is a great value for the money.

Buy Wimaxit M1562C Portable Monitor (affiliate links):
Amazon US: https://amzn.to/2IddRDs
+ USB Power Banks: https://amzn.to/3kgwOSm
HDMI cable(s): https://amzn.to/2U9V9Ph
Screen Stand: https://amzn.to/3ke1BQ2

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Amazon UK: https://amzn.to/38pZ5Ul
+ USB Power Banks: https://amzn.to/2Il0ZuT
HDMI cable(s): https://amzn.to/2Ubn7dq
Screen Stand: https://amzn.to/3pcmTRI

Buy it directly from WIMAXIT:
https://wimaxit.com/collections/usb-c-hdmi-portable-monitor/products/wimaxit-m1562c-portable-monitor?ref=me–StPDWyTYI (use: PAVSZ code for 8%discount)

WIMAXIT shop: https://wimaxit.com/?ref=PavSZ