Shimbol M7 Monitor and Memory 7 Pro Monitor/Recorder Announced

Monitoring News

by Jakub HanFebruary 29^th, 2024

Shimbol announced on-camera monitors featuring an aluminum chassis and a 7-inch full HD IPS touchscreen with DCI-P3 gamut and 2000nit (2200nit with the Memory 7 Pro) brightness. Both the M7 and Memory 7 Pro offer 3G-SDI and HDMI inputs and outputs, an NP-F battery plate, an SD card slot, and a variety of monitoring features. Additionally, the Memory 7 Pro offers an internal MP4 video recording feature and time code support.

The Chinese Shenzhen-based company Shimbol focuses on video monitors as well as wireless video transmitters. Last November, the company released the Shimbol M5 – a 5.5-inch on-camera HDMI-only touchscreen monitor. Now, the company announced two larger, on-camera monitors with 7-inch touchscreens. The Shimbol M7 and Shimbol Memory 7 Pro monitors share the same chassis, with the Memory 7 Pro additionally featuring internal video recording. Let’s take a quick look at these new products.

Shimbol M7 and Memory 7 Pro – bright displays

First, the display in both models is a 7-inch TP IPS touchscreen panel with FullHD (1920×1080) resolution and an impressive set of specs – 2200nit (cd/m²) peak brightness (Memory 7 Pro) or 2000nit (M7), 1800:1 contrast ratio, and a DCI-P3 color gamut with Delta E<1, 170° viewing angle.

3G-SDI and HDMI in/out & recording

The monitors offer both 3G-SDI and HDMI input/output. The good thing is that both models support up to 4K30 signal input (via HDMI, as 3G-SDI maxes out at 1080p60). The video recording function of the Shimbol Memory 7 Pro is supported for both HDMI and SDI inputs, and it also supports time code recording.

There is not much technical information available yet for the Memory 7 Pro recording function regarding codecs, resolutions, bitrates, etc. However, the company claims, that the recorder supports MP4 video format, and recorded clips are saved to an SD card (both models feature an SD card slot, but the M7 only uses it for LUTs or firmware updates).

Monitoring features

When it comes to features, the monitors support custom 3D LUTs (both for recording and playback). LUTs are pre-installed for certain cameras and there are 99 additional slots for custom LUTs (cube format, 17*17*17 and 33*33*33).

Additional useful features include a custom RGB adjustment, false color, anamorphic de-squeeze, masks, vectorscope, histogram, and more. According to Shimbol, the monitor provides HDR monitoring and it has a built-in HLG mode. The new UI design utilizes icons for easier touch control and quick access to all the functions.

Chassis, connections, power

The chassis of both models is made of aluminum with an integrated CNC cutting process – the Shimbol M7 features a blue-gray color while the Memory 7 Pro monitor/recorder is black. The weight and dimensions are the same for both models – 455g, 178.8×110.8×20.3/28.3mm.

On top of the video in/outputs, the monitor connectivity interface includes a 3.5mm headphone jack for audio monitoring and an SD card slot. For power input, each monitor features a dual NP-F battery slot as well as a DC power input connector. The power consumption should be below 10W, according to Shimbol.

Price and availability

The retail price for the M7 is $379, while the Memory 7 PRO is priced at $479.

Do you use a larger 7-inch on-camera monitor for your work? What do you think about the new Shimbol M7 and Memory 7 Pro monitors? Let us know your thoughts in the comments section below.