Vaxis sent over their affordable wireless video transmission system for us to see what we think of it. Keep in mind this wireless system is one of the less expensive ones, and it is aimed more at the consumer or beginner enthusiast who would like to go wirelessly. It’s not aimed at the professional market. So for those people this could be a really great way to still get their hands on a wireless system with some very good performance.
Speaking of which, that is also one of the main selling points, its lower price tag. At around 263 euro’s the ATOM 500 should be affordable to most people.
Let me list a couple of other features worth mentioning.
1. It has a built-in antenna. This seems useful to me, it’s more convenient and prevents damaging the unit when transporting or using it.
2. Even though some delay in transmission is noticeable, the delay is still quite low (less than 0.1 seconds) at 1080p and 60 fps. Audio and video are always in sync, which to me is definitely an important feature.
3. The unit has a maximum distance of 316 meters, which I think is pretty good considering the price point.
4. It is easy to fit on a gimbal with little obstruction.
5. Finally, there’s a nice OLED display on both the transmitter and receiver showing you all the settings such as the video format, channel number, signal strength and more. The unit is quite easy to operate and set things up.
Another extremely great feature is the connectivity option. You can use the ATOM 500 together with an iPad or an iPhone. Using the ATOM app you can in fact use your phone or tablet as a monitor! So you don’t necessarily need a separate director monitor. Obviously, if you do have a separate monitor, you can connect the Atom 500 using HDMI, too. What’s really great is that one transmitter can send image to four devices (one receiver and three iPhones or iPads) at once.
The app at this moment is only available for iOS, but an Android version is coming along and will be available shortly so no mobile platform is excluded.
The ATOM 500 has automatic or manual channel selection available. It also offers passcode protection, so you can decide who will be able to receive the video signal.
You can power the ATOM 500 by using the USB-C ports or optional Sony NPF battery mounting plates. The unit is also updatable, with future firmware updates via USB.
Keep in mind these are really small units! The Atom 500 RX and TX units weigh just around 158 grams each, and the size is slightly bigger than a bank card. The technology is amazing.
So all in all, this is quite an affordable option for the enthusiast who wants to upgrade to a compact wireless solution, if you are a beginning filmmaker or student. The Vaxis ATOM 500 is available for purchase now. Again, the price is around 415 euros.
If you are looking for a wireless transmission system with focus or zoom control you should look at the higher pro segment though. But if you don’t need those fancy options, I think this is a great system to start with.
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