Red Mysterious SKULL

[Luca Orlandi]

definitely'll know more before the NAB or in a few weeks ..
Still a bit of patience redusers

 

[Kemalettin Sert]

hope its big something like this and sits on shoulder perfectly! with quickplate power module on the end..more balanced and no more front heavy

 

[Scott Crawley]

You two are right. I was looking in the same places, but I don't know what I was thinking. I looked on both sides: the side handle connections are fewer and configured differently, and there is nothing similar under the SSD as Les points out... So where?

Those of you who have changed the front fan, could we be looking at another hint as to what that new lower front panel is?

Perhaps... but they look different to the connectors on a rear module or Redmote.

There's nothing on the current camera body for thirteen of those springy type pins to directly connect with, unless it's concealed beneath the actual body panels. There's a piece of protective tamper-evident type tape under the side SSD module, but I don't think it's got any contacts covered up underneath it.

So whatever that thing is, it needs some kind of interface between it and the current camera if it's supposed to connect via those pins, or it attaches by some other means and is itself something that as yet unknown modules connect to, or it connects to something else entirely, or...lol

 

[Elsie N]

Never mind what it is... haw much does it cost? '-)

 

[Matt Ryan]

I wonder also if it's a new front module that has power output for powered zoom lenses. Would be interesting if that is the case and maybe why we do not see the front fan in the other pic.

 

[Elsie N]

New wild guess:

It is a laser projector module (hey! they're miniaturizing everything now-a-days '-) that let's us use these super computer imaging machines as exhibition solutions instead of watching them sit idly on their sticks about 99% of the time.

 

[Gavin Greenwalt]

1. A little box that records the movement of the camera. With that a 5K frame of the 6K sensor will be taken and stabilized on the fly.

Doesn't work. If you stabilize footage based on the camera's gyro data (The RED already has a built in gyro) you just get weird motion blur on a steady frame. You have to optically stabilize a frame or else shoot with a really fast shutter. It also doesn't take into account vignette of a lens or uneven sharpness and geometry.

 

[Terry VerHaar]

Maybe we should all just feign disinterest and Jarred will spill the beans! ;-)

 

[Hurcan Yilmazer]

Maybe we should all just feign disinterest and Jarred will spill the beans! ;-)

yes lets act like not interested

 

[Scott C]

Kinda feels like Jarred could just throw out any obscure picture on social media and get a whole thread full of ideas for future RED developments =)

 

[David Litchfield]

Hopefully it's a new, ergonomic and better connected housing for all the Dragon guts. That and an all frame rate proxy module are the only 2 things the camera needs. Perhaps what the engineers figured out is listening

 

[Daniel Kelly Brown]

Perhaps it actually fits on your skull and is a module adapter for a wireless HD video goggles? First to guess right wins one ?!

Edit: that would not explain the still photo relation, perhaps its related to this roadmap?

 

[Brian Boyer]

Long-time reader, occasional commenter, first-time guesser.

1) RED has been about skulls since the beginning. I'm not so sure about the whole "brains go in skulls" new housing thing.

It looks to me like THAT skull has headphones on. Hmmmmm.... I wonder if they are the noise canceling kind. Those are my favorite.

Headphones? Maybe. I mean, it is stylized. But it seems to me the designer took more care to make them look like ears. Either way, I think the device pictured is audio related, which might explain why RED brought back the skull. It does represent a head, after all.

2) The "wup" in #dragonwup can be an acronym or it could mean, "what's up with dragon?" It depends on how internet abbreviation savvy Jarred is, I guess. It could also be a typo that Jarred thought would be more fun to leave as is. The "i" is right next to the "u" on the keyboard. #dragonwip?

3) If it's an acronym, several people have settled on the "u" standing for "universal." It could also stand for "UHD" a la this post:

Wireless 4K? Wouldn't that kicks some serious ass.... Hehehe. I totally agree on the "W" in the skull logo.

4) The "W" in the skull logo, as many have pointed out, could stand for wireless, wi-fi or wing. Since Jarred capitalized "Wings" in his FB post, there might be several modules that RED has dubbed Wings that attach in the same manner and bear the "Skull W" logo. If that's true, maybe there's a version of the skull without the ears for non-audio related modules?

5) RED may have even acquired a company or technology the started with a "W" and the logo is an amalgamation of the two.

6) A few thoughts on the image below:

a) It looks to be something that's been laid down frontwards, so that we're looking at the bottom. I'm basing this on the silver, BNC-looking connector on the right side. That and the curved outline look very much like the connectors on the 4K Broadcast module. If there is a row of BNCs, it makes the most sense to have them facing towards the back on the right side of the camera, which would mean the unit attaches to the rear of the camera and is laying down. This is, of course, is assuming that what we see in this image is a single unit.

b) As has already been mentioned, the pins don't seem to correspond to anything we've seen from RED, so there's probably a new adapter device and pin protocol on the horizon.

c) If, when these pins are plugged in, the flat part from which they protrude is designed to sit flush against whatever the unit is attached to, it would mean the BNC connector part would have to "wrap around" the side of whatever that is. That seems problematic for every module except the Module Adapter and possibly the Pro I/O Module.

d) If these pins do represent a new pin protocol, there's maybe a female input on the side opposite the pins that we can't see.

e) This image was accompanied by an "Oops." That could mean, "Oops. I did it again (leaked another picture)." or, "Oops. We figured out how to make the 4K Broadcast module a lot thinner in the past year."

 

[Elsie N]

While reading Daniel Kelly Brown's post above, it suddenly made sense that this is a completely new camera upgrade on the front. Many have requested behind-the-lens NDs for forever. A front box would allow that as well as some sort of in camera switch of OLPFs. Maybe some other in-camera goodies as well.

 

[Charles Bergquist]

While reading Daniel Kelly Brown's post above, it suddenly made sense that this is a completely new camera upgrade on the front. Many have requested behind-the-lens NDs for forever. A front box would allow that as well as some sort of in camera switch of OLPFs. Maybe some other in-camera goodies as well.

...behind the lens ND would be HUGE!

 

[Phil Holland]

I'm just happy it's going to go well with my logo

 

[Jake Wilganowski]

"Wup" definitely means "wing upgrade" to me

Everybody knows dragons have wings

 

[Elsie N]

I'm just happy it's going to go well with my logo

Do not understand this obsession with the dead. My goal is to set a new record for longevity so dead or death is anathema to me.

 

[Donald MJ Anderson]

Those are cheek bones not ears.

 

[Scott Crawley]

Those are cheek bones not ears.

Actually they are occipital bones I think but this is design, and so far as that goes the intent may be to suggest earphones. I dunno.