The UltraStudio Express Recorder 3G is pocket sized 3G-SDI and HDMI video capture for any USB4 or Thunderbolt 4 laptop or desktop. Both inputs are broadcast quality 10-bit, with SDI rates of 270Mb, 1.5G and 3G plus an HDMI 2.0 type A connector, covering SD, HD and 2K DCI standards up to 60p. The unit is bus powered over a single USB-C 40Gb/s cable, so it runs from a laptop battery with nothing else to carry.

It uses the same DeckLink API as Blackmagic's capture cards, so it works with DaVinci Resolve, Final Cut Pro, Media Composer and Premiere Pro, plus live streaming software such as Open Broadcaster, on Mac, Windows and Linux. Most software captures to Apple ProRes, DNxHD or 10-bit uncompressed, so you're never locked into one file format. It suits archiving from old broadcast decks, live streaming and recording from game consoles.

Audio comes in as 16 channels embedded on SDI and 8 channels on HDMI, sampled at 48 kHz and 24-bit. SDI colour precision runs to 8, 10 and 12-bit RGB 4:4:4 up to 1080p30 and 8 or 10-bit YUV 4:2:2 in all standards, with 4:2:2 and 4:4:4 video sampling. Hardware based colourspace conversion runs in real time across Rec 601, Rec 709 and Rec 2020.

SD covers 525i59.94 NTSC and 625i50 PAL, HD runs from 720p50 to 1080p60 and 2K DCI runs in PsF and progressive standards up to 2Kp60. SDI compliance spans SMPTE 259M, 274M, 296M, 424M and 425M level A and B, with RP 188 timecode and closed captioning metadata carried through capture.

Key features

• 10-bit SD/HD switchable 3G-SDI input — 270Mb, 1.5G and 3G rates
• HDMI 2.0 type A input
• SD, HD and 2K DCI standards up to 60p
• 16 channels of embedded SDI audio, 8 on HDMI — 48 kHz and 24-bit
• Bus powered over a single USB-C 40Gb/s connection
• DeckLink API — works with DaVinci Resolve, Premiere Pro, Final Cut Pro and Media Composer
• Capture to Apple ProRes, DNxHD or 10-bit uncompressed via supported software
• SDI colour precision to 12-bit RGB 4:4:4 up to 1080p30
• 4:2:2 and 4:4:4 video sampling
• Real time hardware colourspace conversion — Rec 601, Rec 709 and Rec 2020
• SMPTE 259M, 274M, 296M, 424M and 425M level A and B compliance
• RP 188 timecode and closed captioning support
• Mac, Windows and Linux drivers with free developer SDK
• Includes Media Express, Disk Speed Test, LiveKey and Desktop Video Utility