Portkeys BM5 IV WR Camera Control Monitor Announced – First Look

by Francesco AndreolaSeptember 16^th, 2024

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At IBC 2024, Portkeys announced the 4th iteration of their 5.5-inch, high-bright camera monitor. The upcoming BM5 IV WR retains the rugged design of the previous generations but gets several new hardware and software updates. These include an HDMI outport port, the new CINENORM OS software with custom pages, a stop-based false color exposure tool, panel calibration, camera control for ARRI and Nikon cameras, and more. Let’s take a closer look!

Over the years, Chinese manufacturer Portkeys has built a solid reputation by producing high-bright, rugged camera monitors that don’t break the bank. Their BM5 II has been serving me well for over seven years now, and last year, I decided that it needed a bigger 7-inch brother – the BM7 II DS – which has also never let me down so far.

While they may not be the most accurate on the market, Portkeys monitors usually offer a good amount of value for their price. One of their biggest limitations, however, is their old-fashioned operating system, but this should soon be addressed with the advent of the new BM5 IV WR and CINENORM OS software. On the show floor at IBC 2024, we caught up with Niko Bellice from Portkeys to find out more!

Portkeys BM5 IV WR – new features

The new Portkeys BM5 IV WR features the same 5.5-inch panel as the previous generation, which has a resolution of 1920×1080 and a maximum brightness of 2,200 nits. The panel is protected by an all-aluminum chassis that now hosts an upgraded CPU, allowing the BM5 IV WR to run the new CINENORM OS.

The new software brings a whole new page-based UI that is claimed to be more intuitive, customizable, and responsive. Moreover, users can now perform panel calibration by themselves via the use of a calibration LUT, judge exposure using a new stop-based false color tool, and create custom user profiles with their preferred settings. These can also be moved from one Portkeys monitor to the other as long as both are running CINENORM OS. Additionally, the camera control function has now been expanded to include ARRI and Nikon cameras.

On the hardware side, we can still find 3G-SDI in and out ports on the back of the unit, as well as an HDMI input port on the left side of the screen. On top of this, the BM5 IV WR finally gets an HDMI output port. Signal cross-conversion between SDI and HDMI is also supported.

Portkeys CINENORM OS – updates

The new CINENORM OS software was first announced back at NAB in April but hasn’t seen the light yet. However, according to Niko, it should be released officially later this month.

The BM5 IV WR will come standard with the CINENORM OS already installed, but users of the BM7 II DS will also be able to update their monitor to the new operating system for free. Unfortunately, though, the same cannot be said for BM5 III WR users due to hardware limitations – Portkeys says. However, BM5 III WR users will still get a free update that should add camera control for ARRI cameras.

Price and availability

Currently, there’s no official release date for the Portkeys BM5 IV WR, but we will report back as soon as we find out. This updated version will be priced a little higher than the BM5 III WR, which costs $649.

For more information, please keep an eye on Portkeys’ website.

Are you an owner of any Portkeys BM5 monitor? Are these new features a good reason for you to update? Let us know your thoughts in the comment section below!