A while ago a company reached out to me, willing to send me their latest camera external monitor
for review.
When I heard “external monitor”, I quickly got excited because my very first product
review on the channel was the Aputure FineHD VS-2 field monitor and it was the reason for
me to move into technology reviews.
In the email communication the person who reached out to me kept referring to the company
as Desview, and even though their logo was clearly resembling the title Bestview, I kept
correcting myself in my first unboxing video, especially when I saw this Amazon listing
for the exact monitor that is called in fact Desview.
While recording the unboxing video, I kept debating in my head the name of the Company.
Even my wife laughed at me for referring to the company as Desview, when it clearly reads
BestView.
At that time I saw the company’s official US store and it clear to me that the rep kept
feeding me the wrong company name...but why?
Hey guys, this is E and today I’m going to tell you about this field monitor called
Bestview, model number S5.
By the way, I’m going to give away this very monitor so stay until the end of this
video to find out how you can snatch it.
So SHENZHEN BESTVIEW ELECTRONIC CO is as you can tell a Chinese manufacturer that was established
in 2009 (at least that’s what I was able to find out).
From their website you can tell that they are serious about their focus on field monitors
and industrial solutions.
This S5 is one of 4 external screen solutions that they offer, and it’s their most compact
one.
When I unboxed it, I was pleasantly surprised by the size of this screen and by the fact
that it follows the bezel-les smartphone trend with its small top and bottom frames.
In the box, the screen arrives in a plastic impact resistant case that looks like something
a villain might steel from Tom Cruise in a Mission Impossible movie.
It also has a very premium clothing pouch which is perhaps what you will use most of
the time.
The monitor has a special sun shield frame which holds the sun hood with velcro, and
it attaches to the monitor via its plastic hooks on the back.
It’s actually quite simple to attach it when you need to work in bright sunlight conditions.
Also, in the box, there’s a metal arm that screws to the top of your camera and holds
the screen.
On the side of the arm, there’s a cold shoe mount which can be used to attach an external
mic for example.
One of the small boxes within the package holds two HDMI cables, one ending with a Mini
HDMI port and the other with a Micro HDMI.
The other small box contains the D Tap cable which you can use to run the screen via a
power source.
Finally, there’s a small cleaning cloth and some paperwork.
One thing missing from the box is a battery...so keep that in mind.
The screen uses F970 series batteries.
The actual monitor is very light, and it uses soft plastics which makes it look very sturdy
and able to withhold some serious conditions.
The main controls are on the top, which I find inconvenient because your side arrows
are on the left and your up/down arrows are on the right.
In fact, the whole menu UI is a bit slow to work with, but not difficult at all...just
slow.
On one side of the body, there’s the DC IN and OUT and the HDMI port and on the other,
there’s the 1/4 mount and the power button.
On the back, there’s the battery slot with the release tap.
Connecting it to your camera is very simple and the short cables are quite soft which
makes the whole rig very clean and easy to work with.
The Bestview S5 comes with standard functions like check fields, for example, false color,
zebra, histogram and more and has peaking options as well.
Since there are no sensors in it, if you decide to flip the screen forward, you have to manually
rotate the picture from the UI.
One thing Bestview has thought about is quick functions or the option to program the arrow
control keys on top to work as various shortcuts.
Another thing I enjoyed is the additional options like aspect ratio guidelines and of
course color settings.
I tested the S5 on a very bright day, with the hood on and it’s easy to see and work
with as long as the sunlight is not direct.
The 160-degree viewing angle does work as advertised, and the Full HD resolution helps
to display the details of what your camera sees.
So if you have a camera that lacks a rotating flip screen, meaning you cannot see yourself
when recording, god forbid you have a bad autofocus, this BestView screen is an excellent
option for you.
It looks sleek, it doesn’t add bulk to your rig and most of all it has a decent display
with all the bells and whiles you might need at this price point.
Talking about price, this little guy costs $169 US.
I’ll put a link to it in the description below.
There are cheaper solutions out there, but yet again there are WAY more expensive field
monitors that offer similar specs.
So, you might want to consider it.
Like I told you in the beginning of the video, I will giveaway this BestView S5 monitor to someone who really needs it.
All you have to do, is like this video, subscribe to the channel and leave a comment as to why you would need it, for example - what camera you want to use for...etc...etc.
Basically, I want to give it to someone who deserves it. No minimum video likes required, no BS.
The giveaway is international so long you are capable to covering the shipping cost.
The giveaway ends on the 24th of May and this is when I’ll announce the winner on Twitter.
It’s been an absolute pleasure, this is E, over and out!