Microsoft Introduces Surface Pro 2 with Scratch Play and RED Dragon

Microsoft held an event two days ago to unveil its new Surface Pro 2, a tablet designed to be a portable workstation, with the full power of a PC.

During the presentation, Surface Pro 2 was demonstrated, following a 4K workflow with footage from the Dragon Network via Scratch Play software.

RED’s latest addition, its Epic Dragon carbon fiber camera, is capable of recording R3D raw files in 6K resolution. Scratch Play, on the other hand, is a free software recently introduced by Assimilate, which allows playback of virtually any existing format and codec.

While Scratch Play played (at 1/4 and 1/8 debayer) 6144×2592 R3D footage on stage (from a Red Drive connected via USB 3.0), another tablet was outputting this 6K footage and DPX Ultra HD files to a 3840×2160 resolution display, at 24p, in real time.

The combination of Scratch Play and Surface Pro 2 is a powerful tool, allowing you to quickly view and evaluate raw material, as well as export CDLs after generating a look, but it is not a replacement for DIT stations. One of its limitations (in this aspect) is that it reaches 512 GB of internal storage in its top configuration, so it would be difficult to use it for data management systems if we take into account what files can occupy an Epic.

This device can be used connected to a stand and keyboard, or unplugged to take it anywhere. Microsoft also claims to have improved battery life over previous models, noting that during demonstrations one of them was playing material constantly for four hours and only used a little more than half of the battery.

It has a 10.6-inch, 10-point multi-touch enabled display with 1920×1080 resolution. It is powered by an Intel Core i5 processor and features USB 3.0 and Mini DisplayPort connectivity.

From the Microsoft website you can watch the entire event, but you also have the option to watch this shortened video dedicated to working with Scratch Play and RED.

Surface Pro 2 pricing starts at $899, for a system with 64 GB storage and 4 GB of RAM. For video professionals there are more configurations, which will allow them to upgrade to 8 GB of RAM and 256 GB ($1,299) or 512 GB ($1,799).

For more information about the specifications, additional accessories and prices you can check this page, and if you are interested in the topics mentioned above, we remind you that we have a course dedicated to“Assimilate Scratch” and another one to“Digital Cinema Cameras“. Don’t miss them!