Ethics statement: I have been good friends with Steve Weiss and Zacuto for about 8 years and a website affiliate of theirs for about 7. So naturally I am biased to a degree but I wouldn’t feature a product of theirs if I didn’t rate it or wouldn’t use it myself. They supplied me the new Gratical Eye for a week to try out. If you do buy one through my affiliate link on this page I get a small referral percentage, as this is the case I recommend checking other reviews before purchasing in case you think I am not being objective (which I always am!)
For more details about my ethics check out my full statement here.
The Zacuto Gratical is the best EVF on the market in my opinion. I have been using it for 18 months on my F55 and FS7 and it is exceptional. Every doubter of it has changed their mind when they look through it. It is crystal clear, pin sharp, has all the scopes you could need without obscuring the image. It has a 4:3 micro oled panel that uses 16:9 for the camera with the bottom section for the scopes.
Whilst the price for the Gratical HD might seem high to some compared to many propriety EVFs out there (like my Sony OLED for the F55) it is much cheaper and enormously better! This is an EVF that will work on just about any camera out there. It is pretty much future proofed as long as HDMI / SDI remain standards on video cameras.
The panel is 720p but it is absolutely all you need. You don’t need a 4K oled panel and 1080p makes no different on the micro led. It has 2687.21 PPI/ 5.4 million pixels with 16.7 million colours. It is this that makes the difference, you don’t see any pixels when looking through the magnifying eye piece. It’s magnificent.
The Gratical HD is the fully featured stand alone EVF which is powered by a single Canon LP-E6 or external power input and takes HDMI in/ out and SDI in/out. It has all the features software wise and free firmware for life. With a The Gratical X it is the same hardware but you choose the software you want.
The just announced Gratical Eye is fully featured like the HD but the difference is the size. It is about a third the size and it does this by removing the internal power option so it needs power from your camera. The HDMI has also been removed. If your camera has SDI and the ability to supply power this is one beautiful EVF. Smaller, lighter, fully featured and cheaper than the Gratical HD, $500 cheaper in face coming in at $1950. The weight difference is substantial, the HD is 1.25 lbs whilst the EYE is only 14 ounces.
I tried it out on my FS7 which unless you use the extension module does not have a power out. You can buy batteries for this camera though which has a D-Tap out. That is what I used, I do have an extension back but generally like to keep the camera small. I put the back on if I am doing a lot of handheld work for better balance.
If you wanted the most flexible EVF the you should look at the Gratical X/ HD due to the HDMI input. If you want the sleekest lightest and cheaper one and only use SDI then the EYE is the one to get. I will continue to use the HD but will get the EYE for my F55 and for use on my FS7 when I am using the extension back.
This is a high end professional EVF that is better and cheaper than the proprietary competition. This absolutely is not for everyone. If you don’t understand what this is for the it probably is not for you! ?
You can find out more info about the EYE and order one by clicking here. It ships from April 25th.
