Kinefinity has dramatically dropped the prices of its main products: The MAVO LF, MAVO 6K, and TERRA. That means Kinefinity MAVO Large Format camera now costs $8,000 (instead of $12,000). Is there a long term strategy behind this move? Read on.

Kinefinity Camera Product Line – New price tags

First, let’s read Kinefinity’s statement (quoted from its website): “ Kinefinity had released three cinema cameras: TERRA 4K, MAVO, and MAVO LF. During this time, while receiving numerous industry awards, the cameras have served as professional tools to help filmmakers create excellent images. At the same time, Kinefinity puts a lot of effort into optimizing the supply chain and production process to provide customers with more reliable and more affordable products. Starting today (Feb.14th), the Kinefinity camera product line is listed at a new price, offers more efficient accessory package options, and adds ProRes4444 / 4444XQ encoding to TERRA 4K”. To read more about Kinefinity cinema solutions, head here for our in-depth articles about cinematographers using Kinefinity cinema camera for high-quality productions. The results are quite cinematic and professional. However, the brand has failed to penetrate and gain traction regarding high-end productions, including Netflix. No Kinefinity model has been approved by Netflix. 

Kinefinity puts a lot of effort into optimizing the supply chain and production process to provide customers with more reliable and more affordable products. Starting today (Feb.14th), the Kinefinity camera product line is listed at a new price, offers more efficient accessory package options

Kinefinity

Have a look at the slide below that describes the price reduction:

Kinefinity strategy

What’s behind those price reductions? According to the company, there are two reasons for this price drop:

1. Price Adjustment: As a result of massive improvements in the optimization of the supply chain and production processes, Kinefinity can now offer lower entry prices to existing camera models.
2. More flexible accessory packages: Based on the company experience in selling the current accessories line, changes have been made to the composition of the packages to allow for more convenience to users. Check out the slide below that demonstrate the new accessories package options:

TERRA 4K receives ProRes4444 / XQ

Furthermore, the TERRA 4K will now see ProRes4444 and ProRes4444XQ encoding added to its arsenal. All TERRA 4K cameras shipped (it’s released in 2017) will be able to add ProRes4444/ProRes4444XQ via a free firmware update, no hardware changes are required. The firmware is expected to be available in April 2020.

Discussion

First, this is a huge price drop to compete with other cinema solutions, especially in the Large Format segment. For a while, the Kinefinity cameras were such a bargain. However, the Z-Cam and the Sony FX9 came for a similar price tag to the LF, thus the price had to be reduced. Just a reminder, that is the first significant price drop for 2020. We all remember 2019 as the year of price dropping (Varicam, C200, and EVA1 – examine the chart below). Many manufacturers define the “Magic Line” of $10,000 as the price line that defines affordability (concerning cinema cameras). However, this vast price reduction can indicate something else. 

Kinefinity has failed to penetrate the high production market

First, it has to be said that the MAVO LF is a fantastic camera. We love to cover projects shot on this camera. To learn more about the MAVO LF, read this article about filmmaking tips concerning this camera. Also, check out the article we wrote about the first film shot on the Kinefinity MAVO LF. The imagery looks polished and professional. Nevertheless, it has failed to be approved by Netflix, nor gain traction on major studios and productions. The main reason for that might be impaired service and support since Kinefinity is a Chinese company that lacks a solid worldwide based service.

Kinefinity Inc., based in the Haidian District, which is the area reported as the highest number of Coronavirus cases in Beijing

Kinefinity and Coronavirus

There is one more thing to take into consideration that might impact the company for the short and long run. Kinefinity Inc., based in the Haidian District, which is the area reported as the highest number of Coronavirus cases in Beijing. For those of you considering to order Kinefinity products, you should verify that there are no risks involved regarding the supply chain due to the Coronavirus fragile situation.