Red, now a wholly owned subsidiary of Nikon, has massively cut the prices of the Red Komodo 6K camera in various packages. The prices have come down by up to 30% in some cases, with discounts of up to $3,000. And this isn’t just a sale. These are the new permanent prices.
This makes the cameras much more accessible to people, especially those who might have been considering making the jump from mirrorless video to a real cinema camera. This is excellent news, but one has to ask why?
RED Komodo & Komodo-X price drop
The RED Komodo 6K was announced in 2020 and was an instant hit with just about everyone who owned one, and it’s easy to see why. Four years in the world of cameras is practically an eternity, though. So, now the prices have fallen.
But then, the newer, RED Komodo-X has also been reduced. That one was released only last year, in May 2023, and it sees a reduction three times that of the original Komodo. The original 2020 Komodo prices have all been permanently reduced by $1,000 while the Komodo-X packages have all been reduced by $3,000.
KOMODO (camera only): $4,995 ($1,000 reduction)
KOMODO Starter Pack: $6,500 ($1,000 reduction)
KOMODO Production Pack: $7,500 ($1,000 reduction)
KOMODO-X (camera only): $6,995 ($3,000 reduction)
KOMODO-X Starter Pack: $8,995 ($3,000 reduction)
KOMODO-X Production Pack: $11,995 ($3,000 reduction)
So while the age of the original Komodo might account for its price reduction, why such a massive drop on the Komodo-X? Well, the new RED CEO, Keiji Oishi, has something to say about that. But not much…
RED’s KOMODO lineup has only grown in popularity over the years. Since joining RED, I have heard filmmakers rave about KOMODO’s small form factor and the amazing performance of the global shutter sensor. We’re excited to introduce this new pricing which lowers the hurdle for a new group of filmmakers to take advantage of the exceptional cinema quality and creative possibilities of RED cameras.
RED always strives to create an accessible and reliable avenue for artists at any level to get their hands on premier cinema grade imaging technology. The KOMODO remains one of the most versatile and powerful camera systems that RED has ever developed, and democratizing image capture technology at this level will always remain part of RED’s DNA.
This is the first major announcement from RED since Nikon acquired it for $85,000,000 last year. And it’s not a new camera. It’s not a Komodo with a Nikon Z mount or anything of the sort. It’s a price reduction on an existing product that Nikon had no involvement in creating – but now obviously owns.
New RED cameras on the way?
Mr Oishi’s statement is a little vague, not sharing too much information about the cause of the price drops. Why even bother with them at all? And what does this potentially suggest for the future of RED (and Nikon)? Well, and this is all speculation, of course, but to me, it says that Nikon is taking the acquisition very seriously and plans to make some serious changes very quickly into their tenure as its RED’s new owners.
There are two major potential reasons for the drop. Either, the company is currently just trying to sell off existing RED stock as quickly as possible in an attempt to raise funds and recoup some of that acquisition money back as quickly as possible. After all, we don’t know how much is sitting in warehouses gathering dust while waiting to be bought. I think this is unlikely, though.
Or – and this also involves clearing out the warehouses – they already know what they want to do, are working on it, and want to put RED’s existing kit in the rear-view mirror to focus on releasing their own new cameras. This option makes a lot more sense.
Nikon has said that they want to put a Z mount on RED cameras. They’ve also said they want to put RED tech in their Z mount mirrorless cameras. Given that the RED Komodo and Komodo-X currently use the Canon RF mount, it makes sense that Nikon may want to lose that mount as soon as possible in favour of their own.
Or are they trying to distance themselves from Canon?
If that’s the case, though, it’s going to be interesting to see how this plays out. Most cinema cameras (at least the kind in our price ranges) typically use Canon EF or RF mounts. There are one or two others using Leica L and other mounts, but it’s pretty much always been a Canon monopoly. Sure, there’s PL mount, but most of us aren’t quite at that level.
Getting rid of Canon mounts is definitely going to upset some users. But if Nikon cares more about its existing Nikon customers rather than the newly acquired RED customers, that might not matter. Nikon might have decided that convincing Z mount users to buy a RED is going to generate more of an income than the sales lost to those who prefer RF mount.
It also means they’re promoting their own lenses and not their main competitor’s. And while Nikon doesn’t appear to be struggling the way it once was, their market share is still much smaller than either Canon or Sony.
I said this would be an interesting acquisition, and it certainly seems to be. IBC’s in a week or so, and NAB’s next April. It’s entirely possible we might hear some new gear announcements from either RED, Nikon or both very soon.
