Sony’s long-awaited firmware update for the FS7 finally has a release date. We were previously promised the firmware before the end of the year, and Sony have now confirmed that they will deliver in December, free of charge.

The headline feature of the firmware update is the ‘2K Center’ scan mode previously seen in the F5/55 and FS5. In HD and 2K resolutions it acts as a digital 2x crop and also allows Super16 lenses to be used without vignetting. In addition it means you can add the MTF B4 2/3″ to Sony E-Mount optical adaptor which allows ENG lenses to be used. By adding this feature to the FS7 and FS5 Sony have lessened that gap between the FS cameras and the higher-end F5/55.

Just as significant is the new ability to move the focus magnification area around the screen. This allows precise focus to be checked when your subject is off centre – the classic example of which is while shooting an interview. Its worth noting though that this likely only works for the EVF/screen that comes with the FS7 and does not magnify the HDMI or SDI signal if you are feeding an external monitor or EVF.

Also in the update is support for noise suppression in Cine EI mode. This is a potentially a very good thing for shooters who use S-Log3 and want to eliminate noise in shadow areas without having to do it in post production.

The camera also gains interval recording.

This from Sony:

New Features & Improvements:

● Support for adjusting the Focus Magnification area position

● Support for “2K Full, “2K Center” setting in Imager Scan Mode

● Support for Interval Recording function (Not supported when recording with XAVC Long interlace and MPEG2 interlace format.)

● Support for Noise Suppression setting in Cine EI mode

● Expand lowest value of Zebra level to 0%

