DigitalFoto S300 RGBW Panel Hands on Review Budget alternative for the Arri Skypanel S60c

The Arri SkyPanel is one of the most popular professional light in the cinema and broadcast arena. The SkyPanel has its limitations but one of its biggest drawbacks is its cost. Chinese manufacturer digitalfoto wants to bring a more cost-effective option to the table which also adds a few interesting features to the table and Tommy Callaway had a chance to play with it and he seems to have a few notes.

The DigitalFoto S300 is a 2:1 RGBW panel with a 300W draw and a tremendous output of over 9000lux at 1m with a temperature range of 2800-9990K, 12 color effects dual V-mount plates, and a remote that can work with a few other lights from the company as well.

The DigitalFoto S300 weighs about 12KG or 26lbs. it has a fairly simple interface on the back as well as a smartphone app (plus the remote which we mentioned that works for up to 30m or close to 100 feet). The light has dual fans but you can turn them off. What seems to be interesting is that with the two V-mount batteries you can get full power (at least with the two Bebob batteries Callaway used. We are not sure if the power of the light is reduced when turning the fans off (many large lights do that to protect their system).

The one thing that  Callaway didn’t really measure in this review is color accuracy. Officially it should be around 95 CRI but we would certainly be happy to confirm that one ourselves.

Now comes the part you have all been waiting for – price. Currently, an Arri Skypanel S60c sells for around $6500 that is certainly a lot of money for a light. The DigitalFoto S300 sells for between $1700 to $1800 (depending on the kit). Getting this light together with the company’s Chameleon LED RGB Tube, makes even more sense since you can use the same remote for both lights.

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Iddo Genuth
Iddo Genuth is the founder and chief editor of LensVid.com. He has been a technology reporter working for international publications since the late 1990's and covering photography since 2009. Iddo is also a co-founder of a production company specializing in commercial food and product visual content.

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