China-based manufacturer Pixel Enterprise has announced the development of its first ever flashgun, the Mago 600. As part of the product testing, the company is seeking 20 eager volunteers to test and review the product prior to its release.Ă‚Â The Mago 600 is designed as a professional-level flash with features common to many competing products.
Unlike Pixel’s LED panels and rival flashes like the Phottix Mitros+, however, the Mago — or at least the first model — will not have radio capabilities built-in. Nonetheless you will get the full suite of TTL capabilities, high-speed sync, manual control, external power support, sync ports and everything else expected of a high-end flagship flashgun.
What’s more, the Mago 600 sports something unique in the form of a tungsten-balanced 2-watt LED video lamp. So at the times you really want a bit of extra lighting — usually indoors in the evenings — you can have the light balance well with the ambient without needing to hunt down gel filters. This orange panel appears to be removable so you can get daylight-balanced light as well.
To keep you ahead of the curve, there is a micro-USB port tucked away in the battery compartment, allowing the user to self-install firmware updates, as is the case for other Pixel products.
The (tentative) specifications are as follows, according to the manufacturer.
- Flash Index: 60@ISO 100/105mm
- Flash Mode: TTL/M/Multi
- Multi Flash Frequency: 1 - 500 MHz (sic?)
- Auto Zoom
- Manual Zoom: 20 - 200 mm
- 1st Curtain Sync and 2nd Curtain Sync
- EVĂ‚Â Adjustable
- AFĂ‚Â Light
- 2WĂ‚Â LEDĂ‚Â Light
- 2inchĂ‚Â LCDĂ‚Â DisplayĂ‚Â (192×96)
- Deep Sound Button
- Battery or Flash Head Over-Heat Warning
- Firmware Upgradable
- Support Power Pack Input
- 4 x AA Battery
- Max. Flash Time: 150times @ 1/1 Power (with Sanyo Eneloop Battery)
If you are interested in becoming an early adopter, e-mail [email protected] with the following information (as requested by Pixel):
- What brand of camera do you use? (Canon/Nikon only)
- Which flash models do you already own?
- Do you have your own webpage or blog to share the product news?
- Where are you from?
- What languages you can write?
- Have you ever posted any product reviews before?
- Personal information (including name/age/email address etc.)
- We require you to write a report after using our new product.
There will be enough samples for 20 beta testers. And of course you will see a full Lighting Rumours review in due course.
A release date and a price have not yet been announced, but both may well depend on the feedback from photographers doing the testing. Will you sign up?