One of the hottest products to come out of NAB 2009 was the AJA Ki Pro. What is the Ki Pro? From the AJA website:

The AJA Ki Pro is a tapeless video recording device that records high-quality Apple ProRes 422 QuickTime files onto computer-friendly media. Because it features SD/HD-SDI, HDMI, and analog inputs, you can interface with virtually any type of camera you might own or rent. Enjoy monitoring flexibility through Ki Pro’s numerous simultaneous outputs, connecting to both professional and consumer monitors.

This thing always had a quite the crowd around it and it won a number of awards at the NAB show. AJA is taking the unit on the road with the Ki Pro Worldwide Roadshow. The schedule for the Americas is:

  • Chicago – June 10th
  • Toronto – June 16th
  • Los Angeles – June 17th
  • New York – June 18th
  • Atlanta – June 23rd
  • Miami – June 25th
  • Vancouver – July 14th
  • Dallas – July 16th
  • Mexico City – July 21st
  • Sao Paulo – July 23rd

If you are a one man band who acquires and edits your own video then this little unit might be just the thing for you. It felt to me like a Firestore on steroids. It’s not cheap with an MSRP of $3995 but it could be a great timesaver when if comes to the edit. Sign up online for the tour and catch it when it comes to your area. These types of roadshow events are great for hands on demos as well as asking questions from the vendor that is putting on the event. Of course they are always a dog and pony show with the best foot forward but often the vendors are surprisingly candid about critical questions and the answers they provide, especially if you can get them one-on-one after the event is over. If you didn’t make it to NAB 09 then this is the next best thing to get a look at the AJA Ki Pro.