Guys, we have

http://www.personal-view.com/talks/discussion/3743/-sony-np-fxxx-batteries-topic

So, I think it'll be best to focus batteries dicsussion in the place where it is easy to find

@SuperSet That's perfect! Thanks for the information!

@slacklaporte Do you recommend either of these? It looks like folks are happy with that Pearstone one so wanted to know your thoughts as well. Many thanks in advance.

http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/352125-REG/Sony_NPF970.html

http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/538838-REG/Pearstone__NP_F975_L_Series_Lithium_Ion_Battery.html

Ok, spent some more time with it today in cool conditions. The battery life was at most 2 hours with this 7200 mAH Sony NP-F960 battery replacement that I bought off eBay. Not sure if I should just pony up the dough and buy a real Sony battery to see if it makes any difference.

@adrianpardo Ah, found it, sorry that I missed it earlier. I have not tested this feature but here's what is mentioned in the manual:

• User defined image ratio OSD Use 'Aspect/EXIT' button to select 'USER' Mode, then press 'Menu' button for 3-5 seconds, you will enter the OSD as below:

Mode H-START (-186 - +270) H-SIZE (-270 - +270) V-START (-24 - +200) V-SIZE (-200 - +48)

@SuperSet Yup, thats too bad. Thanks for help.

@adrianpardo I didn't see that option in the menu so sorry, not sure. There is an option for auto scaling that you can set to Full, 16:9, 4:3, Off.

@RomanLegion I'm only using a large capacity battery for the monitor. The attached unit to the camera's left is a DS214 pre-amp.

Any chance in the future we might get a waveform version?

@spacewig INPUT: 100-240V 50/60Hz 0.6A OUTPUT: 12V 1500mA

@slacklaporte I was going to try calibrate it tonight but.. I had an unexplainable problem with it where the monitor came on but no picture was being sent from the GH3. I tried it on my other GH3 as well and same thing. Cycled power, tried system reset option, rechecked cabling and same issue. Then it started working again. I dunno man, not sure if I trust this unit yet. I noticed the GH3 OLED display was blinking a few times before it started working again so maybe the mini HDMI cable is bad. So, it's working now but I'm going to go out and buy another cable (this one was new as well) and see if that'll help.

That's a good idea so I sure will. Part of me thinks that the battery connector isn't made for high capacity batteries so the weight is too much. Thanks again for the deal alert, VK!

The monitor came yesterday! So, first thoughts:

1. Ordered on 2 Jan and received yesterday so pretty quick shipping and good communication from Cole at Neway about status.
2. This sucker is huge. I had second thoughts about getting the 5" version but all that real estate definitely helps getting proper focus. I don't think I could use a small OLED again. :)
3. Still messing with the color calibration as it's still a little warm, compared to the OLED. Luckily, the menus can be found in English but you gotta find them first as it ships in Chinese. The manual helps.
4. Bootup time was about 5-7 seconds before display.
5. Clear resolution, especially as you increase sharpness. Very easy to tell what's in focus, even without the peaking option. I haven't used this in bright sunlight yet so maybe that's where it'll help.
6. The battery compartment is not that secure and very easy to knock loose. I'm gonna tape it to help secure it. I bought the default F960 plate and an eBay high capacity F970 battery. I don't know if the included AC adapter also charges the battery.

That's it for now. Let me know if anyone has other questions.