RED HYDROGEN Project to End, Founder Retires
RED Digital Cinema founder Jim Jannard has announced his retirement, and at the same time declared his ambitious RED smartphone project to be over. Jim recently posted the following message titled “Everything changes” on H4Vuser.net:
“I have spent the past 45 years building “inventions wrapped in art”.
Just now turning 70 and having a few health issues, it is now time for me to retire.
I will be shutting down the HYDROGEN project, ending a career that has included Oakley, RED Digital Cinema and HYDROGEN. I am very proud to have worked with many great people over the years who have signed on to the vision.
RED Digital Cinema will continue stronger than ever with Jarred, Tommy and Jamin at the controls. Komodo is about to be launched… and the HYDROGEN One will continue to be supported in the future.
I want to thank everyone for the support I have felt over the years… Jim”
In recent times, Jim stepped away from RED and focused solely on the Hydrogen One project. Although he had previously the Hydrogen project would continue towards a Hydrogen Two model, it seems that dream is now over.
Red Hydrogen One
Red Hydrogen One is an Android smartphone manufactured by Red Digital Cinema. The device was first announced in 2017 to a great deal of excitement. Unfortunately, on release in November 2018 the Hydrogen One failed to live up to expectations. Only die hard RED fans expressed satisfaction with the device.
Last month,
“RED was simultaneously far too ambitious and entirely clueless when it came to producing its first phone. The beloved camera company went with an unusual design, added on a modular port for high-end camera accessories, and included a “holographic” 3D display that was supposed to be the future of filmmaking, or something like that.”
As Jacob points out, there are far better phones, with far better cameras, for less than the new half-price Hydrogen. Be under no illusions, this is a bad deal for a bad smartphone. The only redeeming feature perhaps being it’s novelty value in the future.
RED + Smartphone = ?
Before it launched its first smartphone, Jim’s company primarily made high-end, affordable digital cinema cameras. Starting only 12 years ago, the RED camera success story is remarkable for it’s uniqueness.
However, the Hydrogen One seemed to suffer from being made by a high end camera producer, rather than profit. Often when you try to combine two things (in this case, cinema camera + smartphone) you end up with a poor version of both. If the Hydrogen One was neither a great camera nor a great smartphone, then who would want one?
Before the phone started shipping, Jim wrote: “if you concentrate on what we’re doing that the other guys aren’t, you’re gonna love it. If you concentrate on a bug or problem or Holopix crash and write that we suck, then I’m gonna be mortified.”
To which the answer is, if people don’t like your product they’re going to write that it sucks, and there’s nothing you can do about it. But it was almost like Jim was afraid there would be big problems even as he launched his ill-fated phone. Like the maker of the Titanic putting a notice in the Times saying, “If my ship hits an iceberg and sinks, don’t blame me!”
But, as smartphone filmmakers, we should applaud the spirit of adventure, nevertheless. I’m especially able to do so as I’m not $1300 down on the deal.
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