The Nikon Z 9 Includes a New High-Efficiency RAW Codec
A high-efficiency RAW recording codec developed by intoPIX has been successfully integrated into the Nikon Z9. The company says that its TicoRAW technology allows for low processing and fast transfer speeds of up to 8K at 60 frames per second in RAW. “intoPIX is really proud to work with Nikon. Together we share the same ideals and passion: offer ever more beautiful images and videos, at any time, anywhere in the world. Experience image-making like never before.” explained Gael Rouvroy, CEO at intoPIX.
In a press release, published today, intoPIX says Nikon selected its TicoRAW technology for use in its Z9 camera system to achieve 8K Raw recording at up to 60 fps. According to intoPIX, TicoRAW captures the full quality of the sensor data while reducing the bandwidth and storage needs through its patented compression technology. Tico stands for ‘Tiny Codec’ and is named as such because it uses minimal resources and doesn’t require any external DRAM. “TicoRAW is the world’s first RAW codec, handling both RAW pictures and RAW videos, that can offer compression efficiency with such low complexity on RAW Bayer and other Color Filter Arrays (CFA) patterns,” intoPIX says.
TicoRAW works with color filter array (CFA) Raw data captured on 8-, 10-, 12- or 16-bit Bayer sensors up to 200 megapixels. intoPIX says its patented compression technology is ‘mathematically lossless and visually lossless down to 1 bit per pixel,’ depending on the compression rate used for its line-based processing. The latency of TicoRAW is just as low as just 0.1 millisecond.
“TicoRAW is the world’s first RAW codec that can offer compression efficiency with such low complexity. It also has the advantage of retaining this very fast format for editing, regardless of resolution and/or frame rates used,” the company adds.
intoPIX says TicoRAW is capable of supporting a huge number of resolutions, from 1080p Full HD through 20K RAW.
intoPIX doesn’t just say the technology is limited to the Z 9, though that is where the codec will make its first appearance. The company broadly states that it has successfully integrated the TicoRAW technology into “the new generation of Nikon cameras” which happens to start with the Z 9, though the company appears to leave the door open to see its technology leveraged on other Nikon cameras.
More info on intoPIX’s website.
