It's niche. but if you need it, you need it. The new Light Widow Sidewinder VPU (HDMI-based video processing unit) can rotate and de-squeeze a video signal, allowing you to easily monitor video shot vertically.
You may be wondering why a professional camera would be turned 90° on its side to film vertical video, especially when a smartphone does a great job. Well, some of the videos seen on major social accounts are sometimes filmed by a crew with a pro camera, and occasionally an anamorphic lens. Cooking videos, fashion, interviews, narratives, and more use professional gear to capture high quality video for platforms like Instagram and TikTok.
Monitoring the video when the camera is at right angles to the norm is especially difficult since it's displayed sideways. The Light Widow Sidewinder VDU can rotate and de-squeeze the camera signal, making it easier for the director, camera crew, and client are able to monitor the footage properly.
Key features
- Rotate and de-squeeze video shot vertically, along with an anamorphic lens, with HDMI connectivity.
- Rotation includes 90, 180, and 270°.
- De-squeeze includes 1.33x, 1.5x, 1.8x, 2x, 2.33x, 2.5x, 2.85x, 3x, and 4x.
- Compact size of roughly a 1990s pager.
- Light Widow says the final Sidewinder VPU unit could include 9:16 or 16:9 guides (or both) and a punch-in feature to 16:9. Stay tuned...
The Sidewinder VPU is powered by a Raspberry Pi CM5, which keeps the unit affordable. The board and housing are custom made by the team at Light Widow, and they have described it as a "passion project product." It has a very narrow use case, but will appeal to cinematographers and directors who handle filming vertical video on pro gear for social media platforms.
However, while the Sidewinder VPU is useful for monitoring and framing, the Raspberry Pi CM5 won't give quality color performance and there are also latency issues. As such, Light Widow cautions against using it for focus pulling, checking color accuracy, or in-monitor recording.
One question that comes to mind is will Light Widow develop an SDI version? In the YouTube video above, it is noted that using HDMI and the Raspberry Pi processor keeps the unit more affordable compared to releasing an SDI unit, which could cost over $1000. Checking Light Widow's Instagram, there seems to be some hunting about for an SDI version, and if there's enough demand, perhaps they'll develop a Sidewinder VDU SDI.
Alternatives
In the introduction video, it is noted that newer on-camera HD monitors can be rotated 90° and a custom de-squeeze of 1.5x will work. However, if filming with an ARRI camera, for example, part of the resulting footage will be "lost" on the monitor due to its sensor being taller. There are similar units to the Sidewinder VDU, but cost over $1000.
Pricing and availability
The Light Widow Sidewinder VPU is available for pre-order and costs $299. It will ship in September 2025. However, as of this writing, there is a sale happening and it is currently is priced at $249. One thing to note, final features haven't been confirmed yet. Learn more on the Light Widow site.