The Nexto DI Video Storage Pro NVS2500 answers the prayers of all field shooters who must deal with solid-state media but may not have the opportunity to offload to a computer, or who are concerned that their intern or PA might not copy an entire card properly (as happens far too often).

Nexto produces several devices that accept varieties of solid-state media and copy the contents to an internal hard drive (or SSD, depending upon the model). The ND2700 and ND2725 constitute these offerings. They are basic copying units that employ a fast X-copy routine to copy an entire card, in the proper directory structure, to an internal drive.

The NVS2500 goes well beyond the basic copying functions of Nexto’s lower-end units and is constructed in such a way as to assure shooters that the data will be there when going to edit.

Before even discussing the features of the NVS2500, I’ll elaborate on my reason for this recommendation. The unit itself is ruggedized, with a heavy hard-plastic enclosure and rubberized end caps. All of the I/O slots for the various formats of cards it supports are covered with a rubberized tab. Also, Nexto utilizes only a ruggedized hard drive that has passed their tests for field use. Options are available to support 2.5" hard drives up to 2TB in capacity. Incremental backup capabilities are built in. Also available are models with up to 128GB SSDs. I would imagine that as solid-state memory capacities increase, they would be compatible with the NVS2500.

The NVS2500 will also back up data from any USB device, even without a computer. Thus it is even possible to connect cameras that offload recorded media via USB 2.0 directly to the NVS2500 without even removing the card. It does defeat the purpose of having a card-offloading device, but at least it is possible.

Once the data is securely written to the internal drive, the NVS2500 has multiple interfaces for transferring material to your computer. Choose from FireWire 400, USB 2.0 or eSATA connections. The device is also forwardly compatible with the USB 3.0 standard.

Finally, the NVS2500 will play back video clips in most formats on its 2.4" LCD screen. The only format I found that caused some difficulty was AVC-Intra 100, for which the NVS2500 only has limited support at the moment. (That should change with future firmware updates.) As it is, attempting to play AVC1 clips will produce a message that the NVS2500 has only limited support for AVC1, followed by a choppy playback. It certainly is adequate to see what footage the clip contains. Other formats play back smoothly.

In a typical workflow, just remove the media from the camera after filling the card. Pop it in the appropriate slot in the Nexto or, in the case of Panasonic P2 cards, put the P2 card in the supplied P2-to-Express34 adapter. The NVS2500 will then automatically copy the contents of the card. Copying is quite fast. I have found that it can range anywhere from 1GB/minute all the way to even five times that speed, depending upon the card and interface. SDHC cards are slower. It is then reasonable to conclude that SxS and P2 copy the fastest owing to the Express34 interface on the NVX2500. The internal battery is good for about 60GB of data transfer. Also included is a secondary external battery powered by AAs.

The NVS2500 will copy the contents of the card into a unique folder on the internal drive, identified by a date-time nomenclature. One of the most significant features is that it is possible to mix formats on the same drive. I have, for example, sequentially copied P2, XDCAM EX from SxS, XDCAM EX from SDHC, MXF files from CF and .MOV Quicktime files from both CF and SDHC.

The menu system is straightforward and there is only an on/off button and a joystick-style button for control. Commands are invoked by selecting menu items using the small front button, and on-screen instructions tell the user whether to use a “short” or “long” push of the button. After only one attempt, I was able to get the feel of how short a push was needed for short and how long to hold it down for long.

The NVS2500 is currently shipping 320GB and 500GB versions. Since the price differential between 320GB and 500GB is only about $150, I would advise going for the 500GB model.

Weighing only about 1 lb., the NVS2500 is very portable and will fit nicely in your travel case.