docs/SHOPPING.md
Hardware shopping — cameras and T4000 breakout
Prices checked 2026-09-01 (USD street unless noted). Confirm before you click. This is a buy brief, not a spec. Product decisions stay in INTERCONNECT / SENSORS / LENS.
The fork that matters
Blackmagic cameras do not speak MIPI CSI. They speak HDMI (Pocket / Cinema Camera 6K) or 12G-SDI + Ethernet + USB-C (PYXIS). Thor eats CSI/GMSL/HSB natively.
So “mount a Blackmagic on the Thor box” has three honest paths:
| Path | 4K into Thor? | Cooke /i? | Crack the camera? | Prototype speed |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| A. HDMI/SDI → CSI capture card on the carrier | HDMI 4K30 maybe; CTI JCB003 is 3G-SDI = 1080p60 only | From BMD files / Ethernet control, not from the SDI payload | No | Days if the card exists for Thor |
| B. BMD records BRAW internally; Thor gets a monitor feed + sidecar | Thor AI on 1080p/4K HDMI proxy; master stays on CFexpress | Yes, in BRAW metadata (PL /i or EF/L electronic) | No | Fastest cine path |
| C. Open the body, rewire the sensor to CSI | Only if you reverse a Sony IMX + FPGA. Not a weekend. | You’d still need the /i pins off the mount PCB | Yes | Weeks–months. Don’t buy a PYXIS in order to do this |
Recommendation: do not buy a Blackmagic as a CSI science project. Buy it as a cinema body (path B, plus HDMI/SDI into Thor for live AD/overlay). If you want native CSI, that’s a FRAMOS/Leopard module, not BMD.
1. Compute / breakout (no custom PCB)
NVIDIA Jetson T4000 SOM (the module)
| PN | 900-13834-0000-000 |
| Price | $2,749 qty 1 at Arrow (492 listed in stock, “ships tomorrow”; also lists 24-week factory LT) |
| 1KU list | Was $1,999; NVIDIA raised to $2,999 (Jul 2026) |
| Notes | 64 GB, 1× NVENC, 70 W default / 90 W TMP, no CAN, no 3.3 V SYS_VIN_SV. Needs a 699-pin carrier + TTP/heatsink. Arrow already sold you the datasheet. |
ATS Thor heatsinks at Digi-Key: active ~$106, passive ~$47.
NVIDIA AGX Thor Developer Kit (T5000 brick — not a T4000)
| PN | 945-14070-0080-000 (US) |
| Price | $3,499 Arrow (75 listed); NVIDIA US list hiked to $5,499 Jul 2026; Seeed industrial PDF $5,899; Amazon third-party $2,799 — treat Amazon as unverified |
| What’s in the box | T5000 SOM, reference carrier, 140 W PSU, 1 TB NVMe, Wi-Fi, fan |
| I/O | 5GbE, QSFP28 (4× independent 25G, not 100G), HDMI out, DP, USB-C, HSB, USB cameras |
| Notes | Fastest software bring-up. No HDMI/SDI in. Wrong envelope vs production T4000. Fine as the lab brick we already designed the resin shell around. |
Connect Tech Rogue-T5 (AGX302) — T4000 and T5000 (preferred carrier)
| Size | 92 × 108 mm |
| Compat | T5000 / T4000 / IGX Thor 500 (no SMCU) |
| Net | 2× 10GBASE-T + 1× 2.5G, locking IX Industrial |
| Camera | Expansion header → add-on boards: GMSL2/3, 3G-SDI, HDMI, MIPI, FPD-Link |
| Carrier-only | PN AGX302 — quote sales@connecttech.com (not a web cart) |
| Integrated (T5000 already on board) | WDL: $8,225–$12,325 depending on cooling/NVMe/Wi-Fi/GMSL (example AGX302-01M $8,225) |
| Power | 12 V, CTI brick MSG103 252 W |
| Notes | Smallest production Thor carrier. Same board if you later drop in T4000. Camera I/O is add-on, not on the carrier. Manual: CTIM-00160. |
Connect Tech Gauntlet (AGX301)
| Size | 155 × 126 mm |
| Compat | Marketed T5000; T4000 support claimed in CTI blogs |
| Net | 2× 10GbE + 2× 1GbE RJ45 |
| Camera | 16-lane MIPI header + same JCB add-ons |
| Price | AU listing A$3,999 (~US$2,600) “in stock” — confirm if that’s carrier-only or with T5000. US is quote/WDL assemblies |
| Notes | Bigger than Rogue-T5. Dual NVMe. Better if you want RJ45 instead of industrial IX plugs. |
FORECR DSBOARD-THRMAX (Estonia)
| Size | 140 × 125 mm |
| Compat | T4000 and T5000 |
| Price | €999 carrier-only (~US$1,100) at forecr.io. SOM/SSD variants listed sold out |
| I/O | 1× GbE RJ45, QSFP28 4×25G, 2× HDMI 2.1 out, USB-C locking, CSI expansion (6×2-lane or 4×4-lane), M.2 NVMe, 18–36 V |
| Camera add-ons | Optional GMSL2 / MIPI cards |
| Notes | Cheapest T4000-capable carrier with a public price. HDMI is output, not capture. QSFP matches our uplink story. CAN-FD pins are dead on T4000 (no CAN on the SOM). Made in Europe. |
Auvidea X242
| Compat | Published as T5000. Dual 10GbE, PCIe x16, 16-lane CSI (NVIDIA P3762 cam) |
| Price | Quote (Auvidea / distributors). Historically cheaper BSP than CTI, more DIY |
| Notes | Don’t assume T4000 until Auvidea says so. CSI-native, no SDI. |
“Breakout board” in the CTI sense
CTI’s old XBG* boards were TX2-era mezzanine breakouts, not Thor. For Thor, the prototype without a custom PCB is: carrier + camera add-on, not a pin header fan-out of the 699-pin SOM. Don’t look for a $50 Thor “breakout.”
2. Getting Blackmagic video into Thor
| Widget | Price | What it actually does | 4K? |
|---|---|---|---|
| CTI JCB003 SDI→CSI | $1,538 WDL, in stock | 2× 3G-SDI in → MIPI. Needs Gauntlet or Rogue-T5 | No. 1080p60 max. PYXIS 12G-SDI will not give you 4K through this |
| CTI JCB010 HDMI→CSI | Quote (JCB010). Page still says Rogue/Forge Orin/Xavier — confirm Thor BSP | 4× HDMI → MIPI (Toshiba TC358840) | 4K30 if the bridge and BSP allow it. Not confirmed on Thor in public docs |
| USB HDMI capture | $30–200 | UVC into Thor USB | 4K maybe, latency and CPU. Fine for AD, not for “the take” |
| PYXIS USB-C / 1G Ethernet | included | Control, proxy, SSD record. 12K model has 10GbE | Not a live CSI pipe |
| Open the camera | your time | Sensor is a Sony IMX on a BMD board, not a Jetson CSI pinout | Research project |
Live 4K from PYXIS into Thor ISP is not a catalog part today. Plan on: BMD records the master; Thor takes HDMI 1080p/4K from a Pocket or a converter for live AI.
3. Blackmagic cameras (body)
Street from B&H 2026-09-01 unless noted. All record BRAW internally. None are CSI cameras.
| Camera | Street | Mount / metadata | Video out | Form | Why / why not |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| PYXIS 6K PL | $3,675 | Cooke /i pins at 12 o’clock (Canon/Cooke/Fujinon/Leica/Zeiss /i lenses). PL not user-swappable | 12G-SDI, USB-C, 1G Ethernet, TC/ref | Box, side plates, mounts on a Thor box | Best match to LENS.md. /i is real (PYXIS manual). SDI is 4K60 monitoring, not a Thor CSI input |
| PYXIS 6K EF | $3,455 | Active EF (focal/iris/focus). Not /i | 12G-SDI, USB-C, Ethernet | Box | Cheaper glass. Metadata is EF-class, not entrance-pupil /i |
| PYXIS 6K L | $3,465 | L-mount electronic | 12G-SDI, USB-C, Ethernet | Box | Adapt EF/PL out (flange). No native /i |
| Cinema Camera 6K L | $2,989 (used ~$2,390) | L-mount electronic, OLP | HDMI, USB-C. No SDI | Handheld brick | Cheapest full-frame 6K. HDMI into a capture card is simpler than 12G. Worse “bolted to Thor” |
| Pocket 6K G2 | $2,269 (used ~$1,770) | Active EF | HDMI only | Cheap Super35. HDMI. No ND. Fine as a sacrificial HDMI source | |
| Pocket 6K Pro | $2,835 (used ~$1,820) | Active EF, built-in ND, dual XLR | HDMI | Same as G2 plus ND/XLR. Still HDMI | |
| Pocket 4K | $1,139 (used ~$930) | MFT electronic | HDMI | Too small a sensor for “the” A-cam. OK as an HDMI test mule | |
| PYXIS 12K L/EF/PL | $5,825–5,829 | L electronic; PL has /i. 10GbE | 12G-SDI, 10G RJ45 | Box | Overkill. Early 12K had a sensor-board recall (pre s/n 14221337) |
| URSA Cine 12K LF | $8,435–17,435 | EF/PL | SDI / optional 100GbE | Shoulder | Wrong size/price for a Thor-mounted body |
Blackmagic list prices on their site (PYXIS 6K ~$3,455–3,515) match B&H. Holiday 2025 discounts are over.
Cracking one open
Teardowns show a sensor board + I/O board + fan. The MIPI from the IMX does not land on a Jetson-compatible connector. /i lives on the PL mount PCB (four pins, RS-232-ish, milliamps — not servo power). If you crack a PYXIS PL, the useful steal is the mount + /i reader, not the sensor.
Rewire value: tap /i UART and HDMI/SDI. Leave the sensor in the BMD box unless you want a six-week FPGA job.
4. Suggested carts (pick one)
Cart S — software this week (no T4000 SOM yet)
- AGX Thor Dev Kit — $3,499 Arrow
- Pocket 6K G2 — $2,269 B&H (HDMI mule + EF metadata)
- HDMI cable + cheap USB capture if the kit USB stack is easier than CSI
~$5.8k. Matches the resin shell. Not production T4000.
Cart T — T4000 + Rogue-T5 (preferred production stack)
- T4000 SOM — $2,749 Arrow
900-13834-0000-000 - CTI Rogue-T5 AGX302 — quote
sales@connecttech.com(carrier-only). WDL T5000 assemblies $8.2k+ if you want them to solder a T5000 - ATS Thor HS — passive
ATS-NVP-3739~$56 (needs system air) or activeATS-NVA-3740~$125 Digi-Key. Prefer measuring the passive on the bench; production wants heatpipes to a radiator, not this brick as the product lid - PYXIS 6K PL — $3,675 B&H (hero /i + BRAW; not the CSI body)
- 1–2× RV1126/B IMX415 PoE turrets — $50–150 each (encode mule)
- 1× RV1126B EVB/core — $160–244 (sat software; UART for ToF + /i)
Carrier + SOM + HS is the T4000 prototype. Live AI is HDMI/USB until a CSI/GMSL add-on. Master is BRAW + /i on the PYXIS until the CSI body exists. Thor remuxes sat HEVC.
FORECR THRMAX (€999, 140×125, QSFP) is the fallback if CTI quotes slowly. Bigger board.
If you need SDI→CSI on day one, add JCB003 ($1,538) and accept 1080p into the ISP.
Cart C — cine body that is actually /i, Thor is the brain
Same as T, PYXIS PL non-negotiable. Do not buy EF “and add /i later” — the mount is not swappable.
5. What I would not buy yet
- Auvidea X242 until T4000 is in writing
- JCB003 as a “4K pipeline” — it is 3G
- PYXIS 12K (money, recall, 10GbE you don’t need)
- Integrated CTI T5000 assemblies at $8k+ unless you want them to solder the SOM
- Opening a Pocket to harvest CSI — wrong pinout
Contacts
- Arrow T4000 / AGX kit: arrow.com (you already have the DS)
- Connect Tech: sales@connecttech.com · WDL Systems US reseller
- FORECR: sales@forecr.io
- Blackmagic: B&H, or blackmagicdesign.com reseller finder
Sources (primary)
- Arrow T4000
900-13834-0000-000$2,749 (2026-09-01) - NVIDIA / VideoCardz Jul 2026 list-price hike (kit $5,499, T4000 1KU $2,999)
- FORECR product page €999
- WDL Rogue-T5 assemblies $8,225+; JCB003 $1,538
- B&H BMD prices 2026-09-01
- PYXIS manual: Cooke /i on PL models only
- CTI JCB003: 3G-SDI, 1080p60, MIPI 8-bit