Final Cut upgrades boast more than 100 new features

[AppleInsider]

A "significant" upgrade to Final Cut Studio was announced by Apple Thursday, with more than 100 new features and new versions of Final Cut Pro, Motion, Soundtrack Pro, Color and Compressor.

And at $999, the new Final Cut Studio costs $300 less than it did before. Existing users can upgrade for $299.

"With 1.4 million users and 50 percent of the market, Final Cut Pro is the number one professional video editing application," said Philip Schiller, Apple's senior vice president of Worldwide Product Marketing. "The new Final Cut Studio includes more than 100 new features and dramatically expands Apple's ProRes family of codecs so editors can work in the studio with the highest quality video or on location at low bandwidths."

Apple also debuted the new Final Cut Server 1.5, which is the asset management and automation tool for Final Cut Studio. It offers offline editing with ProRes Proxy, production hierarchies to organize media, and support for still sequences to easily view and manage image sequences for graphics and effects workflows. The new Final Cut Server also includes unlimited client licenses. It is available for $999 or as a $299 upgrade for existing users.

In revealing the new Final Cut Studio Thursday, Apple announced the following new features for each of the suite's included applications:

Final Cut Pro 7
Expands Apple's ProRes codec family to support virtually any workflow. ProRes Proxy allows offline and mobile editing at low bandwidth; ProRes LT allows general purpose editing; and ProRes 4444 is for editing and visual effects at the highest quality possible.
Easy Export allows users to continue working on projects while encoding is done in the background and the sequence is exported to YouTube, MobileMe, iPhone, iPod, Apple TV, DVD or Blu-ray.
iChat Theater support allows real time collaboration by sharing Final Cut® timelines or individual source clips with iChat users anywhere in the world, even if they don't have a copy of Final Cut Pro.
New speed tools to change clip speed with ease.
Alpha transitions to create dramatic effects using moving mattes.
Native AVC-Intra support for the latest high quality Panasonic cameras.


Motion 4
Enhancing 3D compositions is faster than ever with new customizable features that add point and spot lights to cast realistic shadows or turn any shape, video plane or paint stroke into a reflective surface.
Gives editors the flexibility to adjust the depth of field within a 3D canvas by selectively highlighting a single object or using multiple objects to create a racking focus effect.


Soundtrack Pro 3
Voice Level Match extracts volume information from the vocal content of one clip and applies it to another without altering any other audio content so editors can easily correct mismatched voice levels.
Enhanced File Editor includes new tools to make sophisticated edits and fine tune volume adjustments by targeting specific frequencies such as the rustle of a paper or the bump of a desk without affecting dialogue.
New Advanced Time Stretch feature stretches and compresses audio with incredible precision using three Apple-designed algorithms or other algorithms available as third party plug-ins.


Color 1.5
Works with a greater range of sequences and effects from Final Cut Pro and an integrated workflow allows editors to complete projects entirely within Final Cut Studio.
New 4K support works natively with files from cameras such as the RED ONE and outputs directly to ProRes for HD or DPX for film.
Expanded support for new high quality formats includes AVC-Intra, XDCAM 422 and ProRes 4444, for grading with the maximum amount of color information.
Compressor 3.5
Adds ability to automatically detect QuickTime settings and create an Easy Export template or a mini "droplet" on the desktop that automates specific Compressor actions. New, customizable sharing options make it easy to publish to YouTube and MobileMe, or export for iPhone, iPod, Apple TV and mobile phones.
Menu templates and encoding presets make it fast and easy to create Blu-ray discs.


Last month, AppleInsider was first to report that Apple was planning a new version of Final Cut Studio with major upgrades to Final Cut Pro, Motion, and Soundtrack Pro. While under development, the project was code-named Sideways.

[ View this article at AppleInsider.com ]

[Lorre]

Finally an Apple product with Blu-Ray support

[Neruda]

Wow Apple. DVDSP 4? And what the hell ever happened to the successor to Shake?

Does the new version of Color support multi-cam sequences?

[John.B]

(cough, cough) ...Logic? (cough, cough)

[SS3 GokouX]

And no news about additional support for Snow Leopard…

[Alex London]

You should get that cough seen to. Logic 9 is out.

[petermac]

Originally Posted by John.B

(cough, cough) ...Logic? (cough, cough)

Ah, yes, Apple coughed up a new version of Logic too

Happy now?

I know a few who will be.

[Mario]

So is Final Cut Studio 64 bit now? Can it use more than 4 GB of RAM? Can you actually author blue ray DVDs? And use Windows to actually burn them ?

[revs]

Originally Posted by Mario

And use Windows to actually burn them ?

Hahah so true. lets hope they resolve that issue!

[tonglaji]

still no navtive AVCHD edit?

[John.B]

Originally Posted by petermac

Ah, yes, Apple coughed up a new version of Logic too

Happy now?

I know a few who will be.

Sorry, this was actually posted as a separate story a few minutes later.

And yes, I'm happy now!

[TenoBell]

AVCHD editing support using Apple ProRes

Originally Posted by tonglaji

still no navtive AVCHD edit?

[mclarenf1]

Is it just me or can we not actually buy this? I hit the buy now button and it says the page can't be found. Oooooppsss major Steve Jobs ass kicking coming on!!!

[teckstud]

Originally Posted by Lorre

Finally an Apple product with Blu-Ray support

I know -right? The tide is changing- slooooowly.
Does Sony get a royalty for this too?

[brainfragment]

Originally Posted by Neruda

Wow Apple. DVDSP 4? And what the hell ever happened to the successor to Shake?

Does the new version of Color support multi-cam sequences?

You don't need DVDSP 4. It is all handled by FCP 7 now. And yes, Color can FINALLY handle multi-cam sequences!! Woohoo!

[machei]

And STILL no Aperture 3.0.

How many updates to film/audio since the update to photographs?

For crissakes, Apple... I'm moving to Lightroom soon.

[ltcommander.data]

It'd be great to get a comment out of Apple whether Final Cut Studio has 64-bit support in Leopard and OpenCL support for Snow Leopard. Pro apps seem to be the ideal use of these technologies. Hopefully, Apple isn't planning on charging users a small fee for an update iPod Touch style to enable 64-bit and OpenCL support once Snow Leopard is released. Or plans to make 64-bit support exclusive to Snow Leopard to get people to upgrade since Leopard is perfectly capable of 64-bit GUI apps.

[Kevinneal]

I like the way the screenshots now have glare on them to simulate how glossy apples screens are now

[bloggerblog]

Dang! This package is such a good Effin deal!!!
$999 for all that?!

[charlituna]

Originally Posted by Lorre

Finally an Apple product with Blu-Ray support

what exactly does that mean. seriously. what is so special about Blu-ray other than the higher res. because that is all I seem to find and imovie 09 has a number of reports of handling 1080 just fine.

Originally Posted by mclarenf1

Is it just me or can we not actually buy this?

with most products it ships the day it is announced out to stores, which receive it within about 2-3 days and the online comes up within an hour or two later. try again after lunch, it will likely work.

Originally Posted by Neruda

Wow Apple. DVDSP 4? And what the hell ever happened to the successor to Shake?

Originally Posted by machei

And STILL no Aperture 3.0.

given them time. Apple likes to spread things out a little. there have been reports of an A3.0 update coming soon. probably by the end of summer at the lastest. maybe at the same time as SL.

Originally Posted by ltcommander.data

It'd be great to get a comment out of Apple whether Final Cut Studio has 64-bit support in Leopard and OpenCL support for Snow Leopard.

I suspect that all 64bit will be in Snow Leopard. and I for one don't see the big deal about that. it's $29 to upgrade if you have Leopard. is that really so much money. especially compared to the old days when they would lump all the mail etc into it and charge $100 more. this time they spread the apps updates out via software update and all we are paying for is the actual system software updates. seems very worth the price to me.

Originally Posted by bloggerblog

Dang! This package is such a good Effin deal!!!
$999 for all that?!

yep. bit of a shocker really that they dropped the price point on this rather than staying steady like before.

not that I"m going to complain. i'm just glad I hadn't bought it yet.

[Wiggin]

Originally Posted by machei

And STILL no Aperture 3.0.

How many updates to film/audio since the update to photographs?

For crissakes, Apple... I'm moving to Lightroom soon.

No kidding. How long ago did Aperture 2 come out? I'm almost tempted to move back to iPhoto (ok, not really, but almost). It handles RAW much better than it used to and supports geotagging. I though features were supposed to trickle down from the pro apps to the consumer apps, not the other way around! And they still don't even fully support RAW formats for the Canon 5DII which came out nearly a year ago.

[RalphX]

If you'd follow AppleStoreCheck on Twitter you'd knew it much earlier

[machei]

Originally Posted by Wiggin

No kidding. How long ago did Aperture 2 come out? I'm almost tempted to move back to iPhoto (ok, not really, but almost). It handles RAW much better than it used to and supports geotagging. I though features were supposed to trickle down from the pro apps to the consumer apps, not the other way around! And they still don't even fully support RAW formats for the Canon 5DII which came out nearly a year ago.

I hear you, brother. It's a shame Apple does not.

[mclarenf1]

I just called Apple Final Cut Tech Support and they confirmed that the New Final Cut 7 is fully 64 bit with Open CL support for the new Snow Leopard. They said it was state on the web site under www.apple.com/finalcutstudio........ yeah, good luck finding it under that GENERAL location.

Anyway, they did say it was fully 64 but with Open CL for what it's worth.

[i386]

No doubt Express will get an update too.

Originally Posted by Wiggin

No kidding. How long ago did Aperture 2 come out? I'm almost tempted to move back to iPhoto (ok, not really, but almost). It handles RAW much better than it used to and supports geotagging. I though features were supposed to trickle down from the pro apps to the consumer apps, not the other way around! And they still don't even fully support RAW formats for the Canon 5DII which came out nearly a year ago.

Totally agree, Aperture is so behind, it's lame .. but I do prefer Aperture's interface to LR.

[Neruda]

Originally Posted by brainfragment

You don't need DVDSP 4. It is all handled by FCP 7 now.

The burning can be done in FCP 7, but I doubt that this would include all of the functionality of dvd authoring that is available through DVDSP . Does it? If not, then the ability to burn Blue ray DVDs should have been added to DVDSP

And yes, Color can FINALLY handle multi-cam sequences!! Woohoo!

Thank G-d. This will be a great improvement to my workflow. Hopefully the added support will not cause Color to render the entire footage that the the angles are based on but just the sections that are actually used in the sequence (keeping fingers crossed).

[maxplanar]

These apps will rock in SL - using all the power of all the CPU's and pushing a lot of work out to the GPU via OpenCL. I'll bet that 7.1 will be released shortly after SL's release, with perhaps some incremental new features and Blu-Ray support for new Mac Pros that will be released after SL that support Blu-Ray.

This seems like a somewhat underwhelming release (definitely perplexed by the disappearance of all things Shake?), but the truth is that editing platforms are mature products and they didn't need to reinvent the wheel. For years now the main things I've been looking for are bug fixes and workflow improvements like coloured markers, which we now at least get. There's bigger changes that need to be made, but they needed to get the entire codebase updated first, and that would have been an enormous task - some of the codebase is almost 10 years old, IIRC, dating back to Macromedia/PPC days. If the word from those smarter than I is that the code is now fully modern, then we have a platform we can again expect great leaps from in the future.

[cutter]

Originally Posted by AppleInsider

A "significant" upgrade to Final Cut Studio...

Never were quotations marks more appropriately used.

Originally Posted by AppleInsider

While under development, the project was code-named Sideways.

Kind of says it all.

[Phizz]

Originally Posted by maxplanar

There's bigger changes that need to be made, but they needed to get the entire codebase updated first, and that would have been an enormous task - some of the codebase is almost 10 years old, IIRC, dating back to Macromedia/PPC days.

Did Apple update it to Cocoa? Or still Carbon?

[MacTel]

Originally Posted by teckstud

I know -right? The tide is changing- slooooowly.
Does Sony get a royalty for this too?

Apple may support blu-ray in software but we still won't see them shipping system with it. SD is the future for now.

I'm sure FC Pro users demanded Apple support the optical discs. I just don't know why it took them so long.

[dagamer34]

Man, they updated Logic Express but not Final Cut Express. =/

[Bergermeister]

Originally Posted by dagamer34

Man, they updated Logic Express but not Final Cut Express. =/

Soon, likely.

[maxplanar]

Originally Posted by Phizz

Did Apple update it to Cocoa? Or still Carbon?

That is the only really important question of the day, I reckon - and I don't know the answer.

[John.B]

Originally Posted by machei

And STILL no Aperture 3.0.

How many updates to film/audio since the update to photographs?

For crissakes, Apple... I'm moving to Lightroom soon.

As much as it pains me to type this, Lightroom 2 kicks arse. I just wish it weren't quite so kludgy integrating with DxO... I'm only using Aperture now for touch ups on pics originally imported into Aperture. Anything new goes into Lr 2.

Aperture has a long way to go to catch up, IMO.

[TenoBell]

I really don't understand bringing up Aperture in a thread about Final Cut Pro. It's about as useful as bring up Final Cut Pro in a thread about Aperture.

Obviously Aperture 3 isn't ready yet.

Originally Posted by machei

And STILL no Aperture 3.0.

How many updates to film/audio since the update to photographs?

For crissakes, Apple... I'm moving to Lightroom soon.

[dreamraj]

Great timing for me. I just got the 17" MBP fully loaded in every way possible. Will now buy both Final Cut Studio and Logic Studio. Woohoo

[djames42]

Originally Posted by dagamer34

Man, they updated Logic Express but not Final Cut Express. =/

Here's hoping DVD burning comes to FCE. I hate iDVD.

[mdriftmeyer]

Originally Posted by Phizz

Did Apple update it to Cocoa? Or still Carbon?

Well,

mclarenf1 wrote:
I just called Apple Final Cut Tech Support and they confirmed that the New Final Cut 7 is fully 64 bit with Open CL support for the new Snow Leopard. They said it was state on the web site under www.apple.com/finalcutstudio........ yeah, good luck finding it under that GENERAL location.

Anyway, they did say it was fully 64 but with Open CL for what it's worth.

[pixelcruncher]

The media mangement better be rock freakin' solid. Amen for captioning support.

[machei]

Originally Posted by TenoBell

I really don't understand bringing up Aperture in a thread about Final Cut Pro. It's about as useful as bring up Final Cut Pro in a thread about Aperture.

Obviously Aperture 3 isn't ready yet.

Nothing to understand. I threadjacked.

Seriously though... sorry about that. I was frustrated at yet another update while my area of interest continues to be summarily ignored by Apple and I typed reactively. Will attempt to reign it in in the future.