Dissatisfied Final Cut Pro X customers receive refunds from Apple

Posted:
in Mac Software edited January 2014
Facing backlash from customers who are unhappy with the revamped Final Cut Pro X, Apple has issued at least some refunds for the $299 Mac App Store purchase.



Various claims of refunds have surfaced, and AppleInsider can confirm that at least one person who asked a refund from Apple had their request granted.



This person sent an e-mail to Apple in which they said they believe the new Final Cut Pro X is not a "functional application" meeting the standards of Final Cut Pro 7. "It has zero professional features that I can use in my post facility," they wrote.



In their response, an Apple advisor admitted Final Cut Pro X "does not contain properties that were highly regarded in the last version." They also acknowledged that it is "frustrating" to pay "good money" for a product that "doesn't work as expected."



The customer was promised a credit for the $299.99 purchase made on the Mac App Store. It was said that the funds should be posted to the credit card on the receipt for the purchase within five to seven business days.



"Again, I want to apologize for the inadequacy of this version of Final Cut Pro," the advisor wrote. "Please be assured that we are always looking for ways to improve your experience with the iTunes Store and Apple."



The candid nature of Apple's response and apology was surprising to the person who received the refund. "I've never seen an Apple employee apologetic over the 'inadequacies' of their software before," they wrote to AppleInsider.







The prospect of refunds for other Final Cut Pro X purchases is the latest public relations strategy from Apple in attempting to quell unhappiness with the latest version of Final Cut Pro. As of Tuesday afternoon, the software on the Mac App Store has an average user rating of two-and-a-half stars out of a possible five, and of the 1,275 ratings collected, 563 are for just one star.



One popular review posted on the Mac App Store refers to Final Cut Pro X as Windows Vista, referring to Microsoft's much maligned operating system update. "I can't believe what apple did with FCPX," they wrote, "this is no longer a professional application... this is just an upgrade of iMovie!!"



Final Cut Pro X was released along with Motion 5 and Compressor on the Mac App Store a week ago. The software was quickly met with condemnation from a group of outspoken professionals who believe the new product is vastly inferior to its predecessor.



Apple made a quick transition to Final Cut Pro X, declaring Final Cut Studio, Express and Server -- which included Final Cut Pro 7 -- as "end of life" products as of June 21. AppleInsider first reported in May of 2010 that Apple planned to widen the appeal of Final Cut Pro with features geared toward "prosumers" and more advanced home users.



A growing chorus of complaints even prompted some Apple product managers to attempt to address concerns over Final Cut Pro X late last week. A number of product managers spoke with The New York Times, and revealed that features like multicamera editing and support for RED digital cameras will be added with future updates.
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Comments

  • Reply 1 of 167
    Well, nice apology. Apple knows they made a prosumer app.
  • Reply 2 of 167
    applestudapplestud Posts: 367member
    In a year or two, once Apple continuously rolls out added features, all the critics will be silent, and they will tout FCP as the best editing software on the planet. Every critic says its a fantastic foundation, but lacks features they need. Well, that's how Apple rolls. They are utterly unafraid to destroy the status quo if they believe in their vision for the future.



    It will get better. Relax. In the meantime, nobody is ripping FCP7 out of your hands.
  • Reply 3 of 167
    applestudapplestud Posts: 367member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by IronHeadSlim View Post


    Well, nice apology. Apple knows they made a prosumer app.



    They also only charged a "prosumer" $300 for it, not the standard $1000+
  • Reply 4 of 167
    tallest skiltallest skil Posts: 43,388member
    I'll just say this here, too...



    Quote:
    Originally Posted by Tallest Skil on 9to5Mac


    I wasn't at all upset about the removal of features in Final Cut Pro X. Apple's known for removing TONS of features in their products that receive the suffix "X". Mac OS X. QuickTime X. Final Cut Pro X. Oh, and iMovie '06 to '08. All had fewer features than the previous versions.



    And that's okay. OS X added features back... and more... to become the best OS available today. QuickTime X is receiving some (not all) of QuickTime 7's features in Lion. And even more. Now QuickTime X can save audio files instead of saving an audio-only file as an MOV (go die in a fire for this, QuickTime 7). iMovie '08 sucked, but iMovie '09 was great, and iMovie '11 is even better; with far more features than iMovie '06 ever had.



    Now, I've said that. That was my position on Final Cut Pro X, as well; I though that Apple was selecting a core set of features that they knew would work beautifully with this new program and leaving others out until they'd been fully tested to be included at a later date in an update.



    But this is nonsense. Apple included the features. They're just turned off. They work. We just aren't allowed to use them.



    This is ABJECT NONSENSE. This is tantamount to Apple including an NTFS write driver in OS X, but leaving it turned off with only the ability to read Boot Camp partitions. OH, WAIT. THEY DID THAT, TOO.



    Now about the refunds: WHINERS. They'll come straight back once the first real update is pushed.
  • Reply 5 of 167
    dagamer34dagamer34 Posts: 494member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by AppleStud View Post


    In a year or two, once Apple continuously rolls out added features, all the critics will be silent, and they will tout FCP as the best editing software on the planet. Every critic says its a fantastic foundation, but lacks features they need. Well, that's how Apple rolls. They are utterly unafraid to destroy the status quo if they believe in their vision for the future.



    It will get better. Relax. In the meantime, nobody is ripping FCP7 out of your hands.



    You aren't even allowed to buy new legitimate copies of FCP7. What if you need more seats to complete a project?
  • Reply 6 of 167
    So you agree with me?



    Quote:
    Originally Posted by AppleStud View Post


    They also only charged a "prosumer" $300 for it, not the standard $1000+



  • Reply 7 of 167
    tallest skiltallest skil Posts: 43,388member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by dagamer34 View Post


    You aren't even allowed to buy new legitimate copies of FCP7. What if you need more seats to complete a project?



    I fail to believe that Amazon doesn't have copies of Final Cut Studio 3.
  • Reply 8 of 167
    rtkanertkane Posts: 29member
    Mr. Jobs reportedly asked the assembled engineers and other Final Cut Pro X team members, ?Can anyone tell me what Final Cut Pro X is supposed to do?? When one of those employees then volunteered a satisfactory answer, Mr. Jobs followed up with, ?So why the f*#k doesn?t it do that??
  • Reply 9 of 167
    I already have Premeire Pro and it is fantastic.



    I am actually a prosumer level of editor.



    I will buy FCP-X eventually because of it's excellent foundation but it is a prosumer type of application right now.



    I will be buying a RED Scarlet as soon as they are shipping. I hope FCP-X is up to the task by then.



    Thanks.
  • Reply 10 of 167
    macinthe408macinthe408 Posts: 1,050member
    Re-release FCP 7 and call it a day. Rebrand FCP X as FCE until X is ready to replace 7. It's called a transition period.
  • Reply 11 of 167
    paxmanpaxman Posts: 4,729member
    Can all FCPX engineers, and other staff report to my office at 13:00 (yes, that's in three minutes!)

    SJ
  • Reply 12 of 167
    MacProMacPro Posts: 19,718member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by dagamer34 View Post


    You aren't even allowed to buy new legitimate copies of FCP7. What if you need more seats to complete a project?



    This is what the people arguing FCPX is fine don't understand. They have obviously never seen a professional edit house and simply have no clue that multiple edit suits require a known path ahead in terms of software to justify the huge cost of high end Mac Pros and trained staff. They have to know their investment is going to keep working or else they have to jump ship to Premiere or Avid



    This product is a great prosumer product no question but edit houses have to have upgrade paths for ongoing projects (i.e. the same data and projects as used in 7) and training and support and as you say the ability to buy more of what they have.



    I seriously hope Apple keep FCPX as a prosumer product but return 7 to the stores and look very hard at updating 7 with a workable path for professionals to move up.
  • Reply 13 of 167
    pennywsepennywse Posts: 155member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by rtkane View Post


    mr. Jobs reportedly asked the assembled engineers and other final cut pro x team members, ?can anyone tell me what final cut pro x is supposed to do?? when one of those employees then volunteered a satisfactory answer, mr. Jobs followed up with, ?so why the f*#k doesn?t it do that??



    l o l
  • Reply 14 of 167
    jebcojebco Posts: 4member
    I also received a refund, no questions asked, from the Apple iTunes store.



    The body of the email was:





    "Greetings from Apple iTunes, before I address your issue I would just like to take the opportunity to address myself. My name is XXXX and I look forward to working with you to resolve any issues you may have. Now, I understand that you have purchased "Final Cut Pro" however it has less functionality then the previous version "Final Cut Pro 7." I can certainly appreciate your eagerness to have this issue resolved, rest assured I am more then happy to help!



    First and foremost, I would like to extend an apology for the delayed response to your email. iTunes Support endeavors to send a reply within 24 hours; however, due to new product releases and features for the iTunes Store we are experiencing higher volumes than normal. We appreciate your patience and understanding.



    XXX, what I have done for you is, I have gone ahead and reversed the charge for this purchase.



    In five to seven business days, a credit of $299.99 should be posted to the credit card that appears on the receipt for that purchase. I sincerely apologize for any inconveniences this issue has caused.



    Should you have any further questions or concerns in regards to this issue, please do not hesitate to reply to this email, and I will gladly address them for you.



    Thank you for choosing iTunes as your source for online entertainment, and I hope you have a fantastic day, XXXX!



    Sincerely,



    XXXXXX

    iTunes Store Customer Support



    Please Note: I work Friday, Saturday and Sunday 12:30-9:30 pm EST



    Thank you for allowing me the opportunity to assist you. You may receive an AppleCare survey email; any feedback you provide would be greatly appreciated"





    It's was a refreshing reaction by Apple to a very misunderstood and botched product launch.



    It reminds me a bit of when Coca-Cola took away a product loved by millions and replaced it with a product more favored by kids. In the end of course, Coca Cola bowed to pressure from their fans and brought back the product that everyone knew and loved.



    Let's hope that Apple can remedy the FCP-X debacle with equal success! How about FCP 8!
  • Reply 15 of 167
    I never did understand the reasoning behind releasing a supposed software upgrade that did not at least match what was being replaced. I can understand Apple wanting to rewrite something from the ground up so that it is easier to extend in the future, but they should wait for it to have the features of the software it replaces.



    If they wanted to release something that had the same features but was more efficient, then charge a minor upgrade fee to existing users and the same amount as the software being replaced for new users.



    If Apple expect people to change post-production workflows just to suit a new release of FCP, then they should expect to meet a lot of resistance.
  • Reply 16 of 167
    rot'napplerot'napple Posts: 1,839member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by IronHeadSlim View Post


    Well, nice apology. Apple knows they made a prosumer app.



    Or another MobileMe Steve Job's "Why the F*ck doesn't it work?" moment!



    All of the FCP X should be really ashamed for letting each other down!



    Steve said that Apple interviews "customers" and listens to what they have to say. Apparently, Apple needed to ask a few more people regarding these changes and maybe avoided some of this?!

    /

    /

    /
  • Reply 17 of 167
    paxmanpaxman Posts: 4,729member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by macinthe408 View Post


    Re-release FCP 7 and call it a day. Rebrand FCP X as FCE until X is ready to replace 7. It's called a transition period.



    Well, just don't ditch your FCP7, is all.



    What Apple should have done was to announce that FCP 7 was still release FCPX, and then keep developing FCPX. Then after a couple of years when FCPX has all the features and can talk to all the other bits of software and hardware that it needs to be able to do in order to be considered in a pro post studio app, declare FCP 7 end of life.



    Apple still would have had an earful for not actively developing FCP, of course
  • Reply 18 of 167
    normmnormm Posts: 653member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by Tallest Skil View Post


    I fail to believe that Amazon doesn't have copies of Final Cut Studio 3.



    Check. They don't.
  • Reply 19 of 167
    a_greera_greer Posts: 4,594member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by AppleStud View Post


    They also only charged a "prosumer" $300 for it, not the standard $1000+



    and Premere Elements has done the same sort of thing as FCP X for $99
  • Reply 20 of 167
    paxmanpaxman Posts: 4,729member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by a_greer View Post


    and Premere Elements has done the same sort of thing as FCP X for $99



    Really - Premiere Elements is equivalent to FCPX? I have never used Premiere so I wouldn't know but it would really surprise me if this was the case.
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