Neil Hughes
Apple's flagship professional video editing software, Final Cut Pro X, has been updated to take advantage of the forthcoming MacBook Pro with Touch Bar, offering users the ability to more easily scrub through clips and have quick shortcuts presented dynamically.
Though the new 13- and 15-inch MacBook Pros do not ship for a few weeks, Final Cut Pro X has an update out now on the Mac App Store to prepare for the new notebooks. Version 10.3 is a free update for existing users, or $299.99 for new customers.
Updates to Motion 5.3 and Compressor 4.3 are also available, and are also free for existing users. New customers can buy those for $49.99 each.
Final Cut Pro X 10.3 features a new Magnetic Timeline that allows users to understand their film at a glance. It presents a customizable arrangement and color coding of audio clips based on type or "role" — Â including dialogue, music and effects.
The Touch Bar allows new MacBook Pro users in Final Cut Pro X to create and assign roles and give each one a unique color. Editors can also drag their finger to instantly rearrange the vertical layout of their timeline or highlight specific audio roles while editing.
The new Final Cut update will also let Touch Bar users instantly switch between editing tools, adjust audio levels, and tap into commands for trimming and playback. It will also display a color-coded interactive overview of the entire timeline, allowing suers to navigate their project more easily.
Final Cut Pro X 10.3 also boasts a redesigned, streamlines interface to optimize screen space. A darker, flat look places focus on the content itself.
Customizable workspaces allow users to adjust window arrangements for different tasks, including organizing, editing and color grading, even across multiple monitors.
In another feature specific to the new MacBook Pro, Final Cut Pro X 10.3 will take advantage of its wide color Retina display. That enables users to import, edit, and deliver video in standard Rec. 601 and Rec. 709 color spaces, or in wide gamut Rec. 2020 color space.
Additional features in Final Cut Pro 10.3, according to Apple, include:
- Flow transition creates invisibly smooth jump cuts
- Remove Attributes allows users to easily delete or reuse select effects across multiple clips
- Timecode overlay effect and generator allow users to edit with a large view of source timecode
- Support for ProRes MXF, Panasonic V-Log and export of AVC-Intra
- Direct video output via Thunderbolt 3 enables high-quality video monitoring on an external display with a single cable
"This is our biggest update to Final Cut Pro X since we completely redesigned it five years ago," said Susan Prescott, Apple's vice president of Apps Product Marketing. "The new version features a sleek interface and adds powerful new editing features that go far beyond what's possible with traditional, track-based video editing apps; and integration with the revolutionary Touch Bar gives professional video editors a whole new way to interact with Final Cut Pro X."
Motion 5.3 has also been updated with a new interface with support for wide color workflows and 3D text enhancements that improve the performance and realism of 3D titles.
A new Align To behavior lets users easily connect separate objects to create advanced animations, and Touch Bar support provides easy access to a wide range of interactive tools on the new MacBook Pro.
Compressor 4.3 also has a new dark look to match Final Cut Pro X and Motion. Enhancements to iTunes Store Package creation let users easily browse, verify and compress packages so they can be delivered to the iTunes Store faster and fully compliant.
Wide color support ensures end-to-end color fidelity when delivering files in standard and wide color spaces, and Touch Bar support simplifies common tasks like setting up batches and adding markers on the new MacBook Pro.
Stay tuned to AppleInsider's Mac Price Guide over the next few weeks, where we'll be offering exclusive discounts on Apple's new MacBook Pros.
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8 Comments
Apparently clicking the trackpad and scrubbing with your finger is harder than tapping the Touch bar and scrubbing with your finger.
Sorry Tim, I'm out. Heavy lifting stuff needs Mac Pro's. The lack of even a mention of their completely outdated machine signifies Apple is out of the Pro Market. I'm not authorizing another dollar into Apple as I lost trust and feel we will be abandoned in the future. Starting today we begin our switch over to PC. Too bad, we like FCPX but not worth the risk of investing time and money on expensive outdated Pro machines. The lack of Pro desktops means FCPX is aperture in the making. In other words, just a matter of time before its dead.
Bye Apple. Best of luck.
Mac Pro comes Q1 2017. It coincides in January with the release of AMD Vega GPGPUs for the Professional/high-end Consumer markets. HBM2 Memory in 8/16GB models.
No FirePro line up, just AMD Pro GPGPUs. They are already queued up and ready at the CES 2017.
Do you work for Apple? How do you know this with such certainty? I wish Tim would have at least hinted to something like this in his keynote. If I can get a concrete statement from Apple stating what you said, we will hold off switching but in reality we just can't wait any longer. We require a bunch of new systems and its costing us tons of dollars in lost productivity. We've already done our homework and specked out Dell and HP Xeon machines. We are littlerly a click away from moving forward and after that, there is no going back. If Apple would at least lower their prices on the current 3 year old MacPros, we would pick up a few to get by, but there is no way we are paying those prices for these machines.
Does anyone care anymore?
Final Cut is in the bin, the Mac will be following soon at this rate Apple.
Apple is close to abusive partner at this point. Just kill the Mac or do it properly and keep doing it. If you haven't got a Mac Pro say that you will have next Q don't just ignore it.