Following on from the big iPad announcements given by Apple, Final Cut Pro has been given a significant update with a ton of new features for the iPad app and Mac.
Final Cut Pro is Apple's video editing software and ranks highly among creators for creating, editing and rendering video. As is the case with most software updates in 2024, the new 'Final Cut Pro for iPad 2' and 'Final Cut Pro for Mac 10.8' will have a host of new AI-powered features that make editing workflows all the more efficient.
AI already plays a huge part in Final Cut Pro, with features such as Fast Cut (which accelerates time‑consuming editing tasks) and Auto Crop (which crops your footage for the various aspect ratios required for posting on different platforms).
The new iPad Pro is the first Apple product to come with an M4 chip, meaning that its processing power has enhanced dramatically, enabling fast video rendering and support for more streams of ProRes RAW. This has meant that new and improved features can be added to Final Cut Pro for iPad 2.
The first on the list is the new Live Multicam feature, which turns the iPad Pro into a portable multicam production studio, as seen in the video above. This enables users to set up four separate camera views that all feed back to the iPad as a central hub, where the exposure focus and zoom can be controlled.
This on-the-go editing and directing facility can be extremely useful when streaming live events or recording interviews. It does appear that the only cameras that can do this at present are iPhones and iPads, so hopefully this will open to include further cameras in the future.
In conjunction with Live Multicam, Final Cut Camera comes to iPhone and iPad to enable live monitoring and individual control of each video feed. This changes the camera app used when recording with Multicam, enabling enhanced monitoring and settings adjustments.
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Another improvement that will make Final Cut Pro for iPad 2 more appealing to users is that it now supports external projects. This enables users to create or open projects on an external storage device, and import media without taking up space on their iPad. This is a huge change and will help make the new iPad Pro an even more viable video editing device.
"Editors can quickly hand off external projects to another editor or take them into Final Cut Pro for Mac; create new projects on external storage; and seamlessly import high-resolution files and professional codecs like ProRes and Log," says Apple.
New customizable elements bring more options to projects, with the inclusion of twelve new color-grading presets, eight basic text titles, twenty new soundtracks and additional dynamic backgrounds, overlays, and, title sequences. And the ability to bring controlled and precise adjustments is supported by the new Apple Pencil Pro.
It's not just Final Cut Pro for iPad that has seen an update, either, as Final Cut Pro for Mac has also benefited from improved features – and of course, they are likewise powered by AI.
"Available as a free update to existing users, Final Cut Pro 10.8 introduces Enhance Light and Color, offering the ability to improve color, color balance, contrast, and brightness in one simple step, and is optimized for SDR, HDR, RAW, and Log-encoded media," Apple continues.
"With Smooth Slo-Mo, frames of video are intelligently generated and blended, providing the highest-quality movement and more drama to a project."
Improvements have also been made to the naming system, and search functions to speed up workflow efficiency.
Final Cut Pro for iPad 2 will be available later this spring as a free update for existing users, and available on the App Store for $4.99 / £4.99 / AU$4.99 per month or $49 / £49 / AU$49 per year, with a 1-month free trial for new users.
Final Cut Camera will be available for free later this spring as a standalone app.
Final Cut Pro for Mac 10.8 will be available as a free update for existing users and $299.99 / £299.99 / AU $299.99 for new users on the Mac App Store. All new users can download a free 90-day trial of Final Cut Pro.
You may also be interested in our guides to the best iPad, the best Macbook, and the best iMac.
