May 19, 2025

This week's issue is about fixing problems - or preventing them in the first place. One of the tasks I'm most grateful for accomplishing was learning DaVinci Resolve well enough to comfortably edit using it. (Which is not the same as knowing every feature in depth.)

The ability to compare Resolve with Final Cut and Premiere means that I can choose the best app for my next project. It also makes it much easier to spot strengths and weaknesses between them. For example, my lead article explains why batch exports in Final Cut are FAR faster and less error-prone than batch exports in Resolve.

Discover the latest industry news on my home page. Several new stories this week.

Apple updated macOS to 15.4.1 with a bug-fix release this last week. I upgraded to this version with no problems.

Adobe announced new Creative Cloud subscription pricing in March, but I didn’t notice it till last week. This also affects how they integrate generative AI and web apps.

Backblaze published their latest statistics on hard drive reliability. They've done this since 2013 and I find it an extremely useful guide on which drives to consider or avoid in your own storage systems.

Echoing a comment from Kevin Burke, long-time PR guru, I'm not sure this is good news, but you need to know about it.

Eddie AI released version 2.0 of their AI editorial app. They call it "ChatGPT for video editing." The latest version integrates directly into FCP, Premiere and Resolve, logs footage, creates A- and B-roll edits, plus multicam edits, all automatically. Their website tells you almost nothing unless you subscribe, but CineD has a good writeup.

I expanded this week's webinar to include AI Tools in Adobe Premiere Pro. The session starts with a look at AI Tools in Final Cut Pro, then turns to Premiere to look at speech-to-text, captions, translations, audio and their new generative extend which uses AI to extend a shot by a second or two.

Webinars are free - Wednesday 9 AM and 12 PM EDT.

Turning to problem solving, David Smith reports a problem with Datavideo recorders and Apple silicon systems. So far, there’s no reported solution. 

The magic behind the new Smooth SloMo in Final Cut Pro 12 is “optical flow.” Most often used in extreme slow motion, what optical flow does is “invent” new frames that go between the frames shot by the camera.

The problem is that optical flow tends to create hallucinations, which spoils the overall effect.

David Larson reports that he's had great success using DaVinci Resolve’s Voice Isolation for situations where there are audio voice presence issues or making the on-camera mic sound better. 

As regular as locusts, this is the time of year - just before WWDC - that articles appear detailing what Apple "must do" in their next operating system or hardware releases. The article titles are scary: "Android features iOS 19 desperately needs," "What Apple Must Do to Survive," and, the most famous of all: "Apple is Doomed Because [well, um, fill in the blank]."

First, this isn't a new trend. Back in 2014, Time Magazine wrote an excellent article called: "'Apple Must…': A Brief History of People Instructing the Company to Do Things." It is eleven years old and still timely, because it illustrates how frequently off-base pundits actually are.

Second, though, is a deep misunderstanding of how tech works. These articles are not informed commentary, but simple click-bait. Creating new hardware takes, on average, four years from initial design through development, testing, validation, to final production. This means that Apple has, at a minimum, four years of unreleased hardware currently in varying stages of development.

To create the next major version of the macOS takes roughly two years. Significant dot releases take six months to a year. Even minor bug fixes take a month or two. Why such a long time? Sometimes it's because the technology hasn't been invented, or reliable components don't exist in enough quantity. But the bigger challenges are defining the task with enough clarity that a product can be developed, designing it to be manufactured in quantity, validating that it is secure and will work reliably when it hits the real world, then, actually manufacturing it. Sonos is an excellent example of an exciting product where testing went awry.

So, when pundits say that "Apple must do this by WWDC," they are only blowing smoke. All decisions about WWDC announcements were locked in January. Hardware releasing in 2026 began development in 2022. The version of the macOS releasing in the fall of 2026 is already in extended development. The version of macOS releasing in September is complete and in final testing and validation.

This is not to say that we shouldn't make suggestions, rather it is to illustrate that even if Apple moved as quickly as possible, the magnitude of design, development, testing, validation, manufacture, and release requires lead times measured in weeks and months; not the daily deadlines of rumor sites.

Until next Monday, stay hopeful, stay healthy and edit well.

TUTORIALS & REVIEWS

» Why Batch Exports in FCP Are Faster than Resolve (Tutorial)

  » Both support batch exports, but Resolve really makes them challenging.

» Adobe Announces New Creative Cloud Subscription Bundle & Pricing (News)

  » Changes take effect June 17 2025.

» Backblaze Publishes Quarterly Hard Drive Reliability Statistics (News)

  » Health and longevity stats on over 320,000 hard drives in active service

» Problems with Datavideo Media on Apple Silicon (News)

  » System generates black frames, so far, with no solution.

» Quickly Remove Background Noise Using Resolve's Voice Isolation (Tutorial)

  » David Larson has a report on how this works for him.

» Caution: Final Cut Smooth Slo-Mo Tends to Hallucinate (Tutorial)

  » The slower the playback, the more likely it will hallucinate.

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