John Voorhees

5415 posts on MacStories since November 2015

John is MacStories' Managing Editor, has been writing about Apple and apps since joining the team in 2015, and today, runs the site alongside Federico. John also co-hosts four MacStories podcasts: AppStories, which covers the world of apps, MacStories Unwind, which explores the fun differences between American and Italian culture and recommends media to listeners, Ruminate, a show about the weird web and unusual snacks, and NPC: Next Portable Console, a show about the games we take with us.

Final Cut Pro and Logic Pro Are Coming to the iPad on May 23rd

Source: Apple.

Source: Apple.

At long last, Apple has announced Final Cut Pro and Logic Pro for the iPad. Ever since the introduction of the iPad Pro, iPad power users have wondered where the ‘pro’ apps were. Third parties released pro-level creative tools, but Apple’s lineup of apps was conspicuously absent. That looks like it’s changing with today’s announcement that Final Cut Pro and Logic Pro are coming as subscription-based apps on Tuesday, May 23rd.

According to Apple’s press release:

Final Cut Pro for iPad introduces an all-new touch interface and intuitive tools — unlocking new workflows for video creators. A new jog wheel makes the editing process easier than ever and enables users to interact with content in completely new ways. They can navigate the Magnetic Timeline, move clips, and make fast frame-accurate edits with just the tap of a finger, and with the immediacy and intuitiveness of Multi-Touch gestures, push their creativity to new heights.

Source: Apple.

Source: Apple.

Apple says users with an M2 iPad Pro will be able to skim and preview footage using the Apple Pencil’s hover functionality. The app will also support keyboard shortcuts when connected to a Magic Keyboard.

According to Apple’s press release, Final Cut Pro will support single-device field recording, with the M2 iPad Pro supporting ProRes video. The app will also support multicam editing, which can be automatically synced together.

Auto-cropping of the subject of a video will be possible thanks to machine learning. The app will also use machine learning to assist users with cropping to common video sizes and isolating recorded voices.

Source: Apple.

Source: Apple.

Apple also says the app will come with a “vast library” of professional graphics, effects, audio, and animation that can be automatically adjusted to the length of a video. Finally, Final Cut Pro will be able to import from the Files and Photos app and supports iMovie projects. Plus, it will be able to export to Final Cut Projects that are compatible with the Mac version of the app.

Source: Apple.

Source: Apple.

Apple says that Logic Pro will take advantage of Multi-Touch gestures for manipulating a project as well as Plug-in Tiles that will provide convenient access to certain controls. The iPad’s microphones will also be available as an audio source.

Source: Apple.

Source: Apple.

The app will also debut a sound browser:

The sound browser displays all available instrument patches, audio patches, plug‑in presets, samples, and loops in a single location, and users can tap to audition any sound before loading it into a project to save time and stay in their creative flow.

Also included in the app are over 100 instruments and effects, synths, including one called Sample Alchemy for manipulating audio samples, and an extensive set of tools for creating beats. Logic Pro for iPad will work with compatible third-party hardware like microphones, instruments, and MIDI controllers too.

Source: Apple.

Source: Apple.

When it’s time to mix your creation, Apple says:

Multi-Touch enables creators to mix intuitively and move multiple faders at once, and the mixer meter bridge lets them quickly navigate an overview of track levels, all from iPad.

Finally, Logic Pro will support round-tripping to the Mac version of the app, GarageBand for iOS projects, and exporting in a variety of compressed and lossless formats or as individual track stems.

According to Apple:

Final Cut Pro is compatible with M1 chip iPad models or later, and Logic Pro will be available on A12 Bionic chip iPad models or later. Final Cut Pro for iPad and Logic Pro for iPad require iPadOS 16.4.

I’m glad to see Final Cut Pro and Logic Pro finally coming to the iPad. It remains to be seen how each stands up in comparison to their Mac siblings, but from Apple’s press release alone, these will clearly be more powerful and capable apps than either iMovie or GarageBand.

Final Cut Pro and Logic Pro for iPad will be available on the App Store beginning on Tuesday, May 23rd as subscriptions for $4.99/month or $49/year after a one-month free trial.


MusicSmart 2.0: Dig Into Music Discovery

It’s no secret that we’re big fans of Marcos Tanaka’s music apps at MacStories. MusicHarbor makes keeping up with new and upcoming releases a breeze, and MusicBox ensures you won’t lose track of music that you don’t have time to enjoy until later. The apps are indispensable for music fans who follow a long list of artists.

MusicSmart, which is available for the iPhone, iPad, Mac, and Apple TV, is a little different than Tanaka’s other apps. Instead of casting a broad net to track the entire range of your musical tastes, the app is about digging deeper into individual songs, albums, or artists’ catalogs. But follow the threads offered by MusicSmart, and the narrow focus that sets it apart from Tanaka’s other apps will paradoxically lead to new musical discoveries and, ultimately, broaden your tastes.

As Federico explained in his review of MusicSmart’s debut:

Whether by design or as a byproduct of our new habits, metadata and credits don’t play a big role in modern music streaming services. We’re frustrated when a service gets the title of a song wrong or reports the incorrect track sequence in an album, but we don’t consider the fact that there’s a world of context and additional information hidden behind the songs and albums we listen to every day. That context is entirely invisible to us because it’s not mass-market enough for a music streaming service. There have been small updates on this front lately, but by and large, credits and additional track information are still very much ignored by the streaming industry. And if you ask me, that’s a shame.

Despite stiff competition among music streaming services, the state of liner notes hasn’t improved since Federico wrote that. Fortunately, though, MusicSmart has only gotten better, adding new data sources, better organization, and more polish with each release. However, version 2.0 of the app combines its existing strengths with new features and an improved design in a way that transcends earlier versions, making this version 2.0 of MusicSmart feel more fully realized than ever before.

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Our iPadOS 17 Wishes

AppStories+ Deeper into the world of apps

AppStories Episode 328 - Our iPadOS 17 Wishes

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41:37

AppStories+ Deeper into the world of apps

This week, Federico and John continue their wish list series with their wishes for iPadOS 17.

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Mastering Mona

Mona, the Mastodon client that debuted this week, isn’t an easy app to get into. It has a million settings and customization options that can be a little overwhelming at first. After writing about the app this week, it was clear to me that a lot of readers were struggling with Mona, so I thought...


App Debuts

[[John]] Bluesky Social Bluesky Social is a new decentralized social network that has a lot in common with Twitter. The service is still in beta and is invitation-only, but its app is available on the App Store and received some significant updates this week. Bluesky has a long way to go as an app. It...


Interesting Links

[[John]] This week, Mastodon announced a new onboarding experience that sets mastodon.social as the default server for new users and said that quote posts and better search are coming. (Link) Mozilla has begun beta testing its own Mastodon server that it intends to moderate according to the principles of its Mozilla Manifesto. (Link) Bluesky Social,...


Browsers, Task Managers, and AV Club

Here are the highlights from the Club MacStories Discord this week:

Niléane reported to Discord members about her return to Safari after using the Arc browser for a few weeks.

There was a lot of discussion about task managers this week, including widespread hope that Things 4 will announced soon. We kicked off...


An Apple Podcasts Experiment

Apple Podcasts is one of those apps that has never clicked for me, which is why I spent the past couple of weeks using it. I’ve already returned to Overcast, but I’m glad I revisited Apple Podcasts because the app is far better than it’s ever been and with a more streamlined and customizable UI,...


Brydge Ceases Operations, Leaving Employees in the Lurch

Chance Miller published an excellent exposé on the downfall of Brydge, an iPad, Mac, and Microsoft Surface accessory maker. The company got its start with a Kickstarter campaign in 2012, and for a time, its keyboard accessories were a popular choice among iPad users, including me.

However, as Chance explains, Brydge’s fortunes took a turn for the worse as it was forced to compete head-on with Apple’s Magic Keyboard, later spiraling out of control as its cash flow ran out:

Brydge, a once thriving startup making popular keyboard accessories for iPad, Mac, and Microsoft Surface products, is ceasing operations. According to nearly a dozen former Brydge employees who spoke to 9to5Mac, Brydge has gone through multiple rounds of layoffs within the past year after at least two failed acquisitions.

As it stands today, Brydge employees have not been paid salaries since January. Customers who pre-ordered the company’s most recent product have been left in the dark since then as well. Its website went completely offline earlier this year, and its social media accounts have been silent since then as well.

From what former employees told 9to5Mac, it appears that a number of factors contributed to its downfall, but the saddest part of the story is how Brydge treated its employees, keeping them in the dark and, in many cases, unpaid to this day.

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