(Credit: Apple)
Apple’s next big subscription service lets creative types use editing apps that might be too expensive for them to buy outright.
The Creator Studio package offers access to six services for $12.99 a month or $129 a year: Compressor, Final Cut Pro, Logic Pro, MainStage, Motion, and Pixelmator Pro. All are available for Mac, while Final Cut Pro and Logic Pro are also available on iPad. Pixelmator Pro is also now coming to iPad for the first time.
Apple notes that buying each piece of software individually would cost $679.94. However, Final Cut Pro and Logic Pro make up most of that cost at $299.99 and $199.99, respectively.
Apple Creator Studio also comes with what Apple calls “premium content” for Keynote, Pages, and Numbers available across iPhone, iPad and Mac. It also says it’ll bring similar expansions to its Freeform app at a later date.
This includes a feature called Content Hub to give users high-quality photos and graphics to use across each app, as well as AI features such as image editing, presentation generation within Keynote, and Magic Fill for formulas on Numbers.
New Features for Final Cut Pro and Logic Pro
Today’s announcement also saw Apple introduce new features across some of its creative services. Final Cut Pro is getting a new feature called Beat Detection, which uses an AI model to analyze music, display the beats, and allow you to make quick cuts that align to the rhythm without listening to the track over and over again.
Logic Pro is getting a new feature called Synth Player as part of its AI Session Play lineup. "Developed in-house using Apple’s own team of expert sound designers, Synth Player delivers incredible realism and fidelity fueled by the vast array of software synthesizers and samplers in Logic Pro," Apple says.
Other new features for Logic Pro include Chord ID, which uses AI to turn any audio file into a ready-to-use chord progression, as well as a new Sound Library for Mac to give you access to royalty-free sounds to use in your edits.
How to Get Apple's Creator Studio
Creator Studio subscriptions will be available starting on Jan. 28 through the Apple App Store, and all users get a one-month free trial. Some iPad and Mac purchases will get you up to three months of access, but Apple has yet to reveal which models are eligible.
You can share access to a Creative Studio subscription with six others through Apple’s Family Sharing. College students and educators can also subscribe for $2.99 a month or $29.99 a year.
Creator Studio is Apple's latest attempt to draw customers away from Adobe's Creative Cloud suite of editing software. The company says it will continue to sell its software without a subscription for those who want to own its tools outright without paying a monthly fee.