This is a conversation I’m having with more and more editors today.
Since its first release, back in 1999, Apple had two divergent goals with Final Cut Pro. First, it appealed to Apple’s core market of creators. Final Cut offered new ways to tell stories working with then-new digital media. It brought video story-telling to people who could never tell them before.
However, the second – and I think larger – goal was that video required the absolute maximum of computer power. CPUs, GPUs, RAM, storage – ESPECIALLY storage – were taxed to the ultimate. In those early days, computer performance was everything. FCP became the bellwether for computer performance.
Two major events, both in 2020, changed Apple’s focus on Final Cut. First was Steve Bayes retirement from Apple. Steve was the senior product manager for Apple’s media software. He once told me that, as a former editor, his job was to keep the wheels from falling off Final Cut development.
The other major event that year was the advent of Apple silicon. Announced in June, the first Mac with an M-series chip was released in November, 2020. The power of Apple silicon truly did change everything.
While Apple has continued to improve their M-series chips, with new systems doing more and doing it faster, ANY M-series chip can edit 4K video, or 12K if your storage is fast enough. Twenty streams of 4K video? Piece of cake. For the first time since digital video began, computer speed was no longer an issue.
Today, we edit 8K media without a second thought and expect our projects to play in real-time without rendering.
There was no longer a material difference for video editing between an M2 vs M4 chip. Faster? Yes, but those early M-series chips edited video just fine. The driving need to upgrade hardware with each new release disappeared and, with it, Final Cut was no longer needed to drive hardware sales.
Video was handled.
Because of that, Apple seems to have lost interest in improving Final Cut. Yes, Apple continues to support it – which is GREAT! – and Apple does add new features. But those features are half-baked – like captions with no transcripts – or late – like taking eleven years to add timeline scrolling – or nonexistent – as can be seen when comparing recent new features from Adobe or Blackmagic Design to Final Cut.
Apple hardware is amazing. Final Cut Pro, though, seems to have lost its way. While still the fastest NLE on the market, it is no longer state-of-the-art, nor the most feature-rich. Apple may feel that FCP is old news, but there are still hundreds of thousands of editors who depend upon it every day to earn a living.
They deserve better from Apple.
28 Responses to Has Apple Lost the Plot with Final Cut Pro?
← Older Comments-
Jeff Orig says:
June 1, 2026 at 3:19 pm
-
Larry says:
June 1, 2026 at 3:57 pm
-
Bud kuenzli says:
June 3, 2026 at 5:49 am
-
mark suszko says:
June 3, 2026 at 7:55 am
-
Mr. Alan M. Halfhill says:
June 4, 2026 at 8:20 pm
-
Larry says:
June 5, 2026 at 2:45 am
-
Patrick Mulholland says:
June 6, 2026 at 4:12 am
-
Larry says:
June 6, 2026 at 5:18 am
-
Ronald says:
June 22, 2026 at 9:40 am
-
Larry says:
June 22, 2026 at 10:11 am
-
Gene Massey says:
June 30, 2026 at 7:32 am
← Older CommentsI wish Apple would resurrect iMovie and make that the product that competes with CapCut. Then focus energy on FCPX and add all the features professionals and creators have been wanting for years. Also add all the AI features that DaVinci and Premiere already have. FCPX is fastest in regard to workflow. Once you get used the magnetic timeline, it is so much more efficient for certain kinds of edits.
It’s just a shame that Apple doesn’t show us that they still understand how important winning these categories are. They only sell hardware because the software and OS are good. Once they start losing the software and OS battles, then there are not many reasons to stay with the hardware. Apple Pages used to be software where non-designers could make a beautiful brochure or flyer. Now you go to Canva. Keynote is where you used to make amazing presentations. Now you use Gamma or Canva. Or if you want convenience you use Google Slides.
iMovie is free and was the best editor on iPHone. It was a great software for home movies. Final Cut Pro 7 was the perfect editor for professionals. FCPX was a poorly launched revolution in the editing metaphor. I honestly believe if they would have made FCPX an invite-only Beta in the beginning and gotten feedback, made changes, all the pros would have been clamoring to be invited to use it and make the switch.
Anyway, Apple is gonna do what their gonna do and we just have to sit here and take it.
Though one day, I think Blackmagic, a small privately owned company in Australia will make their Cut page the CapCut/FCPX/iMovie killer and almost everyone will switch.
To clarify, I love Apple and FCPX but I also hate how they do things.
Jeff:
Solid comments, though I like the Edit page better than the Cut page.
Larry
I couldn’t agree more but sadly I loathe Adobe and am not going to pay for it. I did try to get my head around Black Magic but the learning curve and youtube tutorials were just more time consuming than I was willing to bother with. FCP is enough for me with my simple landscape and home videos but I do so wish Apple would take it seriously. They don’t.
Apple is not sentimental. They will support FCPX until their internal data suggest it’s not worth it and they will dump it without any tears. It has to have a strategic value to future company goals to survive. The shiny object all the computer companies are pursuing now is AI and what I imagine could happen down the road is that fcpx becomes an engine underlying an AI driven editing platform that is subscription based. I really hate subscription software and that’s why I have up on Adobe.
I’m going to upgrade my fcpx until Apple does something I hate, and then I will just keep using the last operating system and editing version I like, until my hardware stops working. I will have davinci as a backup plan but for the my simple needs I could just keep plugging along for years using my current setup. I’m retired now and use my editing system and skills to make YouTube videos for my band and solo music career. Much of the latest whizbang editing plugins don’t have much relevance to my use case anymore. The only thing that made my work easier for my use case is AI driven rotoscoping for my backgrounds. That’s handy and I am a little salty about Adobe having more and better in that niche like content aware fills.
I had been using Final Cut Pro since 2003 when I switched from Premiere. I was at NAB 2011 where FCPX came out and was very excited out it. I watched it be upgraded and it got a lot better with more professional features. I tried using it again and realized that I had to “think differently” about it. I got what they were doing. FCPX was a Film editor not a 1990’s Video editor. It is still my primary editor. Yes, Apple has been slow at upgrading FCP but I have not needed too many new features. Some of the new Ai features are very useful. I am glad there are 3rd parties making add-ons. We will see if Apple does keep it going. Right now I am happy.
Alan:
Thanks for your perspective and comment.
Larry
What a waste of a great product. Apple and Final Cut produced easily the fastest timeline on the market, without question (Magnetic timeline). A true game changer. The only other recommendation I’d add is a more advanced clip (Like that of Autodesk Smoke – now gone), where one could just click on the clip and it would take you to a particular advancded function page (Color .. etc with more tools). All Resolve is today in 2026 is what Smoke was in 2004, but it’s hey its … Free.
I do believe with the purchase of motionvfx.com there might be some potential to get back in the game, however, that said, AI is blowing everything out of the water and I wonder what will become of the skilled Broadcast Editor with that kind of technology. Additionaly, there is the Apple Creator Studio which is a step in the right direction, yet … here we go again with subscription.
In regards to other NLE’s, I almost never hear people speak of Avid anymore. Im sure its still out in various places in LA. Adobe is the generic defacto goto NLE, which I find antiquated. I as others have stated in the comments, I will not pay for Adobe, it’s not worth it. All the buzz and momentum I believe is with Resolve.
And When I hear Larry question the future of Apple and Final Cut, I must say that is perks up my ears, as I believe he has a better pulse on the Apple market than myself. What a shame if it winds up just to become a neglected product that had great potential.
Patrick:
Thanks for your comments. To clarify a few things, Avid deeply entrenched in Hollywood, major broadcasters and enterprises with dozens of editors on staff. That is now and always has been its strength. Autodesk discontinued Smoke in September, 2022. And, yes, recent Apple acquisitions of Pixelmator and MotionVFX are hopeful signs – we just need to wait and see what happens with them.
Larry
I am a amateur-user and very happy with fcp. The most logic interface and regular updates with useful things. I love it and do not need complicated extra’s.
Ronald:
Thanks for your comment.
Larry
I’m still using FCP 7.03. I have some old Macs and dual OS on most of them. I would like to learn Davinci but I would not invest any time or energy into learning about anything from Apple editing.