Avid to bring HD to PPC-, Intel-Macs in 2006
updated 12:00 pm EST, Mon November 7, 2005
Avid for Intel-based Macs
today announced plans to offer HD versions of its software for both Intel- and PowerPC-based Macs. The company said it has begun synchronizing development for its Mac product line in preparation for Apple's introduction of Intel-based Macs next year using Apple's Xcode development environment. Avid's initial Mac HD release is targeted for the PowerPC platform in mid-2006 and that it plans on delivering the same HD capabilities to Intel-based Macs after they become available. Avid says both Avid Xpress Pro and Media Composer Adrenaline systems will offer HD editing support, allowing users to edit major HD formats, including HDCAM, HDV and DVCPRO HD. The company also plans to offer Avid DNxHD support and encoding, which it says enables high-definition workflows at standard-definition data rates, but with the image quality of working at uncompressed HD resolutions. In addition, Avid software will support simultaneous playback of all multicam views for on-the-fly editing.
"When Apple announced its plan to move to Intel processors this past June, we were as surprised as the rest of the industry," said Dana Ruzicka, vice president of Post Solutions for Avid. "The new Intel architecture shows great promise for improving Mac performance, but it also requires third-party developers to rework their roadmaps in order to support two Apple platforms.
"While this kind of wholesale change is good for the industry overall, we share our customers' frustrations with the disruption it can cause in the short-term. Given how important the Mac is to our customer base, we're embracing Apple's Xcode development environment, which enables us to simultaneously develop for both PowerPC- and Intel-based Mac systems. Although our timeframe for delivering HD on the Mac is now mid-2006, our support of both the new Intel architecture and the existing PowerPC platform offers a path for all of our loyal Mac customers - and helps us to better serve their needs in the long run."
Fresh-Faced Recruit
Joined: Mar 2004
Avid offers HD!!!
Um, Final Cut Pro HD has been around for quite a while. Heck even iMovie has the capability to work with HD (although it is by no means an Avid competitor). Aren't they just a little late to the party here. After all, anyone who needs HD editing capability would already have that in FCP right. They wouldn't have been waiting on Avid to offer HD that to their customers. They would have gone out and switched to remain competitive. Is this too little too late from Avid in the Mac sphere?