Adobe - Premiere Pro now runs natively on M1 Macs

 

Following a beta release in December, Premiere Pro now officially supports M1 Macs. “From launch times to export, everything is faster, and editing is buttery smooth,” Adobe says of the native Apple Silicon version of its video editing software. The company adds that Adobe Sensei features like Auto Reframe feel “noticeably” faster and that the app uses significantly less battery power on M1 Macs.

While Apple has only offered computers with its own ARM-based chips since November of last year, Adobe has been quick to support the platform. In December, it came out with an Apple Silicon version of Lightroom and followed that up in March with a native release of Photoshop. With today’s announcement, you don’t need to turn to Rosetta 2 to emulate most of the company’s most popular apps. Premiere Pro’s July update also includes a handful of features you don’t need a new Mac to appreciate. Most notable among those is a speech-to-text feature that can automatically caption a video.

Samsung's next Galaxy Unpacked is happening online on August 11th

Samsung has just announced what feels like its zillionth event this year. But at least this one's something we were expecting. The company just sent out invites to Galaxy Unpacked for August 11th at 10am ET, and the event will be held online only. 

In years past, Samsung's hosted August launches for its Note series of high-powered phones. This time, though, multiple reports have indicated that there won't be a new Note. That's become a more likely possibility now, after the company brought Pen support to its Galaxy S21 flagships this year. The stylus has been a hallmark of the Note line since its conception and has distinguished the series from its S-branded siblings. 

Samsung invite

Instead of a new Note, it's more likely we'll see new foldable phones like follow-ups to the Z Flip and Z Fold 2 based on the invite. Samsung showed off more flexible screen concepts in May, and though it might be awhile till we see those designs in a real product, the company is clearly continuing to work on the technology. Samsung also confirmed that it will be launching a new Galaxy Watch at this Unpacked, and the device will run a version of Wear OS that it co-engineered with Google. There's also a good chance Samsung will debut new earbuds since the "Galaxy Buds 2" has leaked twice this month.

We'll be streaming Samsung's event live on our YouTube channel, where we'll host a pre-show and a Q&A after the company is done. Come join us to watch the launch together live and get your questions answered as quickly as possible. 

HBO Max starts streaming full episode pilots in Snapchat

HBO Max has a new way for people to check out its library of content. Starting today, you can watch the pilot episodes of select series, including Game of Thrones, Lovecraft Country and Gossip Girl, on Snapchat and do so while chatting with up to 63 other people.

The ability to watch HBO Max content through Snapchat comes courtesy of the Minis functionality Snap introduced last June. The tool allows third-party developers to offer pared-down versions of their apps within Snapchat. So far, some of the more popular developers to offer Minis include Headspace, but HBO Max is the first major streamer to use the feature to let people view its content.

You can start the HBO Max Mini by tapping on the rocket icon in chat or using the search feature to find it. Before you can see a list of available episodes, the app will ask you to verify your age. You don't need an HBO Max subscription to watch any of the pilots, but the Mini will prompt users over the age of 18 to sign up for the service. Once a session is underway, up to 63 other people can join one, and you can chat with everyone else watching the episode and share Bitmoji reactions.

HBO Max isn't the first streaming service to use another platform to attract users. Before its all too predictable death, Quibi let people watch pilots of its originals on YouTube

YouTube’s Super Thanks tipping feature rolls out to more beta users

For years, YouTube streamers have used third-party plugins to allow their fans to donate to them. Starting this week, however, YouTube is taking a step toward making that functionality something that’s built into the platform. While it’s still in beta, the company says its new “Super Thanks” feature is rolling out to “thousands” of additional creators in 68 countries. By the end of the year, it plans to make it available to everyone in the YouTube Partner Program.

When you decide to give your favorite creator a Super Thanks, you’ll have four options before you. The amounts will vary by market, but in the US you can donate $2, $5, $10 or $50 at one time. Once you complete the payment process, you’ll see an animated GIF of balloons float across your screen, and YouTube will highlight your comment, as well as the amount of money you sent. As with the other monetization tools YouTube offers to streamers, including Super Chat and Super Stickers, the company will take a 30 percent cut of all donations.

Adding more ways for creators to earn money is important for YouTube, even if it’s one the company is late to offer. Long gone are the days where it's the only video platform of note. The company faces competition from Twitch, TikTok and others, particularly as those platforms look for ways to keep their most prolific creators invested in making content only for their respective apps.

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