Blackmagic Forum

Hi there,
This is my first time on this forum, I have only recently discovered Resolve and Fusion.
I am very impressed with both applications.
I wanted to upgrade from the free version of Resolve to the Studio version.
Is it true that the version on the Apple App store has a few features missing?
Would I be better to buy from a reseller.
cheers
geoff

The app store version doesn't support external cards running over thunderbolt. I have an iMac Pro with a Sonnet tb3 extender loaded with a RED ROCKET-X card. The RR-X works with all my other apps, and the dongle version of Resolve, but not the App Store version. Disappointing!

Also, AFAIK some ofx won't work, nvidia/Cuda GPUs excluded

Hi, does anyone know is this situation has improved at all in the current version? I'm just looking to make the switch to the paid version, but I do much prefer Apple 'App store' model of distribution & updates when its available.

That said, it seems daft to pay the same amount for a crippled version.

Is there a plan for them to have feature-parity in the future, or will this always be the case?

I'm afraid it won't change as long as Apple is so restrictive about software they sell in the App Store.
It doesn't apply to Resolve only. Get the real thing!

Ru Cook wrote:Hi, does anyone know is this situation has improved at all in the current version? I

No it is not improved. You really should avoid the App Store version unless you have no other choice (e.g., there are no authorized BMD dealers in your country or you need the Studio version immediately and can't wait for an order to arrive). If you do use the App Store version be sure to turn off automatic updates -- let the App Store inform you that a new version is available, but don't let it install automatically. You don't always want to update to the newest version, and it's always a good idea to backup your database and your projects before doing an update.

I think a lot of the limitations of the App Store version are related to sandboxing requirements, which is why you can't use some OFX. There are other issues related to Resolve being installed as a "package" -- for example LUTs are stored in a different location than they would be in the regular Studio version (or the free version). If you do a search for "App Store" in the manual you'll find a few other settings you'd need to tweak.

One OFX casualty of the App Store version is 3D Lut Creator. They will not fix their plugin to work with the App Store version.

Ok, thanks for the heads up guys. Will get the non-app store version.

cheers

Michael Tiemann wrote:One OFX casualty of the App Store version is 3D Lut Creator. They will not fix their plugin to work with the App Store version.

While that is some brilliant software, small developers can't afford the Apple restrictions for a small fraction of their market. 3D LUT Creator thankfully was ported to Mac OS too, but it's GUI doesn't follow Apple's strict guidelines and, while quite usable on the Mac, the program is much faster on a PC.

Michael Tiemann wrote:One OFX casualty of the App Store version is 3D Lut Creator. They will not fix their plugin to work with the App Store version.

You should add the Macintosh HD (/) as one of your configured storage volumes. This should enable most OpenFX plugins.

You can test with the free version before buying the Studio version.

Rohit, thanks for that! Adding "Macintosh HD" (can't call it "/" even though that's what it is--finder won't let me enter / by name) as a storage location allowed me to activate the plugin without crashing out. Progress!

But now when I try to open 3D LUT Creator from the plugin, I get an error message that 3D LUT Creator preferences cannot be found and that I should install 3D LUT Creator. It is installed. Any forum users know what dots I need to connect here? Thanks!

I just found that I cannot seem to activate any monitor selections in the Dolby Vision section. I can enable Dolby Vision, but not set monitoring parameters. True, my laptop does not have a video-out card. Is that why the feature seems stubbed out, or is it another limitation of the app store version?