Apple has been working on a video creating and sharing app, dubbed Clips, for its iOS platform. As promised, Apple's Clips app — which was unveiled in March — has finally been released for iOS 10.3 (or above) supported devices.
The app will enable users to create their very own video content and share the same with others.
On Thursday, April 6, the Cupertino-based company fulfilled its promise and released the Clips app.
"Clips is a new app for making fun videos to share with friends, family, and the world. With a few taps you can create and send a video message or tell a quick story with animated text, graphics and emoji, music, and more," noted Apple.
Clips: What Does The App Offer?
Clips let users record a video and then edit it by including pictures, texts, filters, emojis, and even music. This content can then be shared via Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and YouTube. The videos are all created in a square format and support 1080p resolution in case of HD source videos.
Clips are added to a basic timeline, at the bottom of the screen. An individual clip can be up to 30 minutes long, while the runtime of a finished video can be a maximum of 60 minutes. Adding the content to a video is pretty easy as well.
"Adding content is simple and quick. Just record it on the spot, or grab a video clip or photo from your library," notes Apple.
Clips also has several Fun Effects users can take advantage of. These include imparting a comic book look to the video clips and photos, as well as giving black and white filters. Users of the app can also add arrows, banners, and animated speech bubbles. There is also the option to add an emoji on the video clip or photo.
One can also pinch and drag the photos and videos while recording to add zoom animations, as well as a smooth pan. Clips users can also include music tracks from their library, or use the in-built ones. These soundtracks adjust automatically to the length of the video.
Clips builds in Smart Sharing and will offer the user sharing suggestions based on who is in the video. To share a video, one simply needs to tap a contact on the share sheet and the video gets sent to them through Messages.
What Makes Clips Different From Other Apps?
The aspect which makes Clips different from other apps is its Live Titles feature. Thanks to this feature, users can speak into their devices and their words get included in the video as text, audio, or both — depending on the user's preference.
While this is a nifty little feature, its design is such that it may confuse most users. However, as time passes, developers may simplify things.
Clips also uses facial recognition technology to identify who is in the video. This helps the app prioritize contacts in the share functionality.
First Impressions
Overall, the features Clips offers are not out of the ordinary as content sharing apps like Snapchat and Instagram also come with similar functionalities. However, Clips may be an attempt by Apple to win over users who currently use third-party apps for their video sharing needs.
For the most part, Clips is easy to use and video uploads without Live Titles can be done smoothly. However, if the user wants to indulge in considerable edits of their videos, then it may take some time.
So, while other apps may let people capture, edit, and share stuff on-the-go, Apple's video sharing application will make one spend a lot more time on the edits.
The square video format may also put off some people, but this format is only applicable to videos which are recorded from within Clips. A user can record the video first and then import it to Clips to bypass this strange-looking format.
All in all, Apple has managed to create an app which is similar, but also different from other video sharing applications out there.
The Clips app is available for free download from the App Store.
