film

As many probably know, Final Cut Pro X--Apple's professional video-editing software--was recently released to mixed reviews.

For our CNET review of Apple's Final Cut Pro X, we decided to try something different. Normally our Download.com staff reviews software from a consumer perspective. This time, we called in a pro user from our offices in New York. Our very own Wilson G. Tang is a CNET and CBS producer, who has directed, shot, and edited award-winning pieces. He also hosts a daily technology and culture show on CNET called The 404. As a video and film professional, he … Read more

Editors' note (September 20, 2011): Apple has released a major software update to Final Cut Pro X. Additional features added include support for XML, custom starting time codes, Xsan event and project compatibility, support for media stems/audio channeling, full-screen view toggle for Lion users, and GPU acceleration.

The bottom line: Final Cut Pro X is truly a dramatic rewrite of Apple's mature and well-developed video-editing software. It borrows some interface elements from iMovie that may disappoint seasoned professionals, and also it loses many key features that are simply an absolute necessity in the professional world, like XML export. … Read more

Low-profile solar start-up Alta Devices today will detail a technique it claims can deliver record solar cell efficiency, a step toward making solar cheaper than fossil fuels.

Executives from the Silicon Valley company, which has raised at least $72 million in funding, will present technical papers today at the IEEE's Photovoltaic Specialist Conference in Seattle on how it has set a new mark in converting sunlight to electricity. Among its investors is Bill Joy, a Kleiner, Perkins, Caufield & Byers partner and famed technologist.

In tests, engineers achieved 27.6 percent efficiency last year and later hit 28.2 … Read more

I loved Tower Records, but I never felt a thing about any of the other big record store chains like Sam Goody, Virgin, or HMV Records. I'm sure that over a 20-year period I bought 1,000 albums at Tower Records in New York City, vs. maybe one or two at the other chains. It's easy to explain why; the other majors weren't interesting enough to hold my attention. Their inventories were too superficial; when they'd have just a small handful of Miles Davis titles, Tower had a hundred.

Tower stores were in sync with the … Read more

Swiss scientists have broken an energy conversion efficiency record for flexible thin-film CIGS solar cells, Empa, the Swiss Federal Laboratories for Materials Science and Technology, announced last week.

In collaboration with the Swiss solar start-up Flisom, Empa has achieved an 18.7 percent efficiency for CIGS (copper indium gallium selenide) flexible solar cells, which the lab says was made possible by mounting them on a polymer substrate. This breaks Empa's record of 17.6 percent when mounting the CIGS on steel foil substrates, according to the Swiss lab.

Solar efficiency is the amount of electricity per square inch that … Read more

Miramax and Hulu have signed a multiyear deal that will see some of the studio's top films come to the streaming-video service.

Starting today, Hulu Plus subscribers will have access to hundreds of ad-free Miramax films. Many of the titles will be available in HD, the company said, while the remaining titles will be available to users in standard definition. In addition, those who access the free Hulu will find a selection of 15 Miramax films to choose from. Those films, which will be rotated each month, will be ad-supported, the companies said.

Adding Miramax content to Hulu is … Read more

Feature films could be part of Apple's iCloud launch next week.

In the past several weeks, Apple executives have stepped up their attempts to convince some of the major Hollywood film studios to issue licenses that would enable Apple to store its customers' movies on the company's servers, two sources close to the negotiations told CNET. Apple began discussing a cloud service with the studios over a year ago.

An Apple spokesman declined to comment.

Apple announced today that next Monday, the start of the company's Worldwide Developers Conference, it will unveil the iCloud, a long-anticipated service … Read more

It doesn't seem that long ago when we would have to lug around a VHS camera to capture video of family events, vacations, and other memories we could relive later by inserting the VHS tape and hitting the play button on our VCRs. While it was a workable solution for capturing memories in motion, lugging around a video camera everywhere we went wasn't exactly practical.

Fortunately these days, there is no longer the need for fresh VHS tapes or making sure to pack the digital video camera because we have the ability to shoot reasonably good video right on our smartphones. With the iPhone 4's front- and rear-facing cameras, we have even more options for shooting videos, and with hundreds of cool video apps in the App Store, we have tons of interesting (and sometimes strange) options.

This week's collection of apps gives you some options for shooting good-looking videos. The first app lets you film the action from before you hit the record button, the second makes retro-looking videos using effects you control, and the last app gives you some professional options for shooting more-serious movies.… Read more

The hardware and HD capabilities behind the iPhone's video camera are impressive, but its built-in controls for shooting video are frustratingly primitive for more-experienced filmmakers, and the iPhone isn't always smart about handling factors like exposure and white balance. Filmic Pro gives your camera a new front-end for shooting higher-quality video, with professional tools for controlling exposure, focal point, and more.

Filmic Pro offers an interface that is clean and simple, and all of its controls run along the bottom of screen, making it perfect for keeping a steady thumb grip on your camera. On the left, you … Read more