Version 2 of the Affinity apps, the creative suite that includes Affinity Photo, Affinity Designer and Affinity Publisher is just round the corner, the company suggests, as it announces that something BIG is coming on November 9, adding that we may pick them up to play “sooner than you think”, a clear indication that despite the silence, the team has been working to prepare for the launch before the end of the year.
It’s like having Christmas earlier for many of us who use the apps. The Creative Suite that started with the launch of Affinity Designer, the company’s first Affinity app, in October 2014, for Mac, and then extended to PC, grew in the last eight years, and has become a key element of the workflow for many photographers and graphic artists.
Now Ash Hewson, the Managing Director of Serif, the company behind the Affinity Creative Suite, appears in a short video to say “we’ve been busy coming up with something special, the next level creative experience refined and redesigned with hundreds of enhancements and incredible new features like…” only to say “yeah I can’t say that yet” but adding that “we’re realizing our vision so you can realize yours” and promising “new ways of working new ways of thinking everything you want in a Creative Suite.”
The team behind the Affinity Creative Suite will supply the tools, “you just have to take them… and you can, sooner than you think”, continues Ash Hewson. The announcement was met with excitement online, as many users have adopted this software also because if its non-subscription model. It is expected that Affinity will continue to be sold the same way, not falling prey of the subscription-style that has been adopted by other apps initially introduced as subscription free.
The different apps in the Affinity have been updated since they were launched, without cost for the users, and that’s something that many appreciate. Version 1.9 of the Creative Suite has now been around for a while, so the arrival of version 2.0 is good news, although some – me included – were surprised with the unexpected announcement. But that’s Serif’s style.
The Creative Suite includes three apps, as mentioned above, but since a long time ago users have asked if it’s going to be expanded. Distinct types of users request different apps, but one has been a constant for a long time: Affinity Video Editor, or simply Affinity Video, “a video editing and compositing program to make the media processing creative suite complete” suggests one user. Curiously, the teaser video created to share the news reveals, notes another user, ”a lot of great video editing.”
Could the Affinity Video Editor be the new addition to the Creative Suite? Well, Ash Hewson does say, at the end of the teaser “oh yeah there’s actually one more thing something we know you’ve been waiting for but you’re just gonna have to wait and see”. Is it, is it?
Maybe it’s something different, a Lightroom-style catalog, something people also have asked for. Some other users, though, would love a proper alternative to After Effects, something that “the industry is really missing”, while others expect that the apps become compatible with Android, which would extend the number of users… me included.
One thing is sure. Affinity apps are reaching version 2.0, and if the perpetual license model continues to be the rule for the software, I don’t think users will be much worried, even if they must pay the full price again. The usual price for the apps is $54.99 on Windows or Mac or $19.99 on iPad . Because I bought my apps during pre-release, I paid, less than $40 at the time. Now, I acquired Affinity Photo in 2016, when it was released, and have had free updates since then. You do the math!
So, Affinity will reveal all the news on November 9. I can hardly wait to buy the new versions of the apps I use, Photo and Publisher. I might even buy the Designer, just because… and I will certainly by an Affinity Video Editor, if it’s coming. Or a catalog app coming from the team. Are you ready?