NAB 2012: Autodesk Introduces New Smoke For Reduced Price

Autodesk gave Smoke for the Mac an overhaul, with a reduced price of $3,495—down from roughly $15,000.

Unveiled Sunday at the National Association of Broadcasters (NAB) Show in Las Vegas, the new version of the editing and finishing software is aimed at “someone using [Adobe] After Effects along with [Apple] Final Cut Pro or Avid Media Composer, or they could be using [The Foundry’s] Nuke as well,” explains Marc Hamaker, Autodesk’s senior product marketing manager.

Scheduled for availability in the fall, the Smoke upgrade is getting a new user interface that Hamaker said was “designed for editors” who are familiar with editing systems such as Media Composer and Final Cut.

He also highlighted “ConnectFX,” a new feature that puts visual effects into the editing timeline, as well as lower cost system requirements.

The new version of Smoke supports various formats used production including Red, Arriraw, ProRes, DNxHD, H.264, P2 and XDCAM. Hanmaker reported that Autodesk is talking with Sony about support for its 4K F65 camera.

The original Smoke for the Mac platform was launched in 2009.