Best iMovie alternative or does iMovie still work on pre-High Sierra?

[Crunch]

Hi everyone!

I want to get into video editing and I'm definitely a beginner. Naturally, I figured I'd go with Apple's own iMovie, especially since I had heard many good things about it in the past and since it also has iOS versions.

Here comes the big however:

I'm on High Sierra 10.3.3 and after installing iMovie last week, it crashed right away and even after deleting the preferences file, as one possible resolution post suggested, I still had the same problem. I did a quick search and it appears that many other people are having the same issue.

I am using my MacBook Pro with the lid permanently closed and a Samsung 1080p monitor that's connected via a Satechi USB-C hub's HDMI port. I will be upgrading to a 32" 4K monitor soon, but for now it's the 1080p.

It is disappointing that this issue still exists a full SIX months and THREE point updates after High Sierra's initial release. My question now is whether to go back to 10.12.6 and try to work with iMovie or go with an entirely different video editing product.

I will probably be going back to Sierra 10.12.6 either way, but after reading several recent reviews on iMovie on the Mac App Store, it appears that iMovie has been neglected and deprecated by Apple for several releases now. Is this mostly true? Remember I'm a beginner in the video editing realm, so I'm not looking to Final Cut Pro anytime soon.

I was really hoping to keep it in the Apple family, but if iMovie on a previous version of macOS also has problems, I might as well start out with a different software product. Are there one or two that the video gurus amongst you can recommend and are there any that I should stay away from?

Thanks very much for your input. I appreciate you.

 

[Fishrrman]

Are you using a version of iMovie that is compatible?
I checked and for HS, iMovie is version 10.1.8 ...

 

[Dave Braine]

10.1.8 works on my MBP with Sierra.

 

[joema2]

...I'm on High Sierra 10.3.3 and after installing iMovie last week, it crashed right away and even after deleting the preferences file, as one possible resolution post suggested, I still had the same problem. I did a quick search and it appears that many other people are having the same issue...It is disappointing that this issue still exists a full SIX months and THREE point updates after High Sierra's initial release. My question now is whether to go back to 10.12.6 and try to work with iMovie or go with an entirely different video editing product....after reading several recent reviews on iMovie on the Mac App Store, it appears that iMovie has been neglected and deprecated by Apple for several releases now. Is this mostly true? Remember I'm a beginner in the video editing realm, so I'm not looking to Final Cut Pro anytime soon....

Sorry to hear about your problems. I rarely use iMovie but I use FCPX 10.4 on High Sierra and it works pretty well.

Verify you are using iMovie 10.1.8 and you're on High Sierra 10.13.3. If so do you have plenty of spare room on your system drive? Video editing software uses lots of resources, so it's common they will crash or become unstable if you don't have plenty of space on your boot drive.

If you're on the right versions and have plenty of disk space, is there a specific procedure that causes the crash? Just starting it up, or doing some action. If so, what is that?

Can you reproduce the problem with your external monitor disconnected, any hubs or external ports disconnected, and just using the MacBook Pro in a stand alone configuration?

 

[Crunch]

Thanks for the help. Yes, I'm on 10.3.3 and iMovie 10.1.8, and yes, I have plenty of free space on the system drive.

The issue arises simply by my executing the software. It loads, briefly shows the start-up screen and boom, it's gone with a subsequent window asking me if I want to send the app crash info to Apple.

I have tried deleting and re-installing iMovie. No dice. As I mentioned, I have a monitor connected via a Satechi USB-C hub. There is no other way to connect anything since the 2016 MacBook Pro has only USB Type-C Thunderbolt 3 ports.

As for disconnecting the monitor, I guess I'll try that, but the way I have my system set up, it's really inconvenient to have to open the lid. It's wedged in pretty good, so if the only solution is having the lid open to be able to use iMovie, that's no solution for me at all. I'm one of those people who is not using their notebook as a notebook, but as a desktop replacement workstation. I only use it to take it somewhere on an every now and then basis.

Thanks again!

 

[joema2]

...The issue arises simply by my executing the software. It loads, briefly shows the start-up screen and boom, it's gone with a subsequent window asking me if I want to send the app crash info to Apple...As for disconnecting the monitor, I guess I'll try that, but the way I have my system set up, it's really inconvenient to have to open the lid. It's wedged in pretty good, so if the only solution is having the lid open to be able to use iMovie, that's no solution for me at all...

I understand having to briefly disconnect your external monitor might be an inconvenience, but so is anything else you'd have to try, such as switching editing software. It's just a troubleshooting procedure.

I did a Google query and I see various other people having issues with USB-C-to-HDMI adapters after upgrading to High Sierra. They are not all running iMovie, so I think iMovie is the victim in this case, not the problem.

Since the problem seems to originate at a lower layer than the application, even if you switched to other editing software it might also crash.

Your best step is first investigate whether removing the external monitor and USB-to-HDMI adapter prevents this. If so your options include going back to Sierra, or trying different hubs or trying different video editing software.

Lots of people use iMovie and it has not been deprecated by Apple. I recently met a professional journalist using iMovie to edit her video in the field.

There have been various complaints about the overall stability and prevalence of bugs of High Sierra. I think Apple senior management knows this which is why they have supposedly reoriented Mac and iOS software development on stability rather than features or a rigid annual update: http://nymag.com/selectall/2018/01/apple-refocuses-ios-development-on-stability-and-performance.html

 

[Crunch]

Thank you for your thoughtful post. I agree that it's not iMovie that's the underlying issue. It's just that my issue only occurs with iMovie and not with any of the other software I have installed.

I'd really like to stick with Apple's own iMovie and, like you, I'm looking forward to seeing Apple placing additional importance on stability over new features. I'm all for it!

I think I've come to a decision and that is going back to Sierra, but not just so as to be able to run iMovie. Today, for example, Mike Bombich came out with yet another problem with the core of High Sierra: APFS.

https://www.macrumors.com/2018/02/19/apfs-bug-macos-data-loss-disk-images/

It feels like there is a constant stream of issues with High Sierra and I'm tired of always waiting for a fix. I also don't feel like trying out various hubs and adapters. Takes too much time and it's not worth the trouble and grief when there is a perfectly good OS available for my MacBook Pro. Plus, I like my little hub from Satechi, because it's small and portable when I need it to be, and it has an amazing amount of connectivity built into a small chassis.

Thanks again for your time. I appreciate you.

 

[Fishrrman]

OP wrote:
"I have tried deleting and re-installing iMovie. No dice. As I mentioned, I have a monitor connected via a Satechi USB-C hub. There is no other way to connect anything since the 2016 MacBook Pro has only USB Type-C Thunderbolt 3 ports."

I'm thinking that THIS is "the source of your problems".
Eliminate the USB hub connection for the monitor and connect it a different way.

Use one of the following:
1. If the display has a displayport (or minidisplayport), use a "USB-c [Mac end] to displayport [display end] connecting cable".
2. If the display has only HDMI, use a "USB-c to HDMI 2.0 adapter/dongle" (one that is known to work on 2017 MacBook Pros) along with an HDMI cable (I recommend a "high-speed" cable for future use with a 4k display).

 

[Crunch]

Well well, welllllll....

I just did my wipe-out and am back on 10.12.6 and guess what:

iMovie 10.1.8 WORKS just fine with the lid CLOSED and my USB-C hub without having to mess around with the lid. No need to get irritated with having to buy new dongles and try different hubs.

Sierra is also FASTER and snappier and so far, Safari is faster too! I'm loving it!

I'm still disappointed because I always like to be on the latest and what is usually the greatest, but this time, it didn't work out. I mean how can an OLDER OS be FASTER than a newer one on a (second to) latest generation Mac? Grrrr....

 

[Fishrrman]

"I'm still disappointed because I always like to be on the latest and what is usually the greatest, but this time, it didn't work out. I mean how can an OLDER OS be FASTER than a newer one on a (second to) latest generation Mac?"

You've just learned an important lesson regarding Mac computing.
That is:
"The latest and greatest" is not always "the best"...