Buying FCPX end of 2016

[OldCorpse]

If I buy FCPX soon - it will be version 10.3.1 - which is a bit buggy (from the reviews), but I guess will soon be fixed.

So my question is: if I buy now - 10.3.1 - how long is that good for? I mean, I would think all the minor updates throughout 10.3.x should be covered, but what happens when it hits 10.4? Will I have to shell out another $300 for 10.4? Will there be like a discount for an upgrade, so maybe like $150? Or will 10.4 be a free upgrade for anyone who bought 10.3?

I don't know the history of FCPX as far as buying goes - if you bought it when it first came out, when did you have to pay to upgrade?

Basically, I'm trying to figure out how long I'm good for if I buy now - it would be a bummer if I had to shell out again soon after buying...

Thanks in advance!

 

[joema2]

If I buy FCPX soon - it will be version 10.3.1 - which is a bit buggy (from the reviews), but I guess will soon be fixed...So my question is: if I buy now - 10.3.1 - how long is that good for? I mean, I would think all the minor updates throughout 10.3.x should be covered, but what happens when it hits 10.4? Will I have to shell out another $300 for 10.4?...

To my knowledge there has never been an upgrade charge for any version of FCPX. The first people who bought it in 2011 have received all 20 updates since then for free: https://support.apple.com/en-us/HT201237

Of course there is no guarantee for the future but for the past five years all FCPX updates have been free.

Re 10.3.1 being buggy, I use it on large production jobs and it seems mostly OK. There are a few little items but I'm sure those will be fixed quickly.

 

[OldCorpse]

Thanks, joema2, that's good to know! I see Apple is very smart. Because I am totally willing to pay $300 - (and we all remember when NLE software cost and arm and a leg, and even FCP would set you back $1K before all the other stuff like plugins you had to buy).

And if I get to use this for a few years without having to pay more, that's so totallly worth it - I mean $300, is like what, about 18 months of Premiere Pro CC (about $20/month these days). So if Apple doesn't make me pay more than $300 over the next couple of years, I'm actually ahead compared to Adobe CC!

 

[campyguy]

And:
https://forums.macrumors.com/threads/fcpx-update-today.2007940/page-3#post-23863553

Plus:
https://twitter.com/itunescarddeals

 

[MSastre]

Definitely recommendFCPX. All updates so far have been free and it is a great program.

 

[Boyd01]

Thanks, joema2, that's good to know! I see Apple is very smart.

I understand that FCP has a history of free updates, but that has not been the case with Logic Pro, Apple's Professional app for audio editing. I bought Logic Pro 9 from the App Store back around 2012, and within about a year they came out with Logic Pro X which was not a free upgrade and needed to be purchased at full price.

So you never know…