New versions of Final Cut, in both Pro and Express iterations, used to be accompanied by the kind of dizzying excitement reserved for kids on Christmas morning. Each successive update seemed to usher in a wealth of new features, either ground-breaking in their capabilities or previously unseen in an affordable non-linear editing program.

Perhaps such pioneering advancements in earlier versions have become the proverbial rod for Final Cut's back, but we can't help feeling distinctly underwhelmed by the recent Final Cut Pro 6 and this, Final Cut Express 4.

Design and layout

The application ships bereft of any kind of printed material, on a single DVD. Included on it is a PDF manual that gives excellent detailed instructions of every aspect of the application, but printing it out isn't a realistic option as it's well over a thousand pages long!

The interface layout and design is almost indistinguishable from the previous version of Express, or the more recent Final Cut Pro 6. Complaints raised consistently over previous versions of both applications remain un-addressed. There's still no ability to jog through clips in the Bin windows using J, K and L keys (as seen in Avid).

Instead Final Cut Express 4 stubbornly retains the Scrubbing by Mouse' execution, which is both clumsy and frustrating. There is still no ability to alter the interface brightness (as enjoyed in Adobe's Premiere Pro), nor a facility to automatically hide the dock when Final Cut Express is launched, something we have complained about since the first OS X capable version!

Features

There are four main features introduced in Final Cut Express 4: AVCHD support, open format Timeline, FxPlug effects and filters, and iMovie '08 project import. The importance of these features will depend heavily upon the tertiary equipment and programs you use with your projects. If an affordable way of cutting AVCHD footage on a Mac has so far eluded you, the AVCHD support added here (though it's for Intel-equipped Macs only) might be worth the asking price alone.

The new Log and Transfer window, used when working with hard-drive-based footage, highlights the convenience and flexibility of such devices, allowing the import of clips non-sequentially. However, as all HDV and AVCHD footage gets converted to Apple's intermediate codec first, it is a little slower to import than solutions that use the footage natively.