Edit ProRes footage Directly on iPhone Off External Storage!

When Apple introduced the new iPhone 15 lineup with USB-C, we knew that it was going to unlock a lot of new hardware and software use cases. Especially when you consider that the iPhone 15 Pro and Pro Max also have support for much faster USB3 speeds. You can now use USB-C hubs, external SSDs, USB-C peripherals, and even charge other devices with the correct cable. But, I think, we just got the best use case so far for USB-C on iPhone, let me tell you about it.

iPhone 15 YouTube workflow

I have used iPhones as my main camera for the YouTube channel since the iPhone X. I always knew that as long as I had some decent lighting and a strong microphone I could replicate what I could get from a more dedicated mirrorless camera. Especially since most of my shots were just of me speaking to the camera.

Before the iPhone 15 line up my workflow was as follows:

1. Film on iPhone
2. Airdrop footage to iPad
3. Use Lumafusion to edit the video
4. Export video directly to Youtube

Now, since I started using the iPhone 15 Pro Max my workflow has changed a bit:

1. Film on iPhone
2. Offload footage via Thunderbolt to Samsung T7
3. Plug T7 SSD into iPad
4. Editing on Lumafusion directly off of the SSD
5. Export video directly to Youtube

Technically there is one more step in my new flow, but it is much more efficient. Airdrop can be a bit unreliable. Some days it’s slow, others it’s fast. It also relies on the on-device storage, so if you are near capacity the Airdrop just won’t work but also will not tell you why it won’t work. So it was a bit inefficient. So now, just offloading footage to SSD takes seconds and is extremely reliable and being able to work off of an SSD with Lumafusion is a gamechanger, especially if you do not want to spend money on a higher storage model iPad Pro. Being able to work off of an SSD with Lumafusion on iPad has been out for a bit, but Lumafusion took it one set further.

Editing off an SSD on an iPhone

LumaTouch just announced an update to LumaFusion, introducing version 4.1.1. This update is notable for being the first video editing software on iOS to allow editing from external drives on the latest iPhone 15 series. It utilizes the new USB-C connection, enabling editors to work directly from compatible drives like the Samsung T7 (which is what I use) and others that have been tested for performance and compatibility, such as the SanDisk Extreme SSD. Users need to ensure their drives have sufficient read/write speeds and are using the appropriate USB-C cable for this feature.

So if you are someone who already edits footage and video on your iPhone, this could literally be your do-it-all device. You can now just record on your iPhone directly onto the SSD, then edit off of that same SSD in Lumafusion on your iPhone! Once you are done, you can upload that finalized video directly to YouTube and you are done. We literally have a YouTube video studio in our pockets now.

It’s worth noting that this can only be done with the Pro models of iPhone. The iPhone 15 and 15 Plus cannot support this due to a lack of USB3 support. Be sure to check out Lumafusion’s latest video showing off just how easy this is to set up.

9to5Mac’s Take

I personally prefer to edit my long-form videos on the larger iPad display. But I know plenty of creators who like using their iPhones to edit their short-form vertical content already. So this will just improve their workflow that much more. I can also see myself using this feature if I am mobile or want to create some short-form content for X, formerly known as Twitter, and do not want to get out the iPad to get that done. I believe this is going to really start a new trend that people only need their iPhone now to be their computer (for certain situations and professions)

Lumafusion 4.1.1 update is available today through the app store and is a free update for current customers. If you are in need of a new video editing software but do not want to spend $300+ on the more “professional” editors then Lumafusion is that perfect middle ground. It is a one-time purchase of $29.99.

What do you think of this new feature? Is it something you would use? How do you see it fitting into your workflow? Let’s discuss below!