"When graphic design platform-provider Canva bought the Affinity image-editing and publishing apps early last year, we had some major questions about how the companies' priorities and products would mesh. How would Canva serve the users who preferred Affinity's perpetually licensed apps to Adobe's subscription-only software suite? And how would Affinity's strong stance against generative AI be reconciled with Canva's embrace of those technologies."
"This week, Canva gave us definitive answers to all of those questions: a brand-new unified Affinity app that melds the Photo, Designer, and Publisher apps into a single piece of software called "Affinity by Canva" that is free to use with a Canva user account, but which gates generative AI features behind Canva's existing paid subscription plans ($120 a year for individuals)."
"This does seem like mostly good news, in the near to mid term, for existing Affinity app users who admired Affinity's anti-AI stance: All three apps' core features are free to use, and the stuff you're being asked to pay for is stuff you mostly don't want anyway. But it may come as unwelcome news for those who like the predictability of pay-once-own-forever software or are nervous about where Canva might draw the line between "free" and "premium" features down the line."
Affinity by Canva merges the Photo, Designer, and Publisher apps into a single application that is free to use with a Canva account. Generative AI capabilities are restricted to Canva's paid subscription plans, priced at about $120 per year for individuals. Core features of the three legacy apps remain available without charge, preserving many workflows for existing users. The app is available for x86 and Arm Windows and as a universal macOS app supporting Intel and Apple Silicon, compatible back to macOS 10.15 and Windows 10/11. An iPad version to replace older Affinity iPad apps is planned.
Read at Ars Technica
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