this post was submitted on 02 Nov 2025
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Affinity’s new design platform combines everything into one app | The Verge (www.theverge.com)
submitted 3 days ago by otters_raft@lemmy.ca to c/technology@lemmy.world
23 comments fedilink hide all child comments
 

Here is the unlisted demo video from their newsletter: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UP_TBaKODlw

Key bits:

After acquiring Serif last year, Canva is now relaunching its Adobe-rivalling Affinity creative suite as a new all-in-one app for photo editing, vector illustration, and page layouts. Unlike Affinity’s previous Designer, Photo, and Publisher software, which were a one-time $70 purchase, Canva’s announcement stresses that the new Affinity app is “free forever” and won’t require a subscription.

Affinity’s one-time-purchase model was one of the most appealing things about its older software offerings, standing in stark contrast to Adobe’s controversial subscription-based creative suite. While Canva’s own design platform can be used for free, it also locks most of its capabilities behind subscription paywalls, which raised concerns that Affinity would adopt Canva’s subscription-based approach following the acquisition. The company is trying to put those fears to rest for good by repeatedly mentioning how “free” the new Affinity app is, but the AI integrations will likely be met with some resistance by creatives who oppose the technology.

I'm glad they didn't add any subscription pricing, and while I don't know if they'll actually be able to fund it through the optional AI subscriptions alone, at least it can be used offline for those who want any AI things. Now my only complaint is the lack of a solid Linux client.

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[–] BroBot9000@lemmy.world 26 points 3 days ago (5 children)

Fuck these guys, just use gimp.

[–] darkevilmac@lemmy.zip 24 points 3 days ago (2 children)

I get where you're coming from, but GIMP honestly just kinda sucks from a UX perspective nowadays. The core of the app seems to be fine, but it's just not particularly intuitive to use compared to the commercial offerings.

Maybe that'll change one day, but it really does feel like the interface has been the same for the past 15 years at least.

[–] NewNewAugustEast@lemmy.zip -1 points 3 days ago (1 children)

Are you sure intuitive or is it just "previously learned behaviour"?

[–] darkevilmac@lemmy.zip 25 points 3 days ago (1 children)

I've used both Photoshop and GIMP, in fact I used GIMP first and that's what I learned on. Then I tried Photoshop and it was immediately way more intuitive as to where things are and how the UI works, same with Affinity based on my little experience with it.

Older FOSS stuff tends to struggle quite a bit with UX, which makes sense cause it's mostly programmers and not UI designers working on it.

[–] Eldritch@piefed.world 3 points 3 days ago (1 children)

Honest question. When you learned on GIMP. Was the palette, the tool options, and the drawing area all separate windows? Because the Photoshop UI and layout has been default for a long time now.

[–] darkevilmac@lemmy.zip 2 points 2 days ago

It's been long enough now that I can't really remember off the top of my head. I want to say I started using Photoshop about a year or two after CS6 came out? And I would have been using GIMP for at least a few years prior to that before I had ever even seen the Photoshop UI.

[–] BroBot9000@lemmy.world -2 points 3 days ago (2 children)

🏴‍☠️ Adobe over using this “free” trap and data mining scam.

[–] darkevilmac@lemmy.zip 8 points 3 days ago

Oh for sure, I'm never paying Adobe anything. More just speaking on some frustration that GIMP seems to be sitting in the exact same location it has been for so long.

[–] FauxLiving@lemmy.world 1 points 3 days ago

Do you mean GIMP? Citation needed.

[–] SW42@lemmy.world 5 points 3 days ago (1 children)

Tried using GIMP and Gimpshop (I don’t know if it’s still a thing) and never really got warm with it. Not for a lack of trying. I just use Affinity designer 2 and Photo 2 along with Inkscape (from which GIMP could learn a thing or two in terms of usability IMO).

[–] Eldritch@piefed.world 6 points 3 days ago (2 children)

The GIMP shop interface has been the default and iterated on for the better part of a decade, If not longer. This is what I always wonder about people who claim that GIMP is somehow less usable. Have they used it much since 3.0? It's 4.X now BTW.

I know my experience personally isn't going to be universal. I first used Photoshop version 2. First version I bought was 3.5. I remember downloading and compiling pre-1.0 unstable binaries of GIMP on Debian back in the 90s. It was wildly awkward back then and for the next couple of versions as someone coming from Photoshop. That hasn't been the case for a long, long time. Honestly, it reminds me so much of the Photoshop I grew up using at this point.

[–] leftascenter@tarte.nuage-libre.fr 1 points 2 days ago

This is what I always wonder about people who claim that GIMP is somehow less usable. Have they used it much since 3.0? It’s 4.X now BTW.

3.0.6 stable, 3.1.x beta. No 4.x.

And the bigger change was passing from 2.10 to 3.0 last March.

[–] victorz@lemmy.world 1 points 3 days ago

Amazing to hear. Thanks for sharing your experience! I don't edit images much at all but that's warming to hear.