When you want to convert a photo, video, or audio file from one format to another, it’s far too easy to get bogged down in settings, unable to make heads or tails of technical jargon. Permute saves you from that trouble by taking care of the details and converting files incredibly fast.

To start a file conversion, just drag a file into Permute’s main window or onto its dock icon, click start, and you’re all set. Permute is faster than ever too. With the recent launch of version 3, the app supports an incredibly long list of file formats and has added hardware acceleration for MP4 and HEVC files. The app also has presets for a long list of Apple hardware so you can match your end results to the devices you use. You can even modify images and videos, adjusting their size and rotating and flipping them.

But that’s not all, Permute 3 can also:

• Convert individual files or groups of files
• Stitch multiple images, videos, or audio files together
• Create DVDs
• Convert uncommon file formats like WebP and SVG
• Schedule conversions for later
• Add converted files to iTunes

Permute has a special limited-time deal just for MacStories readers. If you use this link, you can purchase Permute for 20% off. There’s a free trial available too if you want to try the app first.

Visit Permute’s website today to learn more and take advantage of the special 20%-off deal before it expires.

Our thanks to Permute for sponsoring MacStories this week.

iPhone Backup Extractor is a powerful macOS app for working with iOS data. The app was launched a decade ago by Reincubate founder Aidan Fitzpatrick from his apartment out of frustration at having lost contacts he’d painstakingly entered into his iPhone. Now, not only can iPhone Backup Extractor recover contacts, it can retrieve deleted conversations from apps like Messages and WhatsApp, edit and browse iTunes backups, and export iPhone or iPad data into formats such as PDF, VCard, and iCal. The app also helps users find lost photos and extract data from individual apps.

iPhone Backup Extractor got a lot of love in 2018 with major updates throughout the year including support Mojave and iOS 12. The app’s UI was also overhauled, the restrictions passcode recovery feature was updated to support forgotten Screen Time passcodes, drag and drop support was added, and an all-new “Info” mode that provides a deep-dive into the various codes, serials, and IDs associated with an iOS device was launched.

iPhone Backup Extractor is available here. The free version of the app allows users to view their data and export four files at a time, which is a great way to give the app a test run. For a limited time, you can upgrade to the basic edition of iPhone Backup Extractor for just under $32 with this MacStories-exclusive 20%-off link. Help is always available too, whether you need assistance with your backups, recovering lost passcodes, or anything else.

Reincubate is always looking for ways to improve iPhone Backup Extractor too and would love to hear from MacStories readers about how it can do more to help people get deeper access to their own data. Feel free to get in touch with the Reincubate team at [email protected] or on Twitter at @reincubate or @afit.

Our thanks to iPhone Backup Extractor for sponsoring MacStories this week.

The future of video production is available today with LumaFusion, the powerful multi-track video editor for iOS. Used by mobile filmmakers, journalists, YouTube creators, and aspiring content producers looking to create better video using mobile devices and gear, LumaFusion delivers affordable power and flexibility in an intuitive interface.

Every aspect of LumaFusion is designed to allow users to edit and deliver professional-quality video from the field. Editing 4K video is demanding work for even the most powerful desktop computer, but LumaFusion handles tasks like adding titles, color correction, and effects gracefully in real-time. The app also supports multiple landscape and portrait aspect ratios, a long list of frame rates, and integrates with Storyblocks, a stock media service.

LumaFusion works with Western Digital My Passport Wireless Drives and GNARBOX SSD drives, which lets users import media into LumaFusion directly from the drives and back up their projects and assets without a laptop or Internet connection. It’s a fantastic feature that saves time and helps protect your creations.

LumaFusion brings the same class of sophisticated editing tools to multi-track audio editing too. The app can record voice-overs, mix tracks, and adjust levels on a per-track basis, all with simple gesture-based interactions.

As a video creator, you can count on LumaFusion to release regular updates with new functionality. Just this fall, Luma Touch, the maker of LumaFusion, introduced:

• Sort and Search to the Library and Import popup
• Multi-select and Select All functionality in the Library
• Edge softness and corner radius controls for cropping
• ‘Nudge’ buttons for sliders and rotation controls for super-precise adjustments
• Three new effects
• 20 new professional title templates
• Full EXIF, TIFF, IPTC, and PNG metadata for Photos
• ZIP file support
• New Cleanup functions to help you manage storage

All of that functionality is available for a small fraction of the price of comparable desktop apps making LumaFusion a fantastic choice for professionals and beginners alike. So download LumaFusion today and experience the freedom and flexibility of mobile video editing on iOS.

Our thanks to LumaFusion for sponsoring MacStories this week.

Hosted by Tinderbox maker Eastgate, WinterFest 2018 is an amazing collection of carefully-crafted productivity apps and books available for a limited time for 20-25% off.

The 17 apps and books span the entire spectrum of the research and writing process. There are apps to plan your next big project, track your time, discover research materials, organize your research, add and tag images to your project, write, and more.

Each app is hand-crafted by some of the best Mac developers around. WinterFest includes:

• Tinderbox – Visualize and organize ideas and plans.
• Panorama X – Collect, organize, and understand your data.
• Nisus Writer Pro – The powerful word processor for the Mac.
• DEVONthink Pro Office - Your paperless Mac office.
• Aeon Timeline 2 – The timeline tool for creative thinking.
• TextExpander – Recall your best words. Instantly, repeatedly.
• Take Control Books – Essential books about Mac, iOS, and key apps.
• Storyspace – Serious hypertext narrative.
• Bookends –The reference manager you’ve been looking for.
• Scapple – Quickly capture and connect ideas.
• PDFpen – Powerful PDF editing.
• HoudahSpot – Powerful file search for Mac.
• HoudahGeo – Photo geotagging.
• DEVONagent Pro – Your smart (re)search assistant.
• BBEdit 12 – Power tool for text.
• ImageFramer Pro – Your art. Showcased.
• Timing – Automatic time tracking for Mac.
• Scrivener – Your complete writing studio.

Saving hundreds of dollars on these fine tools couldn’t be simpler. Visit the WinterFest website to learn more about each and purchase Eastgate’s Tinderbox and Storyspace. For everything else, just use the coupon code WINTERFEST2018 at checkout to take advantage of these fantastic deals.

Our thanks to WinterFest 2018 for sponsoring MacStories this week.

Hosted by Tinderbox maker Eastgate, WinterFest 2018 is an amazing collection of carefully-crafted productivity apps and books available for a limited time for 20-25% off.

The 17 apps and books span the entire spectrum of the research and writing process. There are apps to plan your next big project, track your time, discover research materials, organize your research, add and tag images to your project, write, and more.

Each app is hand-crafted by some of the best Mac developers around. WinterFest includes:

• Tinderbox – Visualize and organize ideas and plans.
• Panorama X – Collect, organize, and understand your data.
• Nisus Writer Pro – The powerful word processor for the Mac.
• DEVONthink Pro Office - Your paperless Mac office.
• Aeon Timeline 2 – The timeline tool for creative thinking.
• TextExpander – Recall your best words. Instantly, repeatedly.
• Take Control Books – Essential books about Mac, iOS, and key apps.
• Storyspace – Serious hypertext narrative.
• Bookends –The reference manager you’ve been looking for.
• Scapple – Quickly capture and connect ideas.
• PDFpen – Powerful PDF editing.
• HoudahSpot – Powerful file search for Mac.
• HoudahGeo – Photo geotagging.
• DEVONagent Pro – Your smart (re)search assistant.
• BBEdit 12 – Power tool for text.
• ImageFramer Pro – Your art. Showcased.
• Timing – Automatic time tracking for Mac.
• Scrivener – Your complete writing studio.

Saving hundreds of dollars on these fine tools couldn’t be simpler. Visit the WinterFest website to learn more about each and purchase Eastgate’s Tinderbox and Storyspace. For everything else, just use the coupon code WINTERFEST2018 at checkout to take advantage of these fantastic deals.

Our thanks to WinterFest 2018 for sponsoring MacStories this week.

Serif, the maker of Affinity Photo and Affinity Designer, is one step closer to completing its trio of apps for creative professionals with the desktop publishing app Affinity Publisher, now available as a free public beta. From the earliest days, Serif’s vision has been to build the Affinity apps as an unrivaled trio of sleek, super-modern apps that work with the latest technologies, are ultra-fast, and completely stripped of feature-bloat. With the launch of the Affinity Publisher’s public beta, Serif is on the cusp of realizing that vision.

Affinity Publisher is set to revolutionize desktop publishing in the same way Affinity Photo and Affinity Designer have shaken up the worlds of professional photo editing and graphic design. The app will boast full integration with Affinity Designer and Affinity Photo, allowing owners of all three to edit vector designs and images inside one app in a stunning new way. Although not enabled in the current version of the beta, switching to Photo or Designer from within Publisher will be as easy as clicking a button in the app’s toolbar.

Affinity Publisher, which is free to download and try, is the result of thousands of hours of development by Serif’s award-winning team, which also launched the fully-featured vector graphics app Affinity Designer on iPad this year. Publisher includes advanced typography, linked text frames, master pages, facing page spreads, dynamic photo frames, tables, baseline grids, linked resources, end-to-end CMYK support, and much more. The beta is currently available on the Mac and Windows and an iPad version to follow later. This is an excellent opportunity to get an advance look at Publisher and provide Serif with feedback, suggestions, and requests on their dedicated Publisher forum.

If you haven’t tried the Affinity apps yet, see what the future of professional creative work looks like today by visiting the Affinity store where you’ll find the Affinity apps, workbooks, brush packs, and merchandise on sale with a 20% discount throughout the holiday season.

Our thanks to Affinity for sponsoring MacStories this week.

Serif, the maker of Affinity Photo and Affinity Designer, is one step closer to completing its trio of apps for creative professionals with the desktop publishing app Affinity Publisher, now available as a free public beta. From the earliest days, Serif’s vision has been to build the Affinity apps as an unrivaled trio of sleek, super-modern apps that work with the latest technologies, are ultra-fast, and completely stripped of feature-bloat. With the launch of the Affinity Publisher’s public beta, Serif is on the cusp of realizing that vision.

Affinity Publisher is set to revolutionize desktop publishing in the same way Affinity Photo and Affinity Designer have shaken up the worlds of professional photo editing and graphic design. The app will boast full integration with Affinity Designer and Affinity Photo, allowing owners of all three to edit vector designs and images inside one app in a stunning new way. Although not enabled in the current version of the beta, switching to Photo or Designer from within Publisher will be as easy as clicking a button in the app’s toolbar.

Affinity Publisher, which is free to download and try, is the result of thousands of hours of development by Serif’s award-winning team, which also launched the fully-featured vector graphics app Affinity Designer on iPad this year. Publisher includes advanced typography, linked text frames, master pages, facing page spreads, dynamic photo frames, tables, baseline grids, linked resources, end-to-end CMYK support, and much more. The beta is currently available on the Mac and Windows with an iPad version to follow later. This is an excellent opportunity to get an advance look at Publisher and provide Serif with feedback, suggestions, and requests on their dedicated Publisher forum.

If you haven’t tried the Affinity apps yet, see what the future of professional creative work looks like today by visiting the Affinity store where you’ll find the Affinity apps, workbooks, brush packs, and merchandise throughout the holiday season.

Our thanks to Affinity for sponsoring MacStories this week.

Just Press Record is the ultimate mobile audio recorder. Whether you want to capture ideas on the go or you’re a journalist conducting interviews, a student attending lectures, or a parent preserving your child’s first words, Just Press Record is a must-have app. With a single tap, the app seamlessly records, transcribes, and syncs audio to all your devices.

No matter what you’re doing, Just Press Record is ready to capture audio. The app’s big, red record button makes starting a recording easy, but that’s just the tip of the iceberg. There’s also an iOS widget, 3D Touch functionality, an Apple Watch complication that works even when your iPhone isn’t with you, Siri shortcut support, a URL scheme, and a separate Mac app with menu bar and Touch Bar support, all ready to go when you need them.

What makes Just Press Record feel like magic is its transcription, which can turn audio clips into editable text that you can share with other apps. Transcription also powers search, making it easy to find past recordings no matter how many you’ve created. Combine that with robust iCloud Drive sync, and your recordings and transcriptions are available everywhere you need them.

Just Press Record has tons of other advanced features too. You can connect external microphones to create high-quality, uncompressed recordings. There is extensive VoiceOver support, which has made Just Press Record a favorite in the visually-impaired community. There’s even a beautiful dark mode for comfortable capture of your late-night ideas.

Make audio capture your superpower by downloading Just Press Record from the App Store today.

Our thanks to Just Press Record for sponsoring MacStories this week.

Luna Display is the only hardware solution that turns any iPad into a true, wireless second display for your Mac.

Available in USB-C and Mini DisplayPort versions, Luna Display is incredibly simple to set up. Just plug it into your Mac, and launch its free iPad and Mac companion apps, and your Mac automatically recognizes your iPad as a second display. Everything works seamlessly over WiFi, but if WiFi is unavailable, you can use a USB connection instead.

Once you’re up and running, you’ll be blown away by Luna Display. It’s lightning fast with crystal clear image quality thanks to proprietary LIQUID Technology that ensures reliable performance and wireless flexibility. The image quality is doubly remarkable when you realize that it’s all being done wirelessly.

Using your iPad as a second display is a game changer. Luna Display not only expands your screen real estate without having to buy a second display, but its portability frees you to work wherever you please. Better yet, Luna Display brings touch interaction to the Mac. Luna Display is fully compatible with external keyboards, the Apple Pencil, and touch gestures. Also, if you’re an artist, Luna Display is an excellent companion to Astropad, which turns your iPad into a Mac graphics tablet.

Luna Display is available for $79.99, but MacStories readers can purchase Luna Display for 10% off by using the promo code MACSTORIES at checkout. That’s a great deal, but it ends December 1, 2018, at 11:59 PM CST, so don’t delay. Luna Display also makes a great holiday gift for friends and family.

Turn your iPad into a second display today with Luna Display.

Our thanks to Luna Display for sponsoring MacStories this week.