Having a deadly global pandemic might not be the only reason why you might want to use a remote desktop and to edit on but it can be a reason and Linus from Linus Tech Tips just did an interesting video on a service called Parsec which claims to be able to do some serious remote low latency 4K real-time streaming which can be used for editing as well.
So you know that the pandemic is going to keep you away from your high-end editing machine at work and you only have a laptop at home which can’t really do 4K video editing. Well, Parsec might have an interesting solution for you.
Their service which was originally designed for gaming (it seems to work pretty well for that if you have some free time) can be used for remote desktop editing. Basically you are running software on both your computers and using advanced compression algorithms the service allows you to view 4K footage and edit it on the go.
Well, that is the theory but how well does it really work? Linus and his team tried it with different software and different locations, systems, and scenarios and have been generally impressed. It seems that you can do some actual 4K editing remotely with this service providing that you have a good fast stable internet connection for both computers.
There are drawbacks and caveats though, Audio synching isn’t always the best and you might see some color artifacts (especially on red color patches for some reason?!) and the service can get stuck and doesn’t work with dual monitors. But for the more basic editing chores like cutting, going over footage and arranging a timeline it seems to work pretty well.
What’s nice is that you can download it for free and if you like it and want more advanced features it $30 a month – which isn’t cheap but if you need it for a project it certainly less expensive than buying another editing machine for your home.