Working on phone and tablet

Ondo Studio runs properly on a phone and on a tablet: the same editor, the same features, the same export. Only the interface rearranges itself for a small screen — buttons move elsewhere and a few actions are summoned differently. This guide collects those differences in one place.

The rule behind it is simple: a small screen has little room, so what you need most stays visible and everything else is one tap away.

The top bar and the “⋯” menu

On a phone the top bar keeps three things: the playback controls, the timecode and Export. Export is deliberately never hidden — it's the end of the job, and you shouldn't have to hunt for it.

Everything else is gathered behind the “⋯” button. Tap it and a sheet rises from the bottom holding exactly the same controls the big screen has:

• Undo and redo — two wide buttons at the top of the sheet.
• Projects and New project — switch between projects or start a fresh one.
• The Auto tools — remove silence, beat effects, auto-ducking, split screen and auto-edit. They all work on a phone.
• The shortcuts list, the language switch and the theme (dark or light).

The Media and Properties panels

On a big screen the media panel sits on the left and the properties panel on the right, both always visible. On a phone they become sheets that slide in from the edge: media from the left, properties from the right. Each has its own button, and you close a sheet by swiping it away or tapping outside it.

What's inside is the same panel as ever: import, the music library, text and stickers; and in properties the transform, effects, text, mask and fades. Nothing has been cut down.

Clip actions — press and hold

There's no keyboard, so S, Ctrl+D and Delete are out. In their place there's a long press: hold your finger on a clip for half a second (500 ms) and a sheet of clip actions rises from the bottom.

Working with your fingers

A finger is a much blunter instrument than a mouse: it can't hit a pixel. So on a touch device the interface quietly grows a size — while on a mouse it stays compact.

• The trim handles get wider, so stretching or shortening a clip edge is actually possible.
• The handles in the preview get bigger — dragging, rotating and stretching a layer works with a finger too.
• Buttons become at least 40 px, so you don't keep hitting the one next door.
• The timeline is taller, the track-header column is narrower, and the toolbar scrolls sideways — most of the screen goes to the work.

Pinch to zoom the timeline with two fingers: pinch out and you see the whole project, pinch in and you're working frame by frame. One finger drags the timeline sideways.

Exporting on a phone

The export button is right there in the top bar on a phone too, and it behaves exactly as it does on a computer: choose the quality and the height, and a finished mp4 is downloaded.

Common questions