Back in September we asked, “Is Apple Delaying a New Final Cut Studio?” The French rumor site Hardmac reported that the next version of editing software had experience “setbacks” and that, furthermore, engineering talent was being transfered to the iOS department. Now, Hardmac is reporting that a new version of Final Cut Studio “should” come out in March or April. From the site:

Let’s start with Final Cut Suites. AS we reported earlier, all version of Final Cut should be unveiled in March or early April. It should be a substantial update when compared to the previous version, but not sure it could bring all new features expected by all Pro users. Two versions are already running at beta level, one for Snow Leopard, and one for Lion. Some new features will only be available on Lion’s version, due to the changes made on QuickTime layer.

Meanwhile, from Macstories is news of Cliptouch, a brand new Final Cut Server client app that’s popped up at the App Store. From the site:

I believe this is the first native Final Cut Server client specifically designed for the iPad — ClipTouch by Factorial. ClipTouch (which requires iOS 4.2, Final Cut Server v1.5.1 and access to open ports 8821 and 8826) works “out of the box” by giving you access to all your video assets stored in FCS, browse and collaborate on your media taking advantage of the iPad’s large screen and multi-touch functionalities.

You can use the iPad app instead of a review workstation to access your library over local or remote WiFi, 3G and VPN, download and view clip proxies, change the default asset’s metadata and add annotations. ClipTouch works with the standard format of clip proxies, but a compressor is available to achieve optimal results. A search feature is available, together with the possibility to clip the timecode display.

ClipTouch is available for $14.99 at the App Store.