Comparison 01 / 05

FrameLathe vs Topaz Video

The current Topaz app is Topaz Video, sold only as a subscription. FrameLathe is the same job on a different machine: the GPU already in your Windows PC, a folder queue, no upload — and $149 once.

The short answer
Choose Topaz Video ifYou want their model catalog, a Mac version, plugins, or Starlight models rendered in the cloud.
Choose FrameLathe ifYou have a box of tapes to get through overnight, and want the footage to stay on your disk.
Footage uploaded
Never vs some Starlight models
What you pay
$149 once vs from $299/yr
The job
Overnight queue vs enhancer
Snapshot

Side by side

Packaging as of 18 SEP 2026 · sources
The job
Where it runs
Footage leaves the machine
Overnight batch
Morning after
Network
Packaging
Best for

People still search “Topaz Video AI.” The current Topaz app is Topaz Video, sold only as a subscription. The older perpetual Topaz Video AI line ended at v7.1.5 and is no longer sold.

FrameLathe is the same job on a different machine: the GPU already in the Windows PC, a folder queue, no upload. Drop files, pick Quick / Full / Best possible, Review a wipe in the morning. Vendor packaging below is as of 18 September 2026 and sourced at the foot of the page — check Topaz before you buy. FrameLathe is $149 once, with $89 for the first month after launch.

01 — THEM

What Topaz actually sells now

Unlimited local rendering is on the Personal and Pro SKUs. Those subscriptions also include monthly cloud credits (25 on Personal, 100 on Pro). A Personal licence still has to send some Starlight work to Topaz’s cloud. Authentication is monthly; docs allow up to a month offline if models are already downloaded.

25cloud credits / month on Personal
100cloud credits / month on Pro
1 monthoffline at most, with models downloaded

If you already own discontinued Video AI 7.1.5, Topaz says you keep that version. It is not a free upgrade to Topaz Video.

25 JUN 2026Adobe announced a definitive agreement to acquire Topaz Labs on 25 June 2026, expected to close in the second half of 2026 pending regulatory approval. That is Adobe’s announcement, not a FrameLathe legal claim.
02 — US

What FrameLathe actually ships

Windows desktop. Local GPU. Footage is not uploaded. Catalog presets: Denoise, Export Ready, Remaster (temporal 4K on NVIDIA CUDA), Smooth 60, Clean 8K behind More…. There is no cloud GPU to burst to. The catalog is not the ceiling either: Model Hub runs your own weight on Upscale, Denoise, and Matting, while Colorize stays first-party. The app can sit in the tray overnight and recap what finished. The loop is drop → queue → Review, where the wipe can be exported as a before/after video. Read getting started or see pricing.

  1. 01 DROPA folder of files into the queue.
  2. 02 QUEUEQuick, Full or Best possible. Runs overnight.
  3. 03 REVIEWWipe in the morning. Export it as a before/after video.
Catalog presets
  • Denoise
  • Export Ready
  • Remaster4K · CUDA
  • Smooth 60
  • Clean 8KMore…
03 — SOURCES · 18 SEP 2026

Sources (18 September 2026)

  1. [1]Topaz Video pricingtopazlabs.com
  2. [2]Video AI vs Topaz Videodocs.topazlabs.com
  3. [3]Cloud Renderingdocs.topazlabs.com
  4. [4]Adobe to Acquire Topaz Labsnews.adobe.com