Today is a big day! OpenAI has finally released Sora, their new AI video generator. Many people have waited for this moment. I am excited to explore what Sora can do. I haven’t used it yet, but I have seen demos that show it has a lot of potential. Let’s dive in and see how it works!
How Much Does Sora Cost?
One of the first questions people ask is about the cost. If you have a paid ChatGPT account, you can use Sora with it. Here are the plans:
- Standard Plan: For $20 a month, you can create up to 50 videos each month. This gives you 1,000 credits to generate videos at 720p resolution.
- Pro Plan: For $200 a month, you can create up to 500 videos each month. This gives you 10,000 credits. You can generate videos at 1080p resolution and up to 20 seconds long. You also get unlimited relaxed videos and the ability to download videos without a watermark.
Many features come with the Pro Plan, but you can still use Sora on the Standard Plan.
Availability of Sora
Sora is not available in every country yet. Some countries can use it, but the UK and the European Union are not included. The rules for AI are stricter there. OpenAI is working on this issue.
Using the Dashboard
When you log into Sora, you will see a user-friendly dashboard. On the left side, you can find:
- Your recent videos
- Featured videos
- Your saved videos
- Your library
- Your favorites and uploads
You can also organize your videos into folders. This is a handy feature!
Creating Videos
To create a video, you enter a prompt in the box. You can also upload an image. Sora has several presets like “balloon world” or “stop motion.” These presets change how the video looks.
Testing Video Prompts
When I tested Sora, I tried to create fun videos. I started with a prompt for “a monkey on roller skates.” This is a classic test for AI video tools. I set the video to 5 seconds and 480p for faster generation. I also tried prompts like:
- A wolf howling at the moon
- A cat eating tacos
It was fun to see what Sora would produce!
Generating Videos
As I waited for the videos to generate, I noticed that the system was busy. It took about 6 minutes to process my first request. This is because many people were trying to use Sora at the same time. The wait time can be longer if there are many users.
Video Quality
When my first video of the monkey on roller skates was ready, I was impressed! It looked great, even at 480p. The monkey was clearly on roller skates. However, the quality was low because I chose the lowest resolution.
My second video, “a wolf howling at the moon,” took longer. When it was ready, it was not as good as I hoped. The wolf did not move much, and the background seemed static.
The third video, “a cat eating tacos,” turned out better. The cat was clearly eating a taco, which was fun to see!
Using Images to Create Videos
I decided to try uploading an image. I wanted to see how Sora could transform an image into a video. I used an image of myself talking into a microphone. After a long wait, I got an error message. This can happen when many people are using the tool.
Exploring Presets
Next, I wanted to test the presets. I made a video with the prompt “a pirate juggling watermelons” using different presets:
- Balloon World: The pirate looked fun, but it didn’t really juggle.
- Stop Motion: This one looked like a stop-motion video, but it still didn’t show juggling.
- Archival: This video had a vintage feel but also didn’t capture the juggling.
- Film Noir: This was in black and white, but the juggling was still unclear.
- Cardboard and Paper: This one looked like a cutout, but again, no juggling.
It was interesting to see how the presets changed the video style, but they struggled with the juggling action.
Storyboarding Feature
Sora has a storyboard feature that lets you create a timeline with multiple prompts. I tried to create a video of “a man standing on a cliff morphing into a wolf.” Unfortunately, the results were not what I expected. The man did not morph into a wolf as I hoped.
Learning from the Featured Videos
While waiting for my videos, I looked at the featured section. Many users created amazing videos! There were birds, clouds, and even colorful dancing poodles. Seeing these helped me understand that detailed prompts work better.
Final Thoughts
Sora is here, and it is impressive! The quality of the videos has improved a lot compared to earlier AI video tools. However, it seems that you need to provide more detail in your prompts to get the best results. Right now, the system is a bit overloaded, so you might need to wait if you want to try it out.
If you are outside the UK and the EU, you can jump in and start creating. I look forward to sharing more about my experiences with Sora as I explore its features. Happy video making!