I recently started using Sora 2 and I’m running into a few issues, but I’ve also noticed some good features. I want to hear from others who’ve tried it about what they like and dislike before I decide if it’s worth sticking with. Any real experiences or advice would help a lot.
Sora 2: What’s The Deal With OpenAI’s New AI Video Toy?
So I just spent some time poking around with Sora 2, the fresh update to OpenAI’s video AI, and honestly, it’s a wild ride — for better or worse.
What is Sora 2 Anyway?
Alright, picture this: You type a sentence or upload a pic, and out pops a short, shockingly realistic video, complete with voices and background noise, no manual tinkering required. And yeah, there’s a slick, TikTok-flavored app for making, remxing, and passing around these clips. Catch? It’s iOS only (for now), invites are hotter than PS5 drops, and you have to be in the U.S. or Canada. Classic.
Things I Actually Liked
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Looks Crazy Real
The way objects move — not floaty or awkward, but proper physics, like someone finally taught AI what gravity is. -
Sounds On Point
The lips and voices actually match! No more nightmare fuel where someone says ‘Hi’ but their mouth goes ‘Potato.’ -
You Get Style Points
Want moody film noir or colorful anime? The controls let you dial in your vision. Not bad for something running on your phone. -
Jump In (Literally)
There’s a “cameo” function, so you or your bestie can star in your AI mini-flick, both face and voice. -
Remix Culture Built-In
You can borrow, mash up, or put your spin on others’ videos, kind of like duets on TikTok. It gets…wild. -
No Degree Needed
If the last video editor you used was Windows Movie Maker, don’t sweat it. This is mostly push-button simple.
Where It Dropped The Ball
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Blink-And-You’ll-Miss-It Clips
Videos cut off at 16 seconds max; forget anything long-form or deep. -
Gated Community
Unless you score an invite (good luck) and have an iPhone in North America, you’re out. -
Potato Vision for Freebies
Free versions don’t get HD. If you want crisp, it’s pay-to-play (details…eventually?). -
Who Was That Guy?
Sometimes your main character randomly morphs into another person, or the daylight turns purple mid-scene. Consistency is not the strong suit. -
Copyright and Deepfake Headaches
Let’s just say the legal side isn’t…sorted. If your character looks like Elon Musk or Taylor Swift, expect trouble. -
Pricing is a Mystery Box
Limits and costs are basically “TBD.” You may hit a usage wall and not even know how or why.
Where It Actually Makes Sense
Fire up Sora 2 if you want to whip up some fast, fun video posts, toss out a concept, or make wacky TikToks. Don’t expect to shoot your Oscar-winning feature or million-dollar ad campaign just yet. Still, for spontaneous creativity and goofy social shares? Absolutely worth dabbling — once you manage to get an invite.
2 Likes
Sora 2…it’s like the craziest magic trick your phone knows, but sometimes it forgets how the trick works halfway through. I’ve been on it for about a week (finally got that invite, whew), and yeah, I second a lot of what @mikeappsreviewer dropped—some parts are straight fire, and others, eh, not so much.
PROS (from my own scroll):
- Style options are wild. Want your dog in an anime? Boom. Space western? It’ll try.
- Remixing is actually addictive, like TikTok but cranked to eleven. I spent hours “improving” random cat videos.
- Cameo mode legit made me laugh, my face got popped into a superhero scene and it was…unforgettable (for all the wrong reasons).
CONS (with a twist):
- I think the runtime limit is brutal. 16 secs is just enough to get going, then HARD STOP. Who thought of that? So frustrating for storytelling.
- That character morph glitch: it’s hilarious until your grandma turns into a dragon halfway through her birthday greeting. Stable Diffusion does better, honestly.
- Free tier is basically a teaser. Wanted HD? Too bad, your blurry masterpiece is all you get unless you pony up—when they decide what to charge.
Minor disagreement w/ @mikeappsreviewer—I wasn’t as wowed by the audio syncing. Sometimes it’s on, sometimes lips go full Muppet. Also, it crashed twice on me when uploading photos. Early days tho.
TL;DR: If you just want short, weird, meme-y vids for socials and don’t mind random glitches, stick around. But don’t toss out CapCut or Instagram Reels just yet—Sora’s shiny, but it’s nowhere near a full replacement for classic video editing.
Anyone else getting those purple skies on literally every scene? Or is my version haunted?
Honestly, Sora 2 is like dumping a bag of magic beans into your phone and hoping for beanstalks. Sometimes you get a mildly cursed fairytale, sometimes you just get beans. I agree with both @mikeappsreviewer and @ombrasilente on the visuals: seriously, it’s the first gen-AI video where stuff doesn’t look like it was filmed on a haunted potato. Physics are tight, lighting is (usually) believable, and those style sliders? Chef’s kiss. I tossed in my dog and accidentally got Blade Runner: Golden Retriever Edition.
Audio—I’m more with @ombrasilente here, though. Sync felt random: one vid my friend’s mouth matched words, then suddenly lips are flapping like a malfunctioning puppet. Super distracting if you’re trying to get anything remotely “professional” out of it.
Biggest gripe: creative handcuffs. 16 seconds? I could barely set up a gag, then whoops, your story’s dead. Frustration level: old-school Vine but without even the six-second meme value. Also, yeah, the “who the heck is THAT now?” face swaps mid-clip are hilarious for memes, but ruin anything sentimental. My dad wished me happy birthday, halfway through became a Norwegian fisherman (??).
The remix features are wild, though—honestly kind of addicting. It’s maybe the best thing on Sora 2, but only if you want endless meme content. If you’re aiming for actual short films, do yourself a favor and keep your CapCut/Reels, as others said.
Also, Android when? Not holding my breath. And I gotta disagree slightly with both of you about the free mode: “teaser” is generous… it’s almost insulting—like a store giving out sample spoons of ice cream, but the sample is just air.
If you want pro-level editing, run. If you want to make your grandma a purple-skied cyborg in under a minute and don’t mind weird bugs, you’re gonna be entertained. Just don’t expect stability or clarity on pricing—or reality, tbh.
Sora 2’s all about “AI video magic at your fingertips”—but like an overcaffeinated magician, sometimes the tricks backfire. Here’s my two cents after messing around with it (and catching up on what others have raged or raved about):
PROS:
- Hype-worthy Realism: When it lands, it lands. Motion, physics, environmental lighting—sometimes you swear there’s a hidden production team inside your phone.
- Style Switcher: Anime? Noir? Cheesy VHS? You’ve got sliders for days. Way friendlier than trawling through CapCut templates or spending hours in DaVinci.
- Cameos Are Fun: Dragging yourself or friends’ faces into scenes is meme gold. The “remix” function? Pretty much meme-fuel on demand.
- Easy Mode Unlocked: No need to touch a timeline or even think like a film student. It works if you’re not a “tech person.”
CONS:
- Sixteen Seconds—No, Seriously: Others touched on this, but it’s brutal. Think TikTok, but restricted even further. Forget any kind of pacing or mini-narrative.
- Instability & Morph Glitches: Sometimes your dog is a dog, sometimes it’s a suspiciously human child. Occasionally, characters morph mid-video. Great for laughs, lousy for serious projects.
- Gatekept & Platform-Locked: Only if you own an iPhone, live in NA, and get past the velvet rope. Android/ROW users, left out in the cold (still staring at Runway, Kaiber, or Pika as possible alternatives—each with their quirks).
- Audio Synch Lottery: My mileage varied. Sometimes it lip-syncs perfectly, sometimes it gives “bad dubbing” energy à la ‘90s martial arts movies.
- Free = Blurry: The free tier is a literal teaser—expect TikTok meme quality, not cinema. Competitors (like Runway’s basic plan) are more generous with exports.
- Usage Limits/Pricing Black Box: You don’t know how much you can use it or what it’ll cost you tomorrow. If you hate surprises, you’ll hate this.
Real talk: Sora 2 is like a sandbox where the sand turns into glitter, quicksand, or confetti at random. For remixing and meme-wars, it’s killer. For pros or storytellers, you’ll rage-quit at least once an hour. If you bounce between TikTok-esque chaos and crave a playground for ideas, give Sora 2 a try; just don’t plan your next YouTube short film around it.
Competitors? Runway, Pika, Kaiber—each has strengths: Runway’s editor is more stable, Pika leans into stylization, Kaiber is great for music videos. But Sora 2 has more “wow” factor when it works.
Sora 2: it’s the wild kid on the block. Try it if you’re up for surprises—good and baffling in equal measure.