While feature-complete, the trial had some notable drawbacks, even compared to modern software:

In the world of video editing, few versions of software hold as much nostalgic weight as Adobe Premiere Pro CS6. Released in 2012, CS6 was the last of the "perpetual license" versions before Adobe fully committed to its Creative Cloud (CC) subscription model. For many editors, the CS6 trial was their first gateway into professional video editing.

In terms of performance, Premiere Pro CS6 Trial ran smoothly on my test machine, which had a decent specs (Intel Core i5, 8GB RAM, and a 256GB SSD). I was able to edit and playback 1080p and 4K footage without any significant lag or crashes.

Key features included:

Video technology moves fast. In 2012, we were editing H.264 and ProRes. Today, we have H.265/HEVC, AV1, and high-resolution 4K and 6K footage. Premiere Pro CS6 does not natively support modern codecs. If you try to import iPhone footage or footage from a modern mirrorless camera into CS6, you will likely encounter errors, requiring you to transcode all your media—a time-consuming extra step.