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Contents:
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Consumer Video
Editors/Authoring Programs
Pinnacle Studio
9, PC Magazine, October, 2004:
Editor Rating: One of the pioneers in the category, Pinnacle Studio has long been an impressive consumer-level video editor—though of late we've bemoaned its lack of PiP capabilities and pan and zoom control for still images. Pinnacle Studio Plus 9 addresses such deficits, while also adding a second timeline and useful audio options. The result is a fantastic product that stands out in the competitive consumer video-editing market.
Adobe Premiere Elements, PC
Magazine, October 2004: Editor Rating:
Premiere Elements, Adobe's first attempt at a consumer video-editing application, isn't for everyone. The package will appeal primarily to two groups of users: Photoshop Elements users who want a video editor that will integrate with their image editor, and tech-savvy video-editing novices who plan on eventually progressing to the full-blown Adobe Premiere Pro. Casual video producers who want the ultimate in ease of use, as well as users who desire full-featured DVD-authoring capabilities, should look elsewhere.
Ulead VideoStudio 8, PC
Magazine, June 2004: Editor Rating:
Ulead VideoStudio 8 is a mature, full-featured product that's highly usable, fast, and efficient. Though there's room for improvement in several areas (most notably DVD authoring and automatic movie generation), VideoStudio otherwise excels in most areas and is our Editors' Choice among consumer-level packages.
Sonic Solutions MyDVD 6.0, PC
Magazine, September 2004:
Editor Rating:
Sonic Solutions' MyDVD Studio 6 is the most intuitive application we've tested for quickly producing high-quality DVDs. Though its limited video-editing features will leave more-ambitious filmmakers looking elsewhere, MyDVD is ideal for users who simply want to convert raw footage to DVD without doing much editing.
iMovie/iDVD, PC
Magazine, May 2004: Editor
Rating: iDVD's dazzling templates and iMovie's graceful usability enable novices to produce impressive results at a ridiculously inexpensive price: $49 for the entire iLife '04 suite, which includes the fine iPhoto, iTunes, and GarageBand apps in addition to the video-oriented titles we tested for this story. Though easy to use, however, both iDVD and iMovie contain potholes to avoid (or at least be aware of), as well as hidden keystrokes that deliver significant productivity gains.
Roxio VideoWave, PC Magazine, May 2004: Editor Rating Roxio VideoWave 7 Professional has evolved into a powerful program with an extensive feature set. It's available as a stand-alone app ($59.95 direct) or as part of the excellent Roxio Easy Media Creator 7 suite ($79.95). Still, we found several feature gaps. Most important, Roxio eschewed the simplicity of VideoWave's previous single-window interface for multiple functional windows and window layers. This added complexity—and a dearth of documentation—makes the program the most challenging to master in this roundup.
Magix Movie Edit
Pro, PC Magazine, October 14, 2003: Editor Rating:
Magix Movie Edit Pro 2004 is a likable, capable video-editing program with features far beyond those offered by similarly priced packages such as Pinnacle Studio 8 or Ulead VideoStudio 7 (reviewed in our feature "Hot Shots, Cool Cuts," October 1). Unfortunately, Movie Edit Pro (MEP) trails those programs in usability, making it a poor choice for beginners or users who want to complete relatively simple projects quickly.
Broderbund
MovieShop Deluxe, PC Magazine, January 15, 2003:
Editor Rating: With consumers becoming increasingly involved in the digital home-movie phenomenon, it's no surprise that we have a flurry of easy new video-editing software packages. Broderbund's MovieShop Deluxe 6 ($89.99 list) is one of the products swirling around. This one gets the job done but is clearly eclipsed by other consumer-class video editors like Pinnacle Studio and Roxio VideoWave Movie Creator. Nevertheless, we found some unique capabilities worth checking out.
Adobe
Video Collection, PC Magazine, July, 2004:
Editor Rating:
While Premiere and Encore might not be your first choices when shopping for a video editor or DVD-authoring package, the Adobe Video Collection as a whole makes them that much more attractive. And you won't find professional-level video editing, image editing, DVD authoring, audio creation, and special effects creation separately at anywhere near this price. Sony Pictures Vegas Plus DVD Production Suite, EMedia, July 2004: Synopsis: If you're already using Vegas 4, version 5 is a no-brainer upgrade. If your video productions are music-intensive, and you're not already using Vegas, you should be. In addition, if you're itching to push the creative envelope with exotic multitrack, 3D motion effects, the trial version is definitely worth a look. Though Vegas can do virtually everything that Premiere Pro can do, and a whole lot more, you'll get there faster and easier in Premiere Pro. Though vastly improved and a solid adjunct to Vegas, DVD Architect still trails DVD Workshop and Encore in overall functionality. Take Five, EMedia, December 1, 2003: With landmark recent releases from Adobe, Apple, Avid, Pinnacle, and Sony Pictures, today's video-editing scene boasts a surfeit of showstoppers. But which one is truly today's premier prosumer NLE? It all comes down to performance, and here we stop the show, break it all down—from keyframes to filters, ease of use to output—and determine who ranks first among the current fab five." Pinnacle Edition 5, EMedia, August 8, 2003: Saddled with the most challenging interface of any tool in its class, Pinnacle Edition is off-putting at first, to say the least. But stick with it and you'll reap the rewards—that same interface is extraordinarily flexible, powerful, and inspiring. Overall, workflow is fast and efficient, and the software boasts versatile color correction, great stability, and the most ingenious use of hyperthreaded processing we've seen to date. All hail the new prosumer video editing king, at least for now. Bring on Premiere Pro. Ulead MediaStudio, EMedia, July 2003, So where does this leave us? To be sure, performance cures many interface ills, and MSP's rendering speed and preview capabilities are extraordinary. Still, if you find yourself doing lots of color correction, image pans, or other motion effects, you'll be disappointed with MSP's interface. On the other hand, most other interface issues are grease spots and exposed springs you'll soon learn to work around and live with. Overall, Vegas is an irresistible tool for those who need color correction or compositing capabilities, or videographers who concentrate on audio as much as video. The Vegas+DVD bundle is very cost-effective for DVD publishers acquiring or augmenting their DVD authoring capabilities, especially if AC-3 or surround sound encoding are priorities. Prosumer DVD Authoring Programs
Apple DVD Studio Pro, August 2004: Editor
Rating: No other DVD authoring program in the $500 price class is capable of creating such stunning, highly creative DVDs as Apple's DVD Studio Pro 3. For video pros looking to take their productions to the next level, it's worth a serious look. That said, DVD Studio still needs work in several key areas—namely its preview and error-checking capabilities.
Adobe
Video Collection, PC Magazine, July, 2004:
Editor Rating:
While Premiere and Encore might not be your first choices when shopping for a video editor or DVD-authoring package, the Adobe Video Collection as a whole makes them that much more attractive. And you won't find professional-level video editing, image editing, DVD authoring, audio creation, and special effects creation separately at anywhere near this price.
Ulead DVD Workshop, PC Magazine, April
2004: Editor Rating: Ulead DVD Workshop 2 is an impressive DVD-authoring program that is well suited for everything from simple projects to producing commercial DVD titles. Even pros that are used to other authoring applications should consider switching to DVD Workshop 2 for its efficient workflow and high-end options.
Adobe Encore, PC Magazine, October, 2003:
Editor Rating: A solid complement to the content creation line, Adobe Encore DVD ($549 direct) has excellent Photoshop integration and advanced high-level functionality unique in its price range. On the other hand, its usability and general functionality lag be-hind that of most competing products. So if you need basic DVD authoring capabilities and you're not in the Adobe camp, you'll find little reason to adopt this pricey program.
DVD Workshop, PC
Magazine, May, 2002: Editor Rating:
Since its introduction, Sonic Solutions' DVDit! (Standard Edition, $299 direct; Professional Edition, $599) has gone largely unchallenged. But there's a new sheriff in town. Ulead recently introduced Ulead DVD Workshop ($299 direct), a DVD-authoring program that fills many of DVDit!'s design gaps while providing DV-capture capabilities and a slide-show function. One significant feature is missing, however: Users cannot embed a DVD player onto a CD-ROM for display on computers without an MPEG-2 player. If this isn't critical to your authoring applications, then DVD Workshop is the superior choice. |
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