Average Reviews:
(More customer reviews)Sorry about the formatting, Amazon is removing all my spaces when I publish even though it looks fine in the editor.
Computer Specs:
Intel Core2 Duo @ 1.86 GHz
2 GB RAM
256 MB Video
32 bit
Windows Vista
My test:
Added 2 videos.
Added image stabilization to one
3D transition between them.
Rendered the project.
AVCHD in and MPG2 out (both in full HD, 1920*1440, Dolby 5.1 if available)
Video length 4 minutes and 20 seconds.Overall Review:
**** Corel Video Studio Pro X3
**** Cyberlink PowerDirector 8
*** Sony Vegas Movie Studio Pro Plus 9
**1/2 Adobe Premiere Elements 8
** Magix Edit Pro 15
* Roxio Creator 2010
* Pinnacle Studio Ultimate 14
Package Options:
My reviews are against the top versions of each product line. You will find that most of the differences between the top versions and the base are Blu-ray export options, and some add some extra sound options. See for yourself the option that suits you at the manufacturer's website in their respective product comparison guides.
Windows 7:
All seemed to work for me in windows 7, 64 bit with 4 GB RAM. I didn't do any tests with it b/c I wanted to use an older machine that would come closer to representing the average computer. This includes Roxio 2009, but not 2010 for reasons stated below.
Final Opinion:
If you want something super easy to use, then I would go with Cyberlink PowerDirector 8. If you want something with a bit more power that you can grow into, I would go with Corel Video Studio Pro X3. Sony Vegas Movie Studio Pro plus 9 may very well be good, but I see no reason to purchase it with the power of the Corel package.
If you are a masochist, go with Adobe, Magix, Roxio, or Pinnacle.DETAILS:
Adobe Premiere Elements 8
65 min render time
Pros:
You can search effects
Layout was good but not great
Interface was pretty straightforward
Cons:
Virtually locked my system
Slow and temporarily froze frequently
Output menu was cumbersomeCorel Video Studio Pro X3
19 min render time
Pros:
Great Output menu
Very fast
Easy to use user interface
Proxy editing*
Autofit for timeline
Cons:
No search function for effects
*edit*
After further review of this software, I had to knock it down from 5 to 4 stars.
I noticed more and more buggyness from the software the more that I used it.
It wasn't enough that one couldn't use it, but it was enough to be a bit frustrating at times.
*edit*
Cyberlink PowerDirector 8
30 min render time
Pros:
Output menu was nice
Very nice and easy to use layout
Cons:
No Blu-ray output
*edit*
Blu-ray output is available on Ultra.
After further use of this program, I have some issues with it and have lowered it to 4 from 5 stars.
I was disappointed with the menu editing in that you can not do text only menus, you can't really "customize" menus, and their stock menus total a whopping 2. They state they have thousands online, but almost all of these are menus that are horrible junk ones that others have created. There are literaly a few that are good or better. In addition, you can not search these menus, and the sorting is poor at best to browse them.
*edit*Magix Edit Pro 15
41 min Render time
Pros:
Simple
Cons:
Poor user interface
Oversimplified (Too simple I think for most people)
Very Cumbersome to use and add effects
Output options were confusing and cumbersome
Extremely limited options for PC output (which is what many will be doing)
A couple of lock upsPinnacle Studio Ultimate 14
Pros:
Nice little finished project to see what can be done
Nice interface for editing
Cons:
ONLY SOFTWARE that I was not able to import a video
Locked up my system many times and left errant process running at 80% CPU
Took 50 seconds just to load the import video TAB
When I selected videos to import and hit start import, absolutely nothing happened
Tried one of their movies and went to help to find stabilization and it crashed on me b/c I didn't have enough memory
No Blu-ray output
Cons on install on windows 7 computer:
Failure on export of file on all formats
I actually tried Pinnacle about 10 years ago and had absolutely nothing but problems. Spent many days downloading patches just to get it to work. Then, like a moron, I did an entire project and when I went to burn it, the burn failed every time. I see a decade later, I still can't export a file.Roxio Creator 2010
Pros:
-----
Cons:
They don't allow a trial download. I contacted them asking them if I could download a trial and even noted that I was a current customer. I personally like the 2009 Roxio. It was a nice "all-purpose" program. They told me that I had to buy it. I was offered a money back guarantee, but to do so, I had to send in a letter of destruction. This is way too much effort on my end to see if your software works for me.
I find it ridiculous in this day and age that you can't have a trial version of something, especially when EVERY ONE of your competitors does. In addition, this is how they were treating an existing customer!
You throw in all the compatibility issues that can occur in software in general and video software in particular, and that leaves me to think they have something to hide.
As icing on the cake, the following sentence was in their reply.
"Creator 2010 does support AVCHD software and hasn't been know to have any issues thus far!"
I replied to them about this OUTRIGHT LIE! First, you can read the compatibility issues on Amazon. Second, as a person that writes programs, there is no such thing as bug free software, especially video editing software.Sony Vegas Movie Studio Pro Plus 9
14 minute render time (NO ANTI-SHAKE IN RENDER, see below)
Pros:
Computer stayed pretty responsive during render
Savable packages of effects
How to guide is nice
Cons:
Couldn't search effects
Very, very cumbersome to use
Couldn't find stabilization
The render time approximation stayed at around 1 minute or 2 left the entire time
Here is my issue with Sony Vegas. I have compared its features with many of the other programs and they are all very similar. Now, when compared with Corel Video Studio Pro X3 and Cyberlink PowerDirector, they are virtually identical. I personally think Sony leaves their software cumbersome so that it "looks/seems" more powerful.
I was definitely most disappointed in this product because it was the one that I was looking the most forward to using. When I say that it is cumbersome to use, it doesn't mean that it can't be used. Let me give an example. I am a programmer, and in something like excel, I like the ability to write my own code to create functions and tools that it doesn't offer or to tweak ones that it does. HOWEVER, when I want to enter numbers in boxes, I just want to enter numbers in boxes. I don't want to click in a box, go to a menu or right click, select some gadget and then enter a number. It is ok for complicated things to be complicated, but simple things should not only be simple, but also INTUITIVE.
The main thing that I saw that you could do in Sony Vegas that you couldn't do in the others is change your transitions (both audio and video) ramp as far as how quickly they come in and go out. I am not talking about changing the time, but how your out video accelerates out and how you in video accelerates in during that time. It is a cool feature, but something that 99% of people will only not use, but won't care about either.
Another thing, the image stabilizer should be easy to do, and it may be. However, I did a search in help for stabilize, stabilizer, sta, shake, anti, etc. and could not find out how to do this very simple thing. This worries me greatly that if this isn't readily available in the help docs, then much of the other stuff probably isn't either.*A note on proxy editing.
Proxy editing is basically you working on a very low def version of your file, but when it comes time to actually render your output, the original file is used. Some view this as a crutch because they say you should be able to optimize the software to work with the high def video. My opinion is that if I can work faster, then I will work faster. Who cares what my resolution is while I am editing. If you have the fastest software out there for HD, and you can do your edits in very low def and it is even faster still, then why would you not want that?
Click Here to see more reviews about: Corel VideoStudio Pro X3
Work as fast as your creativity moves you with Corel VideoStudio Pro X3--HD video-editing software for serious movie making fun. Now twice as fast, it has everything you need to import, edit and share standard or HD movies and DVDs. Start with an amazing new collection of professionally designed templates from RevoStock and real-time, studio-quality effects. Stay on the creative track with a huge palette of intuitive and powerful video-editing tools. Then share your story everywhere, from YouTube to Blu-ray and everything in between.
Overview VideoStudio Pro X3 kicks the movie making process into high gear, giving you the ultimate playground for creativity. Your complete HD video-editing program, it gives you a rapid head start with professionally designed templates, real-time, studio-quality effects, polished titles and smooth transitions. Super-charge your workflow with GPU acceleration and multi-core Intel CPU support for faster editing and rendering. Quickly assemble video clips in new Express Edit mode or go deep with advanced video-editing tools. Then share your videos on YouTube, Facebook, Vimeo, DVD, AVCHD and Blu-ray discs, iPod, PSP and more.
Complete HD workflow--import, edit, burn and share standard or HD video
GPU acceleration--edit and render twice as fast, especially with HD video
Professional content--get $500 US worth of studio-quality RevoStock templates
Express movie making--create movies in minutes, then fine-tune with advanced editing tools
Real-time effects--work fast with live previews of special effects like RotoSketch
Blu-ray authoring & burning--author with Hollywood-style DVD menus
Online sharing--send directly to YouTube, Vimeo, Facebook and mobile device
What's included?
Main application Corel VideoStudio Pro X3: Corel VideoStudio Pro X3 gives users the power, speed, and creativity to produce professional-quality video. Now dramatically faster, this end-to-end video production package delivers advanced editing, as well as professional templates, stunning filters, powerful real-time effects, and online sharing to Facebook, Flickr and Vimeo in one complete package.
Supporting applications and content
Corel DVD Factory Pro 2010: Video enthusiasts can finish their masterpieces with full HD and Blu-ray authoring using Corel DVD Factory Pro 2010. Support for a wide variety of disc formats and devices--including HD formats, such as Blu-ray and AVCHD--simplifies sharing, preserving, or taking digital media to go.
Corel VideoStudio Express 2010: When users want to make fast edits or quickly create a movie project, Corel VideoStudio Express 2010 is the way to go. In a few steps, anyone can combine video clips, photos, music, and voiceover to create a great-looking video project.
DV-to-DVD Wizard: The DV-to-DVD Wizard lets users capture video from a DV camcorder, add a theme template to it, and then burn it directly to DVD.
NewBlueFX: Renowned for giving video enthusiasts and professionals plug-ins for easily and creatively customizing media, a variety of NewBlue filters and dynamic animated effects are built right into VideoStudio Pro X3. Exclusive to VideoStudio Pro X3 is the NewBlue PiP Animator, which can customize and animate any picture-in-picture window.
RevoStock Movie Templates: A new partnership with RevoStock gives VideoStudio Pro X3 users a variety of new professionally designed movie templates.
What's New Create, edit, render and share faster than ever with VideoStudio Pro X3--the best video-editing software for making HD movies. Now two times faster, it simplifies your entire workflow so you can focus on the creative aspects of movie making, without your software getting in the way.
Dramatically enhanced speed and performance
New--Hardware acceleration for Intel Corei7, NVIDIA CUDA and AMD
New--Launcher--quick access to express or advanced editing modes
New--Express Edit mode--make movies in minutes!
Enhanced--Smart Proxy for faster previewing and more responsive HD editing
Enhanced--All-new interface for a faster video-editing workflow
Studio-quality effects and templates
New--Professionally designed templates from RevoStock--worth over $500 US!
New--Real-time effects, including NewBlueFX filters with key framing
New--Effects for compositing and video animation, including RotoSketch and AutoSketch
New--Multi-track filters that let you add effects to each of your tracks
New--GPU-accelerated high-speed filters with real-time preview
New--Customizable, royalty-free audio tracks from SmartSound
Enhanced--Title effects for easy compositing
HD enhancements
New--Blu-ray authoring with Hollywood-style menus, titles, transitions and effects
New--HD authoring to standard DVD media
New--Web-ready files--save HD MPEG-4 files for the Web with H.264 compression
More sharing options
New--Upload directly to Vimeo, Facebook, YouTube and Flickr in standard or HD
Enhanced--DVD authoring--output to CD, DVD or Blu-ray Disc
Enhanced--Save to more file formats, including AVI, FLV, MP3 encode, AC3 5.1, AVCHD, HD MPEG-2 and MPEG-4
Enhanced--Send to more devices, including iPod, iPhone and PSP
More speed across the board Don't get tripped up by technical delays--create, edit, render and share twice as fast with this new version!
New! Launcher VideoStudio Pro X3 gets you right to the task at hand with the new Launcher. From one convenient location, you can start express editing, more advanced video editing, the DV-to-DVD wizard, or DVD Movie Factory 2010 for DVD and Blu-ray Disc authoring and burning.
New! GPU and CPU Acceleration Dramatically speed up your entire movie making process with NVIDIA CUDA and Intel Core i7 optimization.
New! VideoStudio Express Make quick edits, or combine video clips, photos, music and voiceover to create a professional-looking video project in minutes.
Studio-quality templates and effects Get a creative head start with professionally designed templates from RevoStock, polished titles, and studio-quality audio and video effects.
New! Movie Templates VideoStudio Pro X3 offers the best-quality movie templates in its class, including over $500 US worth of templates from RevoStock. Turn video clips into polished movies in an instant, with Hollywood-style titles, transitions, pans and zooms, credits and more.
New! RotoSketch Transform videos, video frames and photos into animated clips and hand-sketched drawings in a few clicks. By simply applying a filter, you can turn media assets into realistic animations or digital art.
Enhanced! Title Effects Create stunning titles in seconds by adding multiple title tracks and effects, then customize your work to get the perfect look.
End-to-end HD video production Import, edit and share HD video.
Enhanced! HD Capture and Import Import HD video from anywhere, including HDV, AVCHD, Blu-ray Disc and JVC HD camcorders. Import standard video from DV and analog camcorders, and Web, USB and still image cameras.
Enhanced! Blu-ray Authoring and Burning Create your own Blu-ray titles, and author menus for DVDs and Blu-ray Discs, including BD-J menus.
New! H.264 Compression Get incredible HD quality in smaller files by creating HD MPEG-4 files with the H.264 codec. This makes it easier to share videos on a variety of devices ranging from low-powered cell phones to high-powered Blu-ray devices.
Unlimited video sharing Upload, burn, copy and share any way you want.
Enhanced! Online sharing Share your movies with your own personal network or with the entire world in a few simple clicks. Upload your videos and slideshows directly to YouTube, Vimeo, Facebook and Flickr.
Enhanced! Format Flexibility Save your movies to AVI, FLV, MP3 encode, AC3 5.1, AVCHD, HD MPEG-2, MPEG-4 and more.
Enhanced! Copy, Convert and Burn Copy movies to your device of choice, including iPod, iPhone, MP3 players (USB) and PlayStation Portable (PSP). Burn CDs, DVDs, Blu-ray and AVCHD discs. You can even burn HD video to standard DVD media to play on a DVD or Blu-ray player.
Click here for more information about Corel VideoStudio Pro X3
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