Great but Not Perfect
Written: Jul 11 '02 (Updated Jul 11 '02)
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Product Rating:
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Pros: Very easy to use
Cons: Can't import MPEG files, screen resolution max up at XGA
The Bottom Line: If you are looking for an easy to use video editing software, the Studio 7.0 is it.
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| seowfun's Full Review: Pinnacle Studio 7 Full Version for PC (210100113) |
Introduction
After purchasing a digital camcorder, I need a good video editing software. The Ulead Video 5.0 that came with my firewire card is ok, but it does not encode movie to MPEG2, which is what I need. When I see the "PC Magazine Choice" video editing software Pinn Studio 7.0 is on sale for $10 after rebate, I decided to pick it up.
Disappointments
Upon using it, I am disappointed by two things.
First, the Studio window only max up to 1024x768 resolution, even if your monitor runs at higher resolution. To maximize the screen display, I have to adjust my screen display to 1024x768 so that Studio occupy the whole screen. It is kind of rare these days to find any window application that does not max up to the display resolution.
Second, Studio can only import AVI DV Type II movie. I have quite a few AVI DV Type I, MPEG or WMV files, and I have to convert them to DV Type II in Ulead Video Studio.
Edit
However, after I start using it, I feel much better. The user interface is excellent. It is very easy to use. I was able to create transition, trim clip, add title, vary the speed of the video (slow motion) without referring to the manual. The selections of transition effects are extensive, including some fancy Hollywood FX effect.
After using the Pinn Studio, I don't want to go back to Video Studio, as it is so much fun to use.
Capture
Capture video from camcorder is also straight forward. Just connect the camcorder to the firewire port of the PC. Goto Capture screen in Studio, use the player control to play the video, and press the capture button to capture video. I haven't encountered any drop frame so far.
Studio also have a capture preview mode, which capture low resolution video to HD. This save space. After you complete the editing, reconnect the camcorder to the PC, and Studio will capture the needed original video from the camcorder. I do not use this option, as I do not want to perform too many rewind, stop and play actions on my camcorder. Doing those may shorten the life of the camcorder.
Make Movie
Making movie is easy. You have many choices, including MPEG1, MPEG2, various AVI compression type, WMV files etc. Movie parameters, such as resolution, bit rate can also be easily adjusted. MPEG2 encoding is also pretty fast, compare to competition. One thing to note is some people have said that the quality of the MPEG2 is not good. Personally, I have compared it to the MPEG2 movie generated from TMPGEnc, and can't see much difference. Maybe I do not have the trained eye to see the difference.
Version 8.0
Pinnacle is going to release version 8.0 in August 2002, that would include capturing to MPEG2 and VCD/DVD authoring tool. If you need those features, you may want to wait but you will probably need to pay $99 for it. If you don't need those features, you should be able to find good deal on version 7.0 right now.
Recommended:
Yes
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Epinions.com ID:
seowfun
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Reviews written: 31
Trusted by: 4 members
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