Product Reviews

VideoStudio is simple video-editing software aimed squarely at home users and after many years of development, it's bursting with features to give your home videos the wow-factor.

The special effects offered by the program are diverse and fun. You can control precisely how each effect is applied, in one go or gradually over time, allowing you to achieve precisely the look you want. You can also add lively animated text to your video and just about any media file can be incorporated into your production - from DivX clips to Flash animations. The program also provides a huge number of transitions, for using when you're fading from one clip to another, ranging from simple dissolves to spinning 3D animations.

Version 10 and the new Plus edition bring many new features. Export templates are included for creating MPEG-4 files that can be played on PSPs iPods. High-definition video support allows you to capture from HDV cameras, edit at resolutions up to 1920 x 1080 pixels and export in WMV HD, MPEG-2 and unusually, to HD-DVD - the high-definition successor to DVD. HD-DVD drives aren't yet available for us to test this feature fully and we found VideoStudio's HD DVD authoring component to be prone to crashing, but it's still encouraging to see Ulead embracing the new format.

Video nasty

HD video editing benefits from a new Smart Proxy feature that generates temporary lower-resolution video files for smoother previews. It's a good idea, but it isn't nearly as transparent

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to use as it could be - we found that audio became garbled when converting WMV HD files. It's also disappointing that .m2t files generated by other HDV-compatible editors can't be imported into VideoStudio.

This program's predecessor provided only two video tracks, making it impossible to create complex video montages. VideoStudio 10 fixes this problem, offering six tracks, which is more than enough. However, while the other new features are welcome in theory, they're less attractive in practice. An anti-shake effect is designed to counteract shaky camerawork, but managed to introduce violent shudders to our mildly unsteady footage. Surround-sound mixing with Dolby Digital export is now included and sounds can be moved around the listener for dramatic spatial effects. This feature was fiddly to use, however, and will flummox less-experienced video editors.

Slow operator

For years we've bemoaned VideoStudio's sluggish performance and disorganised interface, so we were excited to hear that both had been addressed in this version. The new screen layout does look neater and makes more sense, but most of the things that wound us up when using version 9 remain unresolved. Preview performance is respectable, but although the software is more responsive than previous versions, it still takes a few seconds for the screen to react to mouse-clicks, even on a fast PC.

Overall, VideoStudio reminds us of a souped-up banger. It's laden with spoilers, alloy wheels and a glossy paint job, but the underlying engine is cranky and underpowered. This latest version can seem impressive while you're discovering what it's capable of, but when it comes to getting on with everyday editing jobs, basic flaws get in the way of a smooth editing experience.

The standard version dispenses with MPEG-4 and HD support, the extra video tracks, surround sound and a few other features, but at £36 including VAT it's a reasonable choice for casual users on a strict budget. However, VideoStudio Plus can't compete with Sony Vegas Movie Studio for power, ease of use or value.