Pinnacle Studio Plus 9 review

The other major tool addition with the Plus version is for creating slide shows. Imported still images now have a Pan and Zoom option, which allows you to set start and end positions and magnifications. There's a red-eye reduction capability built-in, too. However, as with all of Studio's filters, the slide show animation is hampered by the lack of keyframing.

The other enhancements with Plus are under the surface and aimed at DVD authoring. The DVD Burning Wizard can now output Dolby Digital audio in both stereo and 5.1 surround-sound formats, which can save a lot of disc space. There's also support for dual-layer DVD+R9 discs, allowing the creation of two-hour projects without compromising on quality. However, it's worth noting that Ulead VideoStudio 8 has added dual-layer support with a free update patch.

The new Plus version certainly answers many of the previous criticisms of Studio 9. But while it offers a lot more room to grow, there's a major thorn in its side - Adobe Premiere Elements (see A List, p46). While Studio is streets ahead of Elements for the complete novice, once you've got the hang of editing video, the Adobe software offers a lot more room to grow. To combat this, the forthcoming version 6 of Pinnacle's Liquid Edition has been given a facelift, with Windows-style menus and simplified wizards giving Pinnacle Studio Plus 9 users looking for more power an easier transition. However, we doubt this £150 upgrade will keep users in the Pinnacle camp when Elements offers a huge amount of editing power for just £5 more than Studio Plus.

Author: James Morris