Roxio Easy Media Creator 9 Suite review

Verdict:

Review Date: 29 Nov 2006

Price when reviewed: inc VAT

Reviewed By: Ben Pitt

Our Rating 5 stars out of 5

ExpertReviews Award

VideoWave, the video-editing application, has had an injection of power and now offers 32 tracks for complex multi-layered video montages. However, the convoluted arrangement of nested folders confuses things. There are tracks dedicated to text, overlay or effects that can't be re-ordered once they are created. The new noise-reduction and automatic colour-correction tools are straightforward, though. The DVD-authoring program MyDVD has some new options for advanced menu navigation, but as with VideoWave's new tracks it's tricky to get the best out of them.

Roxio Creator's greatest strength is the tight integration of its various modules and friendly task-based approach. New tasks include tidying up the tags in MP3 collections, converting video files for iPod, PSP or mobile phone and recording whatever audio is being played on your PC, ideal for capturing radio shows or producing podcasts. There's also a ringtone-maker task, but it doesn't support any UK phone networks or USB transfers.

suite truth

Choosing between Creator and Nero is like choosing between a PC or Mac. Each has its strengths and weaknesses, but ultimately they're not that different. If you've been using one of these suites for a while, we'd recommend you stick with that brand. If you're using Roxio Creator 8 Suite, it's not worth upgrading. But if you're moving up from a simple OEM package, Roxio's superior ease of use and slightly more capable media-editing tools give it the edge.

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