A few months into 2009 and we already have Magix Movie Edit Pro 15 Plus, a solid upgrade to version 14, with a slew of new features and extras. You still get a ton of slick effects, transitions, audio tracks and photo editing options, but version 15 also includes the following upgrades:
- Multi-cam editing: Record and edit two video channels live and at the same time
- Smoother and simpler AVCHD video importing and editing
- Larger library of customizable 2D and 3D title effects
- New DVD and Blu-ray menu templates
- New proDAD Adorage video effects
- Improved color correction interface makes it easier to adjust color values in a snap
- Improved batch processing lets you select entire video folders to convert, instead of one at a time
Magix Movie Edit Pro 15 Plus also has video editing and publishing tools for
amateurs and a good collection of editing tools for those familiar with more
complex editing tasks, such as bluescreen edits, timeline and storyboard
layout, multi-track editing and more.
Standout Features
- Easily publishes to YouTube
- Compatible with portable devices like Sony PSPs, iPods and cell phones
- Includes iClone for 3D animation
- Supports up to 99 tracks
- Screen capturing feature for streaming video
Video Editing Effects/Transitions:
Movie Edit Pro 15 Plus has a large library of customizable
titles, and a huge library of transitions (called Fades by Magix) and audio,
video and photo effects like art filters, distortion, and more.
Where PowerDirector's downloadable licensed content (DLC) is directorZone,
Magix' online DLC library can be found at Catooh.com. The main difference
between the two DLC sites is directorZone's content is largely, if not
completely free. A small fraction of Catooh content is free, and the rest
ranges from as little as seventy-nine cents for a private license audio track
to a couple hundred dollars for an unlimited Pro license. DLC is all the rage
these days, and we much prefer the free kind.
Even so, 15 Plus still has most features beginning and mid-level video editors need. For quick movie production it has thematic intros and outros, 25 theme based styles and 30 title generating templates. Magix Movie Edit also includes 150 decorative elements, 100 video, graphic and color effects, 200 fades, 100 video motifs and 60 audio effects. It also comes with free 3D animation software, it can create picture-in-picture effects and it has blue screen editing. This video editing software can also help you easily add text elements such as subtitles and flowing credits. This video editing software also has a feature called VideoMix which allows you to attach 'magnetic objects' or 'motion objects' to moving objects in a video. Magix Movie Edit has the ability to perform all of the effects and transition types that we were looking for in video editing software.
Disc Creation:
Magix Movie Edit can help you burn to just about any disc type available including Blu-ray, HD DVD, DVD (single and double layer), CD, AVCHD and SVCD. It also has great tools for intros and backgrounds, including 115 templates and 3D titles and you can create custom interactive menus with up to two layers. To save time it can also burn directly to a disc from an analog source, such as from a TV card or camcorder. It also has the ability to convert formats and can do this in batch processing mode as well.
Audio and Photo Editing:
As mentioned, this software can manage up to 99 tracks and utilizes a program Magix calls Audio Mastering Suite 2.0. It can add voiceovers, restore audio and includes an audio mixing board, an equalizer, a compressor and it can add stereo and audio effects such as reverb, echo and so on. It also includes 60 sound effects templates and it can separate audio tracks from video recordings.
Most video editing softwares are also available for images. You can crop, resize, rotate and position images, and correct color, contrast and brightness. You can even capture a video frame and convert it to an image file. Magix also offers animated and non-animated GIF graphics online that can easily be downloaded and added to your video projects.
Help and Support:
Magix Movie Edit Pro Plus comes with two user manuals and extensive embedded support. It offers tons of features that may be hard for some to figure out how to use, especially for those editing video for the first time. We found that where the help system might include a description of a particular feature, it lacked step by step instructions for users to follow to use said feature.
Luckily, Magix included four video tutorials that cover all the basics on using Movie Edit Pro 15 Plus, and if you get stuck you can even ask a question of Magix' worldwide user community. The Magix Multimedia Knowledge Community is indeed a plus for Magix, with an active user base, tutorials, FAQs, and Show & Discuss, where users upload their work for public commentary.
You can also contact technical and customer support by email and telephone.
Keep in mind that video editing software is demanding, so if you do not have a high end or newer computer you may have problems working with this software and editing video in general. Though the minimum system requirements are an Intel Pentium IV or AMD Athlon with 1GHz and half a GB or RAM, we would recommend more, such as dual processors, 2GB of RAM and a capable graphics card such as a NVIDIA GeForce 7100 or better. If you run this type of software on a capable system, you will notice fewer problems, edits will process faster and you will likely feel less urge to call technical support.
Summary:
Overall, Magix Movie Edit Pro 15 Plus is on the right track. They pushed ahead of Sony's Vegas Movie Studio with this new version, thanks to the improved interface and ever present depth of features. Even so, using this video editing software isn't as easy on new users, so we can't quite recommend it for the top three. We still found Movie Edit Pro 15 to be one of the most compatible with portable devices and high definition editing and publishing. Just make sure your system can handle it.
Review
was written by TopTenReviews.com
