With each new version of PowerDirector, CyberLink inches nearer to the mainstream names in PC video editing. PowerDirector 7 (web ID: 201825) offered enough new features to make it worth considering alongside Adobe Premiere Elements or Corel VideoStudio Pro. Now version 8 is here, and CyberLink has been hard
at work again.
The interface looks largely the same as before, with just a few minor tweaks here and there. But it doesn't take long before you come across the first of the major changes.
Perhaps most notably, the number of timeline tracks has been increased to 16, including nine for picture-in-picture video and - at last - four for audio rather than two.
The latter is particularly welcome as you can now add backing music, narrative and sound effects simultaneously, without having to edit tracks in a different application.
CyberLink has added a proxy file-creation system it calls Shadow Editing. Files are re-encoded in the background to a lower resolution, in this case MPEG2 standard definition, so HD editing will be much more fluid. The original files are recalled at the final output stage for a full quality render.
You're prompted to turn on this feature when you import HD files.We found that the clips seemed to be permanently listed as "generating" for our test footage, but editing was still smooth on our quad-core system.
Lining up multiple layers of video didn't slow things down to an unusable crawl, although the preview resolution clearly wasn't Full HD. Nevertheless, with consumer editing software we'd rather take this extra responsiveness over preview image quality.
PowerDirector also now supports full-screen output to a secondary monitor, when you do want a more detailed look at your footage.
A host of new effects has been added. There's a new PowerTools tab on the timeline that hosts four options. Video Reverse plays footage backwards.
Video Crop calls up a dialog where you can define a closer framing and even rotate the picture. Best of all, keyframes can be added, allowing you to add pan and scan effects of photos or video.
The Video Speed control lets you increase or reduce the playback rate, and it even includes frame interpolation to counteract jerky action in slow motion and audio resampling to help maintain correct pitch.
There's also a separate Video Rotation setting with 90, 180 and 270 degree options, to which keyframes can't be applied. Very useful for quick correction of camera and cameraphone footage which has been shot portrait or upside down, but not much else.
Next up is the new Particle Room. Although particle filters were available before, these offered only a few settings. Now you can overlay a particle animation on a picture-in-picture video track, and a much greater level of configuration is available than before.
CyberLink has also been working hard in the woodshed with the graphics chip firms, and support is available for both Nvidia's CUDA and ATI's Stream acceleration. The level of support varies between the two, with Nvidia acceleration extending to preview and rendering of H.264, while ATI acceleration includes MPEG2 as well. A range of effects are CUDA-accelerated as well.
There's a plethora of minor enhancements too. You can now copy and paste an entire timeline segment, making it easy to repeat a multilayered section.
DirectorZone, CyberLink's online community and preset exchange area, now hosts annotated YouTube videos, which play along with a project view so you can see how each was made. And the Photo SlideShow added with version 7 has four new templates.
The output stage has one or two enhancements as well, with DVD authoring able to call on a structure view, and YouTube support joined by direct support for Facebook video. Templates for 720p HD upload are offered for both services.
It's clear that PowerDirector has grown into a strong contender. And for those with only SD editing requirements, the Deluxe version is an absolute bargain. For HD, however, it's less clear-cut. With the Ultra version supporting Blu-ray disc creation and AVCHD files, it's up there with Adobe Premiere Elements 7.
But with that package offering a touch more power and a superior level of fine control at a similar price, it's tough to recommend PowerDirector 8 ahead of it.