Pinnacle Studio Reviewer's Comments

Pinnacle Studio Plus from Avid is high-end consumer video editing software. The program comes with all of the standard editing features and more and receives the “TopTenREVIEWS Bronze Award.” Pinnacle has some unique perks, such as the ability to work with HDTV video format and original transitions and sound effects.

Even with a user-friendly interface, Pinnacle Studio Plus is still a complex program. Because it offers so many features, options and is so customizable, it will take some time and practice to feel comfortable using the software to its capacity.

 

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Editing Tools/Options:  

A tool we appreciated in Studio Plus is the metering feature; this meter constantly measures remaining hard drive space so you can avoid maxing out your hard drive during a project.

Pinnacle is well known for a feature called SmartAudio. You can choose a music track and set an exact time for the music to run. SmartAudio will stretch or shorten the music length so it ends with the video. In addition, the vast library of sound effects adds humor, fun and professionalism to your video.  

Pinnacle Studio Plus lets you choose your own DVD menu background, buttons and music. Though this software offers some versatile scene transition tools, Studio Plus cannot animate text.

Video Capture/Playback:  

We had no problems installing Pinnacle Studio Plus.

Ease of Use:  

As you finish the install, a screen appears and recommends that you view the tutorial, which is approximately two hours long. Without the tutorial, you can still create a basic video, but most users will need the user guide or tutorial to learn all of the ins and outs of the program. We referred to help often to learn how to activate and utilize Pinnacle’s many features.

Ease of Installation:  

Installing Pinnacle Studio Plus was relatively fast and easy.

Help/Support:  

The boxed version of Studio Plus comes with a Getting Started Guide that goes over some of the program’s basics. We would highly recommend reading this first. It will give you the opportunity to create your first video in just minutes. Additional help files are informative and easy to follow; we used them often while learning to navigate the software. You can contact Pinnacle's support team through email, live chat or phone support.

Summary:  

Pinnacle Studio Plus is a powerful video editing tool and ranks among the best. With improved navigation and additional filter features, this video editing software would be more user-friendly and hard to beat.