Upgrade to ScreenBlast?

Freebird wrote on 11/4/2003, 5:46 AM
I have been using Video Factory 2.0c for about 2 years now and love it! I started authoring my movies to DVD about a year ago. I have bee using Pinnacle Express to do my DVD Authoring. DVD quality is pretty good but Pinnacle Express is very limited if you try to go outside the pre-canned templates when creating Menus. I have tried MyDVD (It came with my Sony DVD burner) and did not like it. My question is: Since I am happy with Video Factory, should I spend the $30.00 to upgrade to ScreenBlast Movie Studio or stick with VF and put the $30.00 towards a better DVD Authoring tool?

Comments

gogiants wrote on 11/4/2003, 11:03 AM
I, too, was very happy with Video Factory 2.0c. I do no DVD creation whatsoever. Even given those two facts, I found the upgrade to Movie Studio 3 to be very worthwhile. The main reasons for me personally are the inclusion of the 3rd video track and the chroma-key option. I don't use these all the time, but they're great to have when you need them!

I doubt that settles it for you, but at least you have another perspective.
Freebird wrote on 11/6/2003, 8:44 PM
Thanks for the info. I did go ahead and order the upgrade. Of course after you add in shipping it really becoms a $40.00 upgrade...
miketree wrote on 11/7/2003, 9:44 AM
Lucky you...

If I want to order it in the UK it's a $75 upgrade ($46 shipping!)

Why can't we download it :(
IanG wrote on 11/7/2003, 12:22 PM
Because there isn't a downloadable version of MyDVD - not that I want it!

Ian G.
Chienworks wrote on 11/7/2003, 1:21 PM
It seems like SONY could make a lot of people happy and get a lot more customers if they offered Movie Studio for download by itself without MyDVD. Maybe they could charge a little less for it, subtract whatever their license fee for MyDVD is from the package. Even if they still charged the full $100 it would save lots of non-USA customers money by not having to pay shipping & export/import fees.

For that matter, i get the feeling that lots of Movie Studio users don't want MyDVD anyway.
JohnnyRoy wrote on 11/7/2003, 1:59 PM
I agree with Kelly. I would always recommend that people having trouble with lesser applications like Pinnacle Studio 8, download the free trial of Video Factory and see what real editing is all about. I’ve had several people convert by doing this. Some of those have even gone on to purchase Vegas. I can no longer do that with MovieStudio. It’s too bad.

After being burned several times by software that didn’t live up to its claims, I have a strict policy of not buying ANY software I can’t try first. That’s one of the reasons I bought Video Factory. Its too bad Sony doesn’t realize that their competitors, like Ulead, have a downloadable trial version and downloadable purchases.

I think MovieStudio is great on its own without MyDVD. As Kelly pointed out, once customers see they can’t even make a chapter point in MyDVD, they go buy something else anyway. It’s just foolish to penalize MovieStudio sales in this way.

~jr
GerryLeacock wrote on 11/7/2003, 3:31 PM
I agree that MS does not need MyDVD. MyDVD came with my Sony DVD writer. I only used it once just to see what it would do. It is extremely limited, but probably OK for a beginner. I now use DVD-Lab.

Anyone else notice that Sony Suzan doesn't jump in on these "boo hiss MyDVD" threads? Come on, Suzan, ask your "higher-ups" to drop MyDVD and make Screenblast downloadable.

No Suzan!! Take you finger off the "Delete Gerry" key!! Noooooooooo!

-click-
SonySCS wrote on 11/7/2003, 5:54 PM
Oh so tempting...<g>
Sarasdad wrote on 11/9/2003, 7:28 AM
hahaha
wilsonscreek wrote on 11/9/2003, 2:42 PM
So is it worth upgradeing video factory 2.0 to this screenblast ??? The only thing i see that i would like to have that is on it and video factory doesnt is mpeg 2 and an extra video track thanks
GerryLeacock wrote on 11/9/2003, 2:57 PM
1. Extra video track - nice to have.
2. MPEG-2 - a $$ upgrade with VF 2.0
3. Chromakey - something you don't use often, but if you ever do, it alone was worth the cost.
wilsonscreek wrote on 11/9/2003, 3:05 PM
what does the chroma key do .. Do you have this program i read that when rendering to avi it is slow ??? I like video factory alot i dont want to upgrade and be dissappointed I would like to have vegas 4 way to much $$$
GerryLeacock wrote on 11/9/2003, 6:30 PM
In a nutshell, the chromakey allows you to have an invisible background (sort of like blue screen in the Star Wars flicks). Objects can be made to appear to float.

AVI doesn't render slow - it just (on my machine) hits a 4.3 gig wall - but I think that's a personal problem, not a universal one. I'm sure others here have a better description of the benefits of upgrading.

This is just my 2 cents ($1.50 in Canadian funds).