Serif MoviePlus X5 HD Review

Serif’s expertise of creating feature packed, yet easy to use software, have clearly shone through in MoviePlus X5.

Serif boasts MoviePlus X5 as being ‘High Definition Video Editing Made Easy’, so we decided to put it through its paces to discover if it lived up to expectations.

Installation
Before diving into the deep depths of the software, your first task is to install it onto your computer.

MoviePlus X5 can be installed on the majority of Windows operating systems from XP onwards, and requires little in the way of system requirements. 1GB of RAM and an Intel® Pentium® 4 Hyper-Threaded processor or AMD Athlon™ XP processor should get you going, but expect the need for higher hardware requirements for HD Video.

One element of the installation which particularly stood out, was the ability to set the desired video standard during the installation phase. This allows you to configure the software to use either PAL or NTSC as your chosen recording format, which will save you time setting up new projects in the future. With that said however, for first time video editors, a clearer indication of which video format to choose would be an advantage, detailing which standard refers to which country, at a minimum.

Serif MoviePlus X5 also requires that your computer has the latest version of Quicktime player installed and, recognises the fact if yours doesn’t. Quicktime is integrated into the MoviePlus X5 installation, and can installed simply by following the on screen instructions.

On the whole, Serif made the installation very easy and the entire process went without any problems. A first time user could easily get to grips with this thanks to Serifs step-by-step approach.

Layout
It’s clear Serif continues to develop software with consumers in mind, and MoviePlus X5 keeps within this ethos thanks to its easy interface.

Immediately upon booting up the software, you are greeted with Serif’s “what do you want to do?” welcome screen. Here, you are presented with a number of options which includes the ability to set up a new project, import video from an array of devices, and watch a whole host of video tutorials covering many aspects of the software. Additionally, Serif also provides three sample projects demonstrating chroma-key, title shift and transitions, which is a great idea to demonstrate some of the capabilities of the software.

Clicking the ‘start new project’ button takes you directly to the main interface, which at first glance, looks encouraging for first time video editors. Made up of a how-to task menu, video preview monitor, media bin and timeline, the interface is not cluttered and can be flexible, by providing the ability to expand or contract certain elements such as the video monitor or timeline to fit the size of your screen perfectly.

There is also easy access to all video effects, titles and transitions from the gallery tab, although this could be a little more prominent than being tucked away to right hand side of the screen. There is also quick and easy access to the title tool directly below the video preview monitor, which is prominent enough for anyone to see.

Play, pause and frame controls are also easy available during the edit, or you can also benefit from using shortcut keyboard controls such as the space bar to play, for example. On top of this, there is also short cut access to most commonly used features such as recording narration, scene split and more, found just above the timeline.

The timeline can be changed between ‘storyboard’ and ‘timeline’ views, giving you the choice of either display. Either option has a good design, where music, text and titles can be added with ease.

A very good interface which is easy to grasp for any level of video editing experience.

Import
Before you begin editing, your first task is to import video which is either stored on your computer, or from your Camcorder.

To do this, there are couple of ways in which you can initiate capturing video.

To begin, you can do this via the “what do you want to do?” welcome screen, which provides three import options as follows:

The first is ‘import from disk‘, which easily allows you to add footage already stored on your computer to your project. This process is as simple as it could be, with you only having to navigate to the desired video source folder and choosing the clips you would like to import – MoviePlus X5 will do the rest.

The second option is ‘copy from device‘, and is a great little feature in helping you to manage your video files effectively. This option simply allows you to copy video files from one location to another, and is extremely useful if you have a HDD or Memory Card Cam, where transferring video from one stored location (Camcorder) to another (Computer) is common place. Simply choosing the source and destination folders is enough for MoviePlus X5 to move the desired video clips and to manage them effectively.

Lastly, ‘capture from device‘ allows you import video direct from a DV or HDV Camcorder via firewire. Its evident that If you are familiar with capturing video in this manner, than you will have no problems in getting to grips with the capture video window. Likewise, first time users should also be able to get to grips with this easily, as Serif have made this as simple as possible.

In most cases, the default ‘capture from device’ settings should be just fine to get you going, with a minimum, you only being required to set the source and output folder. If you’re more advanced, you can further set import options, but for the most, Serif will do a good job in capturing your footage in full HD.

Controlling your camcorder is easy using the play, stop and fast-forward/re-wind tools available. The large record button is well placed beneath all of these controls, but has a very old fashioned feel for modern software and has no record icon representation, which is no major problem, but would be an advantage. You also have the ability to monitor footage as it is being captured via the preview monitor, but we feel this could be slightly larger to give you a better view of how you footage is looking at this stage.

The dropped frames counter is also a great plus, and is easily visible just below the big record button. It stands out quite well with a black background and green font, and is easy noticeable if a frame is dropped. A pro feature for a package of this price range.

As the above applies to importing video into a new project, Serif also make it easy to import video into an existing project. To do this, you simply head to the import media drop down button found on the main interface, and choose the desired import method.  You will then be able to use all of the import options above, but this time the new media will be added to your existing project.  You may also notice there is one extra option within the drop down, and that is rip CD. This feature simply allows you to import music directly from any music CD. Serif will guide you through this process step-by-step, but it’s relatively easily importing your favourite music.

Overall, Serif provide some pretty advanced import features, which wouldn’t be out of place on a pro editing package. All the import methods we tested were very easy to use, and imported video directly into our project. Top marks for this section!

Editing
Having easily and successfully captured all of your footage, your next job is to pull all elements of your movie together, which will most likely include adding titles, video transitions, music and effects.

As with all aspects of MoviePlus X5, these can be added with very little expertise or prior experience of video editing software thanks to Serifs drag-and-drop approach to editing.

To get started, your first job is usually to add your captured clips to the timeline, which is available to work in either storyboard or timeline views. Adding your clips is as simple as selecting them in the project media bin, and dragging them into the timeline. If you have multiple clips which you would like to add in one go, this can also be achieved with ease. Simply hold down the shift key as you select the clips, and drag them into your project.

Its worth noting that one aspect of the media bin we really like, is the fact that if you roll your mouse over a clip, its plays the first few frames so that you can decide if you want to add it to your final project. This is a great little feature and could slightly speed up your editing. It’s the first time we have seen this in a video editor, and would welcome other manufacturers to follow suite on this.

Double clicking on any clip in the media bin also initiates the ‘Trim’ window, which allows such actions as clip trimming and scene detection respectfully.

Transitions
With your footage now firmly placed in the timeline, you can now begin adding the all important video transitions to help give your movie that extra pro feel.

MoviePlus X5is shipped with a full array of video transitions, which can be conveniently found under the ‘Galleries’ tab. You will find almost any style you want, including the traditional dissolve and fade, as well as the more creative such as 3D variants. We do feel that the location of the transitions could be made more prominent, as some users may struggle to realise that the gallery tab houses transitions.

Adding any one of the transitions to your project is simple as drag and drop, and you can easily control the overall duration of the transition by pulling the transition icon on your timeline. Transitions will need to be rendered prior to previewing, but this is achieved with ease by heading to preview, pre-render all. Thanks to Serif simplistic approach, you can add as many transitions as you want, with ease.

Titles
Adding titles to your movie can help make it that much more personal, and luckily, Serif makes doing just that, easy.

Again, a full selection of pre-set titles can be found under the galleries tab, including animated credit styles and basic on screen static effects.

To add titles to your movie, you again simply drag and drop these into your timeline. Upon doing so, your preview monitor will be automatically converted into a text editor, whereby you can add your text. Subsequently, to the right of the video preview, you can easily set your font style, size, colour etc. Additionally, there are also a number of pre-designed, wacky fonts available to choose from. To add these effects, you simply highlight your text and click on the predesigned font style, its that simple.

Effects
Serif ships with a wide variety of both video and audio effects, all of which again can be found under the galleries tab

The principle usage of these effects is the same as both the title and transitions, and when you have located the effect you desire, you simply place this on top of the clip you want the effect placed.

Upon doing so you will subsequently need to render your timeline in order to view the effect in action.

We were pleasantly surprised at the shear volume of effects available from within the software, with some being of a far more advanced level than we first anticipated. Effects such as Chroma Key, which allows you to create the weather man effect, are ever present and allows you to create some fantastic effects if you have a creative mind. At this price, this is a great feature.

One drawback the effects do bring however, is the fact that the properties box does not appear upon applying the effect to a clip. When adding a number of effects, on all occasions, we needed to click the Properties tab, found below the Galleries tab, and then click the effects button to see the parameters applied to each effect. It would be an advantage to initiate the effects properties immediately upon applying the effect, preventing the user to have to hunt for the effect properties.

Music/Voice Overs
Adding audio to spice up your movie is pretty straight forward in MoviePlus X5, and importing your favourite music track from a CD, or recording a voice over is as simple as it could be.

To add a voice over, simply choosing the Record Narration icon found just above the timeline will initiate the record window, whereby if you have a microphone, you can record your voice over.

Adding music from a CD or your from computers hard drive is also easy, and can be achieved simply by selecting the import media tab and choosing the source of your music. If your music is on a CD, Serif have incorporated a rip CD mode, which rips music from a CD to your computer and subsequently adds it into your project to do as you desire.

With your audio files imported and ready to use, you can add these to anyone of the audio tracks in your timeline.

Serif MoviePlus X5 has excelled in all aspects of the video editing stage, with some features we have not mentioned within this review.

With that said, Serif have provided an editing experience that is hard to find in other products on the market, which helps make it one the best video editors at this price range.

Sharing
When you are happy with your movie master piece, you are now ready to export it into a format for the world to see.

Serif currently offer a number of export options, which include the following:

DVD – Allows export to DVD which also has the ability to create some pretty advanced DVD authoring features, including the ability to create DVD menus.

VCD – This allows you to export MPEG 1 video and burn your movies on to the cheaper CD format. The overall video quality will be lower of that than on a DVD, but if you’re on a budget, this is the great option.

Blu-Ray Disc – This option allows you to export your movies to a High Definition format, although you will need a blu-ray writer and player to make the most out of this feature.

AVCHD – Selecting this option will allow you to export your movies in the AVCHD format.

File – If you simply need to export a video file, the file option is for you. Here you can select a wide variety of formats, including MP4, Quicktime, AVi and more.

YouTube – If you regularly share your movies on YouTube, then this is the option for you. Serif have pre-set some key export formats ideal for YouTube. You can then upload the entire movie from within MoviePlus X5 with ease.

iTunes/PSP – With this option, you can export a video ideal for playback on PSP or iTunes. This is a great addition and shows Serif is keeping with the trends in on demand video.

DV/HDV Camcorder – As the name suggests, you can simply record your edited movie back to your camcorder for storage.

As you can see, MoviePlus X5 has a pretty exhaustive list when it comes to exporting options.

Each method outlined above has a clear export process, which can be easily followed using the step-by-step instructions provided by Serif, or by referring to the array of video tutorials which are available for your convenience.

Overall, good export options which cater for a number of export scenarios.

Overview
Serif’s expertise of creating feature packed, yet easy to use software, have clearly shone through in Movie Plus X5.

We’ve always perceived Serif as being the ‘outsider’ when it comes to video editing, falling behind the likes of Pinnacle, Adobe and Sony – until now that is, with MoviePlus X5 blowing our minds with features and ease of use.

The software handled importing, editing, and sharing HD video easy, and produced some great results.

Serif does have some drawbacks, which include not making certain elements of the software clear on the user interface, but the features packed into this software makes us slightly over look some of its downfalls. This, in our opinion, makes MoviePlus X5 one of the best pieces of video editing software for keen amateurs or newbies to this industry.

The software is priced exceptionally well, and you will be hard pushed to find a better package with a feature list of this calibre, within this price range.

Get a price on MoviePlus X5 from Amazon.co.uk,where you are sure to pick up a great bargain.