DVD Authoring Software Gallery
-- Professional Tools (see also Consumer
Tools)
Full Version -- with details & screenshots
Full version, with product summaries and screenshots.
Also see the faster-loading Summary
version, without screenshots.
by Douglas Dixon
Software applications for desktop DVD authoring,
organized from consumer to professional. Each application includes a brief
description, and information on the latest released version. Product
descriptions and images are summarized from published information.
Contents
See also: Digital
Video Editing Software Gallery
Updates -- 2008
4/2008 - CyberLink - PowerDVD 8
Updates -- 2007
8/2007 - Apple - iDVD '08
7/2007 - Adobe - Encore CS3
2/2007 - Ulead - DVD MovieFactory 6
1/2007 - Roxio - MyDVD 9
Updates -- 2006
12/2006 - Sonic - DVDit Pro HD
- Sony - DVD Architect Studio 4 standalone
- CyberLink - PowerDVD Ultra
11/2006 - CyberLink - PowerProducer 4
- InterVideo - WinDVD 8
5/2006 - InterVideo - WinDVD Creator 3
4/2006 - CyberLink - PowerDVD 7
3/2006 - Adobe - Encore DVD 2.0
- Ulead - DVD MovieFactory
5
2/2006 - Sonic -
MyDVD 8
1/2006 - Apple - iLife '06 - iDVD 6
Updates -- 2005
8/2005 - Sonic - DVDit 6 Pro
6/2005 - InterVideo - WinDVD 7
- MedioStream -
NeoDVD 7
4/2005 - Apple - DVD Studio Pro 4
3/2005 - Ulead - DVD MovieFactory 4 Disc Creator
1/2005 - Apple - iDVD 5
Updates -- 2004
10/2004 - InterVideo - WinDVD 6
9/2004 - Microsoft - Windows Media Player 10
- Sonic -
MyDVD Studio Deluxe 6
- Sonic - DVD
Producer 4.5
7/2004 - Sonic - DVDit 5
- Ulead - DVD
Workshop Express
6/2004 - CyberLink - PowerDVD 6
5/2004 - Adobe - Encore DVD 1.5
- Apple - DVD Studio Pro 3
1/2004 - Apple - iDVD 4
- Ulead - DVD
MovieFactory 3 Disc Creator
- Ulead - DVD Workshop 2
Updates -- 2003
9/2003 - Sonic Solutions - MyDVD 5, RecordNow! 6
- Sonic
Solutions - DVD Producer 4, Scenarist 3
8/2003 - CyberLink - PowerDVD 5
- InterVideo
- WinDVD 5
4/2003 - Apple - DVD Studio Pro 3
- Adobe -
Encore DVD
- Pinnacle -
Instant CD/DVD
2/2003 - Apple - iDVD 3
1/2003 - Adaptec - MyDVD Video Suite
- NVIDIA - NVDVD
- Topics
Entertainment - Instant DVD Maker
- Ulead - DVD
MovieFactory 2.0
DVD authoring with support for more DVD-Video
features: menu and button graphics, multiple video and audio streams, subtitles,
navigational links, scripts, Dolby audio. Still at an "abstraction
layer" above the DVD specification, with limits on full multi-tracks, multiple
titles, programmability, etc. Customization requires more manual editing and
layout, materials to be prepared
and converted to DVD formats. Around $200 to $700.
Apple Computer - DVD Studio Pro
4
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Simply Powerful DVD Authoring
Apple DVD Studio Pro 4.2 - with FC Studio 2,
released May 2007
Apple Final Cut Studio 2 - $1,299
Final Cut Pro 6, Motion 3, Soundtrack Pro 2,
Compressor 3, DVD Studio
Pro 4.2, Color
www.apple.com/dvdstudiopro
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Apple DVD Studio Pro 4.2 - with FC Studio 2,
released May 2007
Apple Final Cut Studio 2 - $1,299
Final Cut Pro 6, Motion 3, Soundtrack Pro 2,
Compressor 3, DVD Studio
Pro 4.2, Color
Apple DVD Studio Pro 4 - due May 2005
Encode. Author. Burn. Deliver.
Separate $499
Bundled with Final Cut Studio - $1,299. FCP upgrade $699
Final Cut Pro 5, Soundtrack Pro, Motion 2, DVD
Studio Pro 4
- Burns high definition DVDs to the latest HD DVD
specification
- Distributed encoding tools
- Support for mixed formats and advanced scripting
DVD SP 4
Apple DVD Studio Pro 3, released May 2004; $499,
upgrade $199
- Graphical View: Projects in storyboard form with
nodes and connections.
- Render-free Transition Preview
- Alpha Transitions - Blend menus, titles and video imagery
- DTS Audio, Dolby Digital Professional AC-3
- Photoshop Integration: Edit and update Photoshop assets
- Compressor 1.2: Encode HD to SD MPEG-2
- Jacket Picture support
DVD SP 3
Apple DVD Studio Pro 2, released Aug. 2003; $499
DVD authoring for creative professionals, not DVD
technicians
- Integrated menu editor, Timeline-based track editor,
Context sensitive drop palettes
- Compressor - batch transcoding tool
DVD SP 2
Apple DVD Studio Pro 1.5 for Mac OS X - April 2002; $999 ($499 as of April 2003)
- MPEG encoding and compilation of projects in the
background
- Import chapter markers from Final Cut Pro
Apple DVD Studio Pro 1.2 - Jan. 2002
- Support for external DVD-RAM/DVD-R FireWire drives
- Enhancements to creating DLT tapes for use as replication masters
DVD SP 1
Adobe Systems - Encore CS3
Adobe Encore CS3, released July 2007
Bundled with Premiere Pro CS3, with OnLocation, Ultra,
$799
Intel Mac and Windows XP / Vista
Production Premium suite $1699
with After Effects, Soundbooth, Photoshop Extended,
Illustrator, Flash
- Use Dynamic Link to work with After Effects
animations for DVD motion menus without re-rendering
- New: Author single project, deliver as standard-definition DVD,
plus high-definition Blu-ray Disc, and Web-ready Flash
content
- New: Blu-ray Disc authoring with same interface and features
- New: Create interactive DVD-style Flash version of project
Create interactive SWF content without scripting and
without Flash authoring
Deliver DVD-style menus, interactivity, and content to
Web Flash Player users
Adobe Encore DVD 2.0 released March 2006, $349,
upgrade $149
Production Studio Standard $1,199:
Premiere Pro 2 $849, After
Effects 7.0 Std $699, Photoshop CS2, Adobe Bridge
Production Studio Premium $1,699:
plus After Effects 7.0 Pro
$999, Audition 2.0 $349, Encore DVD 2.0 $349, Illustrator CS2
- Slideshow creator: Browsable or autoplay,
transitions, pan and zoom effects
- Flowchart view: Dynamic display schematic tree structure. Review and
edit links
- Automated chapter menus: Generate multipage menus from templates
- Chapter Playlists: Reuse content by playing specific chapter ranges
- Arrange Multiple clips on the same timeline, Add chapter points at set
intervals
- Import Line 21 files for closed captions, XMP metadata support,
Royalty-free templates and art
Adobe Encore DVD 1.5 released May 2004, $549,
upgrade $99
5/05 - price $349
- New Library Palette, Styles Palette with
Photoshop CS layer effects
- Import QuickTime files. Preview menus on external monitor
- Background transcode, customizable workspaces, Project Checker
- Photoshop CS with nested layer sets, non-square pixels
Adobe Encore DVD released Aug. 2003, $549
- Sophisticated menu design with unparalleled
Photoshop integration
- Timeline interface, optimized for DVD production
- Powerful navigation controls - end actions
- Efficient project management - sort elements and apply global changes
- Integration with Adobe Premiere and After Effects
- Integrated video and audio transcoding
Roxio [Sonic] - DVDit Pro HD / 6
DVDit Pro HD - released Dec. 2006
DVDit Pro HD $499 (was $599) - Blu-ray; DVDit 6 Pro
$299 (was $399)
DVDit 6 Pro - Professional timeline and menu
editing
Up to 8 audio and 32 subtitle tracks, Dolby Digital
Stereo Encoding; 5.1 pass through
DVDit Pro HD: Author project once and output to
DVD and HD Blu-ray from same project
Deliver 1080p. 1080i or 720p movies on Blu-ray
Design interactive menus at full HD resolution
Create mixed aspect ratio, resolution (SD and HD),
frame rate Blu-ray discs
VBR HD MPEG-2 Transcoding up to 40,000 kbs for Blu-ray
projects
Min and Max Bit-rate Controls for DVD and Blu-ray Disc
LPCM audio includes superior-quality PCM on Blu-ray
Discs
Consumer Dolby Digital Stereo Encoding at up to 640kbs
for Blu-ray Discs
DVDit 6 - released Aug. 2005 - DVDit Pro 6 $399,
DVDit 6 $299
Powerful DVD authoring for video professionals
- Flexible workspace, 2-layer PSD menus, motion
menu duration, Dolby Digital stereo
- Pro: eDVD 4, Playlist, OpenDVD, 8 audio and 32 subtitle tracks in
timeline
- Navigation: link set stream and highlight, Menu & Title buttons
- Pro Dolby Digital stereo, Dolby Digital 5.1 pass-through
- Mastering: DLT, Dual-layer, CSS & Macrovision APS content
protection, region coding, jacket picture
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Sonic DVDit 5 - released June 2004 - $299
Powerful DVD authoring made easy
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- Motion menu creation, object alignment, button
highlight and text tools
- Navigation control - First Play, End Action, button routing, Easter Egg
buttons
- New chapter editing timeline, frame-accurate scrubbing
- Real-time MPEG-2 encoder, Variable Bit Rate (VBR), Dolby Digital (AC-3)
- Supports AVI, MPEG, QuickTime, Windows Media Video
- Professional-quality graphic content - includes a built-in set of
exclusive high-quality menu graphics.
- Double Layer disc creation -DVD+R Double Layer DVD (8.5GB)
- Compatible with MyDVD
Sonic DVDit! 2.5 - SE $299, DVDit! PE $399 - Q2
2003
Sonic DVDit! 2.5 released November 2001;
Standard Edition $299, Professional Edition $599
Sonic Solutions - ReelDVD 3 (old)
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Professional-level DVD authoring tool designed for
corporate video projects
Sonic ReelDVD 3 $249 - 2005
Sonic ReelDVD 3 $599 - Q2 2004
Sonic ReelDVD 3 $699 - Q2 2003
Sonic ReelDVD 3.0 released summer 2002; $1500
www.sonic.com/products/reeldvd
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ReelDVD 3.0.1 - Sept. 2002
- Migration path to Scenarist
- Nine video angles, eight audio streams and 32 subtitle streams
Ulead Systems - DVD Workshop Express
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DVD authoring software for corporate and personal
use
Ulead DVD Workshop Express, released July 2004;
$299 - $199
www.ulead.com/dws
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DVD Workshop Express, released July 2004; $299
Same workflow of DVD Workshop 2.2
without high-end DVD replication technology that only professionals require
Two subtitle and audio track, Dolby Digital AC-3
Playlists, motion menu, preview
Ulead Systems [Corel] - Ulead DVD Workshop
2
DVD Workshop 2.2 update - released July 2004
- Dual-layer DVD burning support - 8.5 GB
- Two-pass MPEG-2 encoding
- PhotoImpact DVD Menu Plug-in for DVD Workshop 2.2
- DVD menu creation plug-in for enhanced interoperability w/ PhotoImpact
(version 8 and above)
- Create graphics for DVD buttons, frames, backgrounds and complete menu
templates
- Create DVD menu elements, assign and check object identification, and import
seamlessly
DVD Workshop 2, released Jan. 2004; $495
Professional Features
- 8 audio and 32 subtitle tracks
- Playlists - multiple sequences of movies, menus, chapter points, audio and
subtitle tracks
- Dual-layer (DVD-9) and DLT (Digital Linear Tape) support
- Copyright protection support for CSS and Macrovision, region coding
- Motion menu loop control - Set a motion menu to loop at a specific point
- Buttons with irregular masks, rotation; Text effects; Invisible buttons
- Real-time motion menu preview
Enhanced Input Options
- Import 5.1 channel Dolby Digital AC-3 audio files, encode to 2-channel
stereo
- Capture and encode DV/AVI, MPEG or analog video, WMV and Sony MICROMV
- Import single- or multi-layered images, including Photoshop PSD files
Enhanced Output Options
- Multiple-format Video Title Sets
- 16:9 widescreen format video
DVD Workshop AC-3, Feb. 2003; from $479
DVD Workshop 1.3 update - Oct. 2002
- Elementary Stream file import - import independent
video and audio
- Import Matrox RT MPEG AVI files
DVD Workshop 1.2 Power Patch - July 2002
- Encoding LPCM audio
- Multiple Video Title Set support (Multi-VTS)
- Faster burning, reliability, Premiere AVI import
Ulead DVD Workshop released June 2002; from $279
Top
High-end tools for multimedia professionals and feature
film DVD production. From $10K and up.
Sonic Solutions - DVD Fusion / DVD Producer (old)
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For multimedia professionals
Sonic DVD Fusion - on
Macintosh
Sonic DVD Producer - on Windows
Authoring software $2K, with SD encoders $5K, $13K
Sonic DVD Producer 4.5 - released Sept. 2004 - $1,999
www.sonic.com
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Sonic DVD Producer 4.5 - released Sept. 2004 - $1,999
- Dual-layer (DVD-9) title production, DVD+R
double-layer DVD-recordable drives
- Integrated professional Dolby Digital audio software encoder
Sonic DVD Producer 4, Sept. 2003
SD-2000 advanced MPEG encoding system
- FilmPack authoring support - dual-layer (DVD-9) authoring,
- Volume Info, Regional Coding, CSS, CGMS, and APS copy protection
schemes.
- Automatic Dolby Digital transcoding - to Dolby Digital from PCM
- Integrated hardware real-time proofing to external video monitor
- PlayList Manager - multiple independent playback order lists of DVDs
assets,
up to 64,000 links, control start
position, audio and subtitle stream selection
- JumpAnywhere, custom Jacket Picture, real-time bit-for-bit project proofing
- Full support for OpenDVD
Sonic Solutions - Creator / Scenarist
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For feature film DVD production
Sonic Scenarist - on Windows
Sonic DVD Creator - on Macintosh (old)
New: Scenarist Authoring Workgroup for
Blu-ray Disc and HD DVD Authoring
Industry-standard professional
DVD authoring system for feature film and commercial DVD title production.
Systems range in price from $4,999 to $35,000.
- Scenarist Studio - 16:9, DVD-9, up to 3 camera
angles
- Scenarist Advanced - adds copy protection, regional coding and
closed-caption
- Scenarist Professional - up to 9 video angles, DTS, Text Data, Jacket
Pictures.
www.sonic.com
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Sonic Scenarist 3 - Sept. 2003
- Hollywood-standard DVD Authoring Solution
- Advanced Copy and Paste of DVD Commands -- entire command sections
- Import and Export VTS -- distributed across multiple authoring seats
- Pan-Scan Video Support -- import 16:9 encoded video, centering the image as
intended
- PlantDirect Tapeless Premastering -- transfer DVD images electronically
- Auto Update from Track Editor -- Moving from a DVD Creator or DVD Fusion
- Improved Template Handling
- Enhanced Simulation Window -- a new Menu Editor and Command Editor
- Expanded DVD Recorder Support
Top
Other tools and utilities for DVD authoring, DVD
copying, and data
recording.
Ahead Software - Nero
www.nero.com
B.H.A Software - B's Recorder
www.BHACorp.com
CyberLink - PowerDVD Copy
www.gocyberlink.com
GEAR Software - GEAR PRO
www.gearsoftware.com
InterVideo - DVD Copy
www.intervideo.com
NewTech Infosystems (NTI) - CD & DVD Maker
www.ntius.com
Pinnacle Systems - Instant CD/DVD (formerly VOB)
www.pinnaclesys.com
Roxio (Sonic) - Easy Media Creator (formerly
Adaptec)
www.roxio.com
Software Architects - WriteDVD
www.softarch.com
Sonic Solutions - RecordNow!
www.sonic.com
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