Review: 321 Studios DVD Xtreme
| Features |  |
DVD X Copy's raison d'être was to back up commercial movies, and DVD Xtreme can't do that. In its present form, it can't really compete with other comparably priced suites such as Nero's rock-solid 6.0 Ultra or Roxio's extremely full-featured Easy Media Creator 7.0. In fact, DVD Xtreme's nine components range from weak to quite competent.
The first, DVD X Copy Express RF, is a ripper-free version of DVD X Copy that can copy and shrink larger movies onto a single disc. However, it can't split larger DVD files onto multiple discs, and more importantly, it can't copy CSS-encoded commercial movie discs.
Burn X Press, the suite's program for burning data CD/DVDs and audio CDs, is fairly competent and lets you create autorun menus that pop up when a disc is placed in a drive. Still, it lacks advanced features, and you cannot use it to create video CDs or DVDs. Audio X Tools, provided to encode WAV files to MP3s, offers primitive recording and audio-editing abilities, as well as an application for organizing audio files and burning audio CDs. Its best feature is that it shows up in Windows' context menus; simply right-click a music file, and the pop-up menu will include an option to encode it to MP3 using Audio X Tools.
CD X Rescue is included so that you can repair CDs. However, not having any CDs that we couldn't fix by cleaning, we were unable to test how effective it is. Take note that 321 Studios did not include its DVD X Rescue application (because it contained a ripper), so you can't use DVD Xtreme to repair DVDs.
Snapshot X Press is a decent little app for editing photos. It supports a variety of file types and offers an adequate assortment of basic tools--but Photoshop it ain't. DVD X Show, one of the suite's better components, can create CD and DVD photo slide shows. It offers a storyboard layout, some special transition effects, and rudimentary photo-editing options. But there's no time-line view, and performance was extremely sluggish, even on our superfast Athlon 64 3200+ system.
The suite's most powerful component is its DVD-authoring app, DVD X Maker. It has easy-to-use wizards and can import a wide variety of file types. It also features a unique file-tree view for projects, menus, and media and will even let you freely place text and menu buttons--a really nice feature. While we found DVD X Maker's interface and work flow a bit counterintuitive in spots, it's still the best program in the suite.
Image X Rescue fooled us big-time. Its name implies that it has something to do with image files, but it's really a file unerase program--go figure. In any event, it works; we were able to restore a recent deletion.
Also included is Label X Press, a licensed, limited version of SureThing's competent CD Labeler. It allows freeform placement of pictures and text and prints both disc labels and a jewel-case insert spine. However, it will not print full jewel-case inserts, and it doesn't let you use Windows fonts; you're stuck with the seven included fonts unless you upgrade the program for $24.95 at SureThing's Web site. Ouch.
The first, DVD X Copy Express RF, is a ripper-free version of DVD X Copy that can copy and shrink larger movies onto a single disc. However, it can't split larger DVD files onto multiple discs, and more importantly, it can't copy CSS-encoded commercial movie discs.
Burn X Press, the suite's program for burning data CD/DVDs and audio CDs, is fairly competent and lets you create autorun menus that pop up when a disc is placed in a drive. Still, it lacks advanced features, and you cannot use it to create video CDs or DVDs. Audio X Tools, provided to encode WAV files to MP3s, offers primitive recording and audio-editing abilities, as well as an application for organizing audio files and burning audio CDs. Its best feature is that it shows up in Windows' context menus; simply right-click a music file, and the pop-up menu will include an option to encode it to MP3 using Audio X Tools.
CD X Rescue is included so that you can repair CDs. However, not having any CDs that we couldn't fix by cleaning, we were unable to test how effective it is. Take note that 321 Studios did not include its DVD X Rescue application (because it contained a ripper), so you can't use DVD Xtreme to repair DVDs.
Snapshot X Press is a decent little app for editing photos. It supports a variety of file types and offers an adequate assortment of basic tools--but Photoshop it ain't. DVD X Show, one of the suite's better components, can create CD and DVD photo slide shows. It offers a storyboard layout, some special transition effects, and rudimentary photo-editing options. But there's no time-line view, and performance was extremely sluggish, even on our superfast Athlon 64 3200+ system.
The suite's most powerful component is its DVD-authoring app, DVD X Maker. It has easy-to-use wizards and can import a wide variety of file types. It also features a unique file-tree view for projects, menus, and media and will even let you freely place text and menu buttons--a really nice feature. While we found DVD X Maker's interface and work flow a bit counterintuitive in spots, it's still the best program in the suite.
 DVD X Maker, the best app in the DVD Xtreme suite, is fairly easy to use and navigate through. |
Image X Rescue fooled us big-time. Its name implies that it has something to do with image files, but it's really a file unerase program--go figure. In any event, it works; we were able to restore a recent deletion.
Also included is Label X Press, a licensed, limited version of SureThing's competent CD Labeler. It allows freeform placement of pictures and text and prints both disc labels and a jewel-case insert spine. However, it will not print full jewel-case inserts, and it doesn't let you use Windows fonts; you're stuck with the seven included fonts unless you upgrade the program for $24.95 at SureThing's Web site. Ouch.
