Music and video

The Bottom Line: iTunes 9 is a natural, yet relatively minor, evolution of Apple's popular media management software and is a required download for new iPod owners.

The Bottom Line: A majority of home users will appreciate Corel Digital Studio's feature set, its interactive projects, and wide support for photo and video formats.

Specs: Complete package, Intel Core Duo, AMD Athlon, Intel Core Duo, AMD Athlon

The Bottom Line: Apple iLife '09 is a great application suite for simple media organizing and editing, and the addition of features like face recognition, geotagging, and music lessons makes it worth the update.

Specs: 1 user, Complete package, Apple MacOS X 10.5.6 or later, Intel PowerPC G4, PowerPC G5 (867MHz or faster) 867 MHz, Intel Power Mac G5 (dual 2.0GHz or faster), iMac G5 (1.9GHz or faster), DVD-ROM, Intel PowerPC G4, PowerPC G5 (867MHz or faster), Intel Power Mac G5 (dual 2.0GHz or faster), iMac G5 (1.9GHz or faster), 867 MHz, MacOS, QuickTime 7.5.5 or later

The Bottom Line: The Zune software is a great complement to the Zune MP3 player, but there are few reasons to use it as a standalone media jukebox.

Specs: 1 user, Complete package, Microsoft Windows Vista, Microsoft Windows XP SP2, Microsoft Windows XP SP3, Microsoft Windows Vista SP1, Microsoft Windows Server 2003, Microsoft Windows Vista (64-bit versions), Microsoft Windows XP Media Center Edition 2005 SP2, 1 GHz Intel Pentium III, 2 GHz Intel Pentium IV 1 GHz, AMD, 9, DVD-ROM, SVGA monitor, 32 MB video memory, 1 GHz Intel Pentium III, 2 GHz Intel Pentium IV, AMD, 1 GHz, Windows, DirectX 9.0c or later, Microsoft .NET Framework 3.0, Internet Explorer 6.0 or later

The Bottom Line: Apple iTunes 8 is the industry standard for multimedia jukebox software and despite the need for a UI overhaul and some liposuction to remove the bloat, iTunes is a solid choice that most users will enjoy.

Specs: 1 user, Complete package, Microsoft Windows XP SP2, Microsoft Windows Vista Business, Microsoft Windows Vista Ultimate, Microsoft Windows Vista Enterprise, Microsoft Windows Vista Home Premium, 1.5 GHz or faster (Windows), Intel Multicore (Mac) 1.5 GHz, DVD-ROM, XGA monitor, 1.5 GHz or faster (Windows), Intel Multicore (Mac), 1.5 GHz, Windows, QuickTime 7.4.5

Specs: 1 user, Complete package, Microsoft Windows XP SP2 or later, Microsoft Windows Vista Business SP1, Microsoft Windows Vista Ultimate SP1, Microsoft Windows Vista Enterprise SP1, Microsoft Windows Vista Home Premium SP1, 1.4 GHz or faster for DV, 3.4 GHz for HDV 2 GHz, Dual 2.8 GHz for HD (Windows), Intel Multicore (Mac), DVD-ROM, Sound card, 1280 x 900 monitor resolution, 7200 RPM or faster hard drive, OpenGL compatible graphics card, 1.4 GHz or faster for DV, 3.4 GHz for HDV, Dual 2.8 GHz for HD (Windows), Intel Multicore (Mac), 2 GHz, Windows, QuickTime 7.x

The Bottom Line: The V Cast Music with Rhapsody experience is easy to use and understand, and, by combining both the mobile download and the Rhapsody subscription service in one monthly plan, delivers considerable bang for the buck .

The Bottom Line: Adobe CS3 Production Premium is ideal if you handle a mix of design, animation and editing tasks for video, the Web, and mobile gadgets. However, beginners should think twice about the splurge, and film pros without deep animation needs should probably stick to Apple Final Cut Studio 2 or AVID.