SmartPixel Screen Recorder 4.0

Overview

SmartPixel is an application that can record your entire screen or specific active windows on your computer. With the growing popularity of online videos for computer tutorials, gameplay, or just showing off your fancy desktop, there’s no doubt that there is a demand for on-screen video capture, and SmartPixel does well to deliver. One of the main draw backs for a screen-capture application is how it pulls on your systems resources. This can end up causing issues, because if your system is too bogged down, it can end up creating slow down issues for the application you’re trying to capture. This is especially true for trying to capture video from a video game. Thankfully SmartPixel has optimized its video recording functionality to significantly reduce the amount of resources your computer pulls to record the video.

The application has also seamlessly integrated a D3D video recording mode, which is based off the original screencast mode. This can significantly help systems with low resources during video recording allowing you to capture smoother gameplay elements. This mode works with most DirectX 8, 9, 10, and OpenGL Games. You’re also given some additional features outside of just screen capture, like the ability to edit your videos or create slideshows. These features are what I feel sets SmartPixel apart from many screen capture applications, as you’re given what feels more like an all-in-one video capture studio.

Under the Producer mode you’re allowed to edit and create videos and slideshows. Each of them offers a good selection of audio sound clips, visual effects, as well as been able to import your own. The editor isn’t something that can compete with higher level video editors, but it provides enough features to quickly edit and release your videos. With the ability to capture on-screen activity, webcam feeds, and be able to edit all in the same application makes SmartPixel a very useful tool.

Installation

Installation for SmartPixel is standard and straight forward. The recommended requirements are:

• Windows XP, Windows Vista 32bit, Windows 7, and Windows 8
• 2 GHz Intel or AMD Core Dual processors
• 2GB RAM
• 1GB Graphic card
• 720p Webcam

Interface

The interface has a sleek dark design that is laid out in an organized fashion. You’ll have two categories to choose from, one being Camera mode which offers screen and game capture, and the other offering a webcam recorder. You’re second category is called Producer, which offers a video editor as well as a slideshow creator. Each function that you use will first come up with a tutorial overlay that uses text followed by arrows to point out each of the features in the selected function.

Pros

• Integrated D3D Recording Mode
• Video Editor
• Easy to use design
• Able to record in HD

Cons

• Each of the modes is separated from each other, making it a bit tedious to go back and forth between modes.

Alternatives

Fraps is a popular screen capture program that captures video in full quality. It offers a good amount of management with audio and video recording, but because it captures video in a raw format it can take up a lot of space on your hard drive,

Conclusion

With all the popularity of online videos today, it surprises me that we don’t see more applications that try and reach for the stars like SmartPixel. With the ability to create your video in HD formats for direct uploading, D3D integration for better game capture, and its own editor, SmartPixel is a highly versatile tool that reduces the amount of time you spend working on videos, while sustaining a high quality output. Even though there are other good screen capture applications out there, SmartPixel’s shines with its ease of use and its generous functionality. I look forward to using this as my primary screen capture application for games and if you’re in the market for a screen capture tool, I would highly recommend it.