CyberLink Media Suite 15

Overview

CyberLink Media Suite 11 Ultimate is a comprehensive, extensive and engrossing multimedia solution for a variety of devices, be it Windows or mobile. Users can create, burn, play, share and backup all sorts of digital content. A pack of mobile apps for Win 8 mobile devices extending the suite’s reach.

You can do nearly everything in terms of digital media: watch movies, edit videos, sort and process images, burn discs, share and create backups, create disc authoring. The Ultimate Edition comes with a $109.99 price tag so you may consider buying the essential tools you need instead of opting for the suite pack, although evaluating it will help you get a better idea of its features. The Ultra edition costs $92.99 while the Deluxe edition costs $84.99. See a comparison chart.

Installation

The installer file is some 1.6GB, and comes via a downloader of its own. It can pause and resume so this option is quite handy.

Installation is quite lengthy, and you have to stay focused because there are at least two bundles, though legitimate, but nevertheless possibly unwanted for some – a Chrome browser and/or CyberLink toolbar for it, and a QuickTime for Windows by Apple.

Requirements:  Microsoft Windows 8, 7, Vista and XP 32Bit SP3 (For Windows XP, 32 bit with Service Pack 3 is required); screen Resolution 1024 X 768 pixels, 16-bit color or above; memory 512 MB; 2 GB DDR2 or above for editing HD videos; hard disk space 2GB for product installation; 10 GB (20 GB recommended) for DVD production; 60 GB (100 GB recommended) for Blu-ray Disc/AVCHD production.

Finally, if you already have some products by CyberLinks on your computer and they are included in this Media Suite, the installation will overwrite them and some features may be rendered unavailable. Check this out with the developer’s website.

Interface

After peculiar installation, we anticipated a GUI of equal challenge. However, we were pleased to see that the front end menu is very self-descriptive and intuitive. It gives access to all products in the suite and is very convenient. You can also access separate products from CyberLink folder in your start menu without launching the PowerStarter menu. Overall, GUI is modern, intuitive and streamlined. However, the nag screen appears every time you launch a separate product in the trial edition, which is pretty often.

Features

Full description of features takes several pages, so we will resort to enumerating the products: PowerDirector, PhotoDirector, PowerDVD BD Express, Power2Go, MediaShow, WaveEditor  Standard, PowerProducer, MediaEspresso, PowerBackup, PowerDVD Copy, LabelPrint, InstantBurn, PowerDVD Mobile, PowerDirector Mobile, PhotoDirector Mobile.
While all this sounds alluring, there is a downside, too: some of these products have wider functionality when installed as standalone applications.

Pros

• A complete and all-inclusive list of products under one hood. To think of it, buying them separately will probably cost you more.
• Fast and comprehensive media management.
• Handy and exhaustive disc burning and authoring.
• Playback and editing of audio and video files.
• Easy sharing.
• The possibility to backup.
• Wide file format support.
• Fast in response.
• Enhances video quality.
• Powerful photo editor with beautifying effects.
• Handy apps and extras, such as MediaEspresso file converter and backup.
• Mobile and tablet support.

Cons

There are a lot of overlapping functionalities.

Alternatives

Nero 2014 Platinum Media Suite.

Conclusion

Overall, CyberLink Media Suite 11 Ultimate is a fit for regular home use offering a very capable video editor, video player, disc burning tool, file manager and image editor. In addition, you get a convenient way of sharing your videos and images in social networks and backing up your digital media files. For advanced video editing features, such as DLNA function, look in standalone applications.