A real alternative to hardware (Cyberlink PowerDVD)

Member Name: brother_x

Product:	Cyberlink PowerDVD
Date:	29/06/02 (129 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Great quality, not too expensive, easy to use

Disadvantages: not as good as hardware

I first got a DVD-ROM drive about 4 years ago and it came with software that was terrible. It needed a very powerful PC and I had a humble Pentium II at the time. I had also just installed a new Soundblaster Live at the time. I invested in a hardware decoder and to my dismay and annoyance, it didn't work with the soundcard - it got boxed up and the drive was used mainly for accessing CD's.

2 years on and several upgrades later I came across PowerDVD. A small package that allows playback of DVD's and what a treat it is to use. It worked well and is packed with features, playing not only DVD's but video CD's and mpeg files as well.

You can change the appearance of the software and protect it with a password so children can't play dvd's that are not meant for them. It can run full-screen and only needs a Pentium II-350 to run perfectly. It will even allow you to capture a single frame which you can then paste into an art package and save.

There is a downside however. It's not as good as a hardware decoder. The quality isn't as good. Also, if you want to watch it through a television you need to have a graphics card with a TV-out connector. Also, it costs about the same as a hardware card.

Now more up-sides. When I first got the software there were a few DVD's that didn't quite play properly (there is a positive side to this, honest) but after they were released, there were often patches released to fix the problem. That's the beauty of the software player - so easy to update.

Also, if you are not technically minded there is no need to open your PC.

Would I recommend this, yes. It's a real alternative to hardware.

Cost? about $50 US (approx £33)

Summary: