Experience the burning power of Nero
Nero has long been a major player in the world of CD burning, and is perhaps the biggest brand in that particular sector of the software industry. Apparently this isn’t good enough for the developer though, and it now wants to make its mark in other areas too, such as digital photography, music, video editing, data back-up, file management and desktop publishing. So, is it time to get rid of every program you own and install one that will try to do everything, or is this suite the result of a megalomaniac software firm trying to be all things to all people?
Upon first glance, the list of utilities within this suite looks pretty impressive, containing no less than 19 different apps, from old favourites like Nero Burning ROM and Nero SoundTrax to newcomers such as Nero PhotoSnap (for image editing) and Nero Vision (video editing). Each app within the suite can be accessed individually through the Windows Program menu, or via the new Nero SmartStart, which neatly packages the whole lot within a tidy interface.
What’s in the box?
It’s from here that you realize that Nero 7 can perform pretty much every task for you apart from cleaning the car every Sunday. The skinable interface is logically split into categories such as Data, Audio, and Photo and Video, all of which contains tasks loosely based around the theme of creating multimedia discs.
Nero Application List
Each category sets out a series of icons representing separate tasks, such as ‘Make a Data CD’, ‘Make a Photo Slideshow’, or ‘Make a CD label’.
If we were to describe every feature within every utility in Nero 7, you’d still be reading this review in 2010, so we’ll try and sum up the highlights of each of the major areas that the suite covers, namely: photo and video editing, audio, data back-up, and media management. Oh yes, and CD burning as well.
Burn baby, burn
Burning and copying has always been Nero’s forte, and this is demonstrated again in this suite. Nero Burning ROM 7 boasts arguably the most powerful burning engine ever, and adds a few new features to its already massive array of options, such as the ability to control the actual writing speed for better quality copies, and improvements to file searching. For those who don’t feel the need to tinker around with lots of settings, the inclusion of Nero Express 7 proves very welcome, as this provides a stripped-down, no-nonsense interface for ease of use.
Nero Burn
Generally the most popular use for a CD burner is for copying music onto disc, and Nero 7 performs ably in this area, with a simple interface for audio disk creation alongside two music editing programs. Nero WaveEditor 3 provides a few decent tools for recording and optimizing your audio, and SoundTrax delivers a simple interface for mixing music and adding effects. Neither program really offers the weight of tools and settings that a professional digital music maker would demand, however.
Managing your media
The same is true of the image editor and video editor within Nero, branded PhotoSnap and Nero Vision. Both are relatively straightforward to use but bring little new to the table when compared with programs like the GIMP and Windows Movie Maker, both of which are free of charge. Having said this, the suite does contain a neat movie player, ShowTime, which boasts support for HD-DVD and Blu-Ray, which will save you from upgrading when these formats become the norm.
Nero Bluray HD DVD
Other stand-out apps within the suite include the slick new BackItUp 2, which represents an easy way to perform back-ups, and thankfully now includes drag-and-drop support. Managing your media can often be a pain in the backside, but this is made much easier thanks to the new Nero Home and Nero Scout apps, which combine to let you quickly organize and search for multimedia files.
Push the bloat out
Nero 7 is undoubtedly a meaty suite packed with lots of tools for managing audio, video, images and data before burning to disk. This doesn’t mean we should all uninstall all our software and load up Nero though, and there are a couple of major points to consider before you part with your cash. For starters such a suite isn’t too kind on your system resources, and with the various apps making tough demands on your processor, it’s best avoided if you don’t have a reasonably fast PC.
Moreover, the simple fact of the matter is that Nero is used to making burning software, and plenty of other software developers have released more comprehensive rivals to the other apps within this suite for only a fraction of the total cost of Nero. What it boils down to is whether you want to download free multimedia editors, organizers and back-up tools and use them separately or opt for the convenience of having them all in one place.