Video editing software?

[JAFO]

A co-worker of mine is looking to purchase a laptop computer that can do video editing and DVD authoring. I said that I would ask you guys, as I know that somebody out here is an expert on this.

He currently does not have a computer but he has video editing equipment and makes, what I would call, semi-professional videos. They are really nicely done and set to music.

Correct me if I am wrong, I told him that he probably would not find an off the self laptop bundled with what he is looking for. So I told him that he first needs to determine what software he wants to use then look for a laptop that will sufficiently run the software.

I am not familiar with video editing software so I need some advice, what is a good product that will allow you to edit video, mix music, and add menus and captions?

I think that he is looking at something like iMovie, FinalCut Express HD, Pinnacle Studio, etc.

His budget is $1,500 for the laptop not including the video editing software.

Should he go MAC or WinTel?

[Tobert]

MacTel. He can run Windows on the new macbooks if OSX doesn't work out. The reverse does not work since Apple has some DRM hardware on their machines to insure OSX isn't pirated onto every wintel box on the planet like Win95 was when it came out.

http://www.apple.com/macosx/bootcamp/

This only works for the machines based on the Intel Core Duo, though. I considering buying one for the wife for MIDI work.

[etlsport]

im with tobert... i run a macbook pro at work, with OSX and XP side by side with a program called Parallels... im sure theres something better out there... but im very happy with the speed both OSs run at even when they are running at the same time... one thing to watch out for is i had many compatibility issues with the macbook not wanting to network like our other macs or pcs (got them resolved after a few days of toying) and also had major issues with getting it to work with cannon printers... again.. few days of toying and it works great with a couple of problems (it inverts black and white for some reason when printing from one of the canons??)

[nfpgasmask]

While I understand that Macs and Final Cut are probably the choice for most pro-sumer video editors, and Avid is the choice for most serious professionals, I have been using Adobe Premiere Pro for over a year now and it is REALLY good and REALLY easy to learn. If you get the right package, it will also come with Adobe After Effects and Adobe Encore DVD (for authoring DVDs) and they all work seamlessly together. In the past Premiere has been kind of insufficient, but now with the newer versions it is a force to be reckoned with.

Regarding hardware specs needed for video editing: Basically spend as much money as you possibly can on hard drive space, processor and RAM. Video editing is probably one of the most cumbersome and hogging tasks a PC can perform. I personally would not recommend a laptop for video editing, but there are some nice work horse laptops out there that can handle it (like the Dell XPS series for instance). But be ready to spend money and carry around an anchor that you have to guard with your life. Make sure whatever you buy has both USB 2.0 and a FireWire connection.

Stored (uncompressed) video files take up MASSIVE amounts of hard drive space, and I find that slower drives, and basically most IDE drives tend to chug during capture tasks and even playback. So I use a Seagate 250 GIG SATA drive as my video editing drive. And let me just tell you, if you plan to do a lot of projects, get ready for that 250 GIG to get filled up REAL fast. I cannot stress enough the need for capacity when it comes to video editing.

Anyway, I hope this helps. I would say that for the software, just download a few trials and see which one comes naturally to you.

Bart

PS - Now that I have my camera mount installed, I will be making a mini-documentary about my VX trip from Reno to Chicago....at very least, it will help keep me awake during the 11th, 12th, and 15th hour...

[MZ-N10]

the macbook pro is a good notebook for video editings. its got a core duo, 1 gig ram (upgradable), and a x1600. but u might want to wait for the new core2duo(merom core) which is suppose to be 15-20% faster then teh exisiting coreduo. the main problem is tat the macbook pro starts at about 1700 and the top of the line is around 2500. for 1500 u could go with like a dell 1505 or a regular macbook. they both use basically the same hardware, coreduo, 512-1gig ram, and the onboard intel 950 video.

one thing to really look out for is harddrive room like nfp said. but i would go for a notebook with massive hd room. 1st 2.5" r slow the faster ones are 5400rpm compared to the standard 7200rpm on 3.5", 2nd theyre expensive most desktop hd r less then 1 dollar a gig but 2.5s r about if not more then 1 dollar per gig. there are plenty of CHEAP external solution. i think last week there was a 500gb hd at costco for 150ish and a enclosure is about 30.

i dont do video editing (ve) but i do do gamin rigs which r very similar to ve setups. if ur co-work is serious about ve then i would suggest he/she look into a desktop, theyre way cheaper to get going. with 1500 u can get a pretty respectible computer.

[Tone]

Final Cut Pro and DVD Pro kick but on Premier. Heck, even with iMovie, you can kick out a professional movie without the hassles of a PC. Oh yeah, and you'll have to BUY Premier for $150 - the Mac is ready to do it all right out of the box. A laptop would not be my choice for editing either - I like the 20" screen and a many gigs of RAM (along with cheaper, faster, LARGER IDE/SATA drives. My 18 my 18 minutes of Moab at low resolution took up 30gigs before rendering and you'll need that much extra while rendering. But you can hook up an external drive to the laptop - 500gB externals are going for around $239.

I sure wish MZ could use complete words and sentences all the time - anyone else have trouble understanding his posts? Must be a lazy age thing.

[nfpgasmask]

I've never used Final Cut, but I hear it is really good and easy also. As far as "hassles of a PC", not sure what you mean there Tone I built my PC myself and it runs like a champ, no hassles to speak of other than trying to cram as much into one case as possible!!

Mac or PC, Pepsi or Coke, manual or automatic, its just a matter of personal preference I think, and somewhat also what you have learned on. Also, I think if you are not very computer literate, you may want to go with a Mac, as most people who are not computer savvy find them more intuitive. I myself have been using PCs all my life, and I like the flexibility and customizability (is that a word?) of PCs. Macs are too proprietary and too limited in my opinion. But then again, I haven't messed around on a Mac in several years, and I know they have come A LONG way as far as compatibility goes.


Bart

Final Cut Pro and DVD Pro kick but on Premier. Heck, even with iMovie, you can kick out a professional movie without the hassles of a PC. Oh yeah, and you'll have to BUY Premier for $150 - the Mac is ready to do it all right out of the box. A laptop would not be my choice for editing either - I like the 20" screen and a many gigs of RAM (along with cheaper, faster, LARGER IDE/SATA drives. My 18 my 18 minutes of Moab at low resolution took up 30gigs before rendering and you'll need that much extra while rendering. But you can hook up an external drive to the laptop - 500gB externals are going for around $239.

I sure wish MZ could use complete words and sentences all the time - anyone else have trouble understanding his posts? Must be a lazy age thing.

[MZ-N10]

I sure wish MZ could use complete words and sentences all the time - anyone else have trouble understanding his posts? Must be a lazy age thing.

Here you go Tone, better?

The macbook pro is a good notebook for video editing. It’s got a core duo, 1 gig ram (upgradeable), and an x1600. But u might want to wait for the new core2duo (megrim core) which is suppose to be 15-20% faster then the existing core duo. The main problem is tat the macbook pro starts at about 1700 and the top of the line is around 2500. For 1500 u could go with like a dell 1505 or a regular macbook. They both use basically the same hardware, core duo, 512-1gig ram, and the onboard Intel 950 video.

One thing to really look out for is hard drive room like nfp said. But I would go for a notebook with massive HD room. 1st 2.5" r slow the faster ones are 5400rpm compared to the standard 7200rpm on 3.5", 2nd they’re expensive most desktop HD r less then 1 dollar a gig but 2.5s r about if not more then 1 dollar per gig. There are plenty of CHEAP external solutions. I think last week there was a 500 GB HD at Costco for 150ish and an enclosure is about 30.

I don’t do video editing (ve) but I do gamin rigs which r very similar to ve setups. If your co-work is serious about ve then I would suggest he/she look into a desktop, they’re way cheaper to get going. With 1500 u can get a pretty respectable computer.