A few weeks ago I reviewed Panasonic's nifty HDC-SD1, a high-definition camcorder that records to Secure Digital Cards. I liked the camcorder, except that you can't edit the footage from it, because it records in AVCHD format, which no video-editing software recognizes.
At least, until now: today Corel released Ulead VideoStudio 11 Plus, which supports AVCHD and HDV (the other high-definition camcorder format, used by ones that record HD to MiniDV tape). It can also import .VOB files--the type that DVD-based standard-definition camcorders use.
VideoStudio doesn't yet support burning to Blu-Ray drives (Corel's MovieFactory product does, though, and Corel says Blu-Ray support for VideoStudio is in the works). However, you can use it to burn 30 minutes of HD video to a standard DVD that will play in an Xbox HD DVD drive, an HD DVD player, or a PC with a DVD player and the upcoming version of Intervideo WinDVD. Corel/Intervideo will also release a plug-in for the current version of WinDVD that will allow playback of these discs, though it hasn't announced a release date for it yet.
[Note to readers: I previously wrote that VideoStudio 11 Plus didn't output HD; please note corrections in the previous graph--Ed.]
VideoStudio 11 Plus is the one of the first Ulead products to bear Corel's name. Corel's acquisition of Ulead and InterVideo (which had been involved in merger talks) only closed in January.
Corel says the list price for VideoStudio 11 Plus is $130, and a version that doesn't do HD editing costs $90. Both should be available now.
