Review:

A pleasure to test and play with. The DVD Xpress is a bridging device that will allow the transfer of analog video material to a users computer for editing, and/or burning directly to DVD, SVCD or just VCD.

It allows connection of a VCR, laser disc player, an old VHS camcorder, or for those who have a Mini DV, Digital 8 camcorder, but the PC is lacking a firewire jack. Instead of using firewire, the download will be done via USB 2.0. The Xpress is also backwards compatible with USB 1.1. The playback device will be connected to the Xpress via RCA jacks for audio and composite video. An S-video jack is also equipped. Six foot RCA cables are included in the Xpress box along with a USB cable.

Capwiz 3.5 and ULEAD DVD MovieFactory 3.0 software is also provided. Installation of the software was quick, and without glitches.

The Capwiz impressed me, and this was the first time I've worked with it. For a user who is going to make their first venture into downloading and editing, the user isn't going to get lost or feel overwhelmed.

The Capwiz allows for three capture modes. VCD being the lowest file quality format a 352x240 resolution, SVCD the mid level format at a resolution of 480x480, and the highest quality setting DVD with a resolution of 720x480.

Capture and conversion time was impressive. The speed gap between downloading directly from a camcorder to a PC via firewire, versus a device like the Xpress is closing. Because of the work that a device like the Xpress has to do there will always be a lag. It's nice to see a bridging product work so quickly.

It's a five step program to use Capwiz. First open the program, and choose the video standard. NTSC or PAL. Second is choosing the video inputs. RCA or S-video. Step three is creating the file name and location. The default file location is My Documents/My Videos. Fourth is which video format. MPEG-1 for VCD, and of course, MPEG-2 for DVD. There was no need to worry about downloading as MPEG-2. Yes, I prefer to download as a DV/AVI file format, then let the burner program downconvert to MPEG-2. The MPEG-2 files are very clean with the Xpress, and no detail was lost in the burning of a DVD. In the fourth step there is also a Disk Space indicator showing how much video can be captured depending upon the file format selected, and how much disk space is available.

The fifth and final step is pressing the play button on the video source. Click finish and the screen will switch to the Capture Wizard interface.

With the interface the user can preview video. Once video has been recorded, and if it's several minutes long, the user can use a slider bar to skim through the footage to get to a desired location.

One item I do like is the video processing filters. Very helpful in removing video noise on video tapes or just the incoming video source. Now it will not clean up all of the noise, and the amount of clean up depend upon how noisy the tape is. Regardless, it does do the job well.

The user can also adjust the brightness, chroma, contrast, hue and saturation.

It's not necessary to download the video file onto the hard drive. The user does have the option of going directly to DVD. And it's not necessary to download with the Capwiz software. You can use the ULEAD DVD MovieFactory 3.0 software.

The MovieFactory program is somewhat of a simplistic editing program when compared to other editing software. However, when one looks at what is included in the overall DVD Xpress package price, it's a good deal.

Like the Capwiz, the ULEAD program worked very well. Simplistic, it is easy, not cluttered with a lot of stuff that will overwhelm the user. And remember, it's not what editing software was used, but how the video was edited. MovieFactory has enough graphics and effects that one can make a very nice presentation.

Ulead MovieFactory does allow for moving menus with audio on the users DVD. Using either the included templates, or crating their own.

One thing that impressed me is the continuing shrinking of capture/bridging devices. The DVD Xpress measures in at 5 1/2" x 3 1/4" x 1 1/2."

To sum it up, the DVD Xpress is a neat little package with a lot of punch. With an MSRP of $99, the user will get their moneys worth. No fault could be found. It's a good little work horse.

Features:
Minimum PC requirements:

• P3 or equivalent 800 MHz or higher.
• Windows 98SE, 2000, ME or XP
• 128MB RAM
• 500MB HD space for installation.
• 4GB or more HD space for video capture and editing.

• HP 763n
• P4 2.53ghz
• 80gb Ultra DMA HD
• 512mb DDR SDRAM memory