Review by Ms. Rocki

Rating: 5 StarsnnWhy: PowerDVD finally lives up to its title. With TruTheater effects, better controls, remote access, and so much more, you go beyond just being able to watch a movie on you computer. You enjoy your own mini movie theater experience.

For years I’ve put up with Cyberlink’s OEM products on my laptops or desktops, but never really enjoyed them. I found them clunky to use. Nothing about it ever made me want to shell out money to buy the upgrade.

However, when I upgraded my laptop to Windows 8, I discovered it was missing a key feature: The ability to play movie DVDs. Yes, I could use VLC media player. It works just fine for watching DVD movies, but that’s all it really is - a good, simple movie DVD player. (If that’s all you want, then don’t look any further.)nnBut then I tried Cyberlink PowerDVD 13. I was totally curious. Would the fully featured version of Cyberlink’s PowerDVD be worth it? Does it go beyond their dorky half-hearted programs they put in stock PCs and laptops?nnI found my answer very quick. YES. YES IT DOES. A dozen times better than the stock version. Cyberlink PowerDVD finally lives up to its name.

What I discovered:nnI like the improved menus. So much easier than the versions I’ve used in the past. It’s more intuitive too.

TruTheater effects and options are wonderful and what really makes PowerDVD stand out. I particularly enjoy TrueTheater’s Lighting effects. It amazes me how it clarifies, sharpens, and applies vivid colors. If it’s not what you like, you can adjust the settings to your preferences, or shut it off all together. You can activate a split screen help to show before/after effects. Pretty cool.

Ability to watch any movie, video, or photos in 3D. You’ll need to buy the red/cyan glasses to enjoy the effect. This is a fun feature to have.

There are apps you can download so you can have remote access to your content. I was able to download the apps for my Kindle Fire HD via 1Mobile app and use it successfully.

PowerDVD also supports BluRay, BluRay 3D, Dolby, UltraHD 4K, AVCHD 3D/Progressive, and many more.nYou can use PowerDVD to watch YouTube, Flickr, and Facebook. (Ah, if only it would support Amazon Prime Video or Netflix.)nnIt can do zoom. While a movie is playing, you can zoom into a scene to get a closer look. (It will pixelate when too close.)nnCustomize subtitles. Finally a way to change fonts, sizes, etc., so its easier for me to view closed-captions.

My only hesitation about PowerDVD 13 is its bit of a high price. If I hadn’t gotten it via Amazon Vine, I would’ve balked at buying it, especially since my previous experience with older PowerDVD versions. However, now that I’ve tried it, I think it’s worth it because it goes beyond just being able to watch DVDs. You have a mini-movie theater in a box where you can create and enjoy your own movie experiences.

Don’t judge PowerDVD 13 by it’s anemic predecessors. This one is a winner and is finally living up to it’s name. POWERDVD.