Review by D. Coral

Previously I was using Windows Movie Maker to edit clips because it would get the job done very fast without unnecessary complexity. Since Windows Movie Maker is no longer included with Windows 10, I’m looking for replacement software. I avoid Adobe products these days since they moved to a subscription model for their pro-level products. Corel has been around forever in graphics software (I remember using Corel Draw in the early 1990s when I did some part time work as a graphic arts designer), although video is a newer area for them.

Corel VideoStudio X9 actually feels very similar to Windows Movie Maker. I was able to edit clips, split clips, make transitions, and apply effects within 10 minutes of playing around with the user interface. I didn’t have to read any of the user manual to make edits right away. This has much larger library of video effects, although some of them are cartoonish looking and could have been implemented better (for example it would be nice to have a natural looking rain or lightning effect, rather than the artificial looking ones).

If you’re not sure about Pro vs. Ultimate, it’s easy to upgrade after you buy the Pro version. When you exit the program a dialog pops up with an offer to upgrade to Ultimate for $14. Then after downloading the upgrade files, enter the new serial number and you have all the extra Ultimate features. Here is a screenshot while I was playing around with the motion tracking that follows an object in the video.