Disc Makers Forte
$499 - www.discmakers.com
We saw a lot of really great DVD duplicators this year, but the Disc Makers Forte is the best duplicator we saw. It's elegant in its simplicity - there's not much you have to do to get your project duplicated with the Forte. There's a lot of great choices for further looking if you need to duplicate Blu-ray Discs or attach a computer, but, if simple duplication is all you need, look no further.
Read Videomaker's review of the Disc Makers Forte .
Focus FireStore FS-5
$2,195 - www.focusinfo.com
Hands down, this is the coolest direct capture device we've seen ever. The power to log your clips on the fly and record video that is captured before the Record button is even pressed is remarkable. It's not the cheapest device on the shelf, but, if you value your time, it'll pay for itself pretty quick.
Read Videomaker's review of the Focus FireStore FS-5 .
Adobe Visual Communicator 3
$399 - www.adobe.com
Visual Communicator has been a favorite app of ours ever since it first came out, back before Serious Magic was purchased by Adobe. The new version is even more polished and powerful, and it is destined to be a one-stop buy for generations of vloggers to come.
Read Videomaker's review of the Adobe Visual Communicator 3.
Openfilm
Free - www.openfilm.com
There's a ton of video-sharing sites out there, we know. Openfilm stands out as a leader for allowing the sharing of high-resolution video, and the community appears to be pretty close-knit compared to a lot of other sharing sites. We look forward to seeing this site grow.
Read Videomaker's article on Openfilm.
MPEG Streamclip
Free - www.squared5.com
Italian software developer Stefano Cinque has written and maintained MPEG Streamclip as his gift to the world. It's a video converter, player and (basic) editor for both Windows and Mac. There are some other handy tools here, including the ability to cut, trim and join movies and download videos from popular streaming sites. This extremely handy video utility can be had for nothing - just download and enjoy.
Read Videomaker's forums regarding MPEG Streamclip.
The best products out there for making video, in our opinion. We think these products represent the best products available for most videographers. While your exact needs will inevitably vary, there's a lot here that will make your life as a videographer much easier.
- The Editors
For a product to qualify for an award, it must have passed through Videomaker headquarters in 2008, for examination by our editors. From there, we judged products based on the following seven criteria:
- Empowerment: How effective the product is at helping videographers be more effective at video production.
- Ease of Operation: How user-friendly it is.
- Affordability: The product must provide a good value for the price.
- Quality: It must be put together well, durable and show excellence in its category.
- Innovation: It should have some inventive or original features.
- Dependability: It needs to be able to endure the rigors of active video production.
- Performance: It must work consistently and effectively.
