The Best Video Editing Software 2013 (Part Two): The Middle
In Part One we opened the Pandora’s box. Let’s not stop.
A side note: The article is getting too long, and sometimes you’ll find conclusions without explanations. If that’s the case, please read the links I’ve given in Part One for detailed explanations.
Availability
If you wanted to buy your favorite video editing software right now, can you do it, no matter where you are in the world? Let’s see:
| Disc | Download | Purchase | Trial | |
| Editshare Lightworks Pro | No | Yes | Official website | Yes |
| Apple Final Cut Pro X | No | Yes | iTunes App Store | Yes |
| Adobe Premiere Pro | No | Yes | Reseller and/or Adobe’s official website | Yes |
| Sony Vegas Pro | Yes | Yes | Reseller and/or Sony’s official website | Yes |
| Grass Valley Edius Pro | No | Yes | Reseller | Yes |
| Avid Media Composer | No | Yes | Reseller and/or Avid’s official website | Yes |
| Autodesk Smoke | Yes | Yes | Reseller and/or Autodesk’s official website | Yes |
If you’re in the US, you can buy every one of the NLEs (except Edius Pro) from the official website or store. If you’re in another country, there are restrictions and you’ll have to go through a reseller. E.g., you can buy from the Autodesk Smoke site, but if your country isn’t listed, you are forbidden to use it. I had to purchase the Creative Cloud for teams from a reseller.
If I had to pick one NLE for the easiest and smoothest download-to-purchase-to-edit experience, I’ll say it’s a tie between:
- FCP-X, and
- Lightworks Pro
To all the rest, shame on you. Each and every developer on this list gives you quick access to download a fully functional trial version, no matter where you are. All they want in return is your email address.
Let’s say you download the trial version and at the end of your 30 day period you want to purchase the software. If you’re not on the developer’s ‘preferred country’ list, you can’t purchase your software as easily as you downloaded it. You’re forced to find a vendor, and deal with them instead. I can collaborate with anyone in the world on Creative Cloud, but it took me a week to purchase it. I wonder how much time it’ll take me to end it. read more...
Note: Videoguys sells full versions, upgrades and crossgrades for most of the NLEs on this list. Just click on the link above int he table for more info.
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