BIOS: Technology Means Business

InterVideo's WinDVD 7 is the latest release of one of the most popular DVD software players for Windows-based computers. The software adds new video and audio playback tools and boasts an 'unprecedented list' of new and expanded features while delivering smooth and clear video. Regardless of your needs, WinDVD 7 is an excellent value software application brimming with useful features.

Equipped with a brand new look and feel, WinDVD 7 is available in two versions. WinDVD 7 Gold (reviewed here, £24.95 ex. VAT) is pitched general users and business travellers who just want an easy way to enjoy high-quality movie playback, while power users who want the latest audio and video technologies, as well as the ability to tweak the controls for their personal preferences, should opt for WinDVD 7 Platinum (£41.99 ex. VAT).

With WinDVD 7 Platinum, InterVideo has adding HDTV and Advanced Video Codec (AVC) specification support, also known as H.264 playback support. WinDVD 7 offers digital TV recorded content playback and supports channel navigation for HDTV transport stream recordings. In addition, the latest DVD playback software adopts H.264, the next-generation DVD standard, MPEG-4 Part 10, making the state of the art video more accessible to more viewers.

Being able to use a single software solution to play all DVD/video/audio in multiple formats simplifies the digital lifestyle experience. It not only eliminates the frustration of media incompatibility issues, it also gives you a growth path. For instance, you can get the most out of your current system now and when you're ready to adopt next-generation technologies like HDTV, H.264, and high-definition audio, you'll already have the tools in place to begin enjoying them.

A neat new feature of WinDVD 7 is the External Subtitle Control which checks for subtitles and loads them in the external subtitle file. It also lets you adjust the placement, subtitle colour and size. This is especially convenient for the new DivX media format for CE devices. Unique to the DVD player market is WinDVD 7's new Google Toolbar and Google Desktop Search application that provides convenient access to information and managing multimedia files via both the Internet and your desktop. You can opt not to install utility, should you already have it or not want it.

The new QuickClip 2 tool lets you capture a video scene and save it as a GIF (captured frames can be viewed as thumbnails or as a plain text list), and you can now set the recorded length image size and customise frame encoding so files can be e-mailed or even transferred to a mobile phone. You can even save a video scene and use it as your desktop wallpaper. We also really liked the bookmark tool that lets you mark a location within a movie for future access.

The second-generation of Trimension DNM (Digital Natural Motion) technology has also been enhanced. With WinDVD 7 Platinum you have the opportunity to use the advanced viewing options to compare the improvement of using Trimension technology. Trimension DNM is video enhancement software that helps to product smooth video, even with fast-moving images. It is especially valuable when you are watching a fast-action sports game or movie.

Similar to the previous version, WinDVD 7 features InterVideo's time stretching and Mobile Technology. The Mobile Technology helps you to extend the battery life and playback time of laptops based on Intel Centrino processors. Time stretching allows you to watch a 2-hour movie on a 1-hour and 30-minute flight by speeding up the playback without loss of audio or video quality.

WinDVD is much more than a basic utility to playback DVD-Movies. For instance, the attractive new control panel can be customised for reference and playback needs and you can dock, un-dock or change placement of the panel as needed. You can watch AVI, WMV, or DivX files with external subtitle files, manage audio with a centralised audio controller, and experience high surround sound audio with InterVideo's unique IHP (InterVideo Headphone) technology. IHP offers an impressive surround-sound effect via ordinary 2:1 headphones.

WinDVD 7 Speaker Control lets you adjust the sound balance of your speakers to get the best out of your home theatre setup, a first-class suite of audio technologies helps to ensure a rich, surround sound audio experience (supports Dolby Digital, SRS Tru Surround XT with Dialog Clarity and TruBass), and you can create your own playlists with audio tracks or video files from DVDs, VCDs, SVCDs and CDs. In addition to your DVD-Movies you can watch Real, QuickTime, WMV-HD, MPEG-4 and HDTV recorded video files.

Limitations of WinDVD 7 Gold include lack of support for AAC or UPnP media client, no support for MPEG-4 AVC/H.264 Main Profile, in addition to lack of support for Philips' Trimension advanced video effect/technology, audio spatialiser, Dolby Digital EX, DTS-5.1 channel, or even high resolution (96KHz/24-bit) audio decoding. For these advanced features you'll need to opt for the more expensive supported in WinDVD 7 Premium.

WinDVD 7 addresses some of the problems of the previous release, and now includes a user interface that is attractive, easy to use, and responsive. Existing features have been updated and improved in most cases, and the support for more playback formats, as well as UPnP support (WinDVD 7 Premium only), means the upgrade price is more than justified.

If you're currently using a previous version of WinDVD, there is no reason not to immediately upgrade because you will notice the improvements right away. If you have never used a software DVD player, you won't be disappointed with WinDVD 7. However, power users should opt for the more expensive Premium version. [9]