Nero 2014 Platinum|Multimedia Suite

Nero AG has been publishing excellent video editing and multimedia suites for several years now. They just keep getting better. Nero 2014 was released last year and comes in two different varieties, or as I like to call them, “flavors”. Staring with the version that contains the most advanced features, you have the multimedia suite Nero 2014 Platinum,

Nero 2014 Platinum

which happens to be the subject of this blog post. Then there is Nero 2014 Standard. This is the version without the high-end features such as importing, exporting and converting ultra HD.
I have been using Nero for several years now I started with what I call the “mini-Nero” software – the editions that come bundled with such hardware items such as DVD/CD burners. I believe my first version was Nero
9, and it was basically the bundled version of Nero 9 Essentials. I thought that for quick and easy burning, that this was the way to go. I did not get into using the Nero Multimedia Suites until I purchased Nero 12. By that time, I had begun experimenting with video-editing software and was in need of something more than burning software. Nero 12 fit the bill quite nicely and I was able to get comfortable with it and be able to start authoring some halfway decent video DVDs. Shortly after I became conversant with version 12, out comes Nero 2013, which was quite a step up from 12. The learning curve was (for me at least) a little steeper and there were more features to master. I had to scramble to keep up, and just as I was getting comfortable with 2013, out comes Nero 2014. I decided that if I was going to continue using Nero, I would go with the top-of the line version and got a hold of Platinum. It has taken me less time to become comfortable with this version of the multimedia suite, due to my past experiences with 12 and 2013, and the fact that the basic feel of 2014 is not so very different from 2013. I do like the welcome screen and the options tabs (or buttons) are more clearly defined, and it seems to me that 2014 Platinum is a little easier to navigate.

What’s New

4K Ultra HD support – Nero 2014 Platinum now supports video editing for 4k ultra HD. Among its functions are:

• HD (4K) video editing for cinema quality videos
• High quality video filters, transitions and titles with the new format
• Nero 4K video editing supports trimming, arranging, cropping, rotating, multitrack overlay editing and a sophisticated Picture-in-Picture generator

Ultimate Mobile Device Support

• mobile support for the latest iOS, Android and Windows 8 smartphones and tablets
• preconfigured profiles for the most popular mobile devices when converting discs
• Optimal encoding performance makes better use of your computer’s hardware

Additionally, besides the improved user interface, there is the ability to burn as well as watch Blu-ray discs, which option is not available in Nero 2014 Standard.

System Requirements

One of the most important items to remember when considering buying or upgrading video-editing software is the system requirements. Will my PC be able to handle the efficient operation of the software in question? Most software publishers give you a good idea of what you will need to run the program and will also generally tell you what the minimum amount of RAM, processor type, video card and disk space. My rule of thumb has always been more of everything is better! With computer programs getting more sophisticated by the day, and computers getting more and more powerful, this is easy to overlook as we figure the newer computers can handle the new programs without a fuss. This is not so. If you are in the market for a new PC and do a lot of video editing or DVD authoring, make sure you get enough RAM in your machine and that your graphics card is up to date. A case in point is what happened when I had to replace my HP G62 laptop due to an overheating problem. I replaced it with a Toshiba Satellite C55 series laptop, and while the processor and graphics card were more than adequate, it had only 4 GB of RAM and I noticed the performance drop right away. I increased the RAM to 8 GB and am working much more efficiently.
Here are some of the minimum system requirements for Nero 2014 Platinum, taken directly from Nero’s Technical Spec ; the rest can be found on the Technical Specs page of the Nero web site at http://www.nero.com/enu/products/nero-platinum/system-requirements.php:

Minimum system requirements for Nero 2014 Platinum

Windows® XP SP3 (32 bit), Windows Vista® SP2 or later (32/64 bit), Windows® 7 SP1 Home Premium, Professional or Ultimate (32/64 bit), Windows® 8 (32/64 bit), Windows® 8.1 (32/64 bit)
2 GHz AMD or Intel® processor
1 GB RAM
5 GB hard drive space for a typical installation of all components (including templates, content and temporary disk space)
Microsoft® DirectX® 9.0 compliant graphics card
DVD disc drive for installation and playback
CD, DVD, or Blu-ray Disc recordable or rewritable drive for burning
Windows Media® Player 9 or higher
Third party components such as Microsoft Windows® Installer 4.5, Microsoft .NET® 4, Microsoft® DirectX® or Adobe Flash are shipped with the product or automated download if not included in the package
For some services an Internet connection is required. Internet connection charges are the user’s responsibility
Blu-ray Disc Playback, Blu-ray 3D Disc Playback as well as HD Video Editing require Windows Vista® SP2 (32/64 bit), Windows® 7 SP1 Home Premium, Professional or Ultimate (32/64 bit), Windows® 8, (32/64 bit), Windows® 8.1 (32/64 bit)
Ultra HD (4K) Editing requires 64 bit operating systems: Windows® 7 SP1 Home Premium, Professional or Ultimate, Windows® 8, Windows® 8.1
For further requirements please check www.nero.com

Note:

On 64 bit operating systems, applications run in 32 bit emulation mode
The devices must be correctly installed and recognized by the operating system for the product to work properly
Installation of the latest WHQL certified device drivers is strongly recommended
Setting up of media access server capability requires an PC connected to a local network

Special minimum requirements for Blu-ray Disc Playback and HD Video Editing

Processor Intel® Core™ II Duo 2.2 GHz, AMD Athlon 64 X2 5200+ 2.6GHz or above, 2 GB RAM
HDCP compliant graphics card (NVIDIA 8600 or above, ATI Radeon HD 3800 or above, Intel G45 (Windows Vista/Windows 7/Windows 8) or above) with a minimum of 512 MB video memory
HDCP compliant display for digital connection
Blu-ray Disc capable drive

Special minimum requirements for Blu-ray 3D Disc Playback

2x and faster BD-ROM computer drive
Processor Intel® Core™ II Duo 2.2 GHz, AMD Athlon 64 X2 5200+ 2.6GHz or above, 2 GB RAM
Windows Vista® SP2 (32/64 bit), Windows® 7 SP1 Home Premium, Professional or Ultimate (32/64 bit), Windows® 8, (32/64 bit)
Installation of the latest WHQL certified device drivers are required
3D-enabled PC graphics card: NVIDIA GeForce GTX 460(M) and above, GTS 350M and above, GTS 450, GT 240(M) and above, ATI Radeon HD6450(M) and above
3D-enabled display and NVIDIA 3D Vision Glasses, or glassless 3D display and HDMI 1.4a
Optional: 3D-enabled HDTV set and HDMI 1.4a connection from your PC to your TV
For further information please visit the homepage of the respective vendor

Special minimum requirements for Ultra HD (4K) playback, editing and encoding

­Windows® 7 SP1 Home Premium, Professional or Ultimate (64 bit), Windows® 8 (64 bit), Windows® 8.1 (64 bit)
Intel® Core™ i7-2600K (3,4 GHz) or above, AMD FX 8320 (3,5 GHz) or above, 4 GB RAM

Special minimum requirements for video editing and authoring

­OHCI compliant FireWire® controller (IEEE® 1394) for DV or HDV™ capturing
­TV tuner or video capture card for analog and digital video recording
­Up to 50 GB hard drive space for disk images and temporary files
­For support of NVIDIA® CUDA™, AMD App Acceleration or Intel® Quick Sync Video technologies a capable graphics card with a minimum of 256 MB video memory is required

Special minimum requirements for LightScribe and Labelflash™

­LightScribe compatible recorder and medium.
LightScribe host software must be installed.
Labelflash™ compatible recorder and medium.

Summary

 
Overall, I find this to be the best of the Nero multimedia suites that I have had the opportunity to use. The program’s interface is easy to operate and each of the functions – Burning ROM, Video, Blu-ray, Recode operate smoothly. The only drawback to the software is Recode. While it works smoothly in converting from discs, I have a had some problems with it when I wanted to get something off of the Internet. I found that I had to work harder than I thought necessary to get it to work the way I wanted. Other than that, I am completely satisfied and actually look forward to the next version, which will be coming out this fall! To buy Nero 2014 Platinum, click on the link below or the picture at the top of the post!