If producing video in high-def doesn't grab you, but you want a suite with best-in-class applications for perfecting standard-definition productions, Roxio MyDVD 9 Studio Premier could be for you. I say could, because though you'll find more—and more capable—tools for authoring, editing, and playback than in any similar product, you pay a price: increased complexity. I found CyberLink PowerProducer 4, which has fewer features, more intuitive. MyDVD 9 does let you work in full screen, which I like, but in general, the interface needs renovation; as Roxio forces more constituent apps to conform with the suite's look and feel, they lose their charm and individuality. I still mourn the suite's makeover of its MyDVD module, and in this latest version, CinePlayer suffers a similar fate.

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Unlike CyberLink PowerProducer 4 and Ulead DVD MovieFactory 6. Plus, the MyDVD 9 suite can't burn HD DVD projects to DVD recorders (for playback on HD DVD set-top hardware such as the Toshiba HD-A1) and lacks several key capabilities for creating Blu-ray discs. As with PowerProducer 4 and MovieFactory 6 Plus, when authoring Blu-ray media, this software creates discs in the BDAV (Blu-ray Disc Audio Visual) format, which doesn't have menus. PowerProducer 4, however, lets you add chapter points and playlists; this product and MovieFactory 6 Plus don't.

Workflow suffers with MyDVD 9 because its Quick Blu-ray Disc applet doesn't include a capture function, forcing you to load a separate applet and then import the files into the Blu-ray authoring environment. You can't capture directly to Blu-ray discs in real time, either, which PowerProducer 4 allows (and MovieFactory 6 Plus claims to, though I couldn't make it work well).