Wednesday 8 April 2015

SORENSON SQUEEZE PRO 9 REVIEW SYNAPSE CIRCUIT


 SYNAPSE CIRCUIT
SORENSON SQUEEZE
PRO 9 REVIEW


PRICE: CHECK ONLINE FOR BEST PRICES. VERSION 10 (PRO) COSTS $749!

Goodhour, Synapse Circuit Readers! How are you? I hope that all is well and your tech is functioning as it should! I also hope that your tech projects are coming on a treat!

Last night MAGIX Video Pro X9 was brought to your attention (review coming up very, very soon)... If you are serious about video then you need to take a look at multifaceted Squeeze Pro 9 by Sorenson. Yes, I am well aware that the version 10 is out but you can still get an idea of how powerful and versatile Squeeze Pro is through this review.

#Sorenson #Squeeze #SqueezePro9 #SqueezePro10 #VideoEncoding #VideoStreaming #VideoFormatting #HTML5Video

SORENSON SQUEEZE:
SWISS ARMY KNIFE OF VIDEO


Above: The Sorenson Squeeze video tutorial that pops up when you first launch the program. 

Let me take you back a bit to 1997 when video on the web was in its infancy... When I worked for a web design company in Holland, Amsterdam I was charged with the task of finding out the best and cost effective solution for video streaming (on the web). Video is something that my former company wanted to offer to prospective clients as the goal was to transfer the CD ROM (remember that) to the web browser. After sitting through various options that offered a tiny resolution, 320 x 240, in comparison to YouTube’s full HD 1080p and 4K that we enjoy today. At the time I thought that RealPlayer and the RealVideo plugin was a good option; my former company agreed and soon enough we were streaming video, albeit small and pixelated, for clients. Unimpressed, many clients would ask me to re-imagine their PowerPoint presentations into a multimedia format for CD ROM distribution.

One of the main problems that many PowerPoint / multimedia producers faced was getting the right video format for various PC set-ups! No two PCs are alike as users tend to install various video players such as QuickTime (I think QuickTime is extinct now), MPEG (1 & 2), Windows Media and so on... And not to mention that some PCs were underpowered and while the video format was supported the processor wasn’t powerful enough to play it... Oh, the amount of times a CD ROM player would whizz around threatening to shatter the disc inside... We’ve come a long way from 1997! Sorenson Squeeze was one of the tools that I used back then to encode videos that would guarantee that the videos would be played back on virtually any PC powerful enough to play them! I thought that Sorenson Squeeze was a Godsend to multimedia producers way back then (for CD ROM).

VIDEO TODAY: BROADBAND
It never ceases to amaze me at just how far we’ve come in terms of video streaming; YouTube has revolutionized not only the Internet but TV as well! Let’s not forget that Adobe’s Flash video format had a great part to play in it as well. Now we can watch high quality video from our smartphones without thinking! However, there are times where you might not want to upload your video to the likes of YouTube...

 

Above: The many presets broken down into purpose i.e. broadcast, devices (Android, iOS and other mobile devices), Web and more. 

Let’s say that you run a very successful music – for argument’s sake – website that gets over 1 million views per day... Would you want to upload videos to YouTube and split the ad revenue when you have a possibility of hosting your own videos? I thought not! Dare I say it; your video content might not fit the YouTube criteria? Therefore the solution is to bypass the likes of YouTube and self-broadcast. One of the most annoying things about YouTube is those irritating banner ads that obscure the frame and subtitles. Enter Sorenson Squeeze Pro 9!

Sorenson Squeeze Pro takes all the guess work out of video encoding thus making light of converting video into the appropriate streaming format such as WebM or MP4. All you would need then is a HTML5 based player such as the one found on: http://www.jplayer.org

These days Flash video is dying and will be totally obsolete like QuickTime is and it’s not worthwhile using the Flash FLV or SWF formats for video content.

IN USE
Just as it is with earlier Squeeze versions I found no problems with finding the appropriate video format(s); it is a matter of adding the desired formats to the job and then clicking on “Squeeze it”. It is possible to encode many video formats at once i.e. the original video, WMV, can be encoded to MP4, WebM, FLV, MP3 (yes, it’ll output just the audio in a variety of formats), QuickTime and more. The process does take a short while but it gets done!

Below: You can see the encoding process.







Squeeze Pro (9) can capture video from any DV source such as a camcorder for example. But these days you’d be more likely to import video off a (micro) SD card.

The process is as follows:-

1. Import a video file.
2. Add the desired video format or formats to the job list.
3. Click on “Squeeze it” and wait for the video(s) to encode.

It doesn’t get more complicated than that. The interface is very intuitive and you don’t really need to look at the tutorial video when you first launch the program as the interface does speak clearly to you. Well, it spoke and still speaks clearly to me! All the video formats that you are likely to need are there in the form of templates so you don’t have to worry about resolution, formatting, etc. I told you, Squeeze Pro (9) takes all the guess work out of the equation. And if you happen to be an expert at video encoding you can create your own presets for recall.

CONCLUSION
Sorenson Squeeze Pro is indispensible for serious video producers / broadcasters. If the price seems steep then you are not a professional. Don’t misunderstand me... I am not trying to guilt trip you into purchasing the Pro version of the Desktop edition as there are two other versions that may suit your budget: Squeeze Lite ($199) and Standard ($549).

As a professional you’ll know that the pro version will pay for itself. Fortunately you can decide which version is right for you as you can download trial versions of the software. The pro version gives you practically every video / audio format under the Sun to your disposal; you can’t go wrong! Depending on what format / resolution is chosen Squeeze Pro can cut the file size down to the lowest without sacrificing the quality (implied by “Squeeze”).

SCORE
5 / 5

A solid Synapse Circuit Double Platinum!


You just can’t go wrong with Squeeze Pro (9). It is solid! It certainly allows you to move away from YouTube and similar video online facilities. If you do your business right you could charge businesses ad rates to appear on your video broadcasts! Check it out! http://www.sorensonmedia.com

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