Review: Smideo HD 2013 makes smart-looking video slideshows

Showing off your photos is easy enough. But showing off your photos and your videos together—including videos that you may have spread across different services—isn't always that easy, especially when you want to add custom audio files to the mix. Smideo HD 2013 can help: This (mostly) easy-to-use application allows you to create video slideshows that look polished and  professional.

Before you begin your first project, Smideo shows you how to get started.

Smideo's name comes from "Smart Video Creator," and it fits, as the application is smart. You can try it free for 30 days, but the trial version will not allow you to create HD videos. You have to pay a little over $26 to unlock that feature.

Smideo lets you add files from your camera, hard drive, or those stored in various online photo and video repositories.

Smideo's step-by-step approach makes it easy to get started with your project. First, you have to create a Smideo library by populating it with the photos and videos you'd like to use in your slideshow. You can add individual files, entire photos, or download content from YouTube or Flickr. Anyone looking to create an instructional video will appreciate that Smideo lets you film your screen and share that screencast as part of your video, too. Once you have your files ready, you select the ones you'd like to use and move on.

If your video isn't the right file type, Smideo handles the conversion for you.

If Smideo gives you the option of cutting any video you've added into smaller chunks. When you move on to the next step—arranging the order of the slideshow—you can insert these smaller video chunks in with the photos you've chosen. You also can add text overlays to your content, and set the picture length as you desire. Next, you add any desired audio tracks to the slideshow. If you'd like you can record your own audio using your PC's microphone.

You can sort your photos and videos as you'd like, or let Smideo arrange them randomly.

When you're finished, you select the video effects for your finished product: relaxing or dynamic. This changes the transition between the photos and videos in the slideshow, either speeding them up or slowing them down. It would be nice to have more options here. Rival Fantashow, for example, allows you to preview the transitions and lets you use different styles in a single slideshow.

Still, Smideo will appeal to home and business users who want control over the look and feel of their slideshow. Unlike Fantashow, it doesn't require that you select a theme the slideshow; Smideo lets your content shine. But its options may prove overwhelming for casual users, who will likely be more comfortable with the hand-holding that Fantashow offers.

Liane Cassavoy is a veteran technology and business journalist. She contributes regularly to PCWorld and has written about business issues and products for Entrepreneur Magazine and other publications. She is the author of two business start-up guides published by Entrepreneur Press.
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Review: PhotoPeach makes online slideshows a breeze for Picasa users

PhotoPeach is a Web-based slideshow builder that makes it easy to get started. The service directs you to upload your photos, either from your computer or an online service. But where rival PhotoSnack supports a whole host of online services, PhotoPeach is limited to Facebook and Picasa. That limitation would be acceptable if PhotoPeach’s connection with those services worked, but I had trouble accessing any photos from Facebook: PhotoPeach bounced me to that site to log in, but never let me access my photo albums. The connection with Picasa worked flawlessly, though.

If you’re using the free version of PhotoPeach, you’ll be limited to including 30 photos in your slideshow; any more and you have to subscribe to the $3-per-month Premium version. The Premium account also lets you upload your own music to accompany your slideshow, burn your slideshows to disc, and customize the transitions between photos.

Once your photos are uploaded, you can set the time interval for photos and the music you’d like to accompany your slideshow. If you haven’t opted for a premium account, you’re limited to PhotoPeach’s small selection of background music or you can opt to search YouTube for a song of your liking. PhotoPeach doesn’t offer any background templates; instead it keeps the focus right on your photos, which is a nice touch. It offers limited customization options, but casual users will find enough here to meet their needs.

Fuss-free PhotoPeach would be a true peach of a slideshow builder if its Facebook integration worked properly.

And that’s it: PhotoPeach then displays your slideshow. If you’re a Premium member, you can burn it to DVD; users of the free service can share it via email or through various Web sites, such as Facebook and Twitter.

PhotoPeach is an easy-to-use service that lets you create basic slideshows. I like how its slideshows display your photos, and nothing but your photos. If you're looking for more of an animated background, consider Smilebox. And if you'd like more customization options, consider Wondershare DVD Slideshow Builder Deluxe or PhotoSnack. If you're looking for a no-fuss slideshow solution, PhotoPeach may fit the bill. If only it worked more seamlessly with Facebook, I could recommend it without hesitation.

Note: The Download button on the Product Information page takes you to the vendor's site, where you can use this Web-based software.

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