Nero ShowTime

Managing and playing multimedia files is nowadays a very common task most of us are faced with almost on a daily basis. Given the wide variety of audio and video formats, many players are developed to handle most of them and offer the best experience to all users.

Nero ShowTime isn't exactly the kind of software solution to play all file types, so it's only compatible with a few extensions, but it manages to do a pretty good job. The application handles AVI, VCD, miniDVD, Nero Digital, and some other formats but also multiple audio outputs such as Dolby Digital AC3, MPEG-1/-2, S/PDIF, and LPCM.

Setting it up is piece of cake because the developers focused more on the way the application works and less on the methods it could involve the user in the process.

The interface is pretty simple, with all the functions in plain sight. The right-click menu also offers a comprehensive choice of features you can use and configure the playback to make it meet your exact needs and requirements.

A minor problem we've experienced during our testing concerns the way Nero ShowTime gets along with Windows 7. The operating system switched off the Aero effects every time the app loaded a video file.

The 'Preferences' menu offers you a lot of customizations for DVD, video or audio settings, to name only a few. An interesting feature is the frame capture ability that helps you make snapshots from the currently playing video.

Nero ShowTime remains a decent solution, but the limited support for multimedia formats can deter many users who seek a software that can handle if not all at least the most common types available out there.