The trial version is limited in several significant ways. I just downloaded and installed it on an old PC and got the very latest software release (18.6.3120) - but it's only the Essential (aka limited) version.

Most of the interesting content comes in the many different packs available through the App Manager when you have the full subscription version. I just counted 56 packs for PD, and I have 256 discrete transitions on my main desktop system.

If you like what you see with the editor but need to access all the content (and maybe also want to work with media clips higher than HD resolution), your best bet is to buy the subscription (or standalone product) and use the 30-day money back guarantee to see if the full suite meets your needs.

Quote The trial version is limited in several significant ways. I just downloaded and installed it on an old PC and got the very latest software release (18.6.3120) - but it's only the Essential (aka limited) version.

Most of the interesting content comes in the many different packs available through the App Manager when you have the full subscription version. I just counted 56 packs for PD, and I have 256 discrete transitions on my main desktop system.

If you like what you see with the editor but need to access all the content (and maybe also want to work with media clips higher than HD resolution), your best bet is to buy the subscription (or standalone product) and use the 30-day money back guarantee to see if the full suite meets your needs.

Thanks, and that is a bit surprising, because on startup you get the pop up telling you that you will get "to enjoy and evaulate the full features" of Ultra... but then I almost expected something like that.

One questions remains however. I looked around what I might be missing in the demo version and looked at all the packs. Not a single pack has any transitions coming with it. They have a lot of effects and particles and so on, but nothing that was particuarly interesting for me. Did I miss something?

Quote Not a single pack has any transitions coming with it. They have a lot of effects and particles and so on, but nothing that was particuarly interesting for me. Did I miss something?

That is correct the packs do not include transitions. I think Optodata was simply stating that the packs have the most interesting content, not that this is where the missing transitions are. Essentials is a scaled back version of the program and this is why it doesn't have all of the transitions that the paid versions have.

Essentials is a scaled back version of the program and this is why it doesn't have all of the transitions that the paid versions have.

Yes that is most likely right, despite them saying I should have access to all the Ultra features for 30 days.


I followed now the suggestion to buy the product and installed all the extra packages and so on. I now have 190 transitions, but still all the good ones are missing; those are probably the 66 ones which are still missing.

I guess at this point I am ready to give up and move on. Thanks for the help!

Quote One questions remains however. I looked around what I might be missing in the demo version and looked at all the packs. Not a single pack has any transitions coming with it.

I'm afraid you're mistaken. Please have a look at the contents of Premium Content Pack 1 for example. It contains 19 transistions that aren't available anywhere else. The full list of all packs' contents are here.

Also, if you have the full version you should also have 19 Distortion transitions. What does your transition category list look like? Here's what I have:

I have installed the Essentials Pack and the Premium Packs 1-5. I see them in the Windows Installed Programs. I did not find a way to check the packages in Power Director directly.

I am up from 155 or so to 189 transitions, after buying and installing all the packages. See screenshot attached.


So when I talk about packages. The below ones are the ones I am talking about.
https://www.cyberlink.com/products/add-ons/powerdirector/recommended_en_GB.html

I have not seen any mention of the Essentials Pack and the Premium Packs 1-5 anywhere therebefore buying.

Yet you are right, I went through the pinned "Creative design, Style, and Effect packs - contents list", but only clicked on the first 5 or so packages and none of them had a transitions in them. So I assumed none of them had.

Those packs bump up the transitions to the 189. I checked and I have all of the ones in the packs, there are actually not that many in those 6 packs.

I also, see screenshot dont have glitch or distortion. I have Ultimate, but the lifetime version, so dont have access to all the packages... but then again, I clicked on a few more packages and did not find any other package which comes with transitions, beyond Essentials Pack and the Premium Packs 1-2 (or 3)..

So basically what I thought was lifetime version = Ultimate plus 7 packages. Subscription = Ultimate plus all packages. I checked the packages and did not see anything really interesting for me really.

However, they dont tell you that the lifetime version doesnt give you access to a lot of feature and packages which you dont see and cannot buy separately, e.g. the Transition Packs – Distortion, Glitch, Geometric. Sadly that is nowhere really communicated, what is part of lifetime and what is not.

And this most likely why I am lacking 70-ish transitions. Unfortunately, that are mostly really cool transitions. Like most other competitors, the standard transitions are probably in the software since the founding days in the early 2000s and look a bit like it. So I am pretty keen on getting those new transitions... so the lifetime version is a no-go, and I am going to return it now.

Quote I have installed the Essentials Pack and the Premium Packs 1-5. I see them in the Windows Installed Programs. I did not find a way to check the packages in Power Director directly.

Once they're installed, their content is automatically merged into PD's libraries and you should see all of the contents in each of the relevent library rooms as decribed in the detailed listings. You don't need to do anything further.

Quote I am up from 155 or so to 189 transitions, after buying and installing all the packages. See screenshot attached.

So when I talk about packages. The below ones are the ones I am talking about.
https://www.cyberlink.com/products/add-ons/powerdirector/recommended_en_GB.html

I have not seen any mention of the Essentials Pack and the Premium Packs 1-5 anywhere therebefore buying.

I believe that's because CL is concentrating on new content, and those packs came out many years ago, one with each new version of PD since at least PD10. The subscription gives you access to all the content CL has ever made available and will continue to release each month.

Quote
Yet you are right, I went through the pinned "Creative design, Style, and Effect packs - contents list", but only clicked on the first 5 or so packages and none of them had a transitions in them. So I assumed none of them had.

Those packs bump up the transitions to the 189. I checked and I have all of the ones in the packs, there are actually not that many in those 6 packs.

I also, see screenshot dont have glitch or distortion. I have Ultimate, but the lifetime version, so dont have access to all the packages... but then again, I clicked on a few more packages and did not find any other package which comes with transitions, beyond Essentials Pack and the Premium Packs 1-2 (or 3)..

I believe that the Glitch and Distortion transitions were added in the 18.6 update earlier this month, but I will need to restore from an older system image to be certain. I know they didn't come from an external pack so I'm not sure why they're not on your system.

If you click here
https://www.cyberlink.com/products/powerdirector-video-editing-software/comparison_en_GB.html

on read more about "Always get the newest features" you will see the list of updates (only 365):

https://www.cyberlink.com/products/powerdirector-video-editing-software/whats-new_en_EU.html

which includes in Mar 2020 the Transition Packs – Distortion, Glitch, Geometric.

I checked my version and I am on 18.0.x with no updates available... most likely because I dont get those latest updates with a lifetime subscription...

also when I try to dowload the update manually, I need to upgrade to 365 to get it.

Ok - you saved me the trouble of swapping out 2 system images

So there's your answer. Some content is only available to the 365 version at the moment. It may be that CL will bring the perpetual version up to 18.6 in the near future, but the only way for certain is to switch over to to the subscription version.