15-Minute Reviews :: Aero SWF.max v1.5.830

Today’s review is on Aero SWF.max version 1.5.830 by SWFmax.com – A media player for SWF and FLV files.

Software Description

As Giveaway of the Day states:

“Manage your Flash files from Media Browser. Media Browser lets you browse folders in search of Flash Movies. You may recognize a movie not only by its file name, but also by familiar movie frame.

Create and save Flash Playlists. Control movie playback using familiar media controls, like those you may find in multimedia players. In Full Screen mode there will be nothing on the screen but the movie itself. Still everything will be close at hand.”

Quick Pros

• Interface is clean and simple overall
• Thumbnail media browser handy
• Full-screen mode with auto-hide toolbars handy
• Lots of little hidden features such as screensaver mode and extract resources
• Clean and stutter-free playback

Quick Cons

• Clicking stop in Extract Resources does not immediately stop process
• Extract resources is painfully slow
• Application did not accept interaction from media keyboard
• Thumbnail generation only works on swf files
• Can’t browse media while playing a video
• No Flash downloader included

Expansion

Upon first launch of this application, you are greeted by a very simple interface; Along the top you will find access to well laid out menus as well as playback buttons and progress bar. In the center you find the playback window, and to the right is the playlist editor. To enter the media browser, you can simply click on the magnifying glass icon (In this case in the top right corner) which brings up a thumbnail-based browser. While folder browsing can be a bit tedious through the interface, you can set favorite folders for quick and easy access to your Flash storage locations, minimizing or eliminating the need for browsing altogether. The interface is generally easy to use; It does overlook some common functionality one might expect, including drag and drop support from the media browser to the playlist, but not vastly awkward either.

A nice feature within this application is the ability to play these titles easily in full-screen mode. Full-screen mode does not take away your controls however; Instead, they are hidden on the right side and bottom side of the screen and pop up when you move your mouse to those sides. This includes playlist access and playback controls.

On top of the above-mentioned features, there is a lot of other features included in this application. Almost all the menu options and functionality can be controlled by keyboard shortcut; Minimizing the reliance on use the mouse. There is also many little goodies such as the conversion of SWF and FLV files into EXEs or the use as screen savers; Capturing frames or setting the entire item as wallpaper; As well as Extract Resources – Unfortunately the latter doesn’t work well. During testing, using Extract Resources on an FLV file to remove just the audio track for almost half an hour in one instance, and it is still only about 15% complete – Clicking Stop also did not do anything either. The speed here needs to be improved drastically.

The best part of this application was that during my testing, even playing at full-screen, there was no detectable stutter or slow-down, and audio always seemed to be in-sync. Many other media players seem to fail at the audio synchronization of Flash files.

There is a few concerns however with this media player. The application does not appear to react to the tested media keyboard’s commands; This could have made a world of difference for functionality of the application, and could have meant the use of presentation controllers. As well, the auto-thumbnail functionality of the application is decent, but it appears to only work on SWF files; Every single FLV file in the media browser displayed the stock filmstrip icon, defeating the purpose of thumbnail browsing. Finally, while you can manipulate your playlist during playback, there is no way to be able to thumb through your media browser and build your playlist within the application while watching a Flash file. This is one of the larger downfalls of this application.

One last portion of this application that is missing overall is any downloading functionality. It is great having a media player for SWF and FLV files, but the application should have had included or embedded a downloader functional with all browsers. Without a downloader, you’re going to be left having to go elsewhere to get your SWF and FLV files.

Final Verdict

While the application does seem to have overlooked some common functionality and control, its stutter-free and clean playback combined with a relatively-easy interface does make this a tempting choice. If you have been in the market for a Flash media player, this may be a good choice to try. As for paying $19.95, I myself would likely pay for this one and even recommend others to try the demo of it; Mileage may vary – There are plenty of other solutions, and this one may or may not suit your needs. If the application matures further, it could be the best solution.

Posted by BladedThoth on Friday, February 15, 2008