Editing AVCHD on Mac OS X with iMovie or Final Cut

"I have a Sony AVCHD camcorder. iMovie doesn't recognize the camcorder files. How can I edit the files on my AVCHD camcorder with my Mac?"

AVCHD support has been inconsistent for both Mac and Windows users. The format varies slightly depending on whether your camera is from Sony, Panasonic, or Canon. For Mac users, software support varies depending on which versions of iMovie, Final Cut Express, or Final Cut Pro you happen to be running. I personally prefer Final Cut Express to iMovie for editing on a Mac, but the correct version of either will work.

How to Convert AVCHD M2TS Files

Jash writes, "I wish to convert M2TS / AVCHD files to an alternative format to send to people without the HDD software that comes with my Panasonic HDC-SD1. Is there a tool that will do this as most information is based around editing the files not converting them?"

At the moment, the best tools for converting files created using either the Panasonic or Sony AVCHD camcorders are the same tools used for editing the M2TS files. My personal preference is to use Sony Vegas for converting the files from AVCHD to whatever other format you want to work with, specifically because the interface makes it simple to either save the movie to a second format or do some additional processing if you want to crop the 16:9 video to 4:3 for standard definition conversion. Pinnacle Studio will also do something similar, but I like the Sony output configuration better.

Editing Sony AVCHD Files in Pinnacle Studio

Steve writes, "I have recently purchased a Sony HDR-SR8E with USB2 input/output. I have just purchased Pinnacle Studio v11 Plus (Ultimate). I cannot get Pinnacle to see the camcorder as a capture device, nor will it import the m2ts files generated by the camcorder. Any advice on how to resolve this so that I can maintain the 1080i (AVCHD) output would be appreciated."

It seems that some of the AVCHD files are more compatible than others with various video editing applications. After struggling with this new format for months, most of the kinks are worked out, but there are still steps you can take to get better results. One method I've found to be almost fool-proof is to take the Sony software that ships with these camcorders out of the mix completely.

How to Play AVCHD M2TS Files

"My AVCHD camcorder records videos with the extension M2TS. How can I play these M2TS files on my computer?"

Each of the AVCHD camcorders ships with software designed to playback the files on your computer. Sony's HDR-SR1 and the newer HDR-SR5 both record video in the AVCHD format and ship with the Picture Motion Browser, which plays back AVCHD files on most computers. If you purchased one of the Panasonic AVCHD camcorders, the included HD Writer should allow you to playback video recorded with your camcorder.

While the bundled applications work, my personal preference, is Cyberlink PowerDVD Ultra, which supports playback of the AVCHD files and a whole host of other high definition formats. In addition to playing back your HD camcorder files, PowerDVD Ultra plays back Blu-ray and HD-DVD disks (with the accompanying drives connected, of course). PowerDVD Ultra also makes it possible to expand your HD video editing options, by using the included codecs to render the AVCHD video in apps like VirtualDub.

Edit AVCHD Files with Pinnacle Studio 11

How to Play HD-DVDs with Windows Vista

One of the things I like most about the Xbox 360 HD-DVD drive is portability. I can connect it to my Xbox 360 or I can plug it in to a PC elsewhere in the house. The only tricky part is figuring out all the right pieces to making HD-DVD playback work on your PC. Windows XP doesn't currently support HD-DVD playback without finding a hacked driver for the Xbox 360 HD-DVD drive, so if you want HD-DVD playback, moving to Windows Vista is your best option.

How to edit AVCHD M2TS files from Sony HDR-SR1 camcorders

Sony's new hard drive based camcorder, the Sony HDR-SR1, takes great images and should speed up video editing workflow by recording straight to hard drive. A handful of tools now work well for editing AVCHD files created with Sony's camcorders and the AVCHD camcorders from Panasonic. I strongly recommend using either the solution I regularly use, Pinnacle Studio 11 Ultimate, which supports a workflow optimized for end-to-end editing, including some great sound enhancement tools. Sony Vegas is another solid choice, which makes sense considering many of the AVCHD camcorders are made by Sony. Nero Ultra Edition ENHANCED is an additional solution for editing the AVCHD files, however, I find other aspects of Nero frustrating and don't use it for my own editing needs.

Sony HDR-SR1 CMOS Block Noise

Back when webcams first came on the scene, if you had a choice between a CMOS based cam or a CCD based cam, I always recommended the CCD cam because images were simply better. CMOS was the cheap alternative and it often produced these weird blocks in images when it didn't put the image data together correctly. Apparently some things never change. The new Sony HDR-SR1 High Definition camcorder uses a CMOS sensor to collect image data instead of a CCD, presumably to keep the cost down. When the camcorder takes good pictures, it takes great pictures. When the CMOS sensor gets confused, it resorts to the blocky badness just like its much cheaper CMOS webcam cousins. Based on that frustration alone, I'm highly inclined to swap my HDR-SR1 for the Panasonic HDC-SD1 when it ships. Panasonic is sticking with 3CCDs while recording to the same AVCHD format used in the HDR-SR1. Read on for an example of what I'm talking about...