9 / 10
score
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It only seems like six years ago since I last reviewed AnyDVD from Slysoft, during that time I've watched it regularly updated to resolve any issues, move seamlessly from Windows XP to run without problems under Windows 7 64-bit, so with Blu-ray finally taking off as the next generation format, this seemed a good opportunity to not only revisit this excellent utility but explore what the HD version has to offer.

Some things have changed in the time period, most notably a move from the original flat fee pricing structure to a time based system. Whilst you can still buy an unlimited license for considerably more dough, now when you purchase any of their products you have a sliding scale of prices which let you download updates for between 1 and 4 years. This system has been adopted by many small software houses, it certainly works well for other products where further versions give you new features, but come the expiry of your free updates you are still left with a working product if not an up-to-date one.

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The difference here is perhaps compatibility, as AnyDVD HD is constantly being updated in the battle against studio and distributor control. There are some who argue that the genuine movie buying public always suffer in the war against piracy, it is us who must sit through endless copyright warnings, unskipable trailers for flicks we aren't interested in, just to reach the main menu. And it is us who must wait.

Pirates meanwhile get all this crap removed, and they get it all removed plus the movie for free. The poor shortsighted managers of various studios never fail to miss these facts, giving the public what they want at a price they can bare is often sidelined in favour of hair brained thoughts relating to maximising profits. But I digress...

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Blu-ray has to some extent fixed a number of issues, no longer is PAL or NTSC a buying decision, all regions are the same resolutions, thanks in part to the move from CRT to LCD technology. Also international release dates, at least as far as the US and UK are concerned, have been largely combined to the same week so getting the American version six months before it hits European shores is now less of a pull.

That said, there are still some films in some versions that you can only get in a region other than the one you reside, and some people still wish to rip some of the content of their discs to other media or devices. It is here that AnyDVD HD comes to the rescue, in a completely transparent way.


Installation
Over the years I've installed this on Windows XP, Vista 32-bit, Vista 64-bit and now most recently Windows 7 64-bit, without ever coming across a single issue. When you update the software to a newer version, sometimes it requires a reboot, sometimes not. It would be nice if it never did, especially considering the number of updates can be quite frequent, as these days most people don't do a restart unless there are Windows Update patches to apply, which is admittedly almost becoming as regular as those to AnyDVD.

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Anyhow, reboot aside, which is I guess expected for this type of software, is really simple, there are no options to speak of other than the usual which directory to put it in, and whether you want an icon on your desktop. After the reboot, you get a new little fox logo in your system tray, which when you left click brings up the options window, or right click brings up a small menu.

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