The problem with many devices that transfer video tapes to a PC is that the quality of the results is not usually very good. Some others have difficult or complex software, or do not include the cables required to connect different video sources.

With Rescue Your Videotapes, Magix has attempted to provide a complete video transfer product that strikes a balance between ease of use and output quality. Initial impressions were good: pretty much everything needed is included in the box.

There’s a small video capture device (that plugs into the USB port) with four inputs – three for composite video and one s-video connector. A Scart adapter for connecting a video recorder to the computer is included, along with the Magix Movies on DVD video-editing software.

The device was quick to install and easy to set up. Within minutes we were ready to edit our old VHS home tapes and prepare to burn them to DVD. Transferring the first video is a case of installing the software, connecting the video digitiser to a spare USB port and choosing a video source to use. Video can be transferred from analogue and digital camcorders, video recorders or your computer's TV tuner if it has one. It can also import whatever is currently playing on the PC’s screen.

The Movies on DVD software impressed us on a number of fronts. Crucially, it’s easy to use and it doesn’t require a particularly powerful PC. It’s clearly divided into three logical sections – Record, Edit and Burn. The Record section can import analogue or digital video from the selected source, and record it to the PC's hard disk. The Edit section lets the user cut out and rearrange scenes from a clear video timeline.

You can then choose from a wide range of transitions and special effects, all of which can be easily picked from a gallery alongside the video preview window. It’s also possible to pan across a scene or rotate it as if the camera had been moved on a rail while recording. For those feeling less creative, though, the Movieshow Maker feature can apply preset effects and background music and arrange the film into scenes based on a theme (such as disco, to pick one at random). These worked well, although they were slightly clichéd for our liking.

Although easy to use, the program still provides advanced features. There’s the useful ability to clean up the picture and sound of poor-quality videos – it can also improve sharpness, brightness and contrast and colour intensity. The ad-remover feature automatically removes advertisements from recorded TV programmes and you can specify the aspect ratio of your edited video to prevent unwanted cropping of scenes when played back. Rescue Your Videotapes, then, is easy to use, fun, and it works well.

Vista compatible: Yes