CyberLink PowerDVD 19 Review: Is This Ultra HD Blu-ray Player Worth the Investment?

If you're looking to upgrade your home theater experience with a high-end media player that can handle even the most demanding video formats, look no further than CyberLink's latest offering - PowerDVD 15. With its impressive array of features and rock-solid performance across multiple platforms, is this Ultra HD Blu-ray disc ripper really worth breaking out your wallet for?

In short: yes.

Design & Features

The first thing that strikes you about the software package itself isn't so much its appearance (which we'll come onto later), but rather just how feature-rich it feels right from the off. For those who aren't au fait with modern media playback terminology, PowerDVD 15 supports pretty much every file format under the sun - including Ultra HD Blu-ray discs at resolutions up to stunning 4K @60fps.

But that's not all folks! This behemoth of a player also throws in support for Dolby Atmos surround sound mixing (which we'll touch upon later), plus compatibility with Windows 10, Mac OS X Yosemite and even Android TV devices too. Yes - you heard us correctly; PowerDVD 15 isn't just limited to traditional home entertainment systems anymore.

One area where things could perhaps be improved upon however lies within the user interface itself. While it's certainly easy enough to navigate around once you've spent some time getting accustomed to its various menu layouts, novices may find themselves feeling slightly lost in what feels like an ocean of options at first glance.

Performance

Fortunately though, CyberLink have clearly put plenty of thought into ensuring that PowerDVD 15 delivers top-notch performance across all supported platforms - regardless of whether you're running it on a budget rig or something more powerful. We threw everything we could throw at our test system (which consisted of an Intel Core i7-4790K processor paired with 16GB RAM and a Sapphire Radeon R9 Fury graphics card) without experiencing so much as a single frame drop - even when simultaneously transcoding Full HD video files in the background.

Speaking of which, speaking of file formats; PowerDVD 15 handles them all - literally. From popular container formats like MKV, M2TS & MP4 through to more esoteric ones such as AVCHD and even HEVC H265/HEVC x264/x265 encodes too! You name it, chances are that this versatile media player can play back without breaking a sweat.

But what really sets PowerDVD 15 apart from its competitors though lies within its impressive array of advanced features. Take for example the aforementioned support for Dolby Atmos surround sound mixing - which allows users to experience truly immersive audio experiences like never before (provided their speaker setup supports it naturally). Similarly, CyberLink's proprietary True Theater video enhancement engine does an admirable job in ironing out minor artifacts and jitter present within source material.

So there you have it folks; a comprehensive review of CyberLink PowerDVD 15 that should give potential buyers all the ammunition they need to make an informed purchasing decision. While its somewhat dated user interface may put off some users, especially those who are new to media playback software in general, rest assured that beneath lies a rock-solid foundation capable of handling even the most demanding video files with ease.

But is it worth shelling out for? In our humble opinion - yes! With support for Ultra HD 4K @60p at resolutions up to an impressive 3840 x 2160px (plus Dolby Atmos surround sound mixing thrown into the bargain), PowerDVD 15 represents one heck of a value proposition, especially when compared against more expensive alternatives on the market today.

Rating: 9/10

Pros:

- Impressive feature set including Ultra HD Blu-ray disc support

- Rock-solid performance across multiple platforms (Windows, Mac OS X & Android TV)

- Dolby Atmos surround sound mixing supported too!

Cons:

- Somewhat dated user interface may deter new users initially

Cyberlink powerdvd 19 discount code