After the recent Audials fiasco, where the developer continued on with its long-established practice of deliberately misrepresenting non-existent software as genuine retail products, it might have been hoped that GAOTDers would be be given some breathing space from this kind of wilful confusion.

But no such luck. Instead, Ashampoo has arrived with its one-day-only free offer of Ashampoo Video Styler 2013. A product which doesn't exist.

In a clumsy attempt at clarification of what it's trying to do here (or justification) Ashampoo states that what it's really offering today is Ashampoo Video Styler 1.0, a statement which immediately begs the question:

Why is this software called one thing in the giveaway title, but then undergoes a change of name in the small print text??

Ashampoo Video Styler 2013, which doesn't exist, is therefore Ashampoo Video Styler 1.0, which may exist. . . except there's no trace of it anywhere, and no evidence on the Ashampoo website or anywhere else that it ever did.

Ashampoo, however, wishes you to know that it retails at $14.99. And therefore, $14.99 will be 'saved' today by GAOTDers. Today, also, that $14.99 "saving" is accompanied by a "special upgrade price" of just $5.99 instead of $14.99 to, er, Ashampoo Video Styler (no version number given.)

On which basis, then. . . Ashampoo Video Styler version 1.0 costs $14.99. Ashampoo Video Styler no-version-given, but presumably Version 1.01 as per the Ashampoo website --

https://www.ashampoo.com/en/usd/pin/0075/Multimedia_Software/Ashampoo-Video-Styler

also costs $14.99.

On which basis, therefore, today's $5.99 special upgrade offer must be well worth having -- except, surprise, surprise, that upgrade offer isn't all it seems, either. . .

because $5.99 is all that anyone will pay for Ashampoo Video Styler 1.0.1 on Ashampoo's own website.

Simply follow the above link, ignore the full price button, click on the $5.99 'upgrade', and that's it -- you'll be taken immediately to the Ashampoo store, asked for your name and address details, and then taken to the 'Buy' page. . .

And at no stage in that process will you ever once be asked what product you're upgrading from, or asked for proof of ownership of such product.

Personally, I am sick, weary and tired of developers coming on here and treating GAOTDers as if they were idiots.

A deliberate cloak of confusion is being wrapped around today's giveaway by the developer itself -- confusion over name; confusion over version; confusion over price; confusion over 'special upgrade' offer. Behind that cloak, today's "offer" may actually be no more than the trialware / crippleware version of something that actually costs just $5.99, not $14.99. . .

Thanks, GAOTD: it's not your fault that yet another developer has come on here with a seemingly epic contempt for GAOTDers. But it would be sad if anyone here was to fall for today's trickery, and dignify Ashampoo's conduct by actually downloading and installing Video Styler 2013.

MikeR  –  11 years ago  –  Ritieni questo commento utile? sì | no (+478)

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# 1. Mykee

Change format using FormatFactory or this magic free & portable tool:

http://www.videotovideo.org

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As for today's giveaway I found it an excellent and very indeed easy to use VIDEO EDITOR to make your videos more professional, by adding on them tons of filters and any kind of background music you want to add it.

So if you are eager to show your videos to your friends/relatives/readers etc... on YouTube or Facebook with no hassle, this is the right tool for you!!

Overall for what it does I give it a THUMBS UP even though the lack of both FLV and MP4 support is undoubtely a big cons!!

BEST FREE ALTERNATIVES

* Windows Live Movie Maker 2012 (My Personal First Choice)
http://windows.microsoft.com/en-US/windows-live/movie-maker-get-started

Screenshots:
http://www.softpedia.com/progScreenshots/Windows-Live-Movie-Maker-Screenshot-114481.html

* VirtualDub (==> Softpedia Editor Pick)
http://www.virtualdub.org/features.html

Portable version:
http://www.softpedia.com/get/PORTABLE-SOFTWARE/Multimedia/Video/VirtualDub-Portable.shtml

* Avidemux
http://avidemux.sourceforge.net (also supports MP4, FLV format)

* AviSynth (==> Not for noobs)
Extremely powerful FREE tool for video post-production, providing an impressive array of ways for editing and processing your videos.

http://avisynth.org/mediawiki/Main_Page

Enjoy!!

Giovanni  –  11 years ago  –  Ritieni questo commento utile? sì | no (+152)

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Nice program, but no FLV and MP4 support? I have a few MP4 and FLV files, but I cannot open with this program. I'm sad.

Mykee  –  11 years ago  –  Ritieni questo commento utile? sì | no (+73)

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@ Peter, post #13: The point isn't that a software is 'free.' The point isn't that it's being 'given away', either. The point is that it's dishonest -- not dishonest on GAOTD's part, but dishonesty by the developer, and with it the devaluation of GAOTD as a reference resource of integrity to the level of a carnival stall for snake oil salesmen.

If Ashampoo, or any other developer, wants to come on here to publicise snake-oil in clearly labelled bottles, then that's fine with me. I won't waste my time sampling it or buying it. If, however, it's labelling that snake-oil as something quite different, then issues rather deeper than 'free' and 'giveaway' arise.

Mike R  –  11 years ago  –  Ritieni questo commento utile? sì | no (+61)

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I went to their website to learn what "Styler" is all about.
Well, the demo video does not exist
From the other snapshots I learn that it's basically a converter.
With all other converters we have here regularly we can add filters and do some tweaks. So I'll pass.

Adif  –  11 years ago  –  Ritieni questo commento utile? sì | no (+57)

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