The Best Video Editor for Android
Oh, we can finally write this post. Video editors haven’t worked on Android for a long time. Too long. But now, Adobe Premiere Clip brings simple, seamless video editing to Android. You can trim clips, mix multiple clips together, and add your own soundtrack. It’s not perfect, but a good start.
Adobe Premiere Clip
Platform: AndroidPrice: Free download page
Functions
- An automatic editor creates compilations from clips and soundtracks.
- Trim video clips manually
- Add multiple video clips together
- Add your own soundtrack to your project
- Add title slides
- Smart Volume automatically adjusts multiple audio tracks to a constant volume
- Adjust video including exposure, highlights and shadows.
- Apply filters to clips to create a variety of looks
- Add photos with zoom effects to create slideshow
Where is it best
With Android struggling to get a lot of decent video editors, the main argument for Adobe Premiere Clip is “It exists.” However, it is good on its own! Adobe knows you might not want to do heavy editing on your phone, so you can use auto-edit mode so Adobe can cut and add the soundtrack for you. It’s not that much, and it’s very similar to Google’s auto-awesome feature, but it’s handy.
If you want a little more control, you can switch to freeform mode. Here you can split clips, add multiple clips, switch between them, and add your own soundtrack. If you are used to the correct non-linear editor on desktops, you will probably find that it is missing, but for quick editing on your phone it is very easy. This approach makes a lot more sense than trying to squeeze the entire desktop editor interface onto a tiny screen that your fingers are already struggling with.
You can also use the app for basic color grading, which is a very welcome addition. You can adjust the exposure, brightness and shadow levels in a given clip. Most editors tend to either neglect this feature or bury it, but it’s an underrated tweak that can improve the look of your clips with minimal effort.
Where it fails
Although the application is easy to use, it is not very flexible. You can edit multiple clips together, but you can only add one soundtrack file. This audio file will always run at the start of your project. If you want to start playing a song or sound effect halfway through the video, you can’t do that.
You can add title slides too, but they really suck. Unless, of course, you don’t like plain white text on a black background. You can change the color of the text or background, but you cannot move the position of the text or overlay the text on the video. It works for the end credits, but otherwise it’s pretty inflexible. That being said, if you want this type of title slide, it’s very easy to create.
Competition
If I haven’t made it obvious enough, good Android video editors don’t have a lot of competition, but there are a couple. Cyberlink PowerDirector is the closest contender. You can edit multiple clips together, add music or sound effects at arbitrary locations, add title overlays, and apply effects to your videos. If you want something more powerful than Premiere Clip, this is what you need. The downside is that it costs $ 5 to unlock the full version, otherwise you will have a watermark stuck. In addition, the interface is a little more complex, as a normal non-linear editor is placed on the phone screen. However, if you want more features, this is a worthwhile upgrade.
Kinemaster is the next step forward with support for multiple video layers, frame-by-frame splices, transition effects, and more . However, it costs $ 5 / month to use it after a 30-day free trial. Alternatively, you can pay $ 40 to use it for a year. If you edit videos regularly and like the Kinemaster interface, this may be fine, but for the average user who just needs to edit a clip here or there, that price can be a tough pill to take.
Finally, there is Magisto. This app has been around for a while, but calling it a “video editor” is almost a misnomer . Instead, this app lets you select multiple clips, choose an editing style, and the app puts it all together for you. Google Photos has a similar auto-editing tool if you want a neat package effortlessly. Both options are low-effort and will get the job done, but you can’t completely control either of them.