Even the most ardent Windows Phone critics are usually willing to acknowledge that while the platform may be struggling on the software side, the hardware — particularly the cameras — tend to be pretty darn good.

Now, Microsoft has rolled out Video Tuner, new video editing app meant to help bring the platform's video editing software up to scratch with the hardware.

The app, which has been optimized for Windows Phone 8.1, is a sort of a cross between Instagram and iMovie, combining advanced video editing tools with filters, lighting adjustments and other controls typically found in photo editing apps.

Video Tuner is meant to compliment Windows Phone's hardware capabilities and the latest version of the operating system, Windows Phone 8.1, said Matt Collins, director of applications and partner marketing at Microsoft.

"Many Windows Phones, particularly those in the Lumia line, have superior imaging and video-taking capabilities," he said. "We're tapping into the latest version of the imaging SDK, which we first published a year ago for developers to be able to tap into the impressive hardware capabilities the Lumia Line offers. It's bringing users closer to the horsepower that the phone has to offer."

Begin by selecting a video clip from your camera roll and choosing from one of six menus of editing options. Video Tuner allows you to make simple adjustments, like trimming the length of your clip or speeding up or slowing down the frame rate. You can also fine-tune the volume of your video or add a backing track from a song stored on your device.

The app has dedicated Instagram and Vine settings, which help you trim and crop videos to the relevant length and aspect ratio for uploading to the networks. Additionally, all edits are non-destructive, meaning you can always reset your changes at any time and the original videos are preserved in your camera roll even after you've saved an edited version.

Collins said the ability to easily undo was incredibly important to keep the app as user-friendly of an experience as possible. "When you think about video editing, it has long been the domain of people who have a particular skill sets...even iMovie has a learning curve to it," he said.

"We approached the challenge how do you create an app that's as easy to use as Instagram for photographs but do it for video so you don't need to understand insider vernacular.“