Labs

This is the only product on test that hasn't been upgraded since our last round-up of image editors nearly two years ago. Then it had just been acquired by Corel, which has since released a new version, PhotoImpact X3 (pictured here), with some enticing additions, including extra project templates, Corel's MediaOne Plus media-management utility and a bundled copy of the excellent Painter Essentials 3 natural media package. However, Corel isn't selling X3 in the UK, as it prefers to focus on Paint Shop Pro Photo X2. X3 is available in the US, but in Europe only the Germans get to buy it.

PhotoImpact 12 remains on sale here. The price has been reduced to £30, and by shopping around we found it at £20, which is much cheaper than its rivals. As we reported last time, it feels quirky, with palettes and tools that don't work as they do in other programs, but this is less of a problem than in previous versions. You can work in the normal editing mode, ExpressFix (analogous to Photoshop Elements' Quick Fix), or special modes for web or DVD projects, although these don't seem to do anything very different.

In

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fact, PhotoImpact's basic set of corrections and adjustments, while rivalling Paint Shop Pro's in its breadth, isn't all that impressive; other programs are better for everyday image editing. Go beyond the basics, though, and PhotoImpact has more to offer. There's an unusually wide range of brushes, which will please users who want to retouch photos extensively by hand, as well as those looking for artistic painting tools. Creative Transform isn't as easy to use as Photoshop Elements' Liquify, but enables similar warping effects, which can even be animated. Layer effects are even more plentiful than Adobe's, far outstripping Paint Shop Pro's new options: text and other shapes can quickly be transformed into pseudo-3D forms in glass, metal and a huge variety of other materials. What's more, while other programs make you convert text from vector to bitmap before applying certain effects, losing the ability to edit it later, PhotoImpact can treat text as vector and bitmap at the same time.

Project wizards cover printed and online albums, calendars, greetings cards and CD covers. You can create sophisticated slideshows, animated GIFs and even DVD menus, although burning a DVD requires additional software. Not only is Ulead's Photo Explorer included to organise your files, but you also get PhotoImpact Album, a utility for collating portfolios or scrapbooks. The only disappointment is that the three programs don't really integrate well.

It's getting on, but PhotoImpact 12 is still an interesting option, especially at such a low price. However, we simply can't award a Budget Buy to this program while UK buyers are deprived of an even better bundle on sale elsewhere.