Sharing a slide show via e-mail was easy: I simply selected the photos, clicked the e-mail option, clicked OK, and typed the e-mail address, and it was off. Snapfire automatically applies transitions and provides a handy preview. However, your recipients will need to download a copy of Snapfire to view your slides. (An available free version lacks features such as backup, resizing, text, image straightening, and video editing.) It would be less of an inconvenience if the slides came with an embedded player.
Now that nearly all cameras and some cell phones can capture videos, it makes sense that Snapfire Plus incorporates a very basic video player and editor (an addition that is fairly typical for many photo apps nowadays). You can mix photos and videos together, creating a slide show with transitions and background music. In my tests, though, performing any of the video functions was extremely slow, even on my 2-GHz laptop with 1GB of RAM. Sometimes it took several seconds to show anything on-screen. At press time, the software lacked DVD authoring, but Corel promises to offer the feature as a $10 add-on by December 2006.
Like many photo tools, Snapfire Plus lets you create layouts for albums, collages, greeting cards, calendars, certificates, and magazine covers. At launch, the selection of templates is sparse, but Corel plans to provide more over time via downloads. The creation process is drag-and-drop, so it's quick and easy--but don't expect a lot of creative freedom with the layouts, as certain objects and text palettes are immovable.
Snapfire is ideal for people who want a quick way to manage photos and perform minimal enhancements. For versatility, go for Paint Shop Pro, Photoshop Elements, or Photoshop. And if you're looking to save money, consider a free app like Google's Picasa: Snapfire's modular interface is more approachable, but Picasa trumps Snapfire with its speed and price.
Corel Snapfire Plus
Offers just enough photo organizing and enhancing tools to help the busy or novice shutterbug get the job done quickly.
List: $40
www.snapfire.com