VERDICT: Plenty of core new power for the digital camera user – but Paint Shop Pro Photo X2 is still playing catch-up.

Over its long history Paint Shop Pro has built up a great deal of bitmap editing power, but it has also come to seem dated and increasingly out of tune with the times...

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VERDICT: New realism for bristled brushes and automatic painting that approaches hands-on quality give Painter X a creative edge.

Over the years Painter has made its reputation by reproducing as faithfully as possible the way that traditional media, art materials and underlying canvas interact with each other...

VERDICT: Paint Shop Pro Photo XI is moving in the right direction but it’s not easy teaching an old dog new tricks.

Paint Shop Pro (PSP) is a long-established and popular software brand, but over the years it has come to seem dated – an old-style bitmap editor rather than an up-to-date PC Photography package.

It’s a perception that new owner, Corel, is determined to address as shown by the recent release’s change of name to Paint Shop Pro Photo (PSPP).

VERDICT: For a new release Snapfire already looks old-fashioned and terminally unexciting – but at least the basic version is free.

Corel describes its new Snapfire program as a “next-generation modular digital imaging platform” designed to provide “all the tools users need to easily organise, enhance and share their digital photos”. That sounds ideal - especially as Corel is providing the program for free from its new Snapfire.com site.

VERDICT: A wide range of power, but too old-fashioned and confusing for most users.

Ulead (since taken over by Corel) PhotoImpact was the first major bitmap editor to recognise the need to focus on digital camera owners.