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SmillaEnlarger makes images bigger, but maintains quality
SmillaEnlarger is a single-purpose app that enlarges images without leaving them blocky and indistinct. Its algorithm obviously isn't going to do a perfect job of filling in the details, but it draws smart curves that actually look good at large sizes. Just as importantly, it eliminates the artifacts and pixelation that usually show up in enlarged images.The display features the original image and the enlarged result side-by-side, so you can easily see which part of the source image you've selected, and you can crop and reposition as necessary. You can adjust the size of your output image either by using a slider or by entering the target dimensions. SmillaEnlarger is not a full-featured image editor, but there are a few options for adjusting sharpness and noise. It's a free app, but it would be worth paying for to anyone who has to manage a lot of frustratingly tiny photos.
Comments
11
Subscribe to commentsMollyAug 6th 2009 4:13PM
great find, thank you, Jay!
on another note: this is one of these posts that remind me what downloadsquad.com used to be all about. unfortunately, between all the "Twitter this" and "iPhone that", those gems become increasingly rare. :(
xlerateAug 6th 2009 5:08PM
Yes, I agree.
Downloadsquad has wandered a bit, although to stay relative, you must be adaptive.
Lets get more 'download' back in the squad.
Jay HathawayAug 6th 2009 7:40PM
Thanks, Molly! I do my best to find actual downloads, 'cause I'm a big fan of desktop apps, but I know there's an audience out there for web app stuff, too. A lot of people don't know that there used to be a separate social software blog on Weblogs Inc. that got rolled into Download Squad, so it's our responsibility to cover that stuff.
smknightAug 7th 2009 1:50AM
Agreed, thanks for the post Jay.
Kenn.keeperAug 6th 2009 9:15PM
A very nice app. I do alot of personal graphics and photo restoration as a hobby on my computer. Thank you for posting it as I haven't found anything quite like it in my searches of freeware.....
Free is Good Jay
Kenn.....
hazardAug 7th 2009 12:21AM
yay 4 jay
shohel_rcAug 7th 2009 3:15AM
Please give me google book downloader.
brogers101Aug 7th 2009 11:43AM
I understand you have to cover other topics, but perhaps you can start putting tags that say DOWNLOAD or DESKTOPAPP so people who still enjoy using tools where the web isn't available can do so.
I love the site, just disappointed how little in 2009 is a "download" article.
Stuart HallidayAug 9th 2009 8:31AM
So is this similar to the Fractal method or is it (more likely) an enhanced Lanczos or B-Spline algorithm?
The fractal method is the best on the market. Look up Genuine Fractals.
But it's an expensive program. Though they do allow a free trial that does amazing things to small images.
The Lanczos or B-Spline algorithm have of course been around for many years in the form on the free IrfanView program.
So I was interested in trying this program out.
Well after trying this program I can only say it's close to being a pile of poo.
You can only only enlarge a small subsection of your photo and then only enlarge by a small fixed amount. It's not very user friendly at all.
Seems to be just a test example program rather than a end product that can do any real work.
hazardAug 10th 2009 8:42AM
The GUI is a little confusing and the "Calculate" button should be "Export" or "Save". But it does work and works quite well. The subsection you refer to is only a preview and the image will be saved to file when you select Calculate.
I compared performance against Lanczos and B-Spline in IrfanView and ImageEnlarger produced clearly superior result.
jhAug 11th 2009 1:59PM
This download seems to work on my Mac, so I think your
windows header is off