Corel MediaOne Plus Digital Camera Software

Today Corel announced the release of MediaOne Plus (US$49.99) and MediaOne Starter (Free download) for organizing, enhancing, and sharing digital photos and video clips. These are new versions of the products formerly known as SnapFire Plus and SnapFire Free Edition.

Although the user interface has not changed much from SnapFire, the launch time of the program has been made faster and many of the tools are more intuitive to work with. Several new features have also been introduced in MediaOne Plus.

New features for MediaOne Plus (aka Snapfire Plus 2.0):

• Online Backup and Sharing with Sharpcast – Users' pictures are backed up automatically, preserving an unlimited number of photos for life. Users can backup full-resolution pictures for 30 days. After that, the images are resized to a maximum of 1600 x 1200 pixels, suitable for a 5 x 7 print. Customers who wish to maintain photos at their full resolution for longer periods of time can subscribe to a Sharpcast premium plan. Sharpcast also automatically creates a private online gallery of backed-up photos, which users can access securely from any web browser to share their photo collections with family and friends.

• Professionally-designed Templates – MediaOne Plus includes hundreds of new creative backdrops, picture tubes, photo frames, designs and layouts, including professionally-designed templates from Sandra Magsamen (www.sandramagsamen.com) and Smilebox (www.smilebox.com).

• DVD Authoring – Corel MediaOne Plus now records video clips and slide shows onto DVD, so slide shows can be watched on a TV or computer.

• Improved Video Editing – Users can simply select the beginning and end of each video clip on a slide bar continuum, and playback the edited video to ensure it captures the perfect memory to share with family and friends.

I do not have updated reviews of the software at this time, but for now you can take a look through the Snapfire Plus screen shot tour, to get a general idea of the software's user interface and features. Or visit the MediaOne Plus home page to download a trial version giving you a 30-day preview of MediaOne Plus features. After 30 days the MediaOne Plus features will expire if you don't purchase the software, but you can continue using the Starter version features free, forever.

Update: Users who purchased a boxed version of Snapfire Plus are eligible for a free upgrade to MediaOne Plus. Eligible users of Snapfire Plus should keep an eye on the in-product message center for upgrade instructions within the next week. Customers who prefer a CD will be able to purchase one for a nominal free through Corel customer service.

Related Links:

• MediaOne Plus Home Page
• SnapFire Plus Review
• SnapFire Free Edition Review