IrfanView Editor's Review

Take charge of your graphics, icons and digital photos with this all in one Windows tool.

Taking control of your digital photos isn't an easy task. If you're like my family and have a lot of children and a photo happy wife, then you're going to accumulate a lot of digital pictures over the years. This is why I'm happy I've got things like irfanView.  It’s a graphics and digital photo editor and management tool for Windows

irfanView (pronounced ear-fan-view) is designed to be simple for beginners yet powerful enough for professionals or advanced users.  It was the first Windows graphic viewer with Multiple (animated) GIF support, and one of the first graphic viewers with Multipage TIF support. It was also the first graphic viewer with Multiple ICO support.

irfanView supports many file formats, and includes support for select RAW file formats, so you may be able to edit files right off your digital camera, before you convert them to a more popular format. It also supports Adobe Photoshop filters, allowing you to bring power to an easier to use editing program, all this even before you consider its own drawing and editing tools.

One of the best things about irfanView is that it runs from a single executable file. It doesn't require any dynamic link libraries (DLL's) that may be installed or scattered across your hard drive in order to run.  It also doesn't contain any registration or nag messages. The application is free, though the author does appreciate monetary support through donations.

Pro’s: Freeware/Donation-ware, Extensive list of supported file formats.

Con’s: Application tries to be the everything graphics viewer and feels as though it tries to take on too much.

Conclusion: irfanView is click-for-click one of the best digital photo and graphics editing programs available today. While it can do quite a bit, offering a good, solid basic feature offering as well as support for Photoshop based filters, and its own plug-ins, it feels as though it’s a bit stretched; and it certainly doesn't have the fit and polish of Photoshop Elements or other mid to high-end packages. This shouldn't stop you from giving irfanView a try, however. It’s a great application, and it's hard to beat the price.