The 8th generation of Neat Image is here! Building on the already exceptional performance of previous versions, Neat Image 8 offers enhanced features, better noise reduction quality and more detail preservation optimized for today’s computer systems. ABSoft invites you to explore the functions and capabilities of the new version.
Quick jump to: What's new | Pricing and availability | Upgrading from older versions
Higher Quality of Noise Reduction
At the heart of the new version is a big improvement in the quality of noise reduction that is now possible in Neat Image 8. Thanks to advances in computer processing speeds, ABSoft has been able to tune the algorithm to give it more noise-reduction power.
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High Quality & Highest Quality Modes
Neat Image 8 now features High Quality and Highest Quality modes. The High Quality mode (enabled by default) provides more accurate filtration results and sharper output images. The Highest Quality mode gives Neat Image 8 the ability to eliminate much more of the undesirable digital noise than ever before, while preserving more of the beautiful details that we love to see in our images. Neat Image 8 also includes Normal Quality mode, offering faster processing with quality that is on par with that of Neat Image 7.
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Detail Recovery Feature
Highest Quality Mode features a remarkable Detail Recovery function that is capable of recovering fine details that are typically lost due to extremely strong digital noise, compression or inaccurate noise profiling. Detail Recovery yields particularly good results when recovering partially lost repeated patterns such as brick walls, rug designs, fabric textures, ripples and other similar image elements.
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Artifact Removal Filter
This filter effectively treats speck artifacts, which are small dots or lines that are typically introduced by in-camera denoising and compression. This improves image quality and is a valuable addition to the new version.
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More Control Over Noise Reduction in Lower Frequencies
Neat Image 8 now automatically processes Very Low and Ultra Low frequency ranges, which is important given today’s high resolution cameras. Noise reduction in lower frequencies may now be adjusted separately though dedicated sliders, allowing you to more accurately fine-tune your results. Processing of Very Low and Ultra Low frequency data is essential to reducing large color spots within images.
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Improved Sharpening Quality
Neat Image 8 also makes improvements to its sharpening capability. When this function is enabled, output images now feature sharper, more defined edges and exhibit less of the halo effect that sometimes accompanies sharpened images.
More Powerful and User-Friendly Noise Profiling Tools
The second big change in Neat Image 8 is the improvement to the program’s noise profiling system that is so critical to ensuring good noise reduction results.
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Improved Auto Profile
In Neat Image 8 the Auto Profile function has been improved and is now much more proficient at automatically identifying the best sample areas to select for noise analysis. More accurate noise measurement leads to more accurate noise reduction results, so it is important to select the most suitable area for analysis.
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Larger Sample Area for Profiling
In addition, Neat Image 8 is now able to analyze a larger area in order to create a more accurate noise profile. This gives the program more data to utilize in filtration and particularly assists to detect low frequency noise better — an improvement over version 7. The Auto Profile function takes advantage of this improvement and also selects larger areas where possible.
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Enhanced Very-Low and Ultra-Low Frequency Processing
Neat Image 8 has more powers of noise detection in the Very Low frequency and Ultra Low frequency ranges, giving the program more information to use in noise reduction even when small areas are selected for profiling.
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Profile Assist
Neat Image 8 also features Profile Assist, which helps identify and select the best image sample area for noise analysis. This feature highlights and exaggerates image defects and fine details, thus making fine details and noise more apparent. This assists the user to select the area with the strongest noise and the least amount of details — leading to more accurate filtration results.
User-Friendly Filter Customization
Neat Image 8’s filter settings are now simpler, cleaner and more intuitive. Version 8 has a number of new features and improvements that make it easier to fine-tune the filter settings to achieve optimum filtration results.
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More User-Friendly Filter Settings Layout
The filter settings are now grouped hierarchically, which makes it easier to focus on the most important parameters.
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Filter Blocks
Users are now able to fine tune filter blocks as required and it is also now possible to enable or disable entire filter blocks - allowing you to quickly evaluate the effect of a specific block on the filtration result.
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Preview Assist
Preview Assist mode is a visual aid that makes image details more visible. This assists the user to fine-tune the noise levels to find the balance between sufficient reduction of undesirable noise elements and preserving weak details.
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Filter Tuning Mode
With one click the user can now temporarily raise the noise reduction amount in all channels, which is very useful for accurate adjustment of the noise level settings. This enables the user to avoid under-filtration (too much residual noise) and over-filtration (unnatural looking images).
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Variants of Filtration
This new feature allows the user to visually compare results of different filter settings. With this, users can experiment with several different sets of filter settings and save each Variant to the toolbar. It is then easy to switch between Variants to visually compare the results.
Faster Processing and More Responsive GUI
Neat Image 8 continues to optimize performance and evolve compatibility by making improvements to GPU processing and adding support for more hardware.
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Faster Preview Performance
Preview is optimized to update faster when filter settings are adjusted, improving usability and efficiency.
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Significantly Improved GPU Performance
Neat Image 8 is better optimized and is up to 2 times faster in GPU-only mode and 1.4 to 1.7 times faster in mixed modes.
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Support for NVIDIA GPUs with CUDA Compute Capability 5.x on Mac OS
- Support for New AMD GPUs
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Support for HiDPI-Modes
Both the Neat Image 8 standalone application and the Photoshop plug-in support HiDPI capable displays — including Retina displays.
Other Improvements
There have been many other changes and improvements made in version 8.
Please refer to the full history of changes for more details:
Pricing and Availability
Neat Image v8 is available as a plug-in for Photoshop (Windows+Mac) or a standalone application (Windows+Mac+Linux).
Neat Image v8 comes in three editions:
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Demo edition (free): free edition with limited functionality intended for evaluation purposes. Click here to download.
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Home edition ($39.90): intended for home users and supports 8-bit images (like JPEGs produced by compact cameras) and limited batching in standalone application.
- Pro edition ($69.90 for standalone and $79.90 for Photoshop plug-in): intended for professionals who process large amounts of images and work with high-bitdepth images.
Standalone and plug-in for Photoshop can also be purchased together in a bundle for $49.90 (Home edition) or $99.90 (Pro edition). Multi-user licenses (to use on multiple machines) are available with volume discounts.
Licenses for non-Demo editions of Neat Image standalone and plug-in can be ordered from the Purchase page.
The products are delivered as a digital download.
Upgrading from Older Versions
Neat Image v8 products are available at preferential rates for users of previous versions. To upgrade, please log on to your account to see which upgrade offers apply to you and take advantage.
Notes About Use
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Neat Image v8 will not replace any older version of Neat Image on your computer. Neat Image v8 and an older version can co-exist and be used on the same machine.
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Neat Image v8 builds and uses new noise profiles that are not fully compatible with profiles used by older versions. Neat Image v8 can open and automatically re-build profiles from earlier versions of Neat Image only if they contain noise samples. To speed up loading of these profiles it is recommend to re-build a set of profiles using the Tools > Profile Converter menu. If you are using profiles from the profile library, please re-download corresponding profile sets from the library. Those profiles have been updated for Neat Image v8.
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Neat Image v8 uses new filter presets that are not compatible with those used by older versions. If you have built a re-usable set of filter presets with an older version of Neat Image, then you may want to re-build it in Neat Image v8.
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If you upgrade from an older version of Neat Image Home edition, please note an important difference in the license agreement: Neat Image v8 Home edition may only be used for non-commercial purposes now. If you need to use Neat Image v8 for commercial purposes then please upgrade to v8 Pro edition (you can contact us for assistance).
- Mac OS X: the new minimum version of OS X able to run Neat Image v8 is the version 10.7.5. If you need to use Neat Video in older versions of OS X please contact us for assistance.
Notes About Aperture Support
Since Apple has discontinued further development of Aperture, we have been forced to cease development of Neat Image for Aperture too. The previous version 7 of Neat Image plug-in for Aperture remains available to purchasers of that product. The plug-in is available in your account on our website. If you do not have that plug-in and want to purchase that older version, please contact us.