Group test: what's the best web graphics tool?

5. Anime Studio Debut

• Reviewed on: 6 August 09
• RRP: £25 inc. VAT
• Rating:

Well designed and easy to use, Anime Studio Debut is a good program for budding animators.

4. Adobe Flash CS4 Professional

• Reviewed on: 6 October 08
• RRP: From £574 inc VAT
• Rating:

Between the restructuring of animation paths and Motion Editor-centered animation controls, Flash CS4 is whole new world for animators, with features that are both more intuitively cohered to the whole CS4 logic, and more powerful. Other animation enhancements include the Bone tool that applies Inverse Kinetics for powerful control over cartoon-style motion, and limited 3-D simulation.

3. Adobe Fireworks CS4

• Reviewed on: 6 October 08
• RRP: £252.92 inc VAT
• Rating:

Fireworks CS4 came out in beta form earlier this year. With a revamped interface, Smart Guides, and ability to export clickable prototypes into an interactive PDF, it's a worthy upgrade.

2. Adobe Photoshop Elements 9

• Reviewed on: 9 June 11
• RRP: £79 inc VAT
• Rating:

Adobe Photoshop Elements 9.0 offers significantly more functionality than any free or low-cost software, and is easy to use.

1. Adobe Creative Suite 5

• Reviewed on: 13 April 10
• RRP: £2,700 inc VAT for Master Collection
• Rating:

So is Adobe Creative Suite 5 a must-buy? That all depends on your needs. In CS4, Adobe seemed to concentrate on improving integration between its applications. This time round, the focus is on improving each individual app, and the decision over whether this is a must-have upgrade for you or not depends on how much you will benefit from the special new tools of each program. Some, such as Roto Brush in After Effects or the Gap tool and Split Columns in InDesign, promise to be huge timesavers. Photoshop's Content-Aware Fill also offers a quick way to carry out a common task, while the new brushes it shares with Illustrator which mimic real paint effects will have a big impact on the digital art scene. Many will benefit from the ability to explore iPhone app development in Flash. Other changes, such as the move to 64-bit for After Effects and Photoshop for Mac, offer a big enough performance boost to convince many a wavering creative.