Contrast and sharpness/detail were about average. It earned top judges' scores for paper quality and near the top for skin tones. There was some variation across categories. Pricey six-color printing option probably unnecessaryĪmong the best photo books, Shutterfly was our second-best performer for quality (though significantly behind Printique). Read our full Costco Photo Center review. Its clip art stands out for high detail and dimensionality that beats the flat, cartoonish look of other services'.īe sure to check out the Costco Photo Center shipping guidelines for more information on how long it will take to print and ship your photo album. However, Costco does offer a rich selection of page backgrounds (both patterns and a wide array of solid colors). The software also has a retro look reminiscent of web interfaces from a decade or two ago. And its selection of photo frames is limited, with no customization options. It offers by far the smallest selection of book design templates. Overall, though, Costco provides an attractive product.Ĭostco's design software is barebones. Skin tones appeared very pleasing and natural, but detail was a bit weak, say in the wrinkles on a subject's forehead. And Costco offers just three book sizes (one softcover and two hardcover). We had a few gripes with the hardcover construction - mainly the fact that you can easily see the book stitching in the furrow between pages. (For the same price, you can also get a two-pack of 8 x 8-inch softcover books.) Costco also offers the cheapest shipping by far (compared to similar delivery timeframes with rivals). But Costco's only hardcover offering is a much roomier 11.25 x 8.75-inch, 30-page version that, at $19.99 is still substantially cheaper than its smaller, 20-page competitors. Typically, we evaluate hardcover books of around 8 x 8 inches. If you order a photo book from Mixbook, be sure to check out its shipping information and deadlines (opens in new tab).Ĭostco offers outstanding value among all the services we reviewed. And Mixbook's live tech support could be a decisive factor for frustrated creators. For photos, Mixbook provides both effects (filters) and basic image editing: brightness, saturation, and contrast (a rare capability). It also allows you to adjust borders, drop shadows, and image opacity. For instance, it provides 644 book templates to get started. However, what elevates Mixbook above other photo books is that its software is user friendly and fun, offering plenty of customization options. In reevaluating Mixbook, we have raised the scores for these criteria. The dull look of Signature Matte made colors appear a little washed out, weakened contrast, and obscured details a bit. One note: When we first reviewed Mixbook, we accidentally selected the Signature Matte page finish (a slight upgrade), instead of the default Everyday Semi-Gloss. Best to upgrade to the layflat binding if you plan to use spreads. Unfortunately, Mixbook's standard binding also swallows up some detail (like a child's face) in two-page spreads. Colors and skin tone quality is about average. The inside pages are slightly thin, but their semi-gloss finish produces strong contrast. Its matte finish captured a variety of skin tones well. Its cover tied Printique's for quality and was far ahead of all the others. Mixbook's overall quality is below Printique's, but rougly matched with the other competitors. The best photo book services todayīook spreads lose a lot of the photo in the crease (For more details, see "How we test photo book services," at the end of this article.) We've also included shipping information where available, as photo books take time to make - and will cost more the longer you wait to order.Īnd be sure to check out our picks for the best photo calendars and best photo cards. Then we rated the quality of the software and price competitiveness. To account for the different aspects of a book's value, we convened a panel of judges to rate quality of the book itself. To find the best photo book service, we created books using five different online provider. But which photo book service delivers not only the best quality images, but also provides the best tools so that you can put together the book you want without frustration? And, which allows you to make a photo book without putting too big a dent in your wallet? A photo book also provides an opportunity to deliberately arrange images to tell a story, and to embellish them with creative touches in arrangement, page backgrounds, text, clip art, and other effects.
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