EmailBest Reviewed
Photo Sharing
- Best photo-sharing website SmugMug *Est. $40
- Best free photo sharing Flickr *Est. $0
- Free photo-sharing/photo-editing suite Picasa Web Albums *Est. $0
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Free photo-sharing/photo-editing suite
- Easy to use
- Integrated with excellent Picasa software
- No ads
- Few features
- No layout customization
- Skimpy storage limit
April 2009. According to reviewers, Picasa Web Albums from Google is the simplest service for basic photo needs. Fully integrated with free Picasa software, this ad-free service allows users to organize, edit, upload and share their photos all with one tool. However, Picasa Web Albums' no-frills simplicity comes with some sacrifices, including a skimpy 1 GB maximum storage limit (though increased storage is available for a fee -- *est. $20 per year for 10 MB, and up). Flickr, another free site, offers more features and a vibrant user community, but comes with a number of limitations of its own. SmugMug (*est. $40 per year) gets tons of kudos for its features and ease-of-use, but it is relatively expensive and access to some features requires stepping up to a more expensive Power (*est. $60 per year) or Pro (*est. 150 per year) subscription.
Picasa Web Albums draws lots of attention from reviewers. FirstTube.com includes it in its useful comparative review of eight services. The New York Times looks at how Picasa Web Albums stacks up as a service for the less-technically sophisticated. The Australian site Lifehacker reports on the results of a user poll of photo-sharing websites. PCMag.com includes some discussion of Picasa Web Albums as part of a larger report on the Picasa 3 photo software.
Our Sources
This review of photo-sharing services provides objective and thorough analysis of eight websites, rating each on over a dozen performance standards. The reviewer lauds Picasa Web Albums for being the easiest to use, but adds that the simplicity comes at the expense of features.
Review: A Review of Online Photo Sharing Services, Mike Gravel, Oct. 3, 2007
2. PCMag.com
PCMag.com includes discussion of Picasa Web Albums in its review of the latest version of Picasa photo-editing software. Michael Muchmore says that Picasa Web Albums has been his choice for sharing photos and videos. He appreciates the lack of advertisements and prefers the 1 GB storage limit to Flickr's monthly upload limit (100 MB).
Review: Picasa 3 (Beta) Review, Michael Muchmore, Nov. 7, 2008
The New York Times' technology columnist David Pogue is on a mission to find an online photo service that even his mother can handle. He picks Picasa Web Albums from eight others for photo-sharing, but Snapfish and Kodak Gallery for simple photo viewing and print ordering.
Review: Photo Sharing Even the Folks Can Handle, David Pogue, June 5, 2007
Based on voting by its readership, the Australian site Lifehacker names the top five online photo-sharing services. However, discussion is limited and no single service is singled out as the best overall.
Review: Five Best Photo-Sharing Websites, Adam Pash, June 13, 2008
This blog entry names the best photo sharing websites according to its author. While some useful tidbits on Picasa Web Albums are provided, why Vaibhav Pandey names Picasa Web Albums or any of the other sites mentioned best is never adequately explained.
Review: 6 Best Photo-Sharing Websites, Vaibhav Pandey, Dec. 17, 2008
Photo Sharing Runners Up:
4 picks by top review sites.
3 picks by top review sites.
2 picks by top review sites.
2 picks by top review sites.