Adobe Photoshop Versions 5.5 6 7 CS vs CS5 + CS5 Extended
Updated:
Photoshop CS6 has been officially launched, ready for pre-order, and the version comparison info is now available:
- Comparison of Adobe Photoshop Versions − CS6 CS5 CS4 CS3 Extended
- Where Are the Adobe CS6 Free 30 day Trial Downloads?
- What Are the System Requirements for Photoshop CS6 ?
The long-awaited release of Adobe Photoshop CS6 is here in a FREE Beta ready for download.
Official Photoshop CS6 Beta
More information can be found in this post of collected references:
Photoshop CS6 Beta Links Details Features
________________Previously Posted_________________
What are the different features of Photoshop version upgrades? How do they compare vs CS5? What are the differences between CS5, CS5.1, CS5.5 and older versions?
Updated: There is a change to Adobe’s CS6 upgrade policies that may affect your eligibility to upgrade from Photoshop CS4, Photoshop CS3, Creative Suite CS4, and Creative Suite CS3 to any Adobe CS6 application or Creative Suite.
The following 2 PhotographyUNcapped links will open a new window/tab:
Adobe Creative Suite 6 and Photoshop CS6 Availability and Upgrade Policy Clarified
Adobe Makes It Official – Special Introductory Upgrade Prices on Creative Suite 6 CS6
Adobe has yet to produce a comparison chart including CS5.5.
Scroll down to compare previous versions of Photoshop, or use the following links for other Adobe Photoshop version comparison info:
Adobe CS5.5 Creative Suite 5.5 and Photoshop CS5.1 Subscriptions are available for order now. Here are some links about the CS5.5 New Features, 5.5 Prices, CS5.5 Downloads, CS 5.5 ordering, 5.5 FAQ, Photoshop CS5.1 Subscriptions, and a comparison chart of the Adobe Photoshop version release history:
Buy Adobe CS5.5 Now – Order CS5.5
How Much Is an Adobe CS5.5 Subscription ? CS5.5 subscriptions are only available through Adobe.com
What is New in Adobe Photoshop CS5.1 Photoshop CS5.1 Extended ?
What is new in Adobe Creative Suite CS5.5 Master Collection 5.5 ?
Adobe CS5.5 Creative Suite 5.5 Subscription FAQ’s
What are the system requirements for Adobe CS5.5 Master Collection 5.5 ?
What are Adobe Photoshop CS5.1 Subscriptions? How do Photoshop Subscriptions Work?
Download Free CS5.5 and Creative Suite 5.5 Trial Software
Can I get a CS5.5 upgrade? Am I eligible to upgrade to CS5.5 ?
Adobe CS5.5 Student + Teacher Academic Educational Discounts
Adobe Photoshop release history – Wikipedia chart
_________________ Previously published info ________________
Adobe Photoshop CS6, CS5.5, news – updates – new features – free trial downloads – wish list – upgrade policies – extended – links – tutorials – shipping – date – price – discounts – cost
CS5 is the most advanced version of Adobe® Photoshop® and improves on the previous releases in ways large and small. The following is a limited list of the differences between CS 5 and several earlier incarnations of Photoshop; CS4, CS3, CS2, and CS.
The information has been gathered from a variety of sources. It is by no means complete. Only some of the highlights are listed.
The Best Prices from the Adobe USA Store
Photoshop CS5 Extended Photoshop CS4 Extended Photoshop CS3 Extended 3D creation and editing Adobe Repoussé new yes no no 3D materials library and picker new yes no no Depth of field for 3D new yes no no Easy-to-use shadow catcher new yes no no Image-based lighting new yes no no 3D object painting enhanced yes yes yes Adobe 3D Forge engine enhanced yes yes yes 2D and 3D compositing enhanced yes yes yes Maximum creative impact Truer Edge selection technology new yes no no Color decontamination for selections new yes no no Selection and mask refinement tools new yes no no Content-Aware Fill new yes no no Mixer Brush new yes no no Bristle Tips new yes no no Puppet Warp new yes no no Additive grain in Adobe Camera Raw new yes no no Automatic lens correction new yes no no Straighten Image tool new yes no no GPU-accelerated features enhanced yes yes no Content-Aware Scaling yes no Extended depth of field yes no Post-crop vignetting enhanced yes yes no Noise removal in Adobe Camera Raw enhanced yes yes yes HDR imaging enhanced yes yes yes B&W conversion enhanced yes yes yes Creative content (shapes, styles, swatches, and so on) enhanced yes yes yes Motion-based content editing yes yes yes Industry-leading color correction yes yes yes Auto-alignment of layers yes yes yes Auto-blending of images yes yes yes Quick Selection tool yes yes yes Productivity boosts Adobe Mini Bridge new yes no no Adobe CS Review, part of Adobe CS Live online services* new yes no no Paste in place new yes no no 64-bit support Mac OS and Windows® Windows only no Multitouch support Mac OS only Mac OS only no Custom panels enhanced yes yes no Adobe Photoshop Lightroom® integration enhanced yes yes yes Powerful printing options enhanced yes yes yes Broad file format support enhanced yes yes yes Mobile device support yes yes yes High-resolution web display yes yes yes Powerful extensibility enhanced yes yes yes Advanced image analysis Quantitative data extraction yes yes yes Scale markers yes yes yes Count tool yes yes yes Edit tracking yes yes yes DICOM volume rendering and file support yes yes yes MATLAB support yes yes yes Image Stacks yes yes yes *CS Live services are complimentary for a limited time.
This product may allow you to extend its functionality by accessing certain features that are hosted online, including CS Live online services (“Online Services”), provided you have a high-speed Internet connection. The Online Services, and some features thereof, may not be available in all countries, languages, and/or currencies and may be discontinued in whole or in part without notice. Use of the Online Services is governed by separate terms of use and by the Online Privacy Policy, and access to some services may require user registration. Some Online Services, including services that are initially offered at no charge, may be subject to additional fees and require a separate subscription. For more details and to review the applicable terms of use and Online Privacy Policy, visit www.adobe.com. For more information about CS Live online services, visit www.adobe.com/go/cslive.
If one of your favorites is overlooked, let us know. Feel free to add your input to the list of features in the Comment section at the bottom. Thanks in advance.
Adobe Photoshop CS5 (version 12)
- Improved workflow features
- 64-bit support
- Enhanced ACR 6 RAW processing
- Lens Correction Lens Profiles (one of my fave new features)
- Content-Aware Fill
- Painting + Brush improvements
- HDR Pro
- GPU Graphics processor improvements
- Refine Edge revisions
- Improved Performance
Adobe Photoshop CS4 (version 11)
- OpenGL display GPU acceleration in Photoshop
- Improved RAW processing with Adobe Camera RAW CR 5
- Canvas rotation with OGL
- Panels for Adjustment and Masks
- Extended Depth of Field (one of my fave new features)
- Layer Auto-Alignment
- Tabbed Document Windows
- Adobe Bridge CS4 with improved file management
- Support for 64-bit in Windows Vista x64
- Auto-blend
Adobe Photoshop CS3 (version 10)
- New User Interface (UI)
- Adobe Camera RAW (ACR) improvements
- Quick Select tool (one of my fave new features)
- Black and White Adjustment (one of my fave new features)
- New Curves Adjustment Layer dialog
- Smart Filters (non-destructive)
- Save for Web and Mobile Devices improvements
- Cloning and Healing with preview
- HDR new support in 32-bit with Layers
Adobe Photoshop CS2 (version 9)
- Adobe Camera RAW ACR 3
- Deeper Layer nesting structure
- Red eye tool (finally)
- Lens Correction (one of my fave new features)
- Image warp
- Spot Healing Brush tool (one of my fave new features)
- Smart Sharpen
- Vanishing Point
- Selection of multiple Layers
Adobe Photoshop CS (version 8 ) [this is when 'Creative Suite' was added to the names]
- Shadow/Highlight image adjustment (one of my fave new features)
- Adobe Camera RAW 2
- Match Color
- Lens Blur Filter
- Histogram with real time updating
- Scripting capabilities
Adobe’s Best Deals of the Day on CS5 – Adobe USA Store
Again, the above information has been gathered from a variety of sources. It is by no means complete. Any suggestions and corrections welcome.
Cheers.
[...] Comparison of Adobe Photoshop Versions − What Are Differences CS5 vs CS CS2 CS3 CS4 [...]
Great comparison! I am wanting to start some small graphic design projects and have been totally overwhelmed with potential software. Obviously, CS5 is my ideal software but is too pricey for me as a beginner. I have found a couple good deals on the CS3 version. I’m thinking I may start out with this older version and work my way up. Can you tell me if CS3 would be suitable for what I need?
Hi HB,
Glad you got something out of the comparison.
While CS3 might work for your needs, I’d be very wary of someone selling older Adobe software. Only the current CS5 version is likely to be legit.
CS5 has much improved tools in many areas, that might not be apparent at first, but will in the long run.
Perhaps you might qualify for an Academic discount?
http://www.photographyuncapped.com/get-adobe-photoshop-discounts-for-students-teachers-cs4-cs5-cs6-academic-educational-creative-suites/digital-photography/2009/09/
Cheers,
Ken
I have a book for CS3 and i was wondering if there are any major differences (as opposed to improved tools) that would completely change a process that the handbook would describe.
thanks for all the good info!
hi Matt,
Most of the basic features are the same, and are generally located in the same places. Occasionally Adobe will move menu items, but that only throws one off for a short while.
Some great features have been added to more recent versions, but CS3 was, and is, a good version.
Under the hood, some of the processing has been improved even for features that have existed in several recent versions.
All that being said, there have been some changes,and features, that I would term major.
I would certainly recommend that you try the procedures in the book, and look elsewhere if they don’t work as you expect.
Thanks for your comments, it really takes a lot of work to keep a site like this going. It’s nice to know that people are out there enjoying it.
Cheers
Thanks for compiling this comparsion. Do you think it is worthwhile to upgrade from CS4 to CS5? It will cost me more than half of what I paid for CS4 so I’m wondering whether the additional features are worth the expense.
In a word, yes.
But, that does depend on how you use Photoshop.
If you are barely using it, then maybe not now.
If you use Photoshop a lot, or for specific tasks that have been improved in the new version, then I’d definitely say:
Try the free 30 trial of CS5 and see how it fits your needs.
Adobe FREE 30 day CS5 Trial
Then you can decide in a more informed way if it’s worth the upgrade for you.
Hi,
i have cs 3, and do basic photo adjustments, mostly just because i am not knowledgeable enough to do much else easily. if i can get CS5 i hopefully can find on-line classes to teach me more about editing, adding & removing, light adj. repairing damaged photos ect. (please comment if you have suggestions where i can find this help ).
i do shoot raw photos all the time now and want to be able to adjust those images in the new ps version.
i would like to know the differences in the full edition vs. the teacher/ student edition of CS 5 extended.
Thank You
Great job Ken. If you can add the realse dates infront of each version, that would also help in decision making. Keep up the good work.
[...] Here is a not too great comparison chart. Content aware fill and a better refine edge tool are two great improvements in CS5. The improved edge finding may help you with background removal, depending upon the difficulty. [...]
Can I upgrade Photoshop 7.0 to CS5 ??? Amazon has it for $153.00.
No, that version is too old. Alas.
You’ll have to buy a full version.
On sale now – Adobe Sale Coupon