The hp ipaq rx4240 is sold/advertised as a mediacentric handheld. However, its included photo viewer never really worked for me(a source of endless frustration)… . Resco’s Photo Viewer for Palm OS scored a rave review at TamsPalm’s - so my expectations for the PocketPC version of the program were high. Can it stack up?
After installing Resco Photo Viewer, the program asks for permission to become default viewer for a variety of file types. The screenshot below shows all supported file types:
Navigating around the memory card is easy - the program allows you to either switch to a folder-only view or displays a folder bar on top of the images:
A feature called albums allows you to group together pictures from various sources for more comfortable viewing. You can, for example, create an Album of the best pictures on a memory card:
Images are shown in four different view modes(list, three iconic modes). The program transparently creates thumbnails in the background - you first get a small version, which is then resized for optimal fit:
Multiple images can be selected by either tapping and dragging or activating multiselection mode explicitly. These images can then be moved and sent as a group:
Tapping on an image opens it for viewing. Images can be zoomed, rotated and panned freely in real-time:
Images can be cropped, resized and color-corrected on the handheld:
Resco Photo Viewer also allows you to convert images to JPG, BMP or PNG types. This can be very handy for compressing screenshots on the go and is a feature I have never ever seen before in a handheld image viewer…kudos to Resco on that one, if only it supported GIF.
Handwritten notes and doodles can be scribbled onto an open image(and saved into a new image). Unfortunately, the color selector didn’t work on my ipaq - I was limited to black:
Resco’s image viewers have always had an outstanding slideshow module that can be used to show images. The transition effects are really well-done - try them out yourself!
Last but not least, Resco Photo Viewer ships with a cool screenshot program that will be covered in a seperate review!
Overall, I am shocked and awed by Resco Photo Viewer - this product is truly insane! I have seen a lot of image viewers, but none has offered so much flexibility when image processing and editing is concerned. Combined with Resco’s traditionally well-done image viewing and slideshow modules, we have yet another must-have product for every PocketPC… Tune in soon for a look at the screenshot tool that ships along as a free bonus!
