Magic Lens Max 5.0.2

Magic Lens Max allows you to zoom, rotate, and capture any portion of your screen. The program uses various techniques for resizing the image. 5 resampling methods can be used: Linear, Cosine, Spline, Cubic, and Mitchell. The resized view can also be sharpened, or its edges can be enhanced.

The application works just like a real magnifying lens. You can configure the shape of the area which is to be zoomed. It's also possible to configure the size of this area, and of its border. By default, the border is semi-transparent, but its transparency level is fully adjustable. Zooming in and out is very simple. All you need to do is press the CTRL key and, at the same time, move your mouse wheel. Balloon tips are shown when you start the program, helping you learn the most important features.

Compared to Microsoft Windows's built-in Magnifier utility, this software is far better. The Windows Magnifier leaves a portion of your screen unusable, because of the floating window. On the other hand, Magic Lens Max doesn't take up any space on your screen, due to the fact that the zoomed area follows your mouse. A system tray icon allows you to disable or enable the application.

Pluses: The zoomed area's colors can be corrected. Gamma correction, as well as filters like sepia, inversion, or grayscale can be applied to it. It's also possible to enable/disable any of the three main color channels.

Drawbacks / flaws:

In conclusion: I believe a lot of work has been put into developing this application. It works great, but, in my opinion, its price seems a bit too high.

version reviewed: 5.02