I have Topaz Sharpen, DeNoise and Gigapixel AI. They do take some time to work (especially Gigapixel), but I don’t find it objectionable. I am using them all a 5 year old mid-range desktop PC, and a one year old mid-range laptop.
Sharpen AI works FAR better than “traditional” sharpening methods, but like anything else, it can be overdone. The trick is to try all the modes (sharpen, focus and stabilize). Each works differently to make up for why the image isn’t sharp to begin with.
DeNoise AI works very well to get rid of noise, again as long as you don’t overdo it. The beauty of it is that as opposed to other methods that sacrifice image sharpness to get rid of noise, it maintains the image sharpness. I’ve had noisy images come out looking as smooth as glass.
As for Gigapixel, I tested it initially with a 10mb JPEG. I had Gigapixel double the size of the file, and when I was done I enlarged a section of both images until they were the same size on my screen. I couldn’t tell which file was the original, and which was the enlarged image.
I think they’re all great. You do need some decent hardware, but not anything too outrageous, and you have to learn how to use it to get the best results.
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