Adobe Photoshop Elements is Now Available in the Windows Store
- Paul Thurrott
- Nov 25, 2016
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Adobe Photoshop Elements 15 is now available in the Windows Store. Best of all, it’s temporarily on sale for just $60. But you can find an even better deal elsewhere.
But let’s think about the Windows Store version first.
This is very interesting to me on a number of levels. For starters, it’s the first major league Windows desktop application to appear in the Windows Store. So that’s a big deal.
On a more personal level, Photoshop Elements is an application I use and rely on every single day. But it’s also, conversely, the last “heavy” desktop application I install on all of my PCs. That is, this is an old school Win32 app, full of quirks and complexity. And it takes a long time to install, even longer than full Office 2016.
Worse, (the desktop version of) Photoshop Elements 15, which is the latest version of this application, is hard-coded to allow only two device activations at a time. That’s a problem for me, since I use so many different PCs. So while I do use Elements 15 on PCs with high-DPI displays because it supports that, I also keep older Elements versions around for those PCs that do not.
If you purchase this version of Photoshop Elements 15, it supports 10 device installs. That alone could make it worth buying from Windows Store. And since it’s one sale for just $60—the application normally costs $100 online—it seems like a no-brainer.
That said, you can buy the normal desktop version of the application right now for just $40 from Amazon.com. That’s $60 off! If you don’t care about the benefits of the Windows Store version, or want to install this application on older versions of Windows, that’s an incredible deal.
It’s still early, but it seems to look and work identically to the normal desktop application, and I assume it’s a Centennial packaging which allows that desktop application to work like a UWP app. Assuming this holds up, it’s not quite “game changer” territory, but it is good news. And I’ll let you know if I find out differently since I really do use this every single day.
Most interesting.
Tagged with
Conversation 48 comments
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2428
Premium MemberLog in to Reply<p>I would love for Microsoft to make it possible to install a legacy application into a UWP container. It would be awesome if they could just detect installation and write the app and Registry information to a UWP container instead of directly to the disk or the registry. </p>
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5611
Premium MemberLog in to Reply<blockquote><em><a href="#27270">In reply to </a><a href="../../../users/madthinus">madthinus</a><a href="#27270">:</a></em></blockquote>
<p>This is basically what this process does. Registry information does not go into the normal registry.</p> -
5234
Log in to Reply<blockquote><em><a href="#27303">In reply to </a><a href="../../../users/WP7Mango">WP7Mango</a><a href="#27303">:</a></em></blockquote>
<p>It’s another hive.</p> -
5611
Premium MemberLog in to Reply<blockquote><em><a href="#27311">In reply to </a><a href="../../../users/Waethorn">Waethorn</a><a href="#27311">:</a></em></blockquote>
<p>Not really.</p> -
5234
Log in to Reply<blockquote><em><a href="#27316">In reply to </a><a href="../../../users/WP7Mango">WP7Mango</a><a href="#27316">:</a></em></blockquote>
<p>If you read the technical documentation and understood it, you’d have a different opinion.</p> -
341
Premium MemberLog in to Reply<p>Does anyone use this to edit/modify pictures that reside in OneDrive? I don’t want to have to download them local and edit them local then copy them back up…. I could… prefer not to.</p>
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691
Log in to Reply<blockquote><em><a href="#27278">In reply to </a><a href="../../../users/krisarthur">krisarthur</a><a href="#27278">:</a></em></blockquote>
<p>If you setup OneDrive file sync then you can access the files locally from any app without manually downloading it. Once you have saved your changes in Photoshop the changes will sync to the cloud automatically.</p> -
1581
Premium MemberLog in to Reply<p>I’d be interested to understand how this compares for shared PC usage.</p>
<p>If I purchased the legacy desktop version and installed it on my PC, could all users access it?</p>
<p>And if I purchase and install the Windows Store version, can other users of my PC access it from their profile? Or do they need to buy it for themselves?</p> -
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Premium MemberLog in to Reply<blockquote><em><a href="#27285">In reply to </a><a href="../../../users/DaveHelps">DaveHelps</a><a href="#27285">:</a></em></blockquote>
<p>I assume it’s tied to your Microsoft account and is thus not shared to other users. But I will test that.</p> -
442
Log in to Reply<blockquote><em><a href="#27285">In reply to </a><a href="../../../users/DaveHelps">DaveHelps</a><a href="#27285">:</a></em></blockquote>
<p>Adobe is moving away from that type of install too. You’d need an Adobe account setup to install, and limited to two installations. For MS I’d think you’d just add your MS account to the machine and do the install and hopefully less limited on the number of installs. MS usually limits between 5 and 10 installs depending on the title.</p> -
5234
Log in to Reply<p>More native ads? Seriously? Where is your journalistic disclosure? You’re basically doing the same thing as Penton – justifying Amazon referral links as "news" by writing a big article about it, which is what the press is getting grilled on lately, re: "fake news".</p>
<p> </p>
<p>In any case, what ever happened to Microsoft saying that they would advertise Win32 apps on the Windows Store for third-party companies? What that a Windows 8-era-only thing that never happened? So now with Project Centennial, and Microsoft’s 30% vig, they have no financial reason to do that anymore?</p> -
5027
Log in to Reply<blockquote><em><a href="#27294">In reply to </a><a href="../../../users/Waethorn">Waethorn</a><a href="#27294">:</a></em></blockquote>
<p>This is news, one of the first big and classic W32 programs is now available in the store, most likely through Centennial.</p>
<p>If you care about Microsoft news, or technology at all, this is news.</p>
<p>And last time I checked, Adobe is a third-party-company, and it is advertised in the store.</p> -
5234
Log in to Reply<blockquote><em><a href="#27314">In reply to </a><a href="../../../users/JudaZuk">JudaZuk</a><a href="#27314">:</a></em></blockquote>
<p>No, it’s "here’s a deal, *but don’t look at our referral link*…oh and by the way, here’s some related news". It’s a native ad. Practically every review over at Penton was doing the same thing: any time some new gadget (usually Amazon-exclusive brands) to rouse the tech-horny impulse shoppers came up on Amazon, they’d "review" it, but it was full of Amazon referral links – and ABSOLUTELY ZERO disclosure. It’s no different than if you reported on a company that you have shares in without disclosing it openly, and I’m calling them out on it. These posts should carry a "SPONSORED" tag in the headline.</p> -
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Premium MemberLog in to Reply<blockquote><em><a href="#27328">In reply to </a><a href="../../../users/Waethorn">Waethorn</a><a href="#27328">:</a></em></blockquote>
<p>This isn’t sponsored. I bought Adobe Photoshop from the Windows Store, which was more expensive than the Amazon link. Which I provided because it’s a lower price and thus should be of interest to people … who are interested in this product. Which I really pay for, and use every single day. And have done so for many years across many (not quite all, but close) versions.</p> -
5234
Log in to Reply<blockquote><em><a href="#27383">In reply to </a><a href="../../../users/paul-thurrott">Paul Thurrott</a><a href="#27383">:</a></em></blockquote>
<p>Would you have written it if you didn’t have a referral link to monetize the article?</p> -
2428
Premium MemberLog in to Reply<blockquote><em><a href="#27294">In reply to </a><a href="../../../users/Waethorn">Waethorn</a><a href="#27294">:</a></em></blockquote>
<p>Paul is part of their affiliate program. You can just search Amazon and buy it directly, or you can buy it using his link. He gets a couple of cents in the process, you pay no more than you would have if you bought it on Amazon, so I am not sure what the problem is. You are an Alpha member, so you clearly don’t have a problem sending some money his way. <br /><br />This is news, since Adobe beat Microsoft to their own store. </p> -
5234
Log in to Reply<blockquote><em><a href="#27315">In reply to </a><a href="../../../users/madthinus">madthinus</a><a href="#27315">:</a></em></blockquote>
<p>I was told something about no ads on the front page for paying subscribers….</p> -
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Premium MemberLog in to Reply<blockquote><em><a href="#27327">In reply to </a><a href="../../../users/Waethorn">Waethorn</a><a href="#27327">:</a></em></blockquote>
<p>No. You weren’t.</p>
<p>You were <a href="../../../thurrott-premium">promised</a> "minimal banner advertising resulting in a faster loading site." Or, <a href="../../../thurrott-premium-faq">as the FAQ puts it</a>:</p>
<p style="padding-left: 30px;">With a premium membership, we will be removing the majority of the advertisements from the site. We say majority as the traditional ad-banners will all be gone, pop-ups and overlays will not be used but we retain the right to find sponsorships for forums, podcasts and other content mediums that may be shown to premium members in a non-obtrusive way.</p>
<p> </p> -
1581
Premium MemberLog in to Reply<blockquote><em><a href="#27294">In reply to </a><a href="../../../users/Waethorn">Waethorn</a><a href="#27294">:</a></em></blockquote>
<p>I have to respectfully disagree with you on this. If you read past articles and notes from PC builds, rebuilds and migrations, you’ll know Paul does use this app. And with this being, to my knowledge, the first major app to make this journey, it feels newsworthy to me.</p>
<p>Similarly, perhaps it’s just me but I have absolutely no problem with Paul, Brad, Raf or anyone else on the team using affiliate links to Amazon. It’s not as if they’re directing us to some backwater scam-shop, and personally if I’m considering buying something online then I always check the Amazon price and availability.</p>
<p> </p>
<p> </p>
<p>I do remember the Win32 app advert idea though and I also wonder where it went. If I recall correctly, one release Visual Studio was advertised via the Store. Perhaps the commercial terms don’t/won’t make sense for the publishers until Windows Store usage picks up, or maybe Microsoft were waiting until Centennial was ready to maintain the "safety" of Store apps.</p> -
5234
Log in to Reply<blockquote><em><a href="#27320">In reply to </a><a href="../../../users/DaveHelps">DaveHelps</a><a href="#27320">:</a></em></blockquote>
<p>They’re calling the Cortana and Edge switcher notifications ads, I’m calling this an ad.</p> -
124
Premium MemberLog in to Reply<blockquote><em><a href="#27333">In reply to </a><a href="../../../users/Waethorn">Waethorn</a><a href="#27333">:</a></em></blockquote>
<p>You’ve lost me….What are you bitching and moaning about and who are you bitching and moaning about OR are you just bitching and moaning?</p> -
1753
Premium MemberLog in to Reply<blockquote><em><a href="#27333">In reply to </a><a href="../../../users/Waethorn">Waethorn</a><a href="#27333">:</a></em></blockquote>
<p>How do you get the switcher ads? I’ve switched between Edge, Firefox and Chrome (and have been using Firefox and Chrome as my main browsers for over a year) and I’ve never seen any changer ads.</p> -
5234
Log in to Reply<blockquote><em><a href="#27375">In reply to </a><a href="../../../users/wright_is">wright_is</a><a href="#27375">:</a></em></blockquote>
<p>Don’t pull that "it doesn’t happen to me" bullsh*t argument. Paul’s documented it quite well here.</p> -
1753
Premium MemberLog in to Reply<blockquote><em><a href="#27379">In reply to </a><a href="../../../users/Waethorn">Waethorn</a><a href="#27379">:</a></em></blockquote>
<p>It isn’t bullshit, I have not seen any of these "ads". Maybe it is a remnant of the EU decision against Microsoft, that Windows 10 over here doesn’t show those sorts or messages. I was genuinely interested to hear how and when they appear, because switching between browsers and having Chrome or Firefox as the default does not bring up any such messages over here.</p> -
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Premium MemberLog in to Reply<blockquote><em><a href="#27333">In reply to </a><a href="../../../users/Waethorn">Waethorn</a><a href="#27333">:</a></em></blockquote>
<p>Yeah, our little operation here is directly comparable to the company that earns $20 billion in revenues every quarter. Fair.</p> -
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Premium MemberLog in to Reply<blockquote><em><a href="#27294">In reply to </a><a href="../../../users/Waethorn">Waethorn</a><a href="#27294">:</a></em></blockquote>
<p>Sorry, is this directed at me? Native ads?</p> -
5530
Log in to Reply<p>finally a decent app on the windows store, and surprise surprise, it’s win32!</p>
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5611
Premium MemberLog in to Reply<blockquote><em><a href="#27310">In reply to </a><a href="../../../users/FalseAgent">FalseAgent</a><a href="#27310">:</a></em></blockquote>
<p>There are lots of decent apps in the store, most of them UWP. Just because you don’t happen to use them doesn’t mean they don’t exist.</p> -
5530
Log in to Reply<blockquote><em><a href="#27313">In reply to </a><a href="../../../users/WP7Mango">WP7Mango</a><a href="#27313">:</a></em></blockquote>
<p>I said <em>decent</em> app. I find many UWP apps lacking in either features, stability, or speed. I have tried many UWP apps, and I still continue to use the on a daily basis. I use the Twitter app, Photoshop Express, Speedtest, Dropbox, OneDrive, Instagram, Messenger, Crossy Road, MSN Weather, OneNote, even the Centennial version of CrystalDiskMark, the Tampermonkey extension for Edge, the built-in Mail app, and way more. Eat your words.</p> -
5611
Premium MemberLog in to Reply<blockquote><em><a href="#27326">In reply to </a><a href="../../../users/FalseAgent">FalseAgent</a><a href="#27326">:</a></em></blockquote>
<p>Yes, I was talking about <em>decent</em> apps with great features, stability, performance, but you haven’t listed any of the decent apps which I use -</p>
<p>StaffPad<br />Live Interior 3D Pro<br />Maps<br />Word, Excel, PowerPoint<br />Drawboard PDF and Xodo<br />FL Studio Groove</p>
<p>and many more!</p>
<p>Feel free to eat your words ;-)</p>
<p> </p>
<p> </p> -
1377
Premium MemberLog in to Reply<p><em><a href="#27339">In reply to </a><a href="../../../users/WP7Mango">WP7Mango</a><a href="#27339">:</a></em></p>
<p>Stipulating that StaffPad may be the best piece of software for writing music which currently exists, what would that matter for those who don’t write music? Myself, I have no interest in the best Traditional Chinese or Arabic calligraphy software.</p>
<p>As for Excel, Mobile Excel? When did it get VBA and add-in support?</p> -
5611
Premium MemberLog in to Reply<blockquote><em><a href="#27428">In reply to </a><a href="../../../users/hrlngrv">hrlngrv</a><a href="#27428">:</a></em></blockquote>
<p>I don’t know why you are trying to twist the argument into something it’s not, but let me just explain a few things -</p>
<p>1. I never said StaffPad was the best piece of software for writing music which currently exists. I listed it as a decent app. The context was "decent UWP apps" and StaffPad <em>is</em> a decent app. It really is a top quality app for writing music with a pen the traditional way using digital paper instead of real paper. As I already explained, just because you don’t use it doesn’t mean it’s not a decent app. The two things are completely unrelated.</p>
<p>2. Since when is VBA or add-in support a prerequisite for a decent app? Add-ins can actually be done in a UWP way, by utilising the UWP app service APIs. But it’s still not a prerequisite for a decent app.</p> -
830
Log in to Reply<p>Good article, but you think duplicated the last paragraph by mistake?</p>
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Premium MemberLog in to Reply<blockquote><em><a href="#27312">In reply to </a><a href="../../../users/StevenLayton">StevenLayton</a><a href="#27312">:</a></em></blockquote>
<p>?</p>
<p> </p> -
5611
Premium MemberLog in to Reply<blockquote><em><a href="#27380">In reply to </a><a href="../../../users/paul-thurrott">Paul Thurrott</a><a href="#27380">:</a></em></blockquote>
<p>Check it again – he’s right. The duplication starts from "It’s still early…" before the picture and after the picture.</p> -
2149
Log in to Reply<p>Hmm… kind of tempting but I’ll wait for Affinity Photo to come out of beta on Windows. Their Designer software is pretty fantastic and was only $40 ($50 normally).</p>
<p>But Microsoft really needs to make it super easy for developers of Win32 apps to get them on the Store. In fact, not just easy to do so, but preferable. I want to see this Store pick up some momentum, because I don’t get the feeling that any regular user even thinks to visit the Store if they’re looking for software.</p> -
8630
Log in to Reply<p>Haha what does crossy road do</p>
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699
Log in to Reply<p>Awesome! Great news. 😉 I was involved in a beta test for this version, so it should be much better than the previous versions (the ones I used.) Provided lots of feedback to Adobe about making it less child-like and a little more grown up for us adults. I haven’t used this newer version yet, so I hope it is much improved!</p>
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469
Premium MemberLog in to Reply<p>Not a great start to the WIn32 Store experience! Downloaded and installed fine, but wont launch!</p>
<p>"C:\Program Files\WIndowsApps\AdobeSystemsIncorporated.AdobePhotoshopElements15_1.38…\Adobe Photoshop Elements 15.0.exe – The Parameter is incorrect."</p>
<p>Anyone got a fix? Who do I query with Microsoft or Adobe?</p> -
180
Log in to Reply<p>It’s primarily good news I think because I see people who get new laptops go to the Windows Store, look for their normal apps, fail to find them, and never go back. The more apps that they expect to find that are in there, the better, and a version of Photoshop will surely help. Now, if only Microsoft could get the standard Dropbox client in there, Firefox (I’ll not expect Chrome), etc. that would really help. What we need is for users to be able to get by with <em>only</em> Store apps.</p>
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7063
Log in to Reply<p>Serif is working on a Windows version of Affinity Photo. You should take a look at the Beta if you haven’t already. It’s very similar to Photoshop proper except only $50 (once the stable version is released).</p>
<p><a href="https://affinity.serif.com/en-us/windows/">https://affinity.serif.com/en-us/windows/</a></p>
<p> </p>
<p>Not available in the Windows store though.</p> -
6447
Log in to Reply<p>The fact that even a key windows desktop application Photoshop Elements cannot be released as a reworked UWP "app" is not a good sign. Any app that is relatively simple enough to be developed to run within the limitations of UWP will also be available probably on other platforms/web. Because the reason the "masses" use windows is because ultimately of the necessity of win32. ("Legacy" but as important as ever). Outside of full win32/windows , (UWP/ on Windows/mobile) is just another platform attempt like playbook/blackberry OS, winRT, WebOS, Tizen, Ubuntu Mobile, Firefox OS, fighting against the odds (many already lost or likely have). And don’t get me started on the sillyness of full windows/win32 on ARM on so many levels.</p>
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442
Log in to Reply<p>Too bad Premier Elements is not there yet. I usually get the bundle of both Elements packages. And MS Store DRM should be a heck of a lot easier to manage than Adobe DRM, so that’s a good thing.</p>
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1775
Log in to Reply<p>I guess the sale is over. The lowest price I saw was $54.</p>
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906
Log in to Reply<p>Hi, I bought this and installed it on a Surface Pro (i-5) . Slow does not begin to describe it. I click on tabs (eg "Create") and nothing happens — not for 30, 60 seconds, and then poof, the window opens. What’s up with that? Anybody else having the experience?</p>
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906
Log in to Reply<blockquote><em><a href="#27783">In reply to </a><a href="../../../users/chriscarstens">chriscarstens</a><a href="#27783">:</a></em></blockquote>
<p>Well, answered my own question. It took about 36 hours to do a face scan on my catalog of several thousand photos — and after it was completed, the program started working MUCH more quickly. </p>
<p> </p> -
906
Log in to Reply<p>I cannot get it to work. The program is beyond slow. Using an older Core 2 I5, 8 GB ram, Sony all in one — ok, ancient, but come on. I click the create menu button and NOTHING happens. The item becomes backlit, but nothing from there. Ditto for Share, etc. Basically, none of the menu tabs in the Organizer work. Any ideas what I am missing here? </p>
<p>Thanks in advance,</p> -
699
Log in to Reply<p>I would love if you could write up a review of Photoshop Elements 15, Paul. I own 14 and am curious how much improved 15 is. I see it on sale again temporarily for $69 in the Windows Store.</p>