80 Level Digest: Great AI-Powered Tools for Upscaling Images

Just a couple of years ago, a technology that would automatically increase the quality of an image was but a dream, and upscalers that would produce a top-notch result were few and far between. Thanks to the recent boom in the field of AI technology, however, we now have hundreds of spectacular tools and programs capable of turning even the most compressed illustrations into crisp and high-quality images. That's why today, to help you choose the exact tool you were always looking for, we've collected some outstanding upscalers, both online and as standalone programs.

ImgUpscaler

The first tool on our list is the versatile and widely-used ImgUpscaler, an online program powered by super-resolution technology and upscaling algorithms. With this tool, you will be able to drastically increase the quality of your portraits, both photos and digital characters, in just a matter of minutes. With five free images a week, ImgUpscaler will best suit you if you're looking to upscale images every once in a while and not on a regular basis. However, if your projects require you to process hundreds of images, a paid option with unlimited access is also available.

VanceAI Anime Upscaler

If you are a 2D Artist working on anime-style characters or just a die-hard fan of Japanese cartoons in general, then VanceAI Anime Upscaler would definitely be your software of choice. Powered by waifu2x, an image scaling and noise reduction neural network for anime-style art, the tool allows you to automatically upscale anime images online. The AI is also capable of getting rid of blur, noise, and compression artifacts when upscaling the quality of an image.

Iclons8's Smart Upscaler

If anime is not your cup of tea and you are more interested in enhancing the photos of real people, then Iclons8's Smart Upscaler might be what you were looking for. The tool is powered by the company's state-of-the-art AI to enlarge and enhance images and has over five million images in its database, meaning it will likely be able to upscale any face imaginable. The tool is available for free, albeit it adds a watermark in that case, which can be removed by purchasing a paid version or a subscription.

Let's Enhance

For those looking for a more multipurpose tool, we highly recommend checking out Let's Enhance, a versatile automatic AI editor to increase image resolution without losing quality. Powered by Image Super-Resolution technology, the program can resize pictures and make them crisp, improve resolution, colors, and lighting of your images, unblur them, and more. A great jack-of-all-trades type of tool if you need to do more than just upscaling.

Zyro's Image Upscaler

Up next, we've got a handy upscaler made by Zyro. Equipped with the company's proprietary AI, the tool enables you to upscale and enlarge your images with just a few clicks without losing quality. What's more, the program is free to use and can be used as many times as you would like.

UpscalePics

One more incredibly useful tool that can upscale, enlarge, and enhance your images is UpscalePics, a powerful tool that uses state-of-the-art convolutional neural networks and machine learning to clarify, sharpen, and upscale the photo without losing its content and defining characteristics. What's more, the program is capable of removing JPEG noise and artifacts after analyzing your image and can be used to enhance various types of images.

Real-ESRGAN

Real-ESRGAN is an open-source AI image upscaler that extends ESRGAN to a practical restoration application to improve low-resolution images by upscaling them and reducing noise. Real-ESRGAN supports 16-bit images, gray images, tile options, images with alpha channels, and even videos and can be used for free.

Video2X

Another program that can be used for both images and videos is the amazing Video2X, an upscaling and frame interpolation software written in Python. Using powerful algorithms and the aforementioned waifu2x neural network, the software can increase the resolution and frame rate of your videos, GIFs, and images in just a couple of minutes. 

QualityScaler

QualityScaler is a deep-learning image upscaler for any GPU, written completely in Python and powered by BSRGAN. It features an easy-to-use GUI, capable of automatic image tiling and merging, and can resize the visuals before upscaling them. 

Nero AI Image Upscaler

And finally, we've got Nero AI Image Upscaler, a powerful tool that can make your photos sharper and clearer and is capable of enhancing image quality and resolution. With Nero AI Image Upscaler, you can upscale small images by up to 400% and obtain high resolution and quality with fully automated AI processing. The quality of images will also be improved by reducing noises and sharpening.

These were our picks for this week's 80 Level Digest, we hope that you will be able to find the right upscaler to suit you the best. What tools did we miss? What upscaler do you use? Share your thoughts in the comments and don't forget to join our Reddit page and our Telegram channel, follow us on Instagram and Twitter, where we share breakdowns, the latest news, awesome artworks, and more.