DxO PhotoLab 9.6 Windows & Mac Review: Compressed DNGs, XD3 For All, and Fewer Crashes?

Support me on Patreon:   / andyhutchinson   Six months after a disastrous launch, DxO PhotoLab 9.6 arrives with compressed DNG export, the XD3 denoising model for all RAW formats, a new diffusion slider for AI masks, and promises of a more stable Windows build. I tested both Windows and Mac versions to find out whether DxO have finally delivered on the promises they made back in October. The short answer: mostly. The long answer involves GPU crashes, 37-second Fuji exports, sky masks that don't know what sky is, and the best noise reduction on the market. As always, this review is completely independent with no sponsorships, affiliate links or brand partnerships. 📝 For more in-depth articles and insights, check out my Substack: https://ahutchinson.substack.com 🌐 Connect with me across platforms: Bluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/andyhutchins... Pixelfed: https://pixelfed.social/andyhutchinson Flickr: https://flickr.com/photos/repomonkey/ Blog: https://andyhutchinson.com.au All of my videos:    • All videos   Chapters 00:00 Intro 01:45 The Housekeeping 02:40 TL;DR 03:53 Bugs & The Windows Build 08:54 Compressed DNG 10:01 XD3 Demosaic & Denoise 11:23 AI Mask Diffusion Slider 12:36 Conclusion 16:39 Outro