Tested: Adobe’s Topaz Generative Upscale is NOT the same as Topaz web + app versions
Photoshop just launched Generative Upscale integration, powered by Topaz Labs. At first, I assumed it used the exact same Topaz models found in the Topaz web upscaler and the Gigapixel desktop app.
I tested it.
They are not the same.
There are actually two different Topaz engines involved
Topaz Bloom
This is the “Generative Upscale”.
Bloom adds creative details to your image while it upscales.
It exists in:
Photoshop (Generative Upscale)
Topaz Web App
Topaz Desktop App
Topaz Gigapixel
This is the pure “Upscale” engine.
Gigapixel focuses on preserving detail, not inventing new ones.
It also exists in the Photoshop app, the Topaz web and desktop app.
Even though Adobe shows a dropdown that looks like you can choose “models”, it isn’t actually the same thing as what Topaz provides.
Topaz Bloom on the web and Topaz Bloom in Photoshop behave completely differently.
The Photoshop version of Gigapixel, and the Gigapixel desktop app, are pretty much the same — but Bloom is a separate, more creative engine that often invents details.
Model: Topaz Bloom
In the Photoshop Integration, the Topaz Bloom model has a creativity slider from 0 (minimum) to 10 (maximum).
In the Topaz Web version, the same model appears as preset options:
Subtle Creativity
Low Creativity
Medium Creativity
High Creativity
Max Creativity
I tested all of them.
When you push the creativity higher, Photoshop starts inventing details.
Not sharpening, not enhancing, but literally creating new texture and structure that wasn’t there before.
At Max, both Photoshop and the Web version look weird, no surprise.
But the Web version remains cleaner and more controlled, while the Photoshop Integration becomes chaotic and breaks the original texture faster.
The biggest gap shows at low creativity.
At 0 in the Photoshop Integration, Topaz Bloom actually damages parts of the image,
while the Web version handles the same image surprisingly well, keeping details intact without destroying them.
I scanned and tested this on a beautiful Swedish matchbox, so this is the original image we’re going to work with.
So this is the test result of low creativity or “0” of Topaz Bloom Photoshop integration, as you see, it removed the gut detail and invented a new shape.
This is the “Subtle Creativity” result from the Topaz Bloom Web version. It keeps all the main details intact and enhances them without messing up the original artwork.
Overall, the Photoshop Integration of Bloom feels a bit like generative guesswork, while the Web version at least tries to respect the original image before adding anything new.
Model: Topaz Gigapixel
This one plays in a different league.
Gigapixel keeps the original image intact and simply increases detail.
No extra AI creativity, no hallucination.
The desktop app delivers cleaner and more reliable results, especially on posters, textures, and typography.
The Photoshop version? Slightly rougher edges, more artifacts, a little less clean.
Not horrible. Just not pleasant.
4× Upscale Topaz Gigapixel – Photoshop Integration
4× Upscale Topaz Gigapixel Pro AI Beta – Desktop App
Left (Original – 1320px)
Middle (Photoshop Integration – 3000px)
Right (Desktop App – 3000px)
Quick conclusion
If you want creative enhancement, the Photoshop Topaz Bloom Generative Upscale will disappoint you.
If you want real, clean upscale quality, Topaz Gigapixel AI (desktop app) is still the better choice.
Photoshop gives convenience.
Gigapixel gives quality.
