After being thoroughly disappointed (it's $29.95 plus about $10 shipping from Amazon/Adorama), I asked my local art store what they used, and they showed me their 6 year-old German-made Dahle 507 Personal Trimmer, which with self-sharpening blades, was still cutting sharply and precisely after all these years. They apparently use it for all their small cutting needs in the store. I bought one for $50 after a bit more research, and have just finished retrimming all my photos so that they have straight edges (and it worked perfectly). If what you're looking for is a digital photo cutter, go for a Dahle or one of the better ones at Amazon. I'd avoid this product. Personally, I'd avoid the Carl brand, but have no personal knowledge of their higher end products.

31 of 31 found the following review helpful:

Does the job  Apr 20, 2005
By Anonymous
Clearly "rkm001" has had some difficulty in using this equipment. I have one that I used as part of my job. I have probably cut over 1000 photos/labels/etc. Other people in the office have cut more than 2000 photos. It does exactly what it is supposed to do - it cuts a straight line along the edge of the guide.

Where this problem arises is when the cutting surface, underneath the cutting wheel, becomes worn from use. I grove will slowly develop and since the cutting surface is not fixed in position and can slide from side to side, the grove will not be straight nor will it be parallel to the cutting guide.

To solve this problem, you should not use extreme force when cutting. Gentle pressure is adequate for cutting a photo. You can also remove the cutting surface and rotate it 90° or even flip it over. This gives you four cutting surfaces to work with. Ultimately you will need to replace it. Carl makes those too.

For $20, it works well and unless you plan to cut thousands of times a month, it is fine for home or light office use.

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