What You Can Do with Each eMedia CS2 Edition: Standard vs Professional vs Expert
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Choosing the right edition of eMedia CS2 is essential to ensure your card design, printing, and encoding workflow matches your real needs. This guide provides a clear and honest comparison between the Standard, Professional, and Expert editions — based strictly on official Mediasoft documentation.
eMedia CS2 Standard Edition
The Standard edition is the perfect entry point for professional card design and printing. It already includes all the core features required for most ID badge and card projects.
- ✔ Multilingual software
- ✔ Card design (text, images, logos, geometrical shapes)
- ✔ Dual side cards (Front & Back)
- ✔ QR codes & standard barcodes (Code 128, Code 39, EAN…)
- ✔ Magnetic stripe encoding
- ✔ Batch printing
- ✔ Microsoft Excel database
- ✔ Compatible with all Windows card printers
Best for: schools, clubs, associations, and companies using Excel-based data.
eMedia CS2 Professional Edition
The Professional edition builds on the Standard edition by adding advanced database connectivity and automation tools.
- ✔ All Standard Edition features
- ✔ Advanced databases via ODBC / OLEDB
- ✔ Microsoft Access databases
- ✔ SQL databases (SQL Server, MySQL, Oracle via drivers)
- ✔ Advanced batch processing
- ✔ Formulas & scripting
- ✔ Plug-ins & COM components
- ✔ Signature PAD support
Best for: medium to large organizations with shared or SQL-based databases.
eMedia CS2 Expert Edition
The Expert edition is designed for advanced and secure card projects. It includes all Professional features, plus encoding, mobility, and network capabilities.
- ✔ All Professional Edition features
- ✔ Contactless encoding (PC/SC – MIFARE 1K & 4K, DESFire)
- ✔ Smart card UID reading
- ✔ Network license (up to 10 workstations)
- ✔ Print directly from your smartphone with Wifimage 2
Best for: access control systems, secure environments, and mobile ID projects.
Feature Comparison Table
| Feature | Standard | Professional | Expert |
|---|---|---|---|
| Card design & printing | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ |
| QR codes & barcodes | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ |
| Dual side (Front & Back) | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ |
| Magnetic stripe encoding | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ |
| Excel database | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ |
| Advanced databases (ODBC / SQL) | ✖ | ✔ | ✔ |
| Formulas & scripting | ✖ | ✔ | ✔ |
| Signature PAD support | ✖ | ✔ | ✔ |
| Contactless encoding (MIFARE / DESFire) | ✖ | ✖ | ✔ |
| Network license | ✖ | ✖ | ✔ |
| Wifimage 2 (smartphone printing) | ✖ | ✖ | ✔ |
Which Edition Should You Choose?
- Standard: professional card printing, barcodes, magnetic encoding, Excel database.
- Professional: SQL databases, automation, scripting, signature capture.
- Expert: contactless encoding, network licensing, mobile printing with Wifimage 2.
Buy the Right eMedia CS2 Edition 🛒
All editions are available from our official online store:
Conclusion ✅
This comparison is based strictly on official eMedia CS2 features. Choosing the right edition ensures performance, reliability, and scalability for your card printing projects.