One of the most beloved free browser-based photo-editing tools for the past several years has been Picnik.

For those with only limited needs when it comes to image manipulation, Picnik was a blessing – particularly those for whom purchasing something as robust as Adobe’s Photoshop was out of the question.

Google acquired the Picnik platform quite a while ago, but news is out today that Google will be integrate Picnik into its social platform Google+. The service is set to close on April 19, 2012 but in the meantime users can use all of the solution’s premium features.

If you’re not using Google+ and still want to edit photos and images on the fly within your browser, there are some good Picnik alternatives to consider. Some popular vendors include Pixlr.com (editor's favorite), FotoFlexer.com, Lunapic.com, Phixr.com, Pixenate.com, Snipshot.com, and Flauntr.com.