TurboCAD Deluxe Review

I’ve just come across this review of TurboCAD Deluxe on a site called Top Ten Reviews, so I thought it worth posting it here.

Comments in brackets are mine.

TurboCAD Deluxe has more design tools than many of the best 3D CAD software. If you’re working with architectural designs, the wall tool and the house tool will be particularly helpful in your creation process. The house tool walks you through a setup process where you select the number of rooms, types of rooms, dimensions and more. There are also hatching tools and transparency options for the creation process when you want to see all aspects of your design without rotating. After you’ve finished designing a model, this easy CAD software will help you use the render tools to make it look as realistic as possible. Adding lighting effects and textures or materials like brick, marble or wood make your TurboCAD Deluxe model look like a real object instead of a wireframe. So from beginning to end, your 3D models will be easy to design and will look exactly how you want them. However, there are no built-in animation features, so you won’t be able to animate designs for a presentation.

Interface Features – 10/10

CAD programs can be a bit tricky to use, but in the case of TurboCAD Deluxe, an easy-to-use interface makes all the difference. It’s simple to customize, move and resize the toolbars. From the options tab, you can choose from 11 different toolbars to add or remove from your workspace including style manager, materials and environments. This CAD software has a setup manager for when you want to customize your design from the very beginning of a new project. A command line, (which you do not have to use, or even see), and a macros feature also allow you to work faster and more efficiently. Not all CAD programs have macros, so TurboCAD Deluxe stands out when it comes to convenience and speed.

Editing Tools – 9.4/10

When editing your designs with TurboCAD Deluxe, you’ll have a wide range of tools to utilize. If you need to convert 2D designs to 3D designs, the extrude function can do that for you. You can also generate 2D drawings from 3D models as well. Polar tracking, or the snap tool, helps you move your elements to precise locations for easier modelling. Tools like the layer manager keep track of all the components of your design much like a layer manager in a photo editing program. Using the point marker is especially helpful in architectural designs so you can mark elements when you share your designs with collaborators. Colour and text editing also helps customize and organize components of your drawings. All of these tools aid in the render process and help you make better looking, advanced components with this computer-aided design software.

Help & Support – 10/10

IMSI/Design provides excellent help and technical support for its CAD software. To learn more about the application and its features, you can search the built-in knowledge base or find tutorials on the website. The in-software manual is extensive although not comprehensive. The same manual isn’t available online; instead, an online wiki takes its place. For direct technical support, the company offers phone support and an online ticket system as well as an online chat feature. Other manufacturers only provide free support for a limited period of time after you purchase your software license. However, IMSI/Design provides you with unlimited support for the life of your software. This means you can talk to technical support, watch free tutorial videos and have access to both the online and in-program manuals.

Compatibility – 9.4/10

TurboCAD enables seamless workflow to and from other design applications with extensive file compatibility. The software supports 28 industry-standard formats including WMF, PDF and DWG, the native file format for most CAD software applications. The software also allows you to import and export SKP and DXF files, file formats compatible with Google SketchUp and AutoCAD, respectively. To save a design as an image, you have the option of saving as a JPEG, BMP, PNG or GIF image file. For 3D printing, you can also save files in STL format with this CAD drawing software.

TurboCAD Deluxe Summary – 9.8/10

TurboCAD Deluxe constitutes excellent 2D CAD software that appeals to a wide range of users, from inexperienced beginners to expert users. While the software and corresponding help manual aren’t without flaws, the shortcomings are negligible at best and shouldn’t break your decision to use the software. The TurboCAD knowledgebase and video tutorials, (https://www.youtube.com/user/paulthecadtracey),  proved to be more than sufficient in our search for help. Minor drawbacks notwithstanding, the design application is worth the investment if you’re seeking powerful yet accessible CAD software.

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Paul