GM Subscription Price For v16 Upgrades?

[NateLiquidGravity]

The important question I have is what happens to subscription prices for all those who just got upgraded to a new level? Did their subscription price just raise too?
Currently on the Alibre.com Site it shows maintenance subscription prices are $299/year for Geomagic Design Elements and $399/year for Geomagic Design. Roughly 1/3rd more per year. I was unable to find a current rate for those with the Personal Edition to compare.

For example here is what I have: $299/year
Geomagic Design Professional 15.0 (Geomagic Design Elements?) , plus: Sheet Metal, Design Configurations, DesignCheck, Vault, Direct Editing, Translate, Advanced Sheetmetal 1
Plus third party software I have now.

My understanding of what I would be if I upgraded: $399/year
Geomagic Design - All Geomagic Design features. (i.e. no Dynamics or Simulate)
And keep third party software I have now.

 

[kev h]

Would be good to know as I have been very lucky and grateful for the upgrade as I had PE with translate but am not looking forward to the increase in maintenance this September??

Cheers Kev 8)

 

[jimbees]

Nate
Like you I have grandfathered features on the old GD Elements now upgraded to GD. If you look at the freebie benefits we have had for several years over more recent purchasers of GD Elements, you might feel that they have a legitimate complaint about all the extra features we have been getting for the same maintenance cost. I guess that we now should accept that we should pay the same maintenance as other users with GD or else downgrade our software to GD Elements. It is only US$2 a week extra for you, quite a bit more than that for those of us who live outside USA. We should pay the extra, grateful that we have had several years of lower cost maintenance which has finally come to an end.

The Dynamics issue covers quite a big range of people. If you need it, buy it. If you don't need it then you would have to pay the same maintenance to get the sheetmetal, translate and other features, in a new install, which presumably you use and which are included in GD. I do not think that Alibre DesignCheck is much of a feature any more as it is not supported by the people who supplied it to Alibre/Geomagic.

Jim

 

[NateLiquidGravity]

DesignCheck was mistakenly left in the list. I thought I removed all of the third party ones that were no longer supported/included.

As far as getting a freebie: I can appreciate the extra seat and additional features they are adding for legacy users like myself and I'm sure new users would be shocked at what the full version once sold for.
However those who bought in at the low price could now be paying more in maintenance than they original got the software for.

The lack of stability in the product line in the past is frightening. Note that the following are not all in the right order and names may be wrong because I'm going by memory: Teamwork features removed, integrated file repository/versioning removed (switched out for Vault), price for the product and maintenance dropped and then raised again, free version removed, standard version removed, personal version added, new features for things I have (sheetmetal) climbing to higher versions, Vault moving to higher version, two cubify versions added, personal version removed... And this disregards most of the third party software that was added and dropped. And now going full circle teamwork features added. Hopefully 3D Systems will see this post and can be more stable in the future and communicate better.

I didn't continue maintenance subscription in part because of this lack of stability, bug fixes, and communication; so any price really won't effect me at this point. But I still use the version I have and follow the forum for updates in case they fix/add the stuff I really need. Apparently they aren't trying to win us back after we leave since I never received the email about new versions/features.

However; all that said; I just want them to clearly say what the policy is on this issue.

 

[NateLiquidGravity]

18 days later and this thread has been viewed over 280 times (I'm sure that's not all me) and still no response from Geomagic. Do I have start sending up flares?

 

[Szumi]

I've been a Expert version user for a few years. Stringing me along on motion, telling my I have to buy dynamics as motion is dead has me considering just sitting out on renewing maintenance.

The feature to convert Solidworks drawings has been nice but I can export solidworks to step files from my pc at work. Is the ability to import solidworks files moving ahead as time progresses or is it another feature stuck in time?

I've contacted support once in all the years I've used the product. It was to kill a license on a pc that died.

 

[B9Creations]

I paid to renew my maintenance subscription almost 3 weeks ago. They charged my CC but they've not renewed my subscription, still shows expired.
Yesterday I got another email asking me to renew.

:x

 

[dammerel]

Hi my renewal is due soon. This is what it will cost me

If you renew by your renewal date, the single year renewal rate is $400. Right now we are also running a multi-year renewal promotion as well which can help you save some extra money....and that's never a bad thing! You can renew for two years for $720, a savings of $80, or three years for $1020, a savings of $180.

Im not renewing my maintenance at this point in time

 

[Dave H]

I paid to renew my maintenance subscription almost 3 weeks ago. They charged my CC but they've not renewed my subscription, still shows expired.
Yesterday I got another email asking me to renew.

:x

Same thing happened to me. I contacted sales, and I was in the system as having renewed. They are running behind with confirmations and payment receipts.

 

[livingstonl]

They sure aren't as responsive as the Alibre team was! Things are more buggy too. I am about to jump ship back to SolidWorks. SW has their issues too, but, I need to trust my CAD system more than I do right now. Geomagic is not a hobby program, and right now, 3DS seem to be treating it that way.

PS, before you think I'm a newbie who doesn't have a real point of reference... I am a mechanical engineer who has been power using Alibre daily for over 11 years to design products (models, assemblies, drawings, BOM's, sheetmetal, etc.).

 

[RCH_Projects]

Circa Aug 2011
viewtopic.php?f=1&t=13550

Even if Alibre could vanish (it cannot*) I am sure the license issue would be eliminated responsibly (or hacked given such a dire circumstance).

Alibre has to much value on its own or part of a larger corporation. The worst (fine) scenario would be a Wordperfect existence - which it sort of had anyway.

The only way Alibre could dissappear is if a free killer app took over the whole market.

* Unless it were purchased by competitor to mothball it - and no one see's anything like that.

(This opinion expires in two years - just in case )

...

Maybe when 3DS has the ( play-doh) customized "part" creation package that fits their corporate profile they will sell or spin off the code to a company oriented like Alibre was for real product developers (dreaming).

 

[fitzbond]

I let my subscription expire after over 10 ten years, I talk to a sales person and mentioned all of the things we have talked about in this forum from the lack of communication to the lack of implementation in the software and the direction of the new company that seems to focused on 3D printing instead of 3D modeling. It did seem to me they are very distance from the user base and really did not seemed to care if you renewed or not at least from the email conversation I had with them. It was a good ride, I missed the old company, I will continue to use to software until I can find a replacement. :cry:

 

[Hop]

I think I have had Alibre Design software licenses since somewhere around 2009. Back then I think you had to be connected to the Alibre server and they touted the team development approach. I wasn't interested in that, but later Alibre dropped the "phone home" requirement and just used their server to verify my license status. Still invasive, but not unbearable. I see now that the on-line maintenance support is no longer available either. If I decide not to renew "maintenance" they will issue a perpetual license, but for how many machines I don't know. I currently have four machines licensed, from the five I believe I am grandfathered to have.

Now, according to the alibre.com website I have the following: Geomagic Design Expert 15.0, plus: DesignCheck, Alibre Motion, PhotoRender, Local Repository, Machinist Toolbox, Engineers Toolbox, Online Training, Alibre KeyShot with a maintenance subscription that expires on my birthday this year, June 25, 1944.

So far, I have received no "reminders" to re-new my maintenance, so I have no idea what it would cost. I get the distinct impression that Geomagic couldn't care less about legacy Alibre users like me. Maybe they are hoping we will all just fade away. Maybe that is the route for me, since it's always been a hobby software, not a professional tool. Now with my newly re-licensed amateur radio hobby, Alibre Design by any name is low on my list of "nice toys to have." Maybe I will renew my "maintenance" subscription, or maybe not. It will depend on the perceived cost-to-benefit ratio... and how much I need to put aside for ham radio stuff. :roll:

73 de AC8NS
Hop

 

[manovermetal]

First time "lapser' here too. Its a bummer that the company is not enthusiastic about the potential of their acquisition. At least I feel like I'm in good company :?

Why did'nt the Alibre owners just license 3ds a copy of the source and branch the product rather than slay the golden goose and confuse the base. What a waste of capitol. The stock devaluation this past year alone has got to e more than the price of the acquisition anyways.
Here's a story of a successful acquisition that ended up with some positive results for the users: http://www.caligari.us/company/missionnew.asp?Cate=About&Subcate=Company&SubV=Mission

Maybe... probably will not be supported in future versions of windows and not up to the latest export standards. Ahhh the benefits of the residual revenue generated from a maintenance plan.

 

[NateLiquidGravity]

Viewed nearly 1000 times since Mar 31, 2014 and still no clarification from Geomagic.

 

[MikeHenry]

I renewed on GMD (the full version) a week or two back and paid $400+sales tax. I'm not sure, but think that the sales tax is a "new" feature, maybe due to a change in the state the home office is in now.

Mike

 

[fitzbond]

I always paid sales tax (GA) but not this year. First time lapses after ten years.