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    Overview
    ProductRatingMost Used ByProduct SummaryStarting Price

    Altair Inspire

    Score8.4 out of 10
    N/AAltair Inspire, developed by SolidThinking which was acquired by Altair, is software for Generative Design/Topology Optimization, and rapid simulation solution for design engineers. It is designed to enhance the concept development process by enabling simulation-driven design to increase a product’s efficiency, strength and manufacturability. This can lead to reduced costs, development time, material consumption, and product weight.N/A

    SketchUp

    Score8.4 out of 10
    N/ASketchUp is 3D modeling software with an emphasis on usability. SketchUp is a Trimble product.

    $119

    per year

    Pricing
    Altair InspireSketchUp
    Editions & Modules
    No answers on this topic
    Free
    $0.00
    per year
    For Schools (free with G Suite or Microsoft education account)
    $0
    For Students
    $55.00
    per year
    For Educators
    $55.00
    per year
    Studio for Students / Educators (Desktop version)
    $55
    per year
    Shop
    $119.00
    per year
    Pro
    $299.00
    per year
    Professional
    $299.00
    per year
    Studio (Windows only)
    $699
    per year
    Studio
    $1199.00
    per year
    Offerings
    Pricing Offerings
    Altair InspireSketchUp
    Free Trial
    NoNo
    Free/Freemium Version
    NoYes
    Premium Consulting/Integration Services
    NoNo
    Entry-level Setup FeeNo setup feeNo setup fee
    Additional Details——
    More Pricing Information
    Community Pulse
    Altair InspireSketchUp
    Considered Both Products
    Altair Engineering, Inc.
    No answer on this topic
    Trimble
    No answer on this topic
    Key User Insights
    Would buy again
    No answers on this topic
    96%
    Would buy again
    23 Answers
    Delivers good value for the price
    No answers on this topic
    100%
    Delivers good value for the price
    22 Answers
    Happy with the feature set
    No answers on this topic
    92%
    Happy with the feature set
    22 Answers
    Lived up to sales and marketing promises
    No answers on this topic
    89%
    Lived up to sales and marketing promises
    17 Answers
    Implementation went as expected
    No answers on this topic
    95%
    Implementation went as expected
    18 Answers
    Best Alternatives
    Altair InspireSketchUp
    Small Businesses
    Onshape
    Score6.4 out of 10
    Autodesk Maya
    Score8.4 out of 10
    Medium-sized Companies
    Onshape
    Score6.4 out of 10
    Navisworks
    Score9.1 out of 10
    Enterprises
    PTC Creo
    Score7.6 out of 10
    Navisworks
    Score9.1 out of 10
    All AlternativesView all alternativesView all alternatives
    User Ratings
    Altair InspireSketchUp
    Likelihood to Recommend
    9.0
    (2 ratings)
    8.0
    (47 ratings)
    Likelihood to Renew
    -
    (0 ratings)
    9.0
    (1 ratings)
    Usability
    -
    (0 ratings)
    7.0
    (1 ratings)
    Support Rating
    10.0
    (1 ratings)
    8.5
    (14 ratings)
    User Testimonials
    Altair InspireSketchUp
    Likelihood to Recommend
    Altair Engineering, Inc.
    This software is incredibly intuitive and really does provide a great finished product. The software runs relatively quickly and will usually throw an error right away, which is a nice feature. I didn't use the geometry editing parts of the software, but it looks promising to be able to edit files directly in the program.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Trimble
    SketchUp is great for individually studying options for building design. It is an awesome conceptual tool to be able to quickly model and manipulate a building to study different designs. It is not good for complex geometries, especially curves. Surfaces have a hard time registering and cutting into one another. It also eventually needs to go into Revit to be more realistic as it is not good as a documentation tool
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Pros
    Altair Engineering, Inc.
    • Defining the actuators, pin joints, sliding joints is very easy.
    • Defining a motion sequence is straightforward.
    • The UI tends to make you follow a sequence of steps to be successful in doing a motion simulation and finite element analysis study on a design.
    • The motion simulation results are automatically transferred to the FEA solver.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Trimble
    • Quickly exploring solutions in 3D: We get a lot of "what if" and "what would that look like" questions. While hand-sketching and hand-drafting can be fairly quick, SketchUp allows me to quickly create 3D and 2D views of a detail or solution, change dimensions and materials in a flash, and show a client or installer the plan in minutes.
    • Creating professional design documents in LayOut: Projects of any scale need good documentation. Using a combination of SketchUp and LayOut, I can create a Design Intent Set, plans for permitting, a set for mechanical trades to mark-up, etc. Having clear, appropriately-scaled drawings with dimensions or notations is a must, and we don't always have the time or budget to get an architect involved!
    • Using live files to guide discussions: Not all clients are "visual" people, so opening their model and orbiting around their space in real time has been extremely helpful. Clients and trades enjoy the perspective views so much that we often include them in the full-sized drawing sets to give a good "overall" view of the project intent. For complex or tight spaces, sometimes un-rendered plans and elevations just aren't enough!
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Cons
    Altair Engineering, Inc.
    • I think the tools to create CAD are a bit difficult to use. Consequently, it is now easier to develop the part in other software, which is bad since we need to use more than one tool at a time.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Trimble
    • Ability to import Revit files and libraries.
    • Ability to export true curved vector linework. There are some workarounds, needs to be refined.
    • Create an OPEN MAPS connection. Since the split from Google, the source for high-quality aerials is limited.
    • Ability to dock all menus to the master window on a Mac
    • Ability to develop dockable menu trays on a Mac
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Likelihood to Renew
    Altair Engineering, Inc.
    No answers on this topic
    Trimble
    We typically wait a few years in between renewing, as even older versions are powerful tools for modeling, and we make sure the amount of feature changes are worth the re-investment.
    Read full review
    Usability
    Altair Engineering, Inc.
    No answers on this topic
    Trimble
    It is very user friendly and easy to learn. It's simplicity allows for a low learning curve so more people can learn it faster. The downside is that most schools are no longer teaching it, so many younger professionals come out of school not knowing it and knowing more complex software and they have a hard time "dumbing down" their skillsets
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Support Rating
    Altair Engineering, Inc.
    When I needed clarification on how do use a feature or best way to define the constraints for a design problem, the response was quick and solved my needs.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Trimble
    Sketchup is so intuitive; I can't recall ever looking for official support. However, there are many user forums online that can answer more questions. The usefulness of the online forums is, however, tempered by the fact that there have been many versions of the software under different ownership and support regimes, and thus finding the right information for the right version of the software can be a challenge.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Alternatives Considered
    Altair Engineering, Inc.
    Working Model, MathCad, Dynamic Designer, Algor, and Mathlab had poor UI's and poor ways to define actuator and motor motion profiles. The force results and vectors were not easy to input into the FEA software. SOLIDWORKS Motion does not have an excellent way to define a linear actuator or its motion profile. Altair provides a UI that guides you through defining your linear actuator or motor's motion profile quickly.
    Incentivized
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    Trimble
    We have not evaluated any other competing software to this one. I heard about this software from a friend who teaches how to use it. She showed me in just a few minutes and I was HOOKED. I saw immediately the possible help it would be to my business. Thank you.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Return on Investment
    Altair Engineering, Inc.
    • In my personal opinion, we think that this product does not have any negative aspect that makes us feel very uncomfortable.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Trimble
    • It's good in the sense that you can quickly make a drawing and speeds up the design process. Not sure how to quantify that from a ROI perspective.
    • Also, good for editing an image after the fact. We can easily add a dimension that was forgotten in the original image.
    • Allows team members to understand a design easier than on other software platforms.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    ScreenShots