Best wireless routers to buy in 2013

Posted on 19 Jul 2013 at 09:12

What's the best wireless router around? Find out in our roundup

The wireless router is your gateway to the internet, and the hub of your home network, yet it's probably also the most ignored piece of kit in most people's homes.

If you're struggling for wireless speed, the likelihood is you'll be able to give it a significant boost by upgrading your router. We've rounded up a list of our favourites below.

Asus DSL-N55U

In our recent wireless routers Labs, Asus' flagship router proved the best all-rounder. Designed for use with ADSL connections, it's a concurrent dual-band model offering maximum throughput of 300Mbits/sec in each band. It has two USB sockets for sharing storage and printers, and when it comes to managing and setting up the device, it's one of the friendliest user interfaces around.

All-round performance is this router's strongest suit, though. It scored highly in both our long- and short-range speed tests. With USB storage speeds fast enough to turn it into a basic NAS drive and a very reasonable price, it's an excellent all-rounder.

Read our full Asus DSL-N55U review

Netgear D6300

The Netgear D6300 is one of the most feature-packed consumer routers we've ever reviewed. On the wireless front, it sports the latest 802.11ac standard, rated at up to 1,300Mbits/sec in the 5GHz band, so it's right at the bleeding edge. It also caters for both ADSL and cable connections, so you don't have to buy a new router if you switch broadband providers from BT to Virgin.

There's Gigabit all-round for wired connections, and the web user interface gives access to an impressive array of tools, including Netgear's excellent parental controls, which make it child's play to set up category-based website filtering.

With superb all-round performance from both wireless and USB file transfers, it's the fastest all-round router we've seen. However, that performance comes at a high cost – especially as you'll need to purchase an adapter to make the most of its 802.11ac speeds.

Read our full Netgear D6300 review

Netgear DGND4400

Runner-up in our last wireless routers Labs test, the Netgear DGND4400 offers a similar feature set to its big brother, the D6300, but without the cutting edge 802.11ac technology.

It has both ADSL and cable connections for future-proofing, it offers three-stream wireless connectivity over 5GHz for a top theoretical throughput of 450Mbits/sec, and there are twin USB ports for storage or printer sharing.

We found all-round performance to be sound, with only long-range performance disappointing, and we also liked that Netgear makes it so easy to set up OpenDNS-based parental controls, via its Live Parental Controls system.

The price has gone up since our initial review to around £115 inc VAT, but that's still reasonable for such a top-spec router.

Read our full Netgear DGND4400 review

Edimax BR-6478AC

There can be no better way of getting on the 802.11ac bandwagon than the Edimax BR-6478AC. Since we first reviewed it, the price has dropped dramatically, to the point at which it's now only £111 inc VAT for both the router and the USB 3 adapter you need to make the most of its top 867Mbits/sec speed.

On our test laptop, which has a fast 3x3 spatial stream adapter, we didn't find the new tech made much of a difference, but for more common 2x2 adapters, it will be a bigger leap. We found that performance over 802.11n connections was strong, too, the router's large exterior antennae undoubtedly helping in this regard.

There's currently no cheaper way of migrating to 802.11ac, but that comes at the cost of a limited feature set, with no USB ports for sharing storage or printers anywhere to be seen, and only a WAN port for cable connections.

Read our full Edimax BR-6478AC review

D-Link DIR-845L

If you can find a more unusually shaped router than the D-Link DIR-845L, then we'd like to see it. This cable router looks more like an elongated baked bean tin than a traditional router, with its ports all arranged in a vertical stack at the rear. The reason for the shape is the multi-directional antenna array, which sits snugly inside the plastic body at the top.

The D-Link DIR-845L uses beam-forming technology, which is supposed to focus the signal in the direction of connected devices, wherever they're situated. In our tests we didn't see evidence this made much difference, however, with middling wireless performance in the 2.4GHz band and poor long-range performance in the 5GHz band.

The D-Link DIR-845L's strength is its feature set, which is as broad as they come. It offers concurrent dual-band wireless, and is rated at up to 300Mbits/sec connections across both bands. There's Gigabit all round, a USB socket for sharing storage, and decent parental controls – all at a reasonable price.

Read our full D-Link DIR-845L review

Author: Jonathan Bray

DDR4 is real - but don't hold your breath waiting for it

IDF 2013 The next generation of performance memory could be further away than we thought

By Dave James  September 13th

DDR4 is real. That was the main takeaway from the Intel Developer Forum (IDF) panel discussion on the next-gen memory standard.

The great and the good of the memory industry, from Intel to Micron, were there trying to impress on everyone that the long-awaited successor to DDR3 is actually alive and well.

Though exactly how well it is still remains up for debate.

Server-side first

What isn't though is where it'll turn up first. DDR4 is set to be a server part for the time being with the desktop and notebook variants coming a good while after.

"We expect to see DDR4 in desktops and notebooks maybe a year after the server," explained a representative from Kingston on the show floor. If that's true we should see DDR4 filtering down into our desktop machines sometime in 2015 - memory companies are set to start shipping server-grade memory next year.

Samsung isn't so sure about the move to our desktops though.

It may be some time before DDR4 hits our desktops

Around the corner from the Kingston booth on the IDF floor was the Samsung booth, showing off its own selection of DDR4 modules. I asked if the South Korean company agreed with Kingston in terms of the consumer time frame and its representative was much more sceptical.

Samsung is predicting that DDR4 will most likely not turn up in our own machines until after 2015. That's a long way away and we could well have a very different computing ecosystem by then.

Unanimous benefits

What all the memory companies do agree on though is the benefits of DDR4, and not just in the server space.

"Memory has a pretty big impact on performance, next to the processor it's the fastest component in the system," explained Kingston.

"For DDR4 it's the next step up in speed and it also requires less power. DDR4 starts at 1.2 volt, so right off there you're seeing anywhere between 15-20% savings on power consumption. So for the consumer, that's more battery life, better cooling and better performance."

• Check out TechRadar's memory reviews

There's also the fact we're looking at far higher possible densities in individual modules with DDR4. The last generation of memory ranged from 512Mb up to 8Mb. With DDR4, that's moving up to between 2Gb and eventually 16Gb.

That will enable far higher capacity DIMMs than we can manage right now. We're also looking at around a 50% increase in memory bandwidth moving forward.

But the big factor impacting the transition to DDR4 is going to be price. If the DDR3 market remains tight then that's only going to lengthen the lifetime of the last-gen memory.

Depending on price then, even Samsung's more conservative prediction of the consumer transition to DDR4 could turn out to be rather optimistic.

• Now why not check out IDF 2013: all the latest from this year's conference.

Dell adds a touch of glass to latest 23" and 27" monitors

P2314T and P2714T offer 10-point touch for pawing Windows 8

By Kane Fulton  September 20th

Dell is keeping up its active energy levels in the PC monitor market with the release of three touchscreen panels aimed at homes and offices.

The company has enjoyed something of a resurgence in the market this year. According to market watcher IDC, it shipped 5m units in the second quarter, leapfrogging Samsung for the first time in seven years.

The 19.5-inch E2014T is the first of the three panels, featuring a 1600 x 900-pixel-resolution HD display toting 5-point touch, a 2ms response time and high contrast ratio of 8 million:1.

It also packs an MHL port meaning smartphones and tablets can be connected to the monitor and interacted with using the display. Other connectivity options onboard are DisplayPort, HDMI, VGA and USB.

Two hands

Next up is the P2314T, which ups the size to 23 inches and resolution to 1920 x 1080 pixels. This one gives you full 10-point touch for pawing atWindows 8 (and soon Windows 8.1) with two hands.

It's joined by the HD-toting 27-inch P2714T display. According to Dell, both monitors feature edge-to-edge glass and offer ultra-wide 178-degree vertical and horizontal viewing angles that provide an identical visual experience from various angles.

That's helped by an adjustable stand on the 23- and 27-inch models that let you tilt them up 60 degrees to interact with the screen, and both can be mounted to the wall using Dell's Single Monitor Arm.

The P2314T and P2714T are available now starting at £309 (US$399.99) and £449 (US$619.99) respectively. The E2014T will be available from September 26 starting at £189 in the UK, and is available now in the US for US$229.99.

• Where are all these high DPI PC displays hiding?

Why AMD's new GPU will be the fastest graphics chip ever

IN DEPTH Chip codenamed Hawaii set to monster Nvidia's Titan

By Jeremy Laird  September 24th

AMD's new uber-GPU, codenamed Hawaii and likely to be known as the Radeon R9-290X when it launches next month, might just be the fastest graphics chip the world has ever seen.

That's the latest from the inevitable pre-launch rumour mill.

But even if Hawaii doesn't turn out to be faster than Nvidia's mighty GTX Titan, the fact that it's arriving at all is very good news. It underlines that the race is still on between AMD and Nvidia for the crown of fastest graphics chip and makes the lack of competition in the CPU market even more crushingly obvious than it already was.

The story so far

For the record, what we know about Hawaii goes like this. A senior AMD suitrecently revealed that it remains on the 28nm production process from TSMC. Apparently the new 20nm node isn't ready for full-scale production. Certainly not full-scale production of a very large enthusiast-class GPU.

That same suit also revealed that Nvidia's Titan is still around 30 per cent than Hawaii. If that sounds like advantage Nvidia,well, it still leaves space for a significantly larger and more complex GPU than Tahiti.

• DDR4 is real - but don't hold your breath waiting for it

That's AMD's incumbent bad-boy GPU as found in the Radeon HD 7970. Do the maths and Hawaii should come in well above 400mm2. As for how many stream shaders that equates to, the latest rumours suggest 2,816. AMD's 7970 sports 2,048.

Again, extrapolate out from that shader count, bung in a few further tweaks, maybe a small clockspeed bump, and Bob's your pixel-pumping blood relative on your mother's side. You've got a GPU faster than Titan and nothing imminent due from Nvidia.

Value is relative

What's more, while Hawaii won't be cheap, I doubt it will be priced anywhere near the £800 Nvidia continues to charge for Titans. Go AMD?

• The future of AMD: consoles, tablets and hybrids

Indeed, and like I said it's not actually terribly critical that it actually beats Titan. As long as it's close while being a lot cheaper it will give gamers looking for the best performance a great new alternative.

And that, folks, is the benefit of actual competition in the graphics market. Progress in both performance and bang-per-bang terms.

While all this is going on, Intel has just rolled out its latest so-called flagship CPU, the Core i7-4960X, and it's such a massive disappointment, it probably deserves a stand alone rant of it's own. So, that's what I'll give. Keep your scanners peeled.

• Now why not check out our guide to Intel Haswell: everything you need to know about Intel's latest Core processors

AMD showcases its next generation GPU, the Radeon R9 290X

UPDATED It's been years since AMD's last big PC product announcement

By William O'Neal  September 25th

It's been several years since AMD's last big PC product announcement, but today in Hawaii the company announced several new cards based on their latest GPU architecture.

Having achieved a veritable coup by providing the essential technology underpinning both the Xbox One and PS4, AMD underscored its commitment to PC gaming today with its latest flagship GPU, the Radeon R9 290X.

In addition to the flagship Radeon R9 290X graphics card, AMD announced a top-to-bottom line of graphics cards that it believes offers something for every gamer.

Behold, the Radeon R9 290X

The Radeon R7 250 is an $89 part that boasts 1GB of DDR memory, and according to AMD is able to achieve 3DMark Firestrike scores greater than 2000. The Radeon R7 260X sports 2GB of DDR memory, exceeds 3700 in 3DMark Firestrike and will be priced around $139.

Following the R7 250 and R7 260X are the R9 270X and the R9 280X. The R9 270X is a $199 card replete with 2GB of DDR memory that is capable of exceeding 5500 in 3DMark Firestrike. Finally, there's the R9 280X, a $299 card with 3GB of DDR memory that scores more than 6800 in 3DMark Firestrike.

The stage is set for AMD's new cards

Last night on board the USS Missouri, AMD's Matt Skynner showed off the card. While details are minimal, a few things jump out at us.

AMD shows its cards

Notably, the Crossfire connectors are gone. Crossfire will now be handled via PCI Express. Additionally, the Radeon R9 290X will sport two DVI outputs, a DisplayPort output, and an HDMI output.

A closer look at the card raises more questions than answers.

3D computer graphics software

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

3D computer graphics software refers to programs used to create 3D computer-generated imagery. This article covers only some of the software used.
3D modelers allow users to create and alter models via their 3D mesh. Users can add, subtract, stretch and otherwise change the mesh to their desire. Models can be viewed from a variety of angles, usually simultaneously. Models can be rotated and the view can be zoomed in and out.
3D modelers can export their models to files, which can then be imported into other applications as long as the metadata is compatible. Many modelers allow importers and exporters to be plugged-in, so they can read and write data in the native formats of other applications.
Most 3D modelers contain a number of related features, such as ray tracers and other rendering alternatives and texture mapping facilities. Some also contain features that support or allow animation of models. Some may be able to generate full-motion video of a series of rendered scenes (i.e. animation).

Contents 1 Proprietary software 2 Free software packages 3 Freeware packages 4 Renderers 5 Related to 3D software 6 Discontinued, historic packages 7 See also 8 References 9 External links

Proprietary software

• 3ds Max (Autodesk), originally called 3D Studio MAX, is a comprehensive and versatile 3D application used in film, television, video games and architecture for Windows and Apple Macintosh (but only running via Parallels or other VM software). It can be extended and customized through its SDK or scripting using a Maxscript. It can use third party rendering options such as Brazil R/S, finalRender and V-Ray.

• AC3D (Inivis) is a 3D modeling application that began in the 90's on the Amiga platform. Used in a number of industries, MathWorks actively recommends it in many of their aerospace-related articles^[1] due to price and compatibility. AC3D does not feature its own renderer, but can generate output files for both RenderMan and POV-Ray among others.

• Aladdin4D (DiscreetFX), first created for the Amiga, was originally developed by Adspec Programming. After acquisition by DiscreetFX, it is multi-platform for Mac OS X, Amiga OS 4.1, MorphOS, Linux, AROS and Windows.

• Animation:Master from HASH, Inc is a modeling and animation package that focuses on ease of use. It is a spline-based modeler. Its strength lies in character animation.

• Bryce (DAZ Productions) is most famous for landscapes and creating 'painterly' renderings, as well as its unique user interface. Daz3d has stopped its development and it is not compatible with MAC OS 10.7x or higher. It is currently being given away for free via the daz3d website.

• Carrara (DAZ Productions) is a fully featured 3D toolset for modeling, texturing, scene rendering and animation.

• Cheetah3D is a proprietary program for Apple Macintosh computers primarily aimed at amateur 3D artists with some medium- and high-end features

• Cinema 4D (MAXON) is a light (Prime) to full featured (Studio) 3d package dependant on version used. Although used in film usually for 2.5d work, Cinema's largest user base is in the television motion graphics and design/visualisation arenas. Originally developed for the Amiga, it is also available for Mac OS X and Windows.

• CityEngine (Procedural Inc) is a 3D modeling application specialized in the generation of three dimensional urban environments. With the procedural modeling approach, CityEngine enables the efficient creation of detailed large-scale 3D city models, it is available for Mac OS X, Windows and Linux.

• Cobalt is a parametric-based Computer-aided design (CAD) and 3D modeling software for both the Macintosh and Microsoft Windows. It integrates wireframe, freeform surfacing, feature-based solid modeling and photo-realistic rendering (see Ray tracing), and animation.

• Electric Image Animation System (EIAS3D) is a 3D animation and rendering package available on both Mac OS X and Windows. Mostly known for its rendering quality and rendering speed it does not include a built-in modeler. The popular film Pirates of the Caribbean^[2] and the television series Lost^[3] used the software.

• form•Z (AutoDesSys, Inc.) is a general purpose solid/surface 3D modeler. Its primary use is for modeling, but it also features photo realistic rendering and object-centric animation support. form•Z is used in architecture, interior design, illustration, product design, and set design. It supports plug-ins and scripts, has import/export capabilities and was first released in 1991. It is currently available for both Mac OS X and Windows.

• GPure is a software to prepare scene/meshes from digital mockup to multiple uses

• Grome is a professional outdoor scene modeler (terrain, water, vegetation) for games and other 3D real-time applications.

• Houdini (Side Effects Software) is used for visual effects and character animation. It was used in Disney's feature film The Wild.^[4] Houdini uses a non-standard interface that it refers to as a "NODE system". It has a hybrid micropolygon-raytracer renderer, Mantra, but it also has built-in support for commercial renderers like Pixar's RenderMan and mental ray.

• Inventor (Autodesk) The Autodesk Inventor is for 3D mechanical design, product simulation, tooling creation, and design communication.

• LightWave 3D (NewTek), first developed for the Amiga, was originally bundled as part of the Video Toaster package and entered the market as a low cost way for TV production companies to create quality CGI for their programming. It first gained public attention with its use in the TV series Babylon 5^[5] and is used in several contemporary TV series.^[6][7][8] Lightwave is also used in a variety of modern film productions.^[9][10] It is available for both Windows and Mac OS X.

• MASSIVE is a 3D animation system for generating crowd-related visual effects, targeted for use in film and television. Originally developed for controlling the large-scale CGI battles in The Lord of the Rings,^[11] Massive has become an industry standard for digital crowd control in high-end animation^{[citation needed]} and has been used on several other big-budget films. It is available for various Unix and Linux platforms as well as Windows.

• Maya (Autodesk) is currently used in the film, television, and gaming industry. Maya has developed over the years into an application platform in and of itself through extendability via its MEL programming language. It is available for Windows, Linux and Mac OS X.

• Modo (Luxology) is a subdivision modeling, texturing and rendering tool with support for camera motion and morphs/blendshapes.and is now used in the Television Industry It is available for both Windows and Mac OS X.

• Mudbox is a high resolution brush-based 3D sculpting program, that claims to be the first of its type. The software was acquired by Autodesk in 2007, and has a current rival in its field known as ZBrush (see below).

• NX (Siemens PLM Software) is an integrated suite of software for computer-aided mechanical design (mechanical CAM), computer-aided manufacturing (CAM), and computer-aided engineering (CAE) formed by combining the former Unigraphics and SDRC I-deas software product lines.^[12] NX is currently available for the following operating systems: Windows XP and Vista, Apple Mac OS X,^[13] and Novell SUSE Linux.^[14]

• Poser (Smith Micro) Poser is a 3D rendering and animation computer program optimized for models that depict the human figure in three-dimensional form and is specialized for adjusting features of preexisting character models via varying parameters. It is also for posing and rendering of models and characters. It includes some specialized tools for walk cycle creation, cloth and hair.

• RealFlow simulates and renders particle systems of rigid bodies and fluids.

• Realsoft3D Real3D Full featured 3D modeling, animation, simulation and rendering software available for Windows, Linux, Mac OS X and Irix.

• Remo 3D is a commercial 3D modeling tool specialized in creating 3D models for realtime visualization, available for Windows and Linux.

• Rhinoceros 3D is a commercial modeling tool which has excellent support for freeform NURBS editing.

• Shade 3D is a commercial modeling/rendering/animation tool from Japan with import/export format support for Adobe, Social Worlds, and QuickTime among others.

• Silo (Nevercenter) is a subdivision-surface modeler available for Mac OS X and Windows. Silo does not include a renderer. Silo is the bundled in modeler for the Electric Image Animation System suite.

• SketchUp Pro (Trimble) is a 3D modeling package that features a sketch-based modeling approach which supports 2D and 3D model export functions among other features. A free version is also available that integrates with Google Earth and limits export to Google's "3D Warehouse", where users can share their content.

• Softimage (Autodesk) (formerly Softimage|XSI) is a 3D modeling and animation package that integrates with mental ray rendering. It is feature-similar to Maya and 3ds Max and is used in the production of professional films, commercials, video games, and other media.

• Solid Edge ( Siemens PLM Software) is a commercial application for design, drafting, analysis, and simulation of products, systems, machines and tools. All versions include feature-based parametric modeling, assembly modeling, drafting, sheetmetal, weldment, freeform surface design, and data management.^[15] Application-programming interfaces enable scripting in Visual Basic and C programming.

• solidThinking (solidThinking) is a 3D solid/surface modeling and rendering suite which features a construction tree method of development. The tree is the "history" of the model construction process and allows real-time updates when modifications are made to points, curves, parameters or entire objects.

• SolidWorks (SolidWorks Corporation) is an application used for the design, detailing and validation of products, systems, machines and toolings. All versions include modeling, assemblies, drawing, sheetmetal, weldment, and freeform surfacing functionality. It also has support for scripting in Visual Basic and C.

• Spore (Maxis) is a game that revolutionized the gaming industry by allowing users to design their own fully functioning creatures with a very rudimentary, easy-to-use interface. The game includes a COLLADA exporter, so models can be downloaded and imported into any other 3D software listed here that supports the COLLADA format. Models can also be directly imported into game development software such as Unity (game engine).

• Swift 3D (Electric Rain) is a relatively inexpensive 3D design, modeling, and animation application targeted to entry-level 3D users and Adobe Flash designers. Swift 3D supports vector and raster-based 3D animations for Adobe Flash and Microsoft Silverlight XAML.

• TeoWin (Simsa) is a Spanish application developed for the cabinet industry by the SIMSA company. It's designed for modeling and rendering. Modules are available for production management (cutting list, machining, connection to machine and ERP).

• Vue (E-on Software) is a tool for creating, animating and rendering natural 3D environments. It was most recently used to create the background jungle environments in the 2nd and 3rd Pirates of the Caribbean films.^[16]

• ZBrush (Pixologic) is a digital sculpting and animation tool that combines 3D/2.5D modeling, texturing and painting. It is available for Mac OS X and Windows. It is used to create normal maps for low resolution models to make them look more detailed.

Free software packages

• Art of Illusion is a free software package developed under the GPL.
• AutoQ3D Community is not a professional CAD program and it is focused to beginners who want to make rapid 3D designs. It is a free software package developed under the GPL.
• Blender (Blender Foundation) is a free, open source, 3D studio for animation, modelling, rendering, and texturing offering a feature set comparable to commercial 3D animation suites. It is developed under the GPL and is available on all major platforms including Windows, OS X, Linux, BSD, and Solaris.
• FreeCAD is a full-featured CAD/CAE open source software. Python scripting and various plugin modules are supported, e.g. CAM, Robotics, Meshing and FEM.
• K-3D is a GNU modelling, animation, and rendering system available on Linux and Win32. It makes use of RenderMan-compliant render engines. It features scene graph procedural modelling similar to that found in Houdini.
• KernelCAD is a large component aimed to present CAD as a GUI element for programming engineers. Includes interface to Open CASCADE
• MakeHuman is a GPL program that generates 3D parametric humanoids.
• MeshLab is a free Windows, Linux and Mac OS X application for visualizing, simplifying, processing and converting large three dimensional meshes to or from a variety of 3D file formats.
• CloudCompare is an open source 3D point cloud editing and processing software.
• OpenFX is a modelling and animation studio, distributed under the GPL.
• Seamless3d is a NURBS based modelling and animation software with much of the focus on creating avatars optimized for real time animation. It is free, open source under the MIT license.
• Wings 3D is a BSD-licensed, subdivision modeller.

Freeware packages

• 3DCrafter (previously known as 3D Canvas) is a 3D modelling and animation tool available in a freeware version, as well as paid versions (3D Canvas Plus and 3D Canvas Pro).
• Anim8or is a proprietary freeware 3D rendering and animation package.
• Autodesk 123D is Autodesk's entry into the hobbyist 3D modelling market.
• DAZ Studio a free 3D rendering tool set for adjusting parameters of pre-existing models, posing and rendering them in full 3D scene environments. Imports objects created in Poser and is similar to that program, but with fewer features.
• DX Studio a complete integrated development environment for creating interactive 3D graphics. The system comprises both a real-time 3D engine and a suite of editing tools, and is the first product to offer a complete range of tools in a single IDE.
• Evolver is a portal for 3D computer characters incorporating a human (humanoid) builder and a cloner to work from picture.
• FaceGen is a source of human face models for other programs. Users are able to generate face models either randomly or from input photographs.
• GMax
• Sculptris is a program made by Pixologic it’s a free simple to use program, it is essentially just a beginners version of Zbrush
• SketchUp Free (Trimble) is a 3D modeling package that features a sketch-based modelling approach integrated with Google Earth and limits export to Google's "3D Warehouse", where users can share their content. It has a pro version which supports 2D and 3D model export functions among other features.

Renderers

• 3Delight is a proprietary RenderMan-compliant renderer.
• Adobe Photoshop can import models from programs such as zbrush and 3ds max, it allows you to add complex textures
• Aqsis is a free and open source rendering suite compliant with the RenderMan standard.
• Brazil is a rendering engine for 3ds Max, Rhino and VIZ
• FinalRender is a photorealistic renderer for Maya and 3Ds Max developed by Cebas, a German company.
• FPrime for Lightwave adds a very fast preview and can in many cases be used for final rendering.
• Gelato is a hardware-accelerated, non-real-time renderer created by graphics card manufacturer NVIDIA.
• Indigo Renderer is an unbiased photorealistic renderer that uses XML for scene description. Exporters available for Blender, Maya (Mti), form•Z, Cinema4D, Rhino, 3ds Max.
• Kerkythea is a freeware rendering system that supports raytracing. Currently, it can be integrated with 3ds Max, Blender, SketchUp, and Silo (generally any software that can export files in obj and 3ds formats). Kerkythea is a standalone renderer, using physically accurate materials and lighting.
• KeyShot is 100% CPU-based, realtime ray tracing and global illumination program for 3D rendering and animation that runs on both Microsoft Windows and Macintosh computers.
• LuxRender is an unbiased open source rendering engine featuring Metropolis light transport
• Maxwell Render is a multi-platform renderer which forgoes raytracing, global illumination and radiosity in favor of photon rendering with a virtual electromagnetic spectrum, resulting in very authentic looking renders. It was the first unbiased render to market.^{[citation needed]}
• mental ray is another popular renderer, and comes default with most of the high-end packages. (Now owned by NVIDIA)
• Octane Render is an unbiased GPU-accelerated renderer based on Nvidia CUDA.
• Pixar's PhotoRealistic RenderMan is a renderer, used in many studios. Animation packages such as 3DS Max and Maya can pipeline to RenderMan to do all the rendering.
• Pixie is an open source photorealistic renderer.
• POV-Ray (or The Persistence of Vision Raytracer) is a freeware (with source) ray tracer written for multiple platforms.
• Sunflow is an open source, photo-realistic renderer written in Java.
• Turtle (Illuminate Labs) is an alternative renderer for Maya, it specializes in faster radiosity and automatic surface baking technology which further enhances its speedy renders.
• VRay is promoted for use in the architectural visualization field used in conjunction with 3ds max and 3ds viz. It is also commonly used with Maya and Rhino.
• YafRay is a raytracer/renderer distributed under the LGPL. This project is no longer being actively developed.
• YafaRay YafRay's successor, a raytracer/renderer distributed under the LGPL.

Related to 3D software

• Swift3D is the marquee tool for producing vector-based 3D content for Flash. Also comes in plug-in form for transforming models in Lightwave or 3DS Max into Flash animations.
• Match moving software is commonly used to match live video with computer-generated video, keeping the two in sync as the camera moves.
• After producing video, studios then edit or composite the video using programs such as Adobe Premiere or Apple Final Cut at the low end, or Autodesk Combustion, Digital Fusion, Apple Shake at the high-end.
• MetaCreations Detailer and Painter 3D are discontinued software applications specifically for painting texture maps on 3-D Models.
• Simplygon is a commercial mesh processing package for remeshing general input meshes into real-time renderable meshes.
• Pixar Typestry is an abandonware 3D computer program released in the 1990s by Pixar for Apple Macintosh and DOS-based PC computer systems. It rendered and animated text in 3d in various fonts based on the user's input.
• Machinima is using video capture to record video games and virtual worlds.

Discontinued, historic packages

• Alias Animator and PowerAnimator were high-end 3D packages in the 1990s, running on Silicon Graphics (SGI) workstations. Alias took code from PowerAnimator, TDI Explore and Wavefront to build Maya. Alias|Wavefront was later sold by SGI to Autodesk. SGI had originally purchased both Alias and Wavefront in 1995 as a response to Microsoft’s acquisition and Windows NT port of the then popular Softimage 3D package. Interestingly Microsoft sold Softimage in 1998 to Avid Technology, from where it was acquired in 2008 by Autodesk as well.
• CrystalGraphics Topas was a DOS and Windows based 3D package between 1986 and the late 1990s.
• Evolver was a portal (discontinued in early 2012) for 3D computer characters incorporating a human (humanoid) builder and a cloner to work from picture.
• Internet Space Builder, with other tools like VRMLpad and the viewer Cortona, was a full VRML edition system, published by Parallel Graphics, in the late 1990. Today only a reduced version of Cortona is available.
• MacroMind Three-D was a mid-end 3D package running on the Mac in the early 1990s.
• MacroMind Swivel 3D Professional was a mid-end 3D package running on the Mac in the early 1990s.
• Symbolics S-Render was an industry-leading 3D package by Symbolics in the 1980s.
• trueSpace (Caligari Corporation) is a 3D program available for Windows, although the company Caligari first found its start on the Amiga platform. trueSpace features modelling, animation, 3D-painting, and rendering capabilities. In 2009, Microsoft purchased TrueSpace and it is now available completely free of charge.
• Wavefront Advanced Visualizer was a high-end 3D package between the late 1980s and mid-1990s, running on Silicon Graphics (SGI) workstations. Wavefront first acquired TDI in 1993, before Wavefront itself was acquired in 1995 along with Alias by SGI to form Alias|Wavefront.

See also

	Book: 3D Rendering
Wikipedia books are collections of articles that can be downloaded or ordered in print.

• Comparison of 3D computer graphics software
• 3D data acquisition and object reconstruction
• 3D modeling
• Computer-aided design
• Game development tool
• Game engine
• Level editor
• List of 3D graphics software
• Render farm

References

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2. ^ "Electric Image Animation Software (EIAS) v8.0 UB Port Is Shipping". Retrieved 2009-05-06.
3. ^ "EIAS Production List". Retrieved 2009-05-06.
4. ^ "C.O.R.E. Goes to The Wild". Retrieved 2007-11-23.^{[dead link]}
5. ^ "Desktop Hollywood F/X". Retrieved 2007-11-23.
6. ^ "So Say We All: The Visual Effects of "Battlestar Galactica"". Retrieved 2007-11-23.
7. ^ "CSI: Dallas". Archived from the original on July 16, 2011. Retrieved 2007-11-23.
8. ^ "Lightwave projects list". Archived from the original on 3 June 2009. Retrieved 2009-07-07.
9. ^ "Epic effects for 300". Archived from the original on 23 October 2007. Retrieved 2007-11-23.
10. ^ "Lightwave used on Iron Man". 2008-08-08. Retrieved 2009-07-07.
11. ^ "Lord of the Rings terror: It was just a software bug". Retrieved 2007-11-23.
12. ^ Cohn, David (2004-09-16). "NX 3 – The Culmination of a 3-year Migration". CADCAMNet (Cyon Research). Retrieved 2009-07-01.^{[dead link]}
13. ^ "Siemens PLM Software Announces Availability of NX for Mac OS X". Siemens PLM Software. 2009-06-11. Archived from the original on 25 June 2009. Retrieved 2009-07-01.
14. ^ "UGS Ships NX 4 and Delivers Industry’s First Complete Digital Product Development Solution on Linux". 2009-04-04. Retrieved 2009-06-20.
15. ^ "Solid Edge". Siements PLM Software. 2009. Retrieved 2009-07-01.
16. ^ "Vue Helps ILM Create Environments for 'Pirates Of The Caribbean: Dead Man’s Chest' VFX". Archived from the original on 2008-03-18. Retrieved 2007-11-23.

External links

• 3D Tools table from the CGSociety wiki
• Comparison of 10 most popular modeling software from TideArt