CINEMA 4D press comments

DOS 2/97

Test winner
Issue 2/97, pp. 88-89

"Cinema 4D is so powerful; semi-professionals at least could not wish for more"

CHIP 12/96

CHIP Product of the Month
Issue 12/96, pp. 180-181

"Chip opinion:
The ease of use, the many functions as well as the extremely quick and robust raytracer make CINEMA 4D a top product"
"very user-friendly"

DOS international - DIP

Cinema 4D: Breakneck-speed raytracer

"Until now, to generate these types of animations you needed either very expensive hardware and software, or you had to accept render times taking hours. The 3D modelling, raytracing and animation program that is Cinema 4D also offers deliver speed at a favourable price. The software does require 32-bit architecture, but is modest in terms of performance or RAM requirements: 32MB RAM is sufficient, even for scenes with far in excess of 100,000 surfaces."

On a 486, Cinema 4D took merely 17 minutes to render an animated chess game comprising 76 individual frames. (Other programs take several hours for this calculation.)"

"Summary: Cinema 4D is the ideal software for multimedia product catalogues, animated scenes, films, computer games and 3D visualisations of technical devices or buildings."

PC professionell

Into the fourth dimension
Issue 12/96, p. 64

"Modelling, raytracing and animation software of exceptional quality"

"Summary: The modelling, animation and raytracing software is enormously powerful, even on a modest configuration."

DOS international - DIP-News

"... The program impresses through short render times. Further strengths are outstanding export and import functions (including three DFX formats), very good anti-aliasing (edge smoothing) and realistic lighting effects ..."

Mac Magazin & Mac easy

Render-Racer
Issue 2/97, p. 61

"Cinema 4D, the newcomer from Germany, redefines the 3D scene."
"...the program belts along even on a moderately equipped PowerPC Performa, leaving you speechless."
"Cinema 4D should satisfy even the user with high expectations."

MacWEEK

Issue 16, December 1996

(Quotation following the announcement of the English Cinema 4D version:)
"The renderer smokes", said Sean Safreed, Apple QuickDraw 3D product manager, who has seen the German version. I was able to get full-screen ray-traced images in seconds"

MacWelt

Issue 1/97, p.100

"Modern Concept
The programmers have given CINEMA 4D everything that is good and progressive: a modular design, a super quick raytracer, every animation refinement, multiprocessing and multithreading support, previews in real-time, as well as Quickdraw-3D and Quicktime VR functions ... There are abundant modelling functions."

"Summary:
CINEMA 4D is a new, recommendable product, whose accessibility soon leads to a feeling of achievement. And there is a lot in reserve for the professionals, particularly with regards to animations and rendering. The documentation is not only German, but also well written, thus a quick familiarisation and success are certain"

Rating: very good/outstanding (4.5/5 mice)

Mac Magazin

Front-runner
Issue 1/97

"CINEMA 4D is truly impressive, and its enormous range of functions and high speed are captivating. Till now, one dared not even dream of such speed."

"One of CINEMA 4D's strengths is the physically precise and extremely realistic calculation of every light phenomenon in record time. Those with multiprocessor machines no longer have a chance to get to the coffee machine. Rendering animations at these speeds is great fun."

"CINEMA 4D naturally offers all that the competition can ... what set's the program apart from its competitors are completely different things.
... diverse optical effects ... lens reflections ... visible light or fog without incurring expense ... blurring for realistic looks ... the object manager makes for considerable simplification when working with complicated scenes ..."

"You can work fluently in the object editor using real-time shading, even on a moderately equipped Power Mac.
The true power of CINEMA 4D is most apparent with raytracing proper. In this mode, the program attains speeds that, until now, you dared not even dream of. An enormous advantage, which becomes very noticeable with animations - there is nothing that you couldn't animate in CINEMA 4D."

Rating:

Use: 4/5
Manual: 4/5
Functions: 5/5
Price: 3/5
Overall: 4/5

MacWelt

TeamWork - Multiprocessing - the next leap in performance.
(Report on multiprocessor applications)
Issue 12/96, pp. 100-103

"On the software side, Adobe Photoshop 3.0.5 and the CINEMA 4D render engine profit the most."

Single-CPU 2-CPU 4-CPU
Photoshop 100% 162% 238%
CINEMA 4D 100% 177% 346%
After Effects 100% 131% 156%

"In general, one can expect an average speed increase of about 160% on two-processor systems and about 200% on four-processor systems."

"...we witnessed the most extreme acceleration when rendering an animation with the multiprocessing beta-version of CINEMA 4D. The nigh-on 500% increase (Daystar Genesis in comparison to Mac 9500) astonishes us.

"The developer of xxxxxxx (other 3D program), for example, cut out the MP acceleration for Phong shading in the beta 3 of the MP version. According to an employee, there were "too many difficulties"".

MacWorld Schweiz

Issue 12/96, p.16

"Quick, complete range of functions, photo-realistic render effects, fully-realised animation features."

"....mass of functions, unique in this price range ... no wishes are left open. Not only have 3D modelling, rendering and animation been mastered, there are also possibilities which provide for truly photo-realistic results and natural movement. For raytracing the final picture, you will find options one hoped in vain would appear in other products, such as soft shading or blurring ..."
"In addition to this, all operations, from modelling up to the calculation of animations, execute at astonishing speeds, a significant factor with time and processing-intensive tasks. The direct comparison is not easy due to the differing qualities, but CINEMA 4D seems a long way in front of the competition, both in terms of picture calculations within the editor and when raytracing."

"...fascinating possibilities await you after a short training period"

"Its features, in terms of modelling as well as rendering and animation, are clearly greater than the competition in its price class. And on top of that is the speed, which itself can be described as breath-taking. Those who really know what three dimensional graphics is all about can scarcely avoid CINEMA 4D."

Rating :5/6

MacOPEN

Issue 12/96
CINEMA 4D
Render speed not down to sorcery!

"There are already plenty of three-dimensional modellers available. But space soon appears when the users tire of waiting minutes, hours or even days for a single rendered picture, yet alone animations. CINEMA 4D, a classy 3D modelling, raytracing and animation program currently available for the Power Macintosh and Windows NT/95, proving that things can after all go much faster."

"Render results of absolutely professional quality"

"The finished animation sequence can be observed at any time in the editor."

"It is easy to find your way about the program within a short time - this is not least of all thanks to the excellent accompanying manual."

Positive:
high speed
full range of functions
many special effects built into the program
comprehensive import and export support

Negative:
-

Rating: "very good"

MacForum ARCHITEKTUR und Gestaltung

Issue 4/96

"In general one is inclined to assume that the cards have been dealt so far as 3D rendering and animation programs are concerned. It is a joy to learn that one was perhaps wrong. CINEMA 4D, from the German firm MAXON Computer based in Eschborn, turns out to be a real discovery."
"impressive speed ... modelling in real-time ... The adaptive raytracer convinced us with its speed and render picture quality ..."

invers
The magazine for digital typography, picture processing and computer publishing.

Issue 11/96, pp.10-14
Rendering in the fast lane

"... The render results are of an absolutely professional quality."

"Summary:
Under testing, CINEMA 4D proved itself well up to the task. Not only did the comprehensive speed astound us, but also its enormous functionality and the robustness of the code.
Whether CINEMA 4D goes on to stake its claim in technical illustration; in film studios; in product design; in architecture or in game designing, it is an exceedingly worthwhile investment for all applications, especially in view of the fantastically short production times. Bull's eye!"

PC-VIDEO

Issue 2/96, Workshop

"Rating:
Powerful 3D program
Versions for PC, Apple, Amiga
comfortable interface
quick render times"

VIDEO recommendation
Highest rating (5/5 stars)

SAT 1

22/11/96

"Test Rating: CINEMA 4D offers features which are only known in the 5000 DM price range. In addition, the software is quick, easy to use and features the latest technology. This powerful program is suitable for both professionals and beginners. All along the line CINEMA 4D impresses throughout.

Rating: "very good"