bit-tech Shopping: IMSI Floorplan 3D v11 (Full Product)

• Microsoft Windows 2000 Professional
• Microsoft Windows XP
• Microsoft Windows XP Professional

Rating: 10

Time with product: 1 Year

Strengths: 1,001 Customizable Home Plans, Adjustable Lighting, 3D Rendering

Weaknesses: Somewhat simplified appearance.

Summary: I bought this program free after rebate, so it was worth a try. The best part is all the customizable floor plans it has to look through (1001 total). It will even give estimation costs of your house projects. Another nice feature is that you can adjust where lighting will be in the rooms to see how the rooms will light up. Part of that includes how sunlight will come in through the windows. It also has 3D walkthroughs of the house/projects you design. And if you're into remodeling, you can customize all sorts of furniture, cabinets, etc. from the included templates (1,900 pre-drawn 3D symbols). The only drawback is that it is simplistic in appearance...doesn't have a lot of advanced texturing. Definitely not "photorealistic rendering". But it's a pretty nice "basic" program for seeing what your "dream house" would look like.

Rating: 8

Time with product: 1 Month

Strengths: Comprehensive, totally customizable, 2D or 3D display

Weaknesses: Steep learning curve, "Photorealistic View" is graphics-intensive.

Summary: This is a powerful program, with lots of features, but it does take time to master. To give you an idea of how much is packed in this software, the user manual is just shy of 200 pages of double-column fine print. My advice is to start with one of the pre-formatted templates and try out the various features that you are interested in, before doing it for real on your dream house (or a modification to your existing house). What I did was replicate my existing house and then try out different "what-if's". You can insert furniture and appliances into the rooms, add landscaping and then see what it looks like in 3D view, even with various "time-of-day" lighting effects. Change the viewing angles, and you can do a virtual "walk through" of the property! Then, when you have it the way you want, you can create a materials list and price it out. All in all, a very complete product, useful for both homeowners and contractors.

Rating: 8

Time with product:

Strengths: Lots of features to explore.

Weaknesses: Complicated to get started for beginners.

Summary: FloorPlan 3D Design Suite V11 is a good program for the average person who wants to spend time trying different designs to see what they look like before they arrive at the perfect house design. I am not a vivid user of this type of software, but thought it would be fun to try and it can keep my wife busy too. It requires time and energy to learn. I got it free after rebate. This is an excellent product, and will do a lot if you take your time to learn it. Good price for all it will do.

Rating: 8

Time with product: 2 Months

Strengths: Lots of features, great price for "playing around" at home

Weaknesses: Complicated to get started

Summary: I bought this primarily for my wife to play around with in her design projects. While it had many features and seems like a nice product, it was too daunting for her to get started. So, unfortunately, it didn't meet my primary goal for it. (Thus, I've taken away a star in the rating.) However, as a product, it seems quite good as long as you are willing to work through the learning curve to get started.

Rating: 8

Time with product: 60

Strengths: unique features like the ability to add lighting, furniture, artwork, colors and textures. A detailed user guide.

Weaknesses: by nature these programs can get bit complicated for beginners, but with usage it gets better

Summary: I bought this cheap from BUY.com without much expectations, but I was pleasantly surprised with its features like the ability to add lighting, furniture, artwork, colors and textures. It has a intuitive navigation and well thought-out design. I am still learning to use this software, as these can get a bit complicated. Overall I am quite impressed, and think it is a good program for home re-modellers with a little bit of software / computer experience.