3-D World

There are not many magazines out there for 3d artists, but 3d World more than makes up for it! Pros: Every issue is packed with tutorials (for several major apps like Max, Maya, Photoshop, etc.), classifieds, industry news, and the latest on every 3d app you can think of. Best of all, every issue comes with a CD containing tons of free stuff (like models, textures and full versions of software, along with great demos of other software). Cons: Its a bit expensive, but well worth the cost! Printed in the UK, so some of the classifieds are not relevant if your in the US (although they usually have calssifieds for major companies in the US as well). Go to Books-a-Million and buy one issue to try it out before getting a subscription if your not sure about it because of the cost.

To be clear, this is a review about the Amazon Seller, not the magazine itself. I have read the magazine in the past and find it to be very useful and a quality publication. I placed an order in February and it is almost May now. When I placed the order I wasn't aware that it took 12-16 weeks to start the subscription as it said in the fine print. I am frustrated to find that the estimated shipping date is now reading June, just over 17 weeks from when it was ordered. 17 weeks seems like a ridiculous amount of time to wait for a subscription to begin, so I contacted the seller to ask about it. No reply. If you want my opinion, order from the magazine directly and skip Amazon on this one. I normally love them, but the people they have fulfilling their magazine orders don't seem to care about their clients.

I've spent years browsing through 3D World in bookstore newsstands and liked most of what was presented but I was always taken aback by the price. Six months ago I decided to subscribe to save on per issue price. I have no regrets. In this day and age where Free web articles are copy and pasted into magazines and resold as new, 3D World is still original. So far each issues has managed to deliver solid articles, interviews, and tutorials as well as enlightening angles on related industries. The content on the DVD is top rate so far and does provide valuable content that definitely cuts the cost per copy. For once a magazine is thick because of content - not advertising pages. I'll also not I have not thrown an issue away. I keep the issues and the DVD's for reference. That's a nod to the value in working tutorials + DVD. It's been a very long time since I've saved any issue of any magazine. I'm primarily a Lightwave, Modo, ZBrush, and Vue user. No Autodesk apps in my tool set. With that noted the magazine still offers great value. Still - The cost. It's something that will come up each time renewal comes up. So long as the publisher maintain its integrity on content, it will make it an easier decision to renew.