Autodesk Inventor vs. Proto.io

Autodesk Inventor is well-suited for situations where you are creating 3D models of small, simple parts and assemblies. It is hands-down the fastest and most reliable way to get this done. When you are looking for a software that has many advanced features and controls to create an assembly of 20+ parts, you need to look for other software.

Incentivized

Proto.io is an excellent product for small to medium teams that wants to have a prototyping or wireframing tool that is easy to use, can be used in collaboration with others and will deliver superior results with less efforts than similar options in the market. I think it is not so suited for teams that don't have more complex prototyping needs. In this case, other tools that are even simpler could be a better fit.

Incentivized

• You can make designs (CAD) and you can also manufacture them (CAM) and do not need an interface like Solidworks to recognize it in a CNC.
• Inventor is very easy to use to create realistic, solid designs.
• The software allows you to design and see where problems are in real-time.

Incentivized

• Proto.io is very interactive and fluid. It allows you to design an entire app, including interface between screens.
• It has a very robust library of relevant mobile components.
• The support and help materials for Proto.io make it easy to use this product on your own.

Incentivized

• Inventor demonstrates a lack of fluidity in the process of transferring data between programs.
• Inventor shows some lack of sophistication that certain features that are readily available in other design software packages are limited in use in Inventor.
• Inventor can often have difficulty in creating models that show true color, as in blacks can come out as dark grays in certain renders, even when the material and appearance settings are the same from part to part.

Incentivized

• Would be nice if developers could take the code directly from the program
• Sometime it was hard to click and drag different assets
• Mine crashed one time and I lost a days worth of work

Incentivized

Inventor continues to meet our enterprise needs. I don't see a need to change unless we change our business model significantly.

Incentivized

It is quite user-friendly as long as you have the computing power to download and use it. However, this makes it quite inconvenient if you are trying to access files on different devices, as Inventor has to be loaded on all of those devices. While the program itself works just fine, it would be much better for my application if it, or a version, were web-based and allowed users to access and modify projects from anywhere.

Incentivized

I'm giving the overall support rating a 5 only because I rarely have to use it. Trying to find the answer on the help pages hardly ever helps me because any problem I have is usually too deep for what the help offers. Given the popularity of Autodesk, I have always been able to find an answer online after doing enough looking!

Incentivized

I never had to use Proto.io support.

Incentivized

I got the training during college, so mostly i learned on my own

Incentivized

ANSYS is far more expensive and has a steeper learning curve. Autodesk has many flexible and scale-able licensing options that adapt to our institutional needs and IT infrastructure. Furthermore, it allows our students to have free educational software running in their own personal computers, allowing them to work at home and be more productive with it.

Incentivized

Proto.io is web-based for one, which is a plus - Adobe XD is a desktop application. Adobe XD has some great features, especially for a free product, but from what I experienced Proto.io had way more tools and customization for creating interactive prototypes. Adobe XD is good for building prototypes that go from screen to screen, but Proto.io allows you to get much more detailed with that (every element on the screen can have an interaction).

Incentivized

• We are working toward full engineering integration with Autodesk Inventor. This will remove most of the human error in our current processes.
• Production team is moving away from physical samples to using Autodesk Inventor models. This is a cost savings and helps us manage change better.
• Autodesk Inventor iLogic is allowing us to automate some of our engineering. This is proving to make one job 20% faster to complete with fewer errors.

Incentivized

• Allows for fast demonstration of workflows to stakeholders.
• Is not an expensive tool, so minimal risk in experimenting with it.

Incentivized