There’s a minor controversy developing over the Microsoft 3D Builder app.
Microsoft introduced 3D Builder over ten years ago, and it was a revelation for Windows users. The app provided a simple means to create and manipulate 3D models. That was quite desireable for those unable or unwilling to learn or pay for more comprehensive products.
Better yet, it was easily accessible to any Windows user by simply downloading the app from the Microsoft Store.
But now you cannot, according to multiple reports online.
Is this true? I started up a Windows system and headed to the Microsoft Store app. There, I searched for 3D Builder and was unable to find it! Instead I was presented with a variety of other 3D-ish apps.
A web search revealed the Microsoft Store page for 3D Builder, and the app seemed to be present in the store. As you can see, it did have a download button.
When clicking on the download button, Windows then wanted to open the Microsoft Store app, and there it showed the 3D Builder page after all.
However, there was no way to download the app.
It seems that Microsoft may have abandoned this once popular app.
A discussion thread on Microsoft Answers shows a number of frustrated users looking for 3D Builder. One responder suggested finding it on alternative download sites — sites that are not Microsoft.
This may be possible, but quite risky, as apps downloaded from uncertified sites may very well include any kind of malware. This is not recommended.
So it seems that Microsoft 3D Builder is effectively dead. What can you do instead?
The good news is that there are multiple options for easy handling of 3D models. Many slicing tools offer some of the functionality of 3D Builder directly in the job preparation window, for example.
For 3D model creation, the go-to choice would likely be Tinkercad, which offers a simplified web interface to developing decent 3D models. It’s used by many.
Another free alternative would be Blender, but that is a far more comprehensive system that “includes everything”, and is perhaps beyond the capacity for many folks to learn.
Why would Microsoft abandon 3D Builder? It may be that they no longer see the bright future that was predicted when it emerged over ten years ago. Back then people literally thought that there would soon be 3D printers in every home. If that were the case, then it would make sense for Windows to include a 3D tool.
But that didn’t happen, and perhaps 3D Builder didn’t make sense to Microsoft anymore.
Via Microsoft Store and Microsoft Answers
