Altium Develop
Altium, IncReviews from AWS customer
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A tool which works, fast
What do you like best about the product?
PCB layout process is especially smooth for me. It's hard to summarise such a complex process, but I will try to list a few processes which I find especially satysfying when using Altium ( I am using version 25)
- Amazing support for .step 3D bodies. Visualising the fit of components is extremely easy on tight boards. Never having to worry about having an "exceedingly complex" step file - the speed of rendering is great. Positioning even the most awkward 3D bodies is easy using the "snap points" feature.
- "Work guides" feature makes positioning pads within a footprint easier. For some reason, footprint drawings in the datasheets seem to be drawn by people who never had to create one. Why give dimensions to the edge of the pad, not the centre? Pads are always placed by the centre. Anyhow, work guides go a long way towards solving this issue, as it's easy to visually alight the edge of a newly placed pad to the work guide. Presto.
- Draftsman tool makes generating quality assembly drawings a breeze. It takes a few clicks, and it looks great. Get massive kudos from manufacturing colleages who are used to old-skool documentation generated from Gerber layers
- Routing is generally very smooth, including differential pairs. Push-and-shove is brilliant. xSignals are really valuable too for complex, impedance- and length-controlled designs.
- The repeatable output generation using Output jobs is a massive time saver. The degree of customisation of the output leaves not much to be desired
- Custom queiries in Design Rules allow almost infinite degree of precision when specifying pretty much every aspect of the design
- Powerful library model allows each company to find a level of complexity/simplicity of library organisation which suits their size and style of working, from simple file-based to database-based
There will be lost of other positives, these are just the ones which stand out. The quality of documentation is generally brilliant, which makes it fast and easy to upskill and become productive, fast.
- Amazing support for .step 3D bodies. Visualising the fit of components is extremely easy on tight boards. Never having to worry about having an "exceedingly complex" step file - the speed of rendering is great. Positioning even the most awkward 3D bodies is easy using the "snap points" feature.
- "Work guides" feature makes positioning pads within a footprint easier. For some reason, footprint drawings in the datasheets seem to be drawn by people who never had to create one. Why give dimensions to the edge of the pad, not the centre? Pads are always placed by the centre. Anyhow, work guides go a long way towards solving this issue, as it's easy to visually alight the edge of a newly placed pad to the work guide. Presto.
- Draftsman tool makes generating quality assembly drawings a breeze. It takes a few clicks, and it looks great. Get massive kudos from manufacturing colleages who are used to old-skool documentation generated from Gerber layers
- Routing is generally very smooth, including differential pairs. Push-and-shove is brilliant. xSignals are really valuable too for complex, impedance- and length-controlled designs.
- The repeatable output generation using Output jobs is a massive time saver. The degree of customisation of the output leaves not much to be desired
- Custom queiries in Design Rules allow almost infinite degree of precision when specifying pretty much every aspect of the design
- Powerful library model allows each company to find a level of complexity/simplicity of library organisation which suits their size and style of working, from simple file-based to database-based
There will be lost of other positives, these are just the ones which stand out. The quality of documentation is generally brilliant, which makes it fast and easy to upskill and become productive, fast.
What do you dislike about the product?
It mostly "just works", however there are some small niggles (as with any products). The ones I specifially came across are:
- Sometimes the design rules don't seem to work quite right with custom queries. For example, trying to create a rule to ignore supposedly interfering components don't always work. Specifically, if one creates a "Component clearance" rule, "where the first object matches" X and "where the second matches" Y, and set the minimum vertical and horisontal clearances to 0, it's meant to be a canonical way of ignoring a collision. However, it's a guess whether the "collision" will actually be igonored - more often than not I find the rule just does not work unfortunately, even with the priority set right.
- Another example of seemingly awkward/unworkable rule seems trying to ignore an unconnected class of polygons. I have a design where I have a few unconnected (no net) polygons underneath the switching inductors to prevent magnetic field from coupling onto the rest of the place. Altium correctly marks them as an "un-routed net", however I've not found a way to create a rule under "un-routed net" category to ignore them. Further on that point, the same query, "InPolygonClass('L3_unconnected')" works in PCB filter but does not work in the rule dialog. More consistency would be great.
One can always waive the resulting violations, but that does not convey the design intent as well.
- My colleagues and I found that sometimes the track length calculation ignores small segments of the track on a certain layer. This is potentially a big problem when trying to precisely tune/match track length.
-Very occasionally, Altium hangs with a memory violation error or some such error. I guess it's mostly inevitable for a product of such complexity, but it's still a bug!
- Sometimes the design rules don't seem to work quite right with custom queries. For example, trying to create a rule to ignore supposedly interfering components don't always work. Specifically, if one creates a "Component clearance" rule, "where the first object matches" X and "where the second matches" Y, and set the minimum vertical and horisontal clearances to 0, it's meant to be a canonical way of ignoring a collision. However, it's a guess whether the "collision" will actually be igonored - more often than not I find the rule just does not work unfortunately, even with the priority set right.
- Another example of seemingly awkward/unworkable rule seems trying to ignore an unconnected class of polygons. I have a design where I have a few unconnected (no net) polygons underneath the switching inductors to prevent magnetic field from coupling onto the rest of the place. Altium correctly marks them as an "un-routed net", however I've not found a way to create a rule under "un-routed net" category to ignore them. Further on that point, the same query, "InPolygonClass('L3_unconnected')" works in PCB filter but does not work in the rule dialog. More consistency would be great.
One can always waive the resulting violations, but that does not convey the design intent as well.
- My colleagues and I found that sometimes the track length calculation ignores small segments of the track on a certain layer. This is potentially a big problem when trying to precisely tune/match track length.
-Very occasionally, Altium hangs with a memory violation error or some such error. I guess it's mostly inevitable for a product of such complexity, but it's still a bug!
What problems is the product solving and how is that benefiting you?
Producing quality PCB's fast. Drafsman tool in conjuction with Variants is very useful for any real-life product which need correct production variant management and quality assembly instructions.
Altium saves time in my work
What do you like best about the product?
The company has upgraded from PADS to Altium and this feels like buying a Ferrari.
Differential pair routing and multi-layer board design using layer stack managet has helped us get through EMC testing.
ActiveBOM is a fantastic feature in assisting with REACH/RoHS requirements.
Tool is very esay to use and is intuitive, great integration with manufacturer part seach and schematic design.
There are lots of guide videos with good commentary.
I now use Altium pretty much every day and happy to continue doing so.
I like that there are frequent software updates.
Differential pair routing and multi-layer board design using layer stack managet has helped us get through EMC testing.
ActiveBOM is a fantastic feature in assisting with REACH/RoHS requirements.
Tool is very esay to use and is intuitive, great integration with manufacturer part seach and schematic design.
There are lots of guide videos with good commentary.
I now use Altium pretty much every day and happy to continue doing so.
I like that there are frequent software updates.
What do you dislike about the product?
So far we have not seen any issues with Altium.
What problems is the product solving and how is that benefiting you?
With the help of Altium Designer, we have redesigned the PCB as 6-layer board with differential pairs of matched impedance. These changes helped in passing the EMC testing, resulting in product launch on the market.
Altium Designer's API with major component suppliers and IHS market help a lot during component selection process. We save a ton of time now, as pretty much every component that is needed has REACH and RoHS information, which helps us in making the decesion on whether the component can be used or not in the early stage of the deisng.
Altium Designer's API with major component suppliers and IHS market help a lot during component selection process. We save a ton of time now, as pretty much every component that is needed has REACH and RoHS information, which helps us in making the decesion on whether the component can be used or not in the early stage of the deisng.
The choice of a new generation of engineers
What do you like best about the product?
Since the time when Altium was a local program, engineers knew that this design software had the potential to surpass all existing programs. In my case, I started using the local version of Altium, not Altium 365, but I was already satisfied with its powerful manufacturer component search feature and the integration of the PCB editor. However, after using Altium 365, I was amazed by how much faster I could access and use the same features from anywhere on the cloud, further accelerating the design process. On top of that, I could also enjoy the excellent remote customer service that Altium is known for, as well as the seamless implementation with design file standards from other companies. Since switching to Altium 365, my usage frequency has significantly increased compared to when I was using the local version, probably because I no longer have to wait through long loading times.
What do you dislike about the product?
Aside from the fact that it is more expensive compared to other cloud-based EDA tools, there is nothing else. However, I can confidently say that the features and convenience of Altium 365 more than justify its high price. If your organization adopts this, you will likely achieve at least a 20% reduction in design time compared to the current process.
What problems is the product solving and how is that benefiting you?
The biggest advantage is that it’s not on my computer. Altium is a quite heavy program. Although it supports multi-core processing, it still has long loading times and occasional instability on regular computers. However, since I started using Altium 365, these basic issues have disappeared. Additionally, taking advantage of the ability to access it from anywhere, I was able to complete the assignments given by my professor regardless of location.
Altium has expedited my design time and helped me improved overall signal integrity.
What do you like best about the product?
The high speed signal features (length tuning and xSignals) is incredibly helpful. The mCAD integration has also been a major key in designing successful test fixtures and product enclosures.
What do you dislike about the product?
Major revisions to a PCB can be hectic when intially updating the PCB. Parts will be get scattered around the board and placed in incorrect places.
What problems is the product solving and how is that benefiting you?
It has allowed us to design custom bed of nail test systems by utilizing the mCAD tools.
Productivity and collaboration greatly improved
What do you like best about the product?
Highly customizable design rules and checks, 3D views, and Draftsman documents are all great.
What do you dislike about the product?
Learning curve is steep but it is very powerful once you become proficient.
What problems is the product solving and how is that benefiting you?
I was unable to reliably design flex and rigid-flex boards with my previous software. Altium has these types of designs in mind and makes them quite easy.
The best electronic cad ever!!!
What do you like best about the product?
Ease of use, very intuitive menus and controls
What do you dislike about the product?
the cost of the annual subscription, I prefer the perpetual license solution
What problems is the product solving and how is that benefiting you?
creates 3D PCBs that are very useful for interfacing with mechanical CAD
I am a student with moderate PCB design experience, and I'm loving Altium.
What do you like best about the product?
I am able to use the project viewer to view my boards on the web when I'm using my Mac and don't have access to my PC. This is extremely helpful for assembly and debugging when I am often at school with only my mac. I also love the ActiveBOM which makes integration very easy, as well as managing part ordering.
What do you dislike about the product?
My customer support experience has not been the best, especially the live chat AI support. I had issues renewing my student license, and it took some back and forth creating a ticket to only find out that I was contacting the wrong team at Altium. Eventually my problem was resolved, but this process can definitely be made more clear online.
What problems is the product solving and how is that benefiting you?
I manage the PCB designs for my student club, and we have limited access to funds. Being able to compare costs of components and sources is very helpful for managing our funds. We are also able to work collaboratively on boards which was impossible before switching to Altium.
Great Tool for PCB Design
What do you like best about the product?
I like Altium 365 because it’s easy to create and edit library components, and the project and library management tools are great for handling complex designs. The PCB layout editor is smart and customizable, and the 3D view helps with visualizing the board and checking it against enclosures. I also appreciate the ability to create custom project templates, which saves time when starting new designs. It’s relatively easy to implement, and I can use it almost every week for various PCB designs. The integration with other tools works well, though sometimes there are small issues when importing or exporting files.
What do you dislike about the product?
It can be slow to start up and access files, especially on a network. Some of the default settings, like the connection matrix, create unnecessary warnings that make it harder to spot real issues. The Bill of Materials feature takes a while to generate and needs to be updated if changes are made to the schematic. The software can slow down when working with larger designs, and although it integrates well with third-party components, sometimes there are issues with different footprints or symbol standards.
What problems is the product solving and how is that benefiting you?
Altium 365 helps me design PCBs more efficiently with its intuitive tools and better project organization compared to other software. The ability to create custom project templates saves me time, and the 3D view and layer customization make it easier to visualize and fit-check my designs. The visualization also allows me to see where the heat-sensitive components are and where to place things like fans, helping to avoid errors in heat management and improving the overall design process.
the best Software i used in PCB design
What do you like best about the product?
Altium integrates al aspects of PCB Design into one single interface
What do you dislike about the product?
the vast number of features can be overwehlming for Begginers
What problems is the product solving and how is that benefiting you?
Avionic
New user
What do you like best about the product?
The integration of Schematics and CAD (PCB) works well.
What do you dislike about the product?
Tried using the Harness feature and I was not too successful. May be because I am still a novice with Altium Designer.
What problems is the product solving and how is that benefiting you?
I was able to bring the PCB Design inhouse.
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