Blender is Coming to iPad!
This could be a big improvement for 3D workflows.
The Blender Foundation recently announced that they are working on a new Blender build for the iPad. For those who may be unfamiliar with Blender, it is a 3D software popular among 3D artists for modeling, sculpting, and animation. Blender joins several other 3D apps that have already come to the iPad, including Valence 3D, Nomad Sculpt, Morphin (a newer 3D animation app I just recently began testing), and Zbrush.
The developers have said in their official announcement post on the blog that this new build will be a full version of Blender, not a “Blender Lite”. It will be a normal build running underneath, with a more optimized UI design that will be better suited for the iPad and other tablet devices. Elements of this new UI are said to be coming to the desktop version of Blender as well, which could provide some much-needed improvements. Currently, I prefer to use the aforementioned iPad apps (Valence 3D, Nomad Sculpt, and Morphin) because I find their UI designs to be far better than Blender’s. Every time I try to use it for a task, it feels like I’m fighting with the UI to get to the tools I need on a regular basis. It feels like Blender relies on far too many menus and submenus, and not enough quick access toolbars. Hopefully, the new UI for the iPad version will solve some of these issues and make it easier to use. When it drops, I will be interested to test the new design and see if it makes a significant difference in usability or not.
The Blender Foundation has not set a release date yet for the new version, so all we can do for now is speculate about when it will release. My best guess is probably sometime mid to late next year, but we really won’t know until the Foundation gives us more official information about the release timeframe.
While I don’t expect to replace the 3D apps I currently use with an iPad version of Blender, I do think it’s a great step forward for 3D workflows on the iPad, and will benefit many who already rely on it. And if the improvements are compelling enough, I may end up working it into my workflow where it makes sense. One thing is for sure, Blender provides a very large library of tools and features, and having Blender on the iPad will likely be beneficial whether you use it as your primary 3D software or not.
Beyond Blender itself providing benefits to the platform and 3D workflows, I think their porting to the iPad is a good sign for apps on the iPad in general. Blender is a relatively niche and complex app; if it can port over with full functionality to the iPad, I think this signals more yet to come. And as more apps like this port over with full or near-full desktop functionality, it will hopefully convince other developers to treat the iPad as a more desktop-class platform with their apps, rather than arbitrarily restricting their apps’ functionality. I think that at this point, it’s almost inevitable that we will see more desktop apps porting over to the iPad in a similar way. And we’ll likely see more 3D-related apps coming to the iPad as well, to work alongside Blender and fill in more of the gaps in iPad 3D workflows.
With more such apps, the iPad is quickly becoming an even better platform for 3D art and workflows. I will be interested in seeing if and where Blender ends up fitting in my workflow. To me, I think the critical thing here that will impact where it fits in for me is going to be the UI. I’m really hoping it will take cues from other 3D apps such as Valence 3D and Nomad Sculpt. Both of these apps provide a UI that is much more refined, while incorporating lots of functionality, and bringing those features to the surface for faster access. Can they pull that off? We’ll see, for now, we can hope, and from some early mockups, it seems like some things may be improving.