Silhouette Studio V4.1 Available to Download...BUT Not So Fast

After less than two months in closed beta, Silhouette Studio V4.1 has been released in open beta which means anyone has access to the free Silhouette Studio update packed full of bells and whistles.

I'm all about V4.1. I think the new features in Silhouette Studio V4.1 are off the charts.  I think you're going to love it...when it's ready or at least semi-ready. Right now it's not ready (in my humble opinion) and I would strongly suggest you hold off on downloading it.

I also can't help but point this highly anticipated version of the software was released late Friday, as we go into a weekend when Silhouette America's customer support is closed.  Another reason to hold off.

It's so, so tempting though...and that's honestly my fear.
Please keep in mind Silhouette Studio V4.1 is still in beta so it's expected there will be some bugs still to workout. The hope with the 4.1 Open Beta release is a wider pool of users will help pinpoint issues and speed up the process on fixing them ahead of the full release.

There have been great strides in adding new features in V4.1 (not all in standard edition of Silhouette Studio) and I think they're hands-down the most impressive we've seen:

• Exporting as an SVG/JPEG/PDF (Silhouette Studio Business Edition feature)
• Lightening speed start up 
• Conical warp (Designer Edition Plus feature)
• Multi-function undo 
• In-Studio access of font characters and glyphs (Designer Edition feature)
• Send panel overhaul
• Here's the full list of new features in V4.1 

Highly requested fixes following V4.0 - like a revamp of the Send Panel - have been addressed making it much more straight forward and user friendly.

• The Send Panel still needs tweaking especially when using the more advanced features like "Action By: Color/Fill/Layer" 
• The Line Segment Overcut is now in plain view on the Send Panel and easy to find (amen!)

• The Offset tool now works more as you might expect although the incremental distances are still a quarter of an inch when using the default settings. You can, however, type in your own distance and then click Apply (or enter on your keyboard)

For all of the reasons mentioned above, I have a feeling a lot of Silhouette CAMEO users are going to flock to Silhouette Studio V4.1.  These features are reason-enough to (finally) update for many users....but I don't want you to be disappointed by the many issues that still exist - some remaining from V4 and others new in V4.1 - and still need addressing. I also don't want the new features to be overshadowed by the known bugs that have not only already been reported, but ticketed and yet are not yet fixed at the time of this release.

Not to be a negative...but you guys know I like to keep it real.  And for the record, none of this is anything I haven't already provided as feedback directly to Silhouette. So...my main reasoning for recommending against updating to V4.1 right now, while it's in open beta, is this: the bugs from the previous version (V4) haven't been worked out yet, while new features and new bugs are now piled on top of them.

So you may be wondering why I recommend updating to V4 and not V4.1?  Basically V4.0 is far more stable than V3.8 ever was, but at this point it's also a more stable version than V4.1 - just from a bug standpoint.

All that being said we have to keep in mind V4.1 is still in beta... just open beta which means it's now available to anyone who's brave enough to deal with and report the bugs they find to Silhouette America's software feedback team. That's the whole point of open beta...to get a wider sample size to find bugs and fix them more quickly.

Typically that's a good thing - but considering how many of you I know have been itching at the chance to use these new V4.1 features, I want you to go in eyes wide open knowing...

• The new pop up tool is there but quite honestly not super user friendly, intuitive, or consistent.

• The Silhouette CAMEO 3 Bluetooth is still not reliable - more than a year after the CAMEO 3 was released touting the Bluetooth feature  (Lingering issue) 
• There are still library import issues with some users' libraries "disappearing" when updating (Always back up your library before updating) (Lingering issue in V4.0)
• Unpredictably, certain lines within designs are being cut multiple times when the number of passes is set to 1 (this seems to be an issue most often found with print and cut designs) (New V4.1 bug)
• There are still Connection Issues with the CAMEO 3  (Lingering Issue)
• Some users will still find black boxes over thumbnails in their library - (Also issue in V4)
• Pixscan remains iff-y (Lingering issue for some users from V3.8)
• The text to path slider bar is often way off in left field (zoom out to find it if you don't see it) (Lingering from V4.0)

• The rhinestone tool isn't releasing rhinestones correctly and is in fact making rhinestones so frustrating it's not worth using the tool at this time if you need to manually manipulate them at all (New V4.1 issue)

• The highly anticipated Word Art tool was in such need of repair shortly before this open beta release, it has been temporarily removed from Silhouette Studio V4.1 until it can be developed into a tool that's actually useful for Silhouette crafters (new V4.1 issue)
• The Point Editing Simplify tool is actually adding more points, rather than fewer making it difficult, if not impossible to use  (new V4.1 issue)
• The Curio platform recommendations seem to be MIA but really they're just hidden in the "Edit Materials" menu within the Send panel (New V4.1 issue)
• The Save as SVG is not consistently preventing Silhouette Online Store designs from being exported  (New V4.1 issue)

There are other minor issues that, if they were the only ones still awaiting a fix, I would say go-ahead and update to V4.1 even in open beta as they are won't hugely impact most users' experience.  This is not nearly an exhaustive list but here are some examples of minor issues still needing to be addressed: 

• The Magnet Trace tool is still not where it needs to be  (Lingering from V4.0)
• The reminder to flip designs when an HTV material is selected is no long appearing (Lingering from V4.0)

Now after all of that I know some of you will update to Silhouette Studio V4.1..so if you're among them, check out my complete Step By Step Guide to Updating your Silhouette Studio Software to minimize any issues with moving your library, specifically.

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