Trial or Evaluation on HoloLens

SketchUp Viewer Windows Mixed Reality
1

Hi,

I’ve got 2 HoloLens and would like to evaluate the Viewer. I can see the Viewer in the HoloLens store, but only option is for purchase, is there a trial available, or could I get an evaluation / beta access. I’m evaluating the solution for a couple clients. I can’t justify purchasing without knowing if it is suitable for our requirements.

2

HoloLens is a Microsoft product. You should pose this question to them.

3

I’ve got 2 HoloLens, it’s the viewing software I’m after. I’m guessing this forum has been setup to support that software

http://extensions.sketchup.com/en/content/arvr-extension

4

Ah! You wrote “I can see the Viewer in the HoloLens store”, which is a Microsoft store not Trimble. But the extension you reference is in the Extension Warehouse and is a Trimble SketchUp staff product. So, this is the right place to ask. Sorry about the confusion.

5

Hi @comblox,

If you haven’t already, please fill out the inquiry form on the SketchUp Viewer landing page (Scroll down to the bottom, then click Get SketchUp Viewer > Team Purchase).

Our sales team will get in touch to help coordinate a demo with you!

Mark

6

Thanks, I hadn’t spotted that.

7

@slbaumgartner We recently launched a new member of the SketchUp Viewer family for the Microsoft HoloLens. The SketchUp Viewer for HoloLens application is sold via the Microsoft Store (note: folks are only able to purchase it if they access the MSFT Store via a HoloLens device).

Our newly launched augmented reality solution also includes an extension for SketchUp desktop, the AR|VR Extension, which is available (for free) via Extension Warehouse.

8

HI Mark,

I see this is an old thread but I’m hoping you can help me. I recently did just what you suggest here and after a two month wait, your team replied that it is not possible to coordinate a demo. Maybe I approached the wrong department?

Thanks,
Nathan

9

Hi Nathan! Generally speaking, our online demos consist of a demo similar to the one below, followed be a q&a session. Unfortunately, as the Hololens is a one person device, it is hard to get the feel of the product any way other than meeting us at a trade show and trying it out. The video, however, does show what can be expected of the software.

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10

Hi Nathan, I didn’t get any luck either, I ended up purchasing it personally to test before making any recommendations to my clients, we would have talking a large number of licenses. It hasn’t really changed in 2 years, which kind of says something, also I didn’t recommend it to my clients then and wouldn’t now. If they made significant improvements and actually started listening to clients then I would possibly change my mind, until then, I really could not recommend it. More than happy to give more detailed feedback to both yourself & the developers.

Just to be clear, I’m talking about the HoloLens Sketchup Viewer here & not the HoloLens, the hardware is still an amazing piece of kit, and for full disclosure I run a Mixed Reality development company, but I would also love to see the Sketchup Viewer become a useful product I could recommend to clients.

Regards
Gareth

1 Like
11

Thanks for your quick response Aaron, much faster than I expected. I’ve seen that video but I really need to see if the viewer will work for my specific process. I’ve already got a Hololens, I’m just looking to download the viewer for a trial. The email I got from Sketchup support tells me this:

"Hi Nathan,

Thanks for the note. My apologies for the extremely late response. Unfortunately we do not currently have the ability to provide a demo license for the SketchUp Hololens Viewer. Please let me know if you have any additional questions about the Hololens Viewer and I’d be happy to help."

That message seems contrary to what was said in this thread about coordinating a demo.

I really can’t drop $1500 on this without trying it. I’m also not sure the standard trade show demo would help much. It might be slightly better than a youtube video but without loading my personal models in the space I’d plan to use it, I can’t make much of an accurate determination.

Maybe I’ll check with Microsoft and see if they can help.

By the way, the HoloLens isn’t necessarily a one person device. One of the things I’m most interested in is sharing my models through multiple connected HoloLenses.

Thanks,
Nathan

12

Thanks Gareth. It’s helpful to know your thoughts on the product and also to hear that there isn’t really a way to try before you buy. I suppose I’ll be waiting a bit to see if the viewer (and the customer support) improves.

Nathan