Balsamiq

[BIG Release] Balsamiq Mockups 3!

Hello friends of Balsamiq! 🙂

Today is a big day for us: after almost a year of heads-down work, we are releasing the biggest update in our little company's history: Balsamiq Mockups 3.

Today we are shipping v.3 on the Desktop and in the Web Demo. The plugins and myBalsamiq will be updated to v.3 as soon as possible (think weeks, not months).

Balsamiq Mockups 3 is both simpler and more powerful at the same time.

The core editing experience should feel very familiar, but we have made what used to be hard simple - single-file projects, using reusable symbols, a more standard editing UI with left and right panels, immediate auto-saving.

We also added powerful features for the experts: tons of new keyboard shortcuts, a new Project Information panel, big performance improvements for large projects, a Trash bin, a hugely more powerful full-screen presentation UI, notes for the Project, Mockups, Assets, Symbol Libraries and Symbols, and the ability to open multiple Project windows at once.

We also gave the app a nice and modern new coat of paint, a new application icon, and even threw in a new huge set of icons at the last minute.

Oh, and we also fixed over 900 bugs while we were at it, because why not. 🙂

Balsamiq Mockups 3 is the culmination of almost a year of really hard work, almost a complete rewrite of our 6-year-old codebase.

In many ways though, this feels like a new beginning: Mockups 3 feels to me like the product I should have built from day one, had I known everything you have taught us in the last 6 years. The new UI also lays the foundation for what’s to come in the future. We have big plans, and we’re certainly not stopping here. In fact, the new codebase will allow us to add things really fast again. We hope you’ll continue to come along for the ride, helping us make Mockups the best it can be for all of us.

So, without further ado, here it is for download: Balsamiq Mockups 3.

We cannot WAIT to see what you’ll do with it.

Some useful links:

• Transition Guide for existing customers - read this one first!
• Download page - note that the new version will run side-by-side with the old version, you don’t need to uninstall anything. As this is a free update for all existing customers, the new version will “suck in” the licensing from the older version automatically. If you are a new user, enjoy the 30 day trial (it used to be 7 days before).
• Introduction to Balsamiq Mockups 3
• Brand New Documentation
• How to import your old projects into Balsamiq 3
• Linux and Account Assets are no longer supported, at least for now. Click on the links to learn more.

We took this opportunity to adjust the pricing of Mockups for Desktop for the first time, mostly to adjust for inflation after all these years. A single Desktop license went from $79 to $89 (full pricing info). Desktop licenses are still tied to you and not a particular machine, you’re free to use the app on any machines you own and use. Balsamiq Mockups 3 also comes with free minor-version updates, so you’ll be able to update to 3.1, 3.2, 3.3...for free. That’s probably a couple of years worth of updates.

When we ship v.4 (which will be native and probably sold via app stores), we’ll try to give existing customers a discount for updating, but we can’t promise anything as we’re pretty far away from that date and things are changing quickly with app stores.

For posterity, today's full release number is 3.0.2.

If you have any questions or find any issues with Mockups 3, you can email us at support@balsamiq.com or head to our new community forums. We're all-hands-on-deck and ready to pounce on any bug you might uncover! 🙂

As always, happy wireframing!

Onward!

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