Blender 4.5 LTS Released (nerds.xyz)
(Tuesday July 15, 2025 @11:30PM (BeauHD)
from the new-and-improved dept.)
- Reference: 0178386784
- News link: https://tech.slashdot.org/story/25/07/15/1912208/blender-45-lts-released
- Source link: https://nerds.xyz/2025/07/blender-4-5-lts-linux-windows-mac-vulkan/
[1]BrianFagioli shares a report from NERDS.xyz:
> Blender 4.5 has [2]arrived and it's a long-term support release. That means users get [3]two full years of updates and bug fixes , making it a smart choice for anyone looking for stability in serious projects. Whether you're a solo artist or part of a studio pipeline, this version is built to last.
Here's a list of [4]key features and changes in this release:
- Vulkan backend replaces OpenGL (faster, smoother UI)
- Adaptive subdivision up to 14x faster with multithreading
- New Geometry Nodes: Camera Info, Instance Bounds
- GPU-accelerated compositor nodes with standardized inputs
- New Boolean solver: Manifold (cleaner, faster mesh operations)
- UV maps visible in Object Mode + improved selection behavior
- Grease Pencil render pass and Geometry Nodes integration
- Improved file import support: PLY, OBJ, STL, CSV, VDB
- Deprecations: Collada, Big Endian, legacy .blend, Intel Mac support
- Cycles OptiX now requires NVIDIA driver v535+
- New shader variants for add-on developers (POLYLINES_*, POINT_*)
~ [5]500 bug fixes across all major systems
[1] https://slashdot.org/~BrianFagioli
[2] https://www.blender.org/download/releases/4-5/
[3] https://nerds.xyz/2025/07/blender-4-5-lts-linux-windows-mac-vulkan/
[4] https://developer.blender.org/docs/release_notes/4.5/
[5] https://developer.blender.org/docs/release_notes/4.5/bugfixes/
> Blender 4.5 has [2]arrived and it's a long-term support release. That means users get [3]two full years of updates and bug fixes , making it a smart choice for anyone looking for stability in serious projects. Whether you're a solo artist or part of a studio pipeline, this version is built to last.
Here's a list of [4]key features and changes in this release:
- Vulkan backend replaces OpenGL (faster, smoother UI)
- Adaptive subdivision up to 14x faster with multithreading
- New Geometry Nodes: Camera Info, Instance Bounds
- GPU-accelerated compositor nodes with standardized inputs
- New Boolean solver: Manifold (cleaner, faster mesh operations)
- UV maps visible in Object Mode + improved selection behavior
- Grease Pencil render pass and Geometry Nodes integration
- Improved file import support: PLY, OBJ, STL, CSV, VDB
- Deprecations: Collada, Big Endian, legacy .blend, Intel Mac support
- Cycles OptiX now requires NVIDIA driver v535+
- New shader variants for add-on developers (POLYLINES_*, POINT_*)
~ [5]500 bug fixes across all major systems
[1] https://slashdot.org/~BrianFagioli
[2] https://www.blender.org/download/releases/4-5/
[3] https://nerds.xyz/2025/07/blender-4-5-lts-linux-windows-mac-vulkan/
[4] https://developer.blender.org/docs/release_notes/4.5/
[5] https://developer.blender.org/docs/release_notes/4.5/bugfixes/
Most importantly, it's awesome and free! (Score:1)
That is all.
Re: (Score:2)
Except.. How can they be awesome if the software won't even run on my Macintosh PC?
The devil's in the fine print that suggests they are dropping x86_64 Mac support.
Deprecations: Collada, Big Endian, legacy .blend, Intel Mac support
Re: (Score:3)
Then just recompile it. Its just a regular old CMAKE system as far as I'm aware (its been a while since I've looked). If the headers for it have been dropped, just patch them back.
Re: (Score:2)
Download link has the x86_64 dmg for this LTS release. Obviously in the future they will be dropping support for x86_64 as Apple themselves drop support. Compiling new software for old, non-supported versions of macOS is a burden.