Havn't tried Cinema 4d & thought I'd get that myself, until I checked prices. Even a competitive upgrade from RDS, Carrara or Strata will set you back 1295. I'd sure play with the demo long & hard before choosing. Carrara is OK for the price & perhaps Adobe will improve it. I still think RDS 5.5 is more full-featured but it is an orphan. However, if you can find it for a good (less then 200.00) price I'd go that rout (you could upgrade to Carrara latter. I guess it depends on if your doing 3D for a hobby or for proffession. I use RDS & Carrara for both, but very little for work.